The first pitch of Game 2 will actually be the first pitches, plural, of Game 2, as multiple stars of the 2004 World Series will be on hand to do the honors.
The Sox in question: Pedro Martinez, David Ortiz, Kevin Millar, Tim Wakefield, Jason Varitek, Keith Foulke, and Alan Embree.
Missing from that list is Doug Mientkiewicz, who one of my Twitter correspondents suspects was not included because they worried he’d not actually let go of the ball. Which, I have to admit, is a reasonable fear given his history.
More conspicuously missing: Manny Ramirez. Whose absence I do understand given his bad exit from Boston and his sordid post-Red Sox playing career. Still, he was a big, huge star for those teams -- he was the MVP of the 2004 World Series for crying out loud! -- so you’d think they’d ask him back. Either to throw the first pitch or to, at the very least, intercept it:
Oh well. Missed opportunities.
