New level of petty? Yankees throw fuel on Red Sox rivalry fire via Ticketmaster

Muhammad Ali versus Joe Frazier.

Duke versus North Carolina.

Tennessee Titans versus the win column.

Sports rivalries are nothing new to fans and often bring an entirely new level of joy and agony in daily lives. And while there are some titillating fights throughout sports history, few steal the spotlight as much as the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox — two baseball teams who are reigniting that fire in front of a new generation with the American League Wild Card Series starting on Sept. 30.

And New York has found a new way to get under the skin of Red Sox fans by limiting access to Yankee Stadium, where the three-game series will go down.

“Yankee Stadium is located in Bronx, New York,” a message at the top of Ticketmaster says. “Sales to this event will be restricted to residents of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania.

“Residency will be based on credit card billing address. Orders by residents outside New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania will be canceled without notice and refunds given.”

Well, that’s one way to give the New England area — especially Massachusetts — the big foam middle finger.

“Sometimes teams will place geographic restrictions on certain events to give local fans the best chance to attend,” a spokesperson for Ticketmaster told NBC 10 Boston.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock near the Mars rover, you’ve heard of the Red Sox-Yanks battle royale, and it’s not just because of the 6,427 hours of pregame coverage the teams receive when they collide in the postseason. It’s because of, well, the Curse of the Bambino.

Yes, it dates back over a century, when Boston sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees in 1919, which started an 86-year championship drought for the Red Sox that finally ended in 2004.

“Obviously a bunch of history there,” Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story told The Athletic. “Just as a fan of the game growing up, you know pretty well about the rivalry and what it means to both cities. … I think it’s the best in all of sports, so it’s going to be special.”

Tickets are still available to those banned residents but via a ticket reseller, NBC Boston says.

McClatchy News reached out to the Yankees on Sept. 30 but has yet to receive a repsonse.

Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series starts at 6:08 p.m. ET on ESPN.