The Red Sox held an emotional pre-game ceremony this afternoon at Fenway Park to honor those affected by Monday’s Marathon bombings. Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick and Boston Police commissioner Edward Davis were both in attendance for the occasion and received generous applause from the crowd.
In a tradition started by the Boston Bruins on Wednesday night, the crowd sang the National Anthem in unison. You can watch that here. Then we had our ceremonial first pitch, which featured some local heroes: Matt Patterson, an off-duty firefighter, saved the life of a young boy on Monday. Steven Byrne, who was hospitalized after being injured during the bombings. And the father-and-son running team of Dick and Rick Hoyt.
Fenway did the ceremony right, but as our own Aaron Gleeman notes, David Ortiz stole the show before the players took the field.
David Ortiz takes the mic at Fenway Park and says: "This is our f***ing city. Nobody is going to dictate our freedom. Stay strong."
— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) April 20, 2013
Maybe a couple of you will take offense to the expletive, but it almost felt poignant given the hell that city has been through this week. Hey, the fans sure didn’t seem to mind.
UPDATE: Below you’ll find the (edited) video of Ortiz’s comments, but we think you’ll get the gist.