BOSTON — The NBA set its playoff field Wednesday, and the NFL draft will soon be upon us. Few things move the sports conversation like global celebrities on the court or a new generation of franchise quarterbacks. But baseball is trying.

Right on time, the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox belted out a roar of relevance from rowdy Fenway Park on Wednesday night. Commissioner Rob Manfred did not script it this way — if he had, the game would have been 90 minutes shorter — but his two glamour franchises were rolling around on the grass, in a game televised by MLB Network.

Well, it was a beautiful sight for business.

“It’s Red Sox-Yankees,” Boston’s David Price said. “That’s what everybody wants. That’s what they got.”

The Colorado Rockies and the San Diego Padres also fought on Wednesday, with one of the game’s best players, Nolan Arenado, at the center of the fray. The combatants at Fenway were bit players — the Yankees’ Tyler Austin charged the Red Sox’ Joe Kelly — but the uniforms mattered most. You will be seeing Austin’s primal helmet slam and Kelly’s flying fists for a long time, as symbols of the feud between these rivals.

It is nice to know the new kids still feel the loathing. The rosters have turned over completely since the heyday of 2003 and 2004, with all the one-name wonders — Jeter, Papi and A-Rod; Pedro, Roger and Curt; Manny, Mo and Tek — long gone. The personalities may never be as familiar and vibrant again, but these teams are worthy heirs.

Consider everything we have seen in this series: grand slams from Mookie Betts and J.D. Martinez, overpowering heat from Chris Sale and Aroldis Chapman, Rick Porcello taking a no-hitter into the seventh inning, home runs from Gary Sanchez, defensive wizardry from Didi Gregorius, 12 combined hits in the three-game series from Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.

In other words, the superstars have done superstar things. Yes, the games have been long; these teams know no other way. But the talent is undeniable. You will not find zany clubhouse characters like Johnny Damon or Kevin Millar, but the play on the field is still sublime — and feisty.

The benches actually cleared twice on Wednesday, in the third and seventh innings. Austin slid into second base in the third and spiked shortstop Brock Holt’s lower calf. Holt just stood there, telling Austin what he thought about it. Austin got a little closer, and suddenly 50 players had swarmed the field. Nothing much happened, though.

“I thought it was over,” Holt said. “We’re not trying to fight those guys over there. They’re big. I wasn’t expecting anything to happen, something did happen, and it escalated quickly.”

Since we’re using “Anchorman” terms, after Kelly drilled Austin in the seventh, the teams were throwing down in fisticuffs — a Cliff Johnson here, a Troy O’Leary there (or something like that). Kelly, naturally, insisted the pitch got away from him. Give the guy credit, at least, for self-deprecating supporting evidence.

“I walk a batter per inning,” Kelly said, “so it’s not like I have Greg Maddux command.”

Catcher Christian Vazquez said he expected the Yankees to retaliate, either on Thursday night or when the teams met again May 8-10 in the Bronx. Boston slugger Hanley Ramirez departed with a bruised wrist Thursday after he was hit by a pitch in the first, but everyone stayed in their respective dugouts

“They feel like us,” Vazquez said. “The clubhouse is our home. Let’s protect our home. There will be something soon. If not this series, maybe in New York.”

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, who has seen decades of this rivalry, defended Austin for charging Kelly after the obvious purpose pitch.

“In the heat of the moment, it’s hard to control your emotions,” Cashman said.

The Red Sox and the Yankees do not really hate each other — do they? — but scenes like Wednesday’s validate the passion of the fans, in those cities and far beyond.

Purists love seeing the Kansas City Royals and the Houston Astros in the World Series.

But when the Yankees and the Red Sox are this good the sport thrives on a bigger scale. So while baseball will surely impose discipline for Wednesday’s scuffle, it will do so with a wink.