Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals among the best rivalries in baseball

 The Major League Baseball season kicks off this weekend. First, the Yankees tangle with the Rays at noon, followed by the Giants visiting Arizona.  The final game of the night is the Cubs against the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals rivalry has been a staple of baseball for many, many years.  No matter how bad or good either team is, they both show up and bring it every single night.  Especially recently, with how good the Cubs have gotten so quickly, these games have kicked up a lot more meaning.

Overall in the series, the Cubs are 50 games up on the Cardinals, with a 1,197-1,147-19 record at the end of the 2015 season, that’s according to the Chicago Tribune.  The Cubs have won the season series the past two years, and that includes a victory in the 2015 National League Division Series, which the Cubs won in four games.

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From a fan perspective, these two fan bases do not like each other, and both fan bases want to beat the other team, badly.  Amongst the teams on the field, it is a very respectful rivalry.  Both teams know what the games mean to the fans, and so they give it their all and put on some very entertaining baseball, these are must see games.  Plus, with all the players each team has “stolen” over the recent years, Jason Heyward and John Lackey to the Cubs, and Dexter Fowler to the Cards.  These should be fun games again this year.

Giants-Dodgers

This is a longstanding rivalry and a one that has been very fun in recent years.  Both teams are very good and always put on great, quality baseball.  The Dodgers have four straight NL West titles, while the Giants have three World Series rings in six seasons. Overall, the Giants lead the Dodgers 1,228 -1,198 with 17 ties–that’s according to baseball-reference.

These games could decide divisions, or even who goes to the playoffs.  There is star power galore in this rivalry, as well.  Corey Seager, Clayton Kershaw, Madison Bumgarner, Brandon Crawford, Buster Posey, the list goes on.  These are always such fun games to watch from a fan perspective, and that’s what rivalries are about.

From a fan perspective now, similarly to Cubs-Cardinals, these two fan bases absolutely hate each other with a passion.  It has gotten so bad that there have been cases of assault outside each team’s stadium. That’s not what rivalries are about, and that’s a little extreme.  Fan hatred should never get in the way of what is a pretty entertaining rivalry, for the most part.

Red Sox-Yankees

Throw everything out the window here.  Records, standings, it doesn’t matter.  These two teams do not like each other, and want to beat each other, and beat each other badly.

Both teams bring out the best in each other, and players on both teams act like these games are their last, whether it be in a pennant chase or the first week in April.  These series of games might be the best series of games during the whole regular season.  Overall, the Yankees lead the all-time series 1,180 to 981with14 ties, that’s according to rivalrywatch.com.  Couple that in with the fact that numerous players have played for both teams, and that just adds fuel to the fire.

Next: Cubs Need to Embrace the Hate

Same goes for the fans, both fans of these teams can’t stand each other, and it reciprocates to the on-field product, making these games all that much more intense.  The moral of the story, ultimately, is that rivalries are fun.  They make for very fun baseball games, and the quality of play seems to rise in rivalry games.  Enjoy rivalries, as rivalries this passionate only come along every so often.