Who can forget it? Fourteen years ago today, the confrontation between
Jason Varitek and
Alex Rodriguez ignited a Nation and ultimately resulted in the first Red Sox championship in 86 years. The Boston captain—protecting his pitcher
Bronson Arroyo—gave
A-Fraud a shot upside the head and a franchise-changing, bench-clearing brawl ensued. And yet, Boston found itself down by a run in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Bill Mueller—who in October of 2004 would drive in (arguably) the biggest run in team history—launched a two-run HR into the bullpen off
Mariano Rivera—resulting in a walk-off
11-10 win. It set the tone for what was to come. We should all remember this day. Light a candle or something.
