The news that the Red Sox and Yankees will meet twice in Spring Training next year made me think. Not only did these two biggest payroll teams not win a post-season series this year (with Boston not even making the tournament), but the entire championship run was characterized by the improbable and the unexpected. As SI's Tom Verducci has pointed out, from Game 162 (when almost no post-season pairings had been decided) until Game 7 of the World Series, we witnessed the best pure baseball in decades. Two "one-strike-away" near misses in Game 6 (don't ask who the only other one was) and the heroic exploits of David Freese are the memories we will carry forward.
I say all this because, as I was walking through Manhattan this week with my 2004 Red Sox World Series hat on (see photo), I noticed (in addition to the evil glares) a ton of Yankee hats—more than I've ever noticed before. They appeared on the heads of everyone from pretzel vendors to Wall Street types.
It reminded me of the flood of Red Sox hats that we witnessed after the tragic 2003 loss to the Empire. Arron 'F.' Boone galvanized something in the Nation that I'm convinced carried over to 2004. The more visible hats were the precursor.
So now, I think we need to digest BlackSeptember, make the necessary corrections and re-dedicate ourselves to the team's laundry—hats included. This is not dedication to the NOG, or BenCher, not even to the individual players—just the idea of Boston Red Sox baseball. We own that legacy.