Mike Celizic

It’s October baseball in August. We live for it.

Yeah, I know. We say this every time the Yankees and Red Sox get together. First week of April? It’s October baseball. Second week of May? Ditto. Last week of September? Still October baseball.

But this time it’s not hype. The Yankees and Red Sox are teeing it up in the Bronx for four games starting Thursday, and you won’t find a series more intense no matter when it’s played. We’re not just talking about four games in August here. We could be talking about the entire season boiled down to one long weekend in New York.

If you doubt it, check out the local papers, which are already playing this up as if it’s the end of the world, only more important. It’s everything the greatest rivalry in baseball is supposed to be. It’s for first place. It’s for wild-card position. It’s for bragging rights.

Ultimately, it’s for October, because it always is at this time of year when the Yankees and the Red Sox go at it.

And even though it seems we say this every year, this year, this four-game set is even more critical than ever.

Yes, first place is at stake, but for the Yankees, there’s self-confidence and pride and honor on the line. Eight times they’ve played their archrivals this year and eight times they’ve lost.

That plays right into Boston’s wheelhouse, because the Red Sox didn’t exactly tear up the division during July, and they’re still struggling, even after beefing up their lineup at the trade deadline with the acquisition of catcher/first baseman/DH Victor Martinez from Cleveland.

If New York needs to prove to itself it can beat the hated Sox, Boston needs just as badly to get its ship back in order and prove that it’s done enough to reassert control of the division.

Normally, we would say it might not matter because whichever of these teams loses the division will win the wild card. But even that’s not guaranteed this year, not with Texas playing baseball as if they mean it and the Rays coming on with relentless determination. For years, second place in the AL East was like first place in any other division. But not anymore.

And after these four games, there remain just six more games between the rivals, three at Boston on Aug. 21-23 and three back in the Bronx from Sept. 25-27. What happens now is going to both set the storyline for those series as well as determine just how important they’ll be.

It all comes down to the way the schedule breaks down this year. Through the final weeks of the season, the Yankees have much the harder schedule. Nine of their final 12 games are against the Angels, Red Sox and Rays — every one a tough playoff contender. In early September, there are four more against the Rays and one more with the Angels.

The Red Sox, on the other hand, start the month of September with 10 of 12 games against the Rays and White Sox, but then the only obstacle through the end of the regular season is that three-game set with New York on the next-to-last weekend. The remainder of the final three weeks consists of 14 games against the Orioles, Royals, Blue Jays and Indians.

So for the Yankees coming out of this series with a healthy division lead is critical. Gag again against Boston, lose the division lead, and they’re going to be playing catch-up ball for the year’s final 50 games. And I don’t care who you are, you don’t want to go into the final weeks of the season having to beat nothing but contenders to make up distance.

Slideshow   The Week in Sports Pictures A kayaker flips out, a racehorse eyes the Triple Crown and more. more photos

For Boston, it’s about getting the lead back and building a cushion so the Red Sox can make that soft schedule work to their favor.

Boston isn’t making it easy on themselves. On Wednesday, while the Yankees took care of the Blue Jays, the Sox lost again to those pesky Rays, leaving them in second place (2.5 games behind New York) as they come into the Bronx.

That’s exactly where the Yankees want to keep them. But to do that, they’ve got to play as if there aren’t another 50 games to go or even one game to go. To do that, closer Mariano Rivera can’t blow leads, as he did earlier this year against Boston. To do that, CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett can’t get outpitched. To do that, Joba Chamberlain has to finally pitch up to his capabilities.

To do it, they’ve got to play these as if it’s October. Because when these two teams meet, that’s the only month that ever exists.

Also on NBCSports.com NBA: Rondo's big-game DNA shines in Game 7  |  Highlights French Open: Nadal will win 7th title  |  Serena will win, too Video: 'Dancing' man Castroneves talks Indy 500 PFT: Jets' Scott doesn't want son to play football Follow us on Twitter: @NBCSports  |  And Facebook