This Year

Cele Pedro Trophy
Originally uploaded by mattyv424.

I felt like posting my own column among the others. Since you have to pay to get it on line, I cut and pasted.


Today Carl Yastrzemski wishes he was Manny Ramirez. Jim Lonborg would give anything to trade places with Derek Lowe for a little while and everyone in baseball wishes they were the Red Sox.

For the first time in 86 years, April's promise was rewarded with October glory. Rings will be worn and a banner will be hung. Oct. 27, 2004, was the day fans have dreamed about since they were old enough to know how.

The Boston Red Sox are World Champions.
Is there a more stunning development? Considering that they looked mediocre in June and were all but dead 11 days ago after a 19-8 loss to the Yankees that put them behind 3-0 in the American League Championship Series.

This group was heading for the ranks of the forgottens, another victim of the Yankee bully that terrorized generations of Red Sox and their fans.

But instead, there will probably be a statue of Curt Schilling and a street named for David Ortiz. Everybody all the way down to David McCarty and Curtis Leskanic will be doing commercials for everything from fast food, to hardware to hair restoration.

Mark Bellhorn, who once seemed destined for the bench, now will never pay for a beer again in his life. Johnny Pesky might even have to share the name of his foul pole with him.

Has there ever been or will there ever be a champion more beloved by its city? It's hard to imagine one.

Rare is a time when the present is so obviously a critical moment in history.
Even rarer is one where so many people are united by joy.

Today will be an interesting day in New England. Old friends will call each other and laugh when nobody knows what to say. Who knows how to react? This is uncharted territory.

Cemeteries will be uncommonly busy for a Thursday as flowers and blue caps are placed at the graves of the countless devoted fans who didn't make it to today.

Strangers wearing Red Sox hats will smile at another knowing little other than that they share an inner happiness from last night's game.

This is Bobby Orr's Stanley Cup-winning goal, Adam Vinatieri's kicks and 16 Celtic banners all rolled into one and multiplied times 10. Those were great moments, but in this baseball town, they pale in comparison.

In the eighth inning Wednesday, Fox showed images of Bucky, Buckner and Boone, the Bleep Brothers, almost as if the curse's life was flashing before its eyes.

Once painful memories are now early scenes in a long drama that ended happily last night. The anguish and the heartache were worth it. Reaching the peak wouldn't be nearly as satisfying without the obstacles in the way.

There is no more 1918. That chant is dead. Five years from now school children won't even know that was a significant year.

No more wait until next year either.

Welcome to this year. It feels pretty good.

Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com.