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Red Sox Set to Receive World Series Rings

Posted on: Monday, 11 April 2005, 12:00 CDT

BOSTON - The Boston Red Sox made their fans wait 86 years for another World Series title and only gave them five months to celebrate.

The champions return to Boston on Monday for a combined celebration to mark their first title since 1918, their home opener and a game against the rival New York Yankees - any one of which would be enough for a sellout at Fenway Park. It's also the first game back for manager Terry Francona, who left the team after complaining of chest pains before the third game of the season.

"We're excited to get back to Fenway," first baseman Kevin Millar said Sunday after a 4-3 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays dropped the Red Sox to 2-4 - last in the AL East. "It feels like we've been on the road since October."

That was when the Red Sox won four straight games to rally from a 3-0 deficit and beat the Yankees in the AL championship series. Then Boston swept the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series to win it all and set in motion the planning for Monday's ceremony.

A ring ceremony and banner-raising will precede the game, and a special anthem called "This is for Teddy Ballgame" was composed by "Talkin' Baseball" songwriter Terry Cashman.

Even Derek Lowe - who won all three playoff clinchers for Boston before signing as a free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers - was planning to be there. Francona has been resting up after missing four games to be checked out by doctors.

"It will be a step in the right direction for him to make sure he's OK," reliever Mike Timlin said in Toronto. "That's what it's about - quality of life. Not winning and losing ballgames, but making sure your health and family is OK."

Tim Wakefield, the longest-tenured member of the Red Sox, will pitch against the Yankees' Mike Mussina.

It will be extra delicious for the Red Sox to celebrate their title in front of the rival New Yorkers, though the schedule will make it likely that the Yankees won't watch. The ring presentation is scheduled for 2:15, which is when the Yankees would usually be cleaning up after batting practice.

"If I'm doing something to get ready and I'm not there, then I'm not there," shortstop Derek Jeter said. "There won't be many people out there just because of the timing, but I don't know."

The ring ceremony will be followed by the raising of the World Series banner. Then the teams will be introduced and the ballpark will fall silent in memory of Pope John Paul II and former Red Sox reliever Dick Radatz.

The Boston Pops will play the national anthem and there will be a fighter jet flyover. After that, it's time to play ball again.

"It will be some closure for the fans," Millar said. "Once we get the rings I think it will be closure for the fans and an exciting time for the city."

The Red Sox will wear special gold-trimmed uniforms with patches commemorating their championship. Banners marking the achievement have already been hung along Yawkey Way and painted on a billboard inside the ballpark.

There was a bustle inside and outside Fenway on Sunday as everyone got ready for the opener.

Fans camped out in tents lined up the length of the Green Monster; elsewhere on Lansdowne Street, two played catch in front of a nightclub. The street itself is different, with wider sidewalks, period lighting and cherry trees that were planted as part of the team's effort to spruce up the area.

"The goal is not just to make the sidewalk safer, but to give it more life," said Janet Marie Smith, the team's chief architect. "

It was another busy offseason for Smith and the construction crews. Renovations to the third base concourse and behind the first base stands will give more walking room to the fans - especially those in wheelchairs - who bought every ticket last year at baseball's smallest ballpark.

The Red Sox have also installed a new field that is flatter and drains better after rainstorms. Next to the home dugout is a new batting cage and a bathroom for players so they don't have to run up the clubhouse tunnel during games.

"There are some parts of Fenway that are worth saving," Smith said, "and some it's kind of a blessing to let go."

The Red Sox clubhouse has also been expanded with a new players' lounge and weight room and an interview room. And on the street is a new upscale sports restaurant, "Game On," that will be open all year.

Source: Associated Press/AP Online

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