Remembering the best Red Sox Thanksgiving ever
Do you remember the best Thanksgiving in Boston Red Sox history?
Think back to 2003, weeks after the humiliating ALCS loss to Aaron Boone and the Yankees, when Theo Epstein flew to Arizona to entice Curt Schilling over Thanksgiving dinner. Schilling was two years removed from an incredible 2001 World Series championship season with the Arizona Diamondbacks and had finished runner-up in National League Cy Young voting to teammate Randy Johnson two years in a row. Epstein convinced Schilling to agree to a trade, and everyone knows what happened next.
The following Thanksgiving, Schilling and the Sox would be champions, then champions thrice more. David Ortiz was the biggest thing in Boston baseball since Ted Williams. The Yankees had failed on a historic level. What a time to be alive.
So much has changed since then.
Schilling, of course, made himself a pariah with countless bigoted remarks and troubling social media activity. He tarnished his reputation and sullied fond memories of bloody socks and heroic performances. Most importantly, his words and actions hurt many people.
Don’t mistake this for wistfulness about Schilling, because this isn’t about him at all; the organization seems to want nothing to do with him and vice versa, or so he says anyway. This is about who the Red Sox used to be and who they are now. They used to be fueled by curse-breaking, now that the curse has been broken and glory repeated four times over, the tank is empty. They say they want to win; their actions tell a different story.
Red Sox fans aren’t being greedy. They’re not saying they want a championship every year. What they want is for this organization to stop speaking to the public like they don’t have a clue. To follow through on their words with meaningful action. To pay their best players so that they can continue to be the best in Boston. To field a competitive team worthy of the standard set since they Reversed the Curse.
Nineteen years ago, the Sox did what it took to win.
This holiday season, there’s little to be thankful for.
