The Impossible Dream: Bringing Families Together Since 1967
The Red Sox won today, 4-0 in Atlanta.
There was a rain delay that lasted about an hour, and during it, they gave a trivia question:
"Can you name the infield for the 1967 Red Sox?"
Immediately George Scott, Mike Andrews and Rico Petrocelli popped in my mind. I had no idea who played third base. I guessed Butch Hobson, but I was pretty sure he came 10 years later. Rather than log onto NESN.com or redsox.com or whatever webpage I was suppose to in order to get the correct answer, I went to my mom. Immediately she said "Joe Foy" and was kind of annoyed when I misinterpretted it to be "Floyd."
I explained why I asked, and she rattled off the three I named above and for good measure also included catchers Russ Gibson and Elston Howard ("They got Elston from the Yankees."). She then decided to log on to prove to me that she was right. Reading over the roster from '67 brought back a bunch of memories for her.
"I can't believe I remember the infield 30 years later. (Here my brother pointed out it was actually 40 years later...time flies when your having fun...). I probably won't remember the 2004 infield, but I'll always remember that team. The 1967 team. I went to about 15 games that year. Back then tickets use to cost a dollar. I would go and take my brothers and sister. And I use to take a bunch of younger kids from the neighborhood too. Their mothers would give me a dollar for them and another dollar for me. I must have made $15 every game. A lot of my friends would come too, and bring their younger brothers and sisters. There must have been 25 of us each game. My friend Colleen had a HUGE crush on Rico Petrocelli. They use to let you bring a lunch in and everything. We'd get there at 10AM for a 1 PM game, and we'd come home at 6PM. We'd go to the parking lot before the game and get autographs and we'd go to the parking lot after the game and get more autographs. I had Jim Lonborg and Tony C and Yaz. George Scott and Hawk Harrelson. All the players. They were all on programs that were in a trunk in the basement in Grandma and Grandpa's house, and they would have been yours if Mrs. Bruno hadn't flooded it. We use to spend summer nights sitting on someone's porch and listening to the games on a transister radio. That's how I spent my summer when I was 13 years old. I saw them hang up the 1967 American League Championship banner on Opening Day in 1968. It wasn't a World Series Banner, but it was still a big deal. And I had the record, The 1967 Boston Red Sox Impossible Dream. (She then started reciting the opening...I can't remember it word for word...). Grandma said I could have it. The other kids fought over it with me when it came in the mail. I was in tears, but (her older cousin) Eileen came in and said she heard my mother say it was mine. Even Noreen was screaming for it, and she didn't even like the Red Sox. I was the one who went in the paper and sent away for it. And Grandma said it was mine. I don't remember if I paid for it or she paid for it, but she told me that it was for me. I guess it was pretty stupid for us to fight over it since we could all listen to it at the same time. I think Grandpa threw it away when he moved or else I'd let you have it. I think you'd like it. I know it sounds stupidand pathetic, but that might have been the best summer of my life growing up."
We then went to Amazon to try to find the record. It wasn't there. My mom told me she tried to find it there before but couldn't. I told her to try EBay since she'd probably have to get a used one anyway. So she went and found that it was apparently re-released as a CD and someone is selling the CD brand new...or was until my mom bought it.
I'm kind of excited to give it a listen. My mom made sure to let everyone know when she died it was to go to me (I'll have to have her call Eileen and let her know, just in case a similiar situation arises with the CD...).
It's kind of cool that 40 years later, the 1967 Red Sox are bringing families together. Perhaps 80 years later I'll be telling my kids the above story, giving them a connection to my mother.
I'll also be sure to mention how the 2004 Red Sox righted a few wrongs with the Cardinals. The Sox now lead the overall World Series between the two, 10 games to 8.
