THE RED SOX MUST HAVE BLACKBALLED WADE BOGGS

I used to hate Wade Boggs as a player.  He used to kill the Yankees when he was with the Boston Red Sox and as a kid who hung on every pitch, when the Yankees lost because of something Boggs did, it destroyed me.  Then Boggs came to the Yankees and from 1993 to 1997. He did great things, including winning a World Championship.  Now, years later Wade Boggs wants more.

The Boston Globe has a great piece (HERE) about Boggs with some pretty great quotes that you need to see.  In a nutshell, he's pissed, although, he claims he's not bitter anymore, but instead he seems confused and you know what? I get it. You see, the Boston Red Sox have never retired him number 26. Hard to believe, considering Boggs is a Hall of Famer, but how could that be possible I thought.

He did some great things in Boston including batting .338 in 11 years and 5 batting titles.  Still, they have not retired his number.  

Here are some of those quotes from the Globe piece. It's Boggs talking about his number being retired in Boston:

“It would be nice... Am I bitter? I thought when I wore a Boston hat in the Hall of Fame I’d be up there.  It’s been eight years now. I used to be bitter. But I think those days are over. Was I bitter? Absolutely... They told me there’s criteria... You have to end your career as a Red Sox.”

Boggs then stated that his number was given out to non-roster invitees since his days in Boston ended. Yet, someone like Roger Clemens and his #21 has never been given out.

Conspiracy? Sour grapes? Could be.  I mean, everything Boggs says makes sense and he truly did make an impact on the game in Boston.  Truth be told, while I hated Wade Boggs in Boston, I hated him because he was great. That all changed when he came to New York, because then, I knew he was ours and I loved him in pinstripes.

Finally, I loved this nugget from the Globe piece:  "Boston fans still cringe at the indelible image of a giddy Boggs riding on horseback with a police officer at Yankee Stadium, an index finger jabbing skyward. Not exactly Carlton Fisk waving his 1975 World Series home run fair. 

But Fisk, who played more seasons for the White Sox than the Red Sox, eventually was hired back as a special assistant in Boston, and his No. 27 has been retired at Fenway."

Yeah... I'd say that Boggs has been blackballed... all because he won a World Championship in New York.  I can't speak for why Roger Clemens number hasn't been given out and all of that, but there is something very telling about the way the Red Sox are handling Wade Boggs and his famous number 26.  Almost like they want him erased from Red Sox history.  Who knows... it's just my opinion, but I did find this very interesting.  Good piece by Stan Grossfeld on the Boston Globe.

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