The Yankees and Red Sox, alone, have 16 players who will earn at least $9
million in salary next season. The rest of the AL East division has just
three players with that distinction.
It was Red Sox president and CEO Larry Lucchino who dubbed the Yankees the
"Evil Empire" in 2002. And as recently as 2005, the gap between the two
clubs' single-season payrolls was nearly $85 million