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Sox Honor Celtics In Pre-Game Festivities
By Administrator | June 20, 2008
In the past half-dozen seasons, the City of Boston (really, the entire New England region) has been blessed with six professional sports championships — three for the New England Patriots (2002, 2004 and 2005)… two for the Boston Red Sox (2004 and 2007)… and the lastest won earlier this week by the NBA’s most-storied franchise, the Boston Celtics.
It has become a glorious tradition in this city that the pro sports team support one another and honor each other’s successes. Players from the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots and Red Sox can routinely be spied in attendance at games of the other teams, and the franchises have held ceremonies in celebration of the other organization’s championships.
Earlier this year the Red Sox, while honoring their own 2007 World Series championship, paid homage to the other Boston sports teams by including them in the pre-game ceremonies on Opening Day at Fenway Park. Tonight, the Sox franchise and its players honored the Celtics on the basis of their own accomplishments… pulling off the greatest turnaround in NBA history — from lottery team to best record in the regular season to world champions.
A thunderstorm and a couple of quick bursts of lightning poetically punctuated the ceremony honoring the Celtics… as a year ago it seemed it would take an act of God to bring a championship to either of the teams on Causeway Street. Tonight, the heavens fittingly saluted during the ceremony and then clearing the scene so that the Sox and Cardinals could play some baseball.
Non-Boston fans will just hate that hyperbole, but I have only one word for them: j-e-a-l-o-u-s!
In pre-game festivities that were held as a steady rain fell, the NBA champs entered the ballpark riding three of the city’s iconic duck boats… they entered from center-field, circled Fenway and eventually exited back through the garage door in center field.
As they circled the park, a video tribute was broadcast on the center field scoreboard as the Red Sox played the ballad of champions over the PA (Queen’s “We Are The Champions”).
The Red Sox wore their green St Patty’s Day uniforms… a shamrock was cut in the center-field grass by the grounds crew.
The Celtics brought four NBA championship trophies with them for the ceremony — from 1981, 1984, 1986 and 2008 — and held them up for the Fenway fans, who gave the team a prolonged standing ovation.
The rains delayed the start of the game by a little more than an hour… prior to the start of the game the WORLD CHAMPION CELTICS were re-introduced to the crowd. The Celtics ran in from center field, with team captain Paul Pierce sliding into the second. Pierce then took the mound to chants of “MVP” and threw out the first pitch (a wild pitch that ticked off the mitt of catcher Jason Varitek).
Coach Doc Rivers then hollered “P-l-a-y b-a-l-l” to get the evening’s contest.
Topics: Miscellaneous |
