Anyone who calls themselves a Red Sox fan knows the importance of that date. It has to be the greatest day in the long, storied history of the Boston Red Sox franchise. It marked the end of a nightmare that lasted for nearly a century for Red Sox Nation. 86 years without a World Series championship...that's longer than the average life expectancy, longer than the wait for Halley's Comet, long enough for the way we live to change dramatically. My great-grandfather, a lifelong New Englander, was born in 1897 and saw five Red Sox World Championships from the time he was six to the time he was 21, then didn't see another one for the rest of his life. He would have had to have lived to be 107 to have seen them win it all again in 2004! My father, also a New Englander and lifelong Red Sox fan, had to wait 56 years to see a World Series Championship for his beloved team. All the waiting, the "almosts," the frustration culminated in one euphoric moment as Keith Foulke tossed the ball to Doug Mientkiewicz for the final out of Game 4 that sealed the deal, completing a sweep of the team that twice (in 1946 and 1967) shattered their World Series dreams, the St. Louis Cardinals.
2004 was a year of destiny for New England sports fans, with the Pats winning the Super Bowl earlier that year and the Red Sox reversing the "curse" and winning the World Series in the fall. It couldn't have been scripted better by Hollywood's finest screenwriters. To have the Sox win it all again three years later, with a mix of the 2004 crowd and some new faces, made a statement to the sports world that the Boston Red Sox are a force to be reckoned with in the 21st century. Things won't always be easy and no team can win it all every year, but for the past six years, save for an injury-plagued 2006, the Sox have been contenders and I expect they will continue to be contenders with the talent they have in their system and through shrewd trades and free-agent pickups. When they can win as many games as they had this year and last with a streaky offense, inconsistent starting pitching, and middle-of-the-pack defense, they're one helluva team.
LET'S GO 2010 RED SOX!!!!!
1 comment:
I will NEVER forget the 2004 World Series or how I felt after the Red Sox won! It was an amazing experience that brought all of Red Sox Nation together.
Post a Comment