If the Yankees can finish off the Red Sox in this American League Division Series, with Game 3 set for Monday night at Yankee Stadium and things tied up at 1-1, then they’ll record a franchise first in the age of the luxury tax:
They’ll overcome a team with a higher payroll than they have.
Then again, if the Sawx prevail, that’ll be a precedent, too: The Yankees have never lost, either, to a team spending more on talent since the luxury tax went into effect in 1997. From the ’97 ALDS through last week’s victory over the A’s, they are 22-13, including wild-card games, in playoff series against teams with a lower payroll and 0-0 against clubs sporting a higher payroll.