Anxious fans congregated on the third floor of the Boston-Woburn Hilton early on Saturday morning in anticipation of meeting one of the true heroes of Boston sports. At approximately 10:45 AM, a large round of applause greeted the man of the hour…
Carl Michael Yastrzemski was in the house!
The rare personal appearance by Yaz delighted a diehard crowd who braved the torrential rains that enveloped New England on Friday night and throughout Saturday morning… some fans had ventured to greater Boston from as far away as Connecticut and Maine just to get a glimpse of the man who once helped make baseball relevant again in Boston.
(Older members of Red Sox Nation remember the mid-1960s when Fenway Park was often near-empty, even on Opening Day)
Yaz’ appearance was made possible by the marvelous folks at Dick Gordon Sports…and I would be remiss if I failed to acknowledge the efforts of Dick, Gloria, Wes and all of the folks at DGS who put together the event.
They attended to all of the details that make a successful event—from being attentive to the needs of fans who require special assistance to arranging for the services of PSA (a critical consideration for a rare event such as Yaz’ appearance)
In spite of everything that went well throughout the morning, the experience nonetheless left me with a feeling of melancholy.
Yaz was gracious with those in attendance. He shook hands and frequently took pictures with fans, but the truth of the matter is that he appeared tremendously fatigued. When taking pictures he was largely unable to muster a smile.
So the experience was truly a mixed bag for me. While I was excited to be able to meet and talk with one of my boyhood idols for a few minutes, it saddened me that he appeared fatigued.
Here’s to you, Yaz! Thank you for a wonderful career. Thank you for coming to Boston and making the effort to meet with the members of Red Sox Nation this weekend. We will always be indebted to you.
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