The Boston Red Sox celebrated their home opener the other day, by touting out famed pariah Bill Buckner to toss the ceremonial first pitch. Bill Buckner! The biped equivalent of the infamous Chicago Cubs goat of baseball lore.
The fact that he was heavily applauded speaks volumes of the changing culture in the Red Sox nation. It begs one to question if the Fenway faithful have grown so arrogant that they felt an exoneration was deserved. Time will tell if Buckner is blamed if the Sox do not capture it all again this year.
For that matter, how many of the "fans" in attendance even recall who Buckner is. When your bandwagon includes Dane Cook of all people, (whom has been spotted adorning a Yankees cap atop a Boston shirt) it is a a safe bet to say that you are the flavor of the month.
When the Red Sox won the 2004 World Series Buckner was contacted similarly for the sake of public relations and declined. In light of the second world series victory he accepted his shot at redemption.
And with it ushers in a new era of the Boston Red Sox. Forgiving people, willing to look beyond the foibles of one man. A nation willing to showcase their most hated member as an act of pious. May as well have had Aaron "Fucking" Boone receive the toss.
This is why my dusty ball cap with the faded red insignia has been retired to the back corner of the closet. They say that rats are the first to abandon a sinking ship and my whiskers are twitching. Such hubris can only spell certain doom.
Would the Seahawks ever have the officiating crew from Super Bowl XL do the coin toss to start a season? Should the Sonics have Michael Jordan sing the national anthem for stomping on their collective throats in the 1996 NBA Finals? Should the M's extend the olive branch to Osama Bin Laden for effectively destroying the greatest stretch run in baseball history in 2001?
Somehow I seem to doubt it.
Bill Buckner was a good man who suffered for far too long due to rabid overly obsessed fans. Crazy folk who blamed every shortcoming of their lives on one bum play.
Idiots. Self righteous barbarians.
The real Red Sox fans. My kind of fans.
And now that being a Boston fan is chic, he will be remembered as a hero.
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