2. Carl Yastrzemski returned to Fenway to celebrate David Ortiz
Carl Yastrzemski’s appearances at Fenway are few and far between, and with the pandemic, the 82-year-old is staying home as much as possible. Boston’s living legend sat out the last few spring trainings, a loss for the Sox, whose minor-leaguers he mentors.
Yaz skipped the Cooperstown festivities over the weekend out of an abundance of caution but made the drive from his home in Andover, MA to honor Ortiz at Fenway. He took the field with fellow Hall of Famer Jim Rice, a fixture at Fenway and on Sox broadcasts.
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Pedro Martinez and Vladimir Guerrero Sr. were also on hand for the festivities. Along with Ortiz and Juan Marichal, they are the four Dominican-born players in the Hall of Fame.
Theo Epstein, John Farrell, and Terry Francona (conveniently in town managing the Cleveland Guardians) rounded out the contingent, and Ortiz addressed and thanked each of them in his speech.
3. David Ortiz addressed Red Sox Nation
Thousands of Red Sox fans made the trip to Cooperstown At the end of his speech, Ortiz addressed the Fenway Faithful directly, and sent a message to Red Sox Nation:
"“I want to thank all the fans, all the Red Sox fans worldwide, because without you guys, trust me, this would never [have] happened. Thank you very much, Boston… I love you forever, thank you.”"
He must know the feeling is mutual.