Likable Sox have turned a new leaf
Time of turbulence now deep in past
We now have four days to savor, which is different from having four days to gloat, though there’ll be a lot of that done around here, too, as we await Tuesday night’s World Series opener at Fenway Park.
This is somewhat new territory for longtime Red Sox loyalists.
Sure, we’ve won before, but not with a squad quite like this one.
There’s something about these current Sox that’s awfully easy to like, and that’s not just because everyone likes a winner.
What’s different is that these winners are genuinely likeable.
They appear unspoiled, far removed from the not-solong-ago-days of beer and chicken in the clubhouse while games were going on, turbulent days when a veteran would dare inform a manager of “how we do things around here,” indeed days so riddled with uneasiness that another manager wound up babbling inanities such as “if a frog had wings he wouldn’t bump his booty.”
Can you imagine Alex Cora mumbling that?
He’s Joe Torre without the pinstripes, which is to say cool, calm and much admired, not only by fans but, more importantly, by his players, too.
These are different Red Sox. What’s happened to this team is what happened to the Yankees.
Easy to loathe in the days of Reggie, Mickey, Billy and George, they changed. How could anyone “hate” Derek Jeter?
The Sox have changed, too.
Watch Mookie Betts, perhaps soon to be voted the best player in the league. No swagger, no hint of being a hot dog; he comes across as a kid who really gets it.
Kenny Harrelson, the celebrated “Hawk” of the Impossible Dream generation, was once asked what made him such a darling of the fans, given that he was a lifetime .239 hitter who played only 185 games with the Sox.
“It was something in the water, I guess,” he said, smiling. “All I can tell you is that it was the sweetest time of my life and the best part of all was that I knew it while it was happening.”
You get the feeling Mookie knows that, too.
So do Andrew, J.D. and JBJ. It’s long been known customers in this town like players who get their uniforms dirty.
But even more endearing are jocks who actually appear to appreciate what fate ordained for them, not just in terms of ability, but also opportunity as well as the timing that brought so many of them together to form a team such as this one.
They seem to realize how blessed they are.
No wonder they’re so easy to like.