Thursday night the Yankees beat the Red Sox (NYY 6, BOS 2) in their series opener at Yankee Stadium, and after the game, CC Sabathia had some not-so-kind words for his division rivals. He was upset the Red Sox tried to bunt against him given his ongoing knee problems. Sabathia called the Red Sox "weak," specifically, and the Red Sox basically laughed it off.

Hall of Famer and former Red Sox player Jim Rice did not appreciate Sabathia's comments. He ripped Sabathia for his weight during the NESN postgame show. Here's the video:

"Bunting is part of the game," said Rice. "You try to get on base any way you can. If you tell (Sabathia) to lose some of that chicken and that donut and that burger weight, (then) maybe his leg will be OK that he can field that baseball. That's just stupid."

Yeesh, that's harsh. Sabathia is listed at 6-foot-6 and 300 pounds, though he has played at a heavier weights at times throughout his career. He's always been a big guy. That's just his body type.

As you'd expect, Sabathia was asked about Rice's comments on Friday, and he took the high road when responding. Here's what he told reporters, including NJ.com's Randy Miller:

"I don't have any response for that," Sabathia said at his locker Friday before the Yankees took batting practice. "It's just funny. He's right. I'm fat. He won that. 

...

"I've never met (Rice). I just know this isn't the first time he's made negative comments about me. I know he made negative comments about (Derek) Jeter. He just is who he is. I just hope when I'm that age I'm not that bitter."

Back in 2009, Rice mentioned Jeter by name when saying kids shouldn't use today's generation of players as role models, though he later claimed he was misquoted.

Either way, in the history of the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry, this bunting scandal barely registers as a blip on the radar. The Red Sox have every right to bunt against Sabathia and Sabathia has every right to be upset about anything an opponent does. That's baseball.

Sabathia, by the way, is 4-0 with a 1.04 ERA in four starts against the Red Sox this season. They've been bunting on him all year, and it hasn't helped.