NEW YORK vs. BOSTON / NOTES

Former Red Sox catcher Carlton Fisk, who threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 4 Sunday night, does not buy into the Curse of the Bambino, which holds that Red Sox misfortunes--they haven’t won a World Series since 1918--can be traced to the team’s 1920 sale of Babe Ruth to the Yankees.

“That’s a crock,” Fisk said. “It’s unbelievable. The players don’t even think about it until all you media guys keep harping on it. They just play as hard as they can play. It has nothing to do with a curse. Is Cleveland cursed?”

Actually, yes, according to some. Many believe the Indians’ misfortunes stem from the Curse of Rocky Colavito, the origin of which is Cleveland’s 1960 trade of Colavito to the Detroit Tigers.