The Red Sox are 8-0 against the Yankees this season.

No, that’s not a typo. I know the rivals have only played six games this season. And I know the Sox won all six. I’m adding in the off-field victories.

You could make the argument that the Sox were 2-0 against the Yanks before the season began. That’s because the Rule 5 Draft pickup of Garrett Whitlock from the Yankees and the trade of Adam Ottavino from New York to Boston were clear victories for the Red Sox.

Both have played massive roles in Boston’s unbeaten run against New York this season. Whitlock got the win on Friday night, his second against his former organization this season. He got his first major league win in the Bronx on June 5 and has picked up the W against New York twice.
Whitlock has made three appearances against the Yankees this season, throwing 5 1/3 scoreless innings, striking out six and walking one.

Whitlock, just two weeks past his 25th birthday, wasn’t taking any personal satisfaction in beating the team that drafted him. At least not publicly.

“Any time we get a win against anybody, it’s great,” Whitlock said on Sunday. “But obviously with the history between the Red Sox and Yankees you love to beat the Yankees any chance you get. To take six off them so far this year, hopefully we take a lot more than just six.”

Meantime Ottavino, who grew up a diehard Yankees fan in Brooklyn, has dominated the team that traded him to their rivals this offseason. It was a straight salary dump, with the Sox demanding a prospect (pitcher Frank German) in addition to the veteran reliever. All for a player to be named later.

Ottavino has played a key role in the Sox dominance of the Yankees, giving up one run in 4 1/3 innings this season. He got out of a bases loaded jam and got the save Saturday night. (Nate Eovaldi, another former Yankee, got the win.) It was Ottavino’s fifth save of the year and the first as part of this rivalry.

“Yeah, it’s awkward,” Ottavino said, “but at the same time, it’s getting easier each time. I’m doing a good job of not looking at any of them in the face — the guys I know. Just trying to focus on the catcher. … I just tried to stay locked in on him and treat it like any other game. I know it’s not. But that’s how I’m trying to treat it.”

The rivalry certainly seemed back this weekend. More than 100,000 fans passed through the turnstiles at the ballpark to watch the Red Sox sweep the Yankees once again. The crowds were loud, and the sizable New York contingent on hand had very little to cheer about as the Sox put up one statement win after another to reclaim the top spot in the AL East.

“I think the statement is we’re here to win,” said Whitlock. “This isn’t like just another year for the Red Sox. We’ve got a competitive team and we’re trying to go out there and win every single day. We believe we can win every single day.”

So far, they’ve won against the Yankees. Every single time they’ve played them.

“We got popped in the mouth here,” said Yankees Manager Aaron Boone.

For longtime Sox fans it was stunning to see former Yankees excelling for the Sox. We grew up with Roger Clemens and Wade Boggs and Johnny Damon changing their red socks for pinstripes.

Now, the tables have turned. And it’s the biggest reason why the Sox are back in first place.

Tom Caron is a studio host for Red Sox broadcasts on NESN and a Lewiston High School graduate.