No, this title isn’t as sweet as 2004, but then again it would be pretty hard to compete with all the angst behind that series. This year’s playoffs played out almost identically to those three years ago (except, perhaps, for the dancing): a tough come-from-behind victory in the ALCS followed by an easy sweep in the World Series. This time we knew how it was going to end, we’d seen this movie before. Curt Schilling, devout Christian, has posted a theological exploration of the events on his blog. Taking a few liberties, I believe the argument boils down to “the Red Sox were a runaway train.” It also sounds like he is seriously considering retiring on a high note.
Back to the 86 years thing. As Parker points out, railing against the “new Sox fan” is the new black, so I’ll throw in my two cents. If there is one thing that I cannot stand in this world it is an overbearing sense of entitlement. Having attended two New England liberal arts colleges, I’ve seen my share. It’s what spawned 80 years of Yankee hating: fans with a reasonable expectation of averaging about 3 championships every decade. The Sox and Patriots have both hit that milestone in this decade, and the Patriots seem to have taken it as far as winning every other year. The Celtics are currently in the midst of a resurrection attempt, and pretty soon the only underdog team from Boston could be the perennially sorry Bruins. Even the Revolution are in the MLS finals every other year. Is a “city of champions” what we really want?
