As the Anaheim Angels and Oakland A’s continue to run neck-and-neck in one of the most exciting pennant races in recent years, members of both teams can’t help but wonder how much cooler it would be if they were instead the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees.

            “Sure, it’s pretty neat to be involved in a rivalry like this, but I’m sure it’s nothing compared to how awesome it must be to play for the Red Sox or Yankees,” said A’s outfielder Mark Kotsay. “Everyone knows that they’re way more important than us, and it’s a dream of mine to some day be seen as worthy enough to play for one of them.”

            “I rush home every night to watch ‘SportsCenter’ and see what the latest news is with the Yankees and Red Sox. Everything they do is just so … I, don’t know – awesome,” said Angels outfield Garret Anderson. “And sometimes, well after they show their highlights, they even show highlights of our game, which is just an amazing honor. Most of us usually tape the broadcasts so we can prove to our grandchildren some day that we were actually once seen as near-equals to the Red Sox and Yankees.”

            And it’s not just the A’s and Angels players who are envious of the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry. Oakland pitcher Rich Harden says he knows the fans feel exactly the same way about the rivalry.

“Whenever we play the Angels there are good crowds,” he said. “But you can definitely sense the people in the stands wish they were truly important and lived on the East Coast and rooted for a real team like the Yankees or Red Sox. And you can’t blame them. Those teams are the whole reason the sport of baseball is played and everyone aspires to be like them.”