Boston Red Sox: Our Father, Who Art in Fenway

“It’s bounced back to Foulke, he has it, he under hands to first, and for the first time in 86 years, the Red Sox have won baseball’s world championship…can you believe it?”-Joe Castiglione  

When a Boston sports fan hears this call of the final out in the 2004 World Series, it means something well beyond the play on the field.  This historic radio call signifies an entire region’s passion, dedication, faith, and love finally being rewarded.  Being a Red Sox fan goes deeper than just supporting the team. 

In many ways it’s truly a way of life. 

It is a religion that owns the greatest temple in professional sports, Fenway Park.  The giant Citgo sign and famous 37-foot high green wall aren’t just features.  They are added additions to each of our homes. Families are built on living and dying with the Red Sox. 

After 2004, and even this past 2007 world title, people weren’t just bringing flowers and American flags to grave sites, there was Red Sox memorabilia as well, as we have been taught to never forget the generations of loyalists who have passed this tradition down since the early 1900’s. 

My father represents a generation of fans who saw the re-birth of the Red Sox.  I learned every little detail one would need to know from him, such as the significance of the lone red seat in right field that Ted Williams hit 400 plus feet away, or the importance of numbers 1, 4, 8, 9, and 27 (the retired Red Sox numbers) hanging above the right field roof.  They are not just numbers, they are as important as a birthday of anniversary. 

Now as I have grown older, it’s easier to appreciate being in this fraternity of sorts.  It’s not just a passion; it is part of your extended family. 

The 1967 Red Sox are known as the “Impossible Dream”.   Reaching the World Series for the first time since 1946 when nothing was expected of them.  The stories of my dad and his little transistor radio growing up, listening to games is something that fans in Toronto and Arizona will never truly have an understanding and affection for. 

Dealing with heartache is never an easy thing. 

The Red Sox have been passed down through generations as a learning tool of how to deal with things in life.  When I heard the story of my dad sprinting home after school to hear a one game playoff between the Yankees and Sox in 1978, only to have to listen to Bucky “Bleeping” Dent (we Sox fans are bitter folks) rounding the bases after hitting a home run that just cleared the Monster, I quickly learned to be wary of putting your heart into the Red Sox, or anything for that matter. 

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