On April 2, Larry Lucchino died at the age of 78. Lucchino was a huge part of the reinvention of the Boston Red Sox after he joined the organization as president and CEO of the club in 2002.
The former front office member died just a week before Opening Day at Fenway Park. His name was added to the memorial and anniversary celebrations before the Opening Day game and an "LL" banner hangs on some scaffolding at Fenway directly across from Tim Wakefield's No. 49 in a heart.
John Henry and Tom Werner must have thought that was enough memorializing for their colleague of 13 years. After being seen at Fenway Park just days prior, Henry and Werner reportedly did not attend Lucchino's private funeral. Henry was reportedly not feeling well, but his wife, Linda Pizzutti Henry, attended by herself. Werner claimed to be in England.
Lucchino's funeral was attended by so many other high-profile Bostonians that maybe Henry and Werner thought they could skip the event and have it remain under the radar. This was not the case. Reporters in attendance confirmed that they did not see the two owners.
Mego says it’s a disgrace for John Henry and Tom Werner not to attend Larry Lucchino’s funeral! pic.twitter.com/t1aWXDQRfC
— Jones & Mego with Arcand (@JonesandMego) April 15, 2024
Henry, Werner and Lucchino were all significant players in the Red Sox's resurgence that began when they all joined the franchise in 2002. Lucchino was a champion of redesigning ballparks and he already put his stamp on Petco Park and Camden Yards, but he was the brainchild behind the refurbishment of Fenway Park and the champion of the "Fenway Experience" that Henry and Werner are so hell-bent on selling at the expense of a competent ball club.
It's uncertain if Henry was really ill or not on the date of the funeral, but he attended another Red Sox game at Fenway just days after the service. Fenway Sports Group and Werner had enough money at their disposal to get him to Boston for the funeral, regardless of what his commitments were. Some fans claimed that Liverpool fans would have been up in arms about ownership missing the Hillsborough Disaster remembrance, and Werner was pictured laying a wreath by the memorial on social media.
John Henry and Tom Werner reportedly not attending Larry Lucchino's funeral is a new low and bad look for ownership
Unless it was specifically against Lucchino's wishes for Henry and Werner not to attend his funeral, their absence is a new low for FSG ownership. The revival of Fenway Park would not have happened without Lucchino, and the ballpark is Henry and Werner's only selling point in Boston now.
Henry and Werner may be so detached from the Red Sox that they didn't think fans would notice or care that they skipped the memorial service. Or they may just be delusional enough to believe it was a fine thing to do. After seeing how they've run the Red Sox organization for the past few seasons, willful negligence seems well within the realm of possibility.
But running your baseball team into the ground and reportedly missing the funeral of a longtime friend are two different things. The two men may be as indifferent outside of the ballpark as they are in it.