a real update + last game. Thank you

10/03/2010

Sunday sept 26

Went to my neffew Holden's 2nd b day party. There was about 40 people. His mother invited 50 people for a little kid's party. The theme was a circus. My best friend John picked up 12 pizza's from this really old East Boston pizza shop opened a place on rt US1 a town away from me. I figurd the pizza would be amazing. I didnt care for it and neither did John. We than sang happy b day and he didnt cry when we lit the candle unlike at other parties he's been to where we had to take him out of the room he got so upset about the lit candle. The cake was good. There was also cotten candy, candy icecream cones, candy apples and other things. Opening the presents was like a bridel shower. There was a huge pile of presents. It took over a half hour to open them all. I bought him two pairs of PJ's and a toy truck.
He was standing in front of me so I picked him up and gave him a hug. He said (with a smile I'm sure) uncle. *grin* I put him down after wishing him a happy birthday.

Tuesday: John's sister who is 8 days older than me and the lady I took to my sr prom who is in the army and lives in tx had a baby. It defanately wasnt planned. She always was a wildchild and never grew up. The good thing is that the father is a guy who she has been living with for a little while. I'm told the baby is cute. 9.5 lbs and I think 21? inches.

Tuesday-wednesday night: Ken burns put out a baseball documentury in 1994 depicting the history of baseball that he called "the 9 innings) Well he had produced two more 2 hour parts that he called "the 10th inning" that told the story from where he left off in the beginning of the 90's.
I was just mezmerized as I was 16 years ago, watching the first 9 innings.
It talked about the labor despute and the eventual strike of 1994. He talked about carl Ripkin's ironman record, the "home run chase" with macguire and sosa, the steroid issue and the fall of the players from it and a good 15 minutes was just on Bary bonds and what he learned from his father to never trust anyone and unfortunately Bary took it to heart too much. . There was also about a 30 min segment on the redsox-yankee rivalry and the height of it (from the redsox view) in 2004 with the amazing come back being down 3 games to 0 and getting smacked around in that 3rd game 19-8. game 4 they were down in the 9th inning and on came the unstoppable closer for the yankees to shut down the redsox and go to the world series with a sweep on their rival. However, a single by Kevin Milar, Dave Roberts pintch running and getting "the steal" and Bill Meuller knocking him home to tie it up and eventually win. They would go on to win 3 more and beat the yankees then sweep the STL cardinals to win the ws.


Thursday was my sis in law's b day. We'll do something on Wednesday. She went with her parents on Thursday and today, sunday, she is going out with her friends.
Justin got her tickets to the redsox yankees saturday game because her favorite player was being "thanked" because he's retiring. Justin got me tickets too.

Friday: it was raining here and the redsox game was postphoned to a double header on Saturday.
Since the origenal game on saturday starts at 4;15 the second game would start at 9pm.

Saturday: Justin and Lindsay stopped by with some subs. (their favorite sub place is in my town) then we were off to our last game, our last time in Fenway park for the 2010 season and it was the Boston Red Sox vs NY Yankees and it was Mike Lowell day..

We parked about 10 mins away and walked to the stadium. We went into the red sox shop and I bought Lindsay a b day gift. A t-jersey of Mike Lowell #25. She has been wanting it for a while but has a belief that if she gets a jersey of any sports player, the player is then cursed. So now that he would be retiring, she can get his jersey. She was so happy to put it on and wear it. She thanked me a few times.

We got some lemonaides than we went to our seats. We walked into the park, and as we started to go up the stairs, Justin said to Lindsay "row DD" then Justin said to me "I wish you could see the shock on her face" we had second section from the field up, 4th row, seats 1-2-3 behind the on deck circle. we were wicked close.

They had set up some folding chairs on the field between second and third base.

The "Mike lowell thank you ceremony" began.

The 2 MC's were from the tv and radio broadcast teams.

They brought out the Owner of the redsox and his young wife, the GM and other top people in the redsox organization. They also had Mike Lowell's parents, his wife and two children there. They had three special guest. Mike Redman, a friend of Lowell's from his time with the Marlins and Alex Cora, a friend and teammate of the redsox from 06-08. A preast from the Boston area who was close to Mike Lowell and his family who introduced Mike to a shelter that Mike would later clame as his own cause.



They spoke of his journey from his hs team where he was a second baseman who batted 9th then to his issue with cancer at the age of 24 and wondering if he would ever get back into baseball to playing on the 03 FL marlin world series team and playing in and being named the MVP of the 2007 world series for the Boston Red Sox.

Mike Redman brought on behalf of the marlins, a dish of black oisters. Mike Lowell's favorite dish.
Terry Francona, the manager of the redsox, gave him a watch.
The owner gave Mike lowell a check for 100,000 for the shelter.

He also gave a fenway park chair with #25 ingraved.

The last thing, and most emotional, Josh Becket, who has played with Lowell since 2001, coming over together in a trade, walked over to 3rd base, picked it up and handed it to Mike Lowell. The position he has played for most of his career. I of course got extremely emotional as did most people of some level.

Mike took the microphone and thanked the redsox fan, the organization, his teammates and x teammates and a special thanks to his little league coach and then the preast.
It was as classy as he is.

The game would start soon after.

The starting pitcher was Tim Wakefield. Our elderist player at 43 and longest standing redsox as he has been on our team since 1995? He has had some back issues the last year and although he would want to keep playing, I am not sure the redsox will resign him. He started off pretty well and so didnt Mike Lowell. Lowell was up with men on base in the first inning and knocked them in. the place went nuts. He would end up getting two more hits, last one nearly a homerun but was pintch ran for and the crowd went nuts again, knowing this will be the last time he steps on the field as a player for the Boston Red Sox. A simular thing happened with Tim Wakefield. Terry let him o to the mound in the 6th but then walked out to put in a different pitcher. The crowd went nuts for wakefield. I was screaming "thank you... wakefield"and clapping.
The rest of the game was a bler. I remember we lost in extra innings though. The first game took 4 hours and 19 minutes. The make up game was supose to start at 9pm but they had to push that back to 9;15? We ended up winning the second game also in extra innings and that game took 4 hours to play. I was so very happy and thankful that I got to be there for Mike Lowell day and to be at one more game.

Sunday
the last game of the regular season for baseball and the last game of the season for my beloved Boston Red Sox.

John lackey pitched and pitched well but that wasnt the story of this game as our captain, Jason Varetek maybe gone after this year too and in the 9th inning, the back up back up catcher walked onto the field after Tek had all his stuff on and was near homeplate, to take his place. The croud went nuts and Tek ran into the dougout, hugging everyone.

Our offensive leader for the last 6 years, David (big papi) Ortiz had gone 2 for 2 and in his 3rd at bat, layed down and amazingly beat out a bunt for a single. The place went nuts. He was piched ran for and given another standing O and the croud wanted him to come out for a curtain call and he did and I was listening to the game on the radio and I could not even hear the announcers the crowd was so loud.

The Boston Red Sox won the first game of the season when they played the yankees on opening night and they won the last game of the season which they played against the yankees.

There was a lot of memories from this 2010 season that I will take with me for ever.
However, there will always be that "what if" as 19 of 25 players from the redsox spent a significant time on the DL and we fell short by only 3 games.

I'm not sure what the Boston Red Sox roster will look like next year as we have a lot of free agents and there is always the posibility of a trade, however, I know, that whom ever is wearing a Boston Red Sox jersey in 2011, I will cheer for and hope and believe that we will win the world series next year.

good bye my best friend.
See you in the spring