Brianna Wakefield, daughter of Tim and Stacy, throws out first pitch at Fenway Park Opening Day
BOSTON -- Red Sox fans in attendance at Fenway Park and at home watching on TV experienced a range of emotions on Opening Day on Tuesday.
The return of the 2004 Red Sox represented a celebration of the greatest comeback in baseball history and the end of an 86-year championship wait in Boston. But the recent losses of Larry Lucchino and Tim and Stacy Wakefield presented a somber element to the festivities.
The pregame ceremony featured the members of the 2004 team emerging from behind a banner that hung in front of the Green Monster. The players and staff from that team were led to the mound by Brianna and Trevor Wakefield. And after arriving at the mound, Brianna threw out the ceremonial first pitch, with Jason Varitek catching.
After exchanging hugs with their father's former teammates, Brianna and Trevor lifted the '04 trophy in front of the team.
Prior to the performance of the national anthem on Tuesday, the Red Sox hold a moment of silence for the Wakefields, along with Lucchino, Billy Gardner, Dick Drago, Jimy Williams and Arthur D'Angelo.
Tim Wakefield died in October at the age of 57 after spending nearly 30 years as part of the Red Sox organization. He originally came to Boston as a free agent in April of 1995, after being released by the Pittsburgh Pirates. He finished third in Cy Young voting for his debut season in Boston, when he went 16-8 with a 2.95 ERA in 27 starts for the Red Sox, who won their division for the first time in five years.
Wakefield reached free agency in 2000 and appeared to be heading out of Boston, but he and the Red Sox reached agreement on a new deal just before a deadline to keep the knuckleballer on the roster.
Wakefield signed a three-year extension in 2002, and in 2005 he signed what was essentially a lifetime contract with the Red Sox, one that automatically added an option year each season that the Red Sox kept Wakefield on the roster. He'd continue pitching with the Red Sox through the 2011 season, making his first-ever All-Star team in 2009. He won a World Series with the Red Sox in 2004, famously breaking an 86-year championship drought for the franchise, and he was part of the 2007 World Series-winning team as well. He was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2016.
He announced his retirement from baseball at JetBlue Park in February of 2012, but his work with the organization continued. An eight-time nominee (and winner in 2010) for the Roberto Clemente Award for his commitment to the team and the community during his playing days, Wakefield was named honorary chairman of the Red Sox Foundation. He continued his fundraising and community work in that role, particularly with the Franciscan Children's Hospital as well as The Jimmy Fund. In retirement, Wakefield also worked as a Red Sox analyst on NESN, remaining a perpetually visible part of the franchise.
"The biggest thing for me is what he did off the field," longtime teammate Derek Lowe said this week of Wakefield. "He did so much for charity and didn't ask for cameras to show up. He did it for all the right reasons."
Wakefield's 2004 teammates were on hand Tuesday for the 20th anniversary of their curse-busting championship, one that Wakefield played a vital role in earning. The team used the day -- coincidentally, the 4/9 date matched Wakefield's 49 jersey number -- to debut uniform patches to commemorate Wakefield's life and career. Fans in attendance also received commemorative Wakefield pins. On Friday, the Red Sox will host a Red Sox Foundation-themed game, with fans receiving a hat with Wakefield's number 49 inside of a heart stitched on the front. A portion of ticket proceeds from that game will go to the Red Sox Foundation.
