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Sooner or later, the Red Sox balloon was bound to burst. No franchise could be expected to sustain such a draining and taxing regimen for so long a time.

For a decade and a half, the Yankees and the Red Sox have been in a club by themselves. But the Tigers, the Rangers and the Angels are knocking on the door to superpower status.

It's time for a good long look at what Theo Epstein has wrought in Boston in the wake of the Red Sox's September collapse. One writer says the view isn't pretty.

A guilty verdict on one of the charges against Barry Bonds means baseball's worst nightmare is one step closer to becoming a reality: The game's greatest players are discrediting it.

It's always a harbinger of hope, sure. But in this year's mixed-up, locked-out sports world, baseball's Opening Day is something else, too. It's shelter from the storm.

It's always a harbinger of hope, sure. But in this year's mixed-up, locked-out sports world, baseball's Opening Day is something else, too. It's shelter from the storm.

Bud Selig talks about parity, but winter moves shift the power in baseball even more firmly to the east. A salary cap or other equalizing measure would limit the ability of its biggest, most watched teams to dominate.

Red Sox's true feelings on David Ortiz will become clear after the season.

Chronicle of David Ortiz's start shows player struggling with baseball mortality.

The Red Sox-Yankees opening act sets the season's storylines in motion.

The names and fortunes of the Yankees and Red Sox may change, but a new season renews the biggest rivalry in baseball, Howard Bryant writes.

The years between 2000 and 2009 should be called the decade of the fan in sober acknowledgement of the ultimate victory of the dollar in sports, writes Howard Bryant.

From 2003 to 2007, the Red Sox were legendary. But that team as we knew it is a memory now.

David Ortiz has moved on from the PED scandal, but larger questions still remain.

David Ortiz had said all the right things. He wanted us to believe he was different from the rest. Now, it appears he's one of them.

When Howard Bryant wrote about David Ortiz's power slump and didn't mention steroids, readers reacted with surprise. So a question arises: Has the relationship between fans and the game finally reached a tipping point?