Idiots Revisited: Catching Up with the Red Sox Who Won the 2004 World Series

by Ian Browne, David Ortiz (Foreword by)

Overview

For 86 years, the Red Sox labored under the Curse of the Bambino, never winning a World Series until a group of self-proclaimed “Idiots” banished the curse in 2004.

Ten years later, MLB.com writer Ian Browne caught up with many of the men from that never-say-die squad and wove their memories of the season, the playoffs, and their subsequent lives with his own journalism to create a book that is both poignant and hugely entertaining.

Woven around the 2004 memories and insights of Derek Lowe, Keith Foulke, Dave Roberts, Gabe Kapler, Pedro Martinez, Johnny Damon, Mark Bellhorn, Tim Wakefield, Terry Francona, Theo Epstein, and others.

A marvelous gift and profoundly satisfying read for Red Sox fans.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780884483847
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	04/01/2014
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Ian Browne was born in Detroit, but has spent nearly his whole life in Boston, and thus is soaked in the town's sport-crazy culture; he went to his first Red Sox game in 1980, and always wanted to see the Red Sox win a World Series and finally, in his third year covering the team for MLB.com, he did.

Ian graduated from Northeastern University with a degree in journalism in 1995. He and his wife, Amy (a fellow graduate of Northeastern Univeristy School of Journalism) have three sons, Tyler, Ryan, and Casey. They live in West Roxbury, Mass.

Of Idiots Revisited, he says, There is nothing like going down Memory Lane with an iconic team.

Designated hitter for the Boston Red Sox.

Table of Contents

Foreword 7

Introduction 9

1 Winter to Spring Training 16

Woozy Damon Lets Hair Down

2 April 30

Pair of Aces

3 May-Mid-July 41

The Lull

4 July 24 55

The Day That Changed Everything

5 July 31 66

The Second Day That Changed Everything

6 August-September 81

The Arrival of a Juggernaut

7 Division Series-Early ALCS 93

Sweep, and Then Almost Swept

8 Game 4, ALCS 102

Man of Steal

9 Game 5, ALCS 116

Trotting Toward History

10 Game 6, ALCS 128

Bloody Sock and a Foulke Hero

11 Game 7, ALCS 139

Miracle Accomplished

12 Game 1, World Series 152

Bellhorn Rings Pesky's Pole

13 Game 2, World Series 158

Bloody Sock Sequel

14 Game 3, World Series 164

Pedro's Last Stand

15 Game 4, World Series 172

Is This Heaven?

16 Idiot Exodus 184

Epilogue 211

Coming Full Circle

Acknowledgments 219

What People are Saying About This

Gabe Kapler

"Ian's storytelling capability, coupled with his near perfect utilization of player anecdotes, makes for a comfortable read that had me forgetting that I was on my living room couch, deep in nostalgic thought."

ESPN - Jackie MacMullan

"Idiots Revisited, Ian Browne's peek behind the curtain of the 2004 Red Sox, is endearing, entertaining—and revealing. You thought you knew everything about this team? Guess again."

co-author, FRANCONA: The Red Sox Years - Dan Shaughnessy

"While Red Sox Nation basks in the afterglow of 2013, Ian Browne sheds light on the most important Sox season of them all the 2004 season. This is the year that everything changed."

Red Sox play-by-play - Dave O'Brien

"As Red Sox fans we take pride in knowing everything about our ball club, but Idiots Revisited overflows with rich details previously untold: the Keith Foulke-Johnny Pesky story . . . a fascinating take on the Tek-A-Rod brawl . . . Orlando Cabrera's strange hold over Manny. Ian Browne does a wonderful job filling gaps in that legendary season."

Editorial Reviews

"Overflows with rich details previously untold . . . Browne does a wonderful job filling gaps in that legendary season."

Dave O’Brien

"Five stars!"

Sports Book Review Center

"It is both an in-depth remembrance of the team that broke the franchise’s 86-year championship drought and a behind-the-scenes look at one of the most charismatic clubs in recent memory."

Paul Hagen