The Real Curse

Generations of Red Sox fans speculated that there was a curse on their beloved baseball team. The source of this curse was supposed to be Babe Ruth, who pitched for the Red Sox in the first part of his major league career but was sold to the New York Yankees and as an outfielder and hitter kicked off the century-long dynasty the Bronx Bombers enjoy to this day.

But I think I have determined the true instrument of the curse, and Sox fans will be dismayed to learn that it is one of the most beloved figures ever to don the scarlet hose. To better understand my line of thought, I need for you to formulate in your mind a quick list of the greatest players in the history of baseball. Quick, jot down the names of the ten best players you can think of. Here’s mine, right off the top of my head in the heat of the moment:

Babe Ruth
Ty Cobb
Ted Williams
Joe DiMaggio
Mickey Mantle
Jackie Robinson
Willie Mays
Hank Aaron
Cy Young
Lou Gehrig
Stan Musial
Dizzy Dean

Okay, there’s twelve of the all-time greatest, done in less than a minute. There will be some obvious names I’ve left off, but I’d be willing to bet that many of these same names showed up on your list if you have any knowledge of the game’s history. Remember, I’m talking about all-time all-stars, greatest of the great.

That means, to be honest, that Red Sox players are few and far between on this list. Let’s be frank, now, as much as we may love Yaz, Rice, Clements, Boggs, do they really belong on a list with DiMaggio and Mays? On my list, I have two. And one of them, Cy Young, was a pitcher who played with a number of teams besides the Red Sox.

That leaves one. One that played his entire career for the BoSox. And that one happened to have been born in 1918, the last year Babe Ruth wore a Red Sox uniform. And who passed from this mortal coil in 2002, the year before the ownership of the team changed hands. Which, as we all know, led to their first World Championship since . . . what year was that? And shortly, their second.

So, I hate to say it, especially as much regard as I personally have for the gentleman in question, but it’s a possibility that this gentleman . . . could be . . . may have been . . . the embodiment of the very curse he spent his career trying to overcome. It’s as if the Red Sox weren’t allowed to have a World Championship during the lifetime of the only other man to ever wear a Red Sox uniform that could be ranked on the same level as the Babe.

Of course, this is the 21st century, and I’m a grown man, AND a Christian, and I just don’t believe in curses.

Right?

And if I did, I would note that that curse must also affect the New York Yankees, the ultimate nemesis in the most storied rivalry in the history of sport. It should be noted that the Yanks never won a championship before the acquired Babe – and before the Splendid Splinter was born – and it would stand to reason that they should never win another after Teddy Ballgame passed.

But in fact they did just that in 2010. Their 27th. And if Ted Williams was the lynchpin of the curse, then that shouldn’t have been possible.

Whew. It was all just a coincidence, then.

Right?