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Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

AP Photo/Harry Cabluck
Carlton Fisk watches his 12th-inning home run

On April 20, 1912, two iconic baseball stadiums opened their doors - Tiger Stadium in Detroit and Fenway Park in Boston. The former closed down in 1999 and was demolished three years ago, but Red Sox fans are still packing Fenway 100 years later.

Back on that day in 1912, when John F. Kennedy's grandfather threw out the first pitch, few could have imagined that the stadium would one day be added to the National Register of Historic Places (as it was last month). But Fenway Park has been the venue for more iconic moments than any other current baseball stadium in America.

Fenway's history is forever intertwined with George Herman Ruth. Two years after the stadium opened, the burly ballplayer known as "Babe" made his Red Sox debut as a pitcher. But in 1919, he was traded to the Yankees, worked on his swing, rewrote the baseball record books and sparked 86 years of misery for Red Sox fans. The team's failure to win a World Series - the "Curse of the Bambino" - would shadow Fenway until 2004.

Ruth was far from the only legend to grace Fenway's field. Ted Williams made his legacy there, winning two Triple Crowns and hitting an unmatched .406 in 1941. Other Red Sox names are etched in Fenway lore: Fisk, Yastrzemski, Rice, Doerr, Cronin, Pesky. Even icons outside the sports world made headlines in the shadow of the Green Monster: In 1944, Franklin D. Roosevelt gave his final campaign speech there.

Fenway Park: This diamond is forever

The Red Sox have sold out more than 700 consecutive games at Fenway, the longest such streak in Major League Baseball history. As the iconic park marks its centenary on Friday, here are some of Fenway's most memorable moments.

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

Library of Congress

Fenway hosts 1912 World Series

1912 World Series

The inaugural year for Fenway Park foreshadowed one of baseball's most memorable rivalries: Boston vs. New York. The day the stadium opened, the Red Sox beat the visiting Yankees (then called the Highlanders) 7-6 in 11 innings.

But it was the other New York team - the Giants - that would invade Fenway for the 1912 World Series. The Red Sox boasted the best outfield in the game--Tris Speaker, Harry Hooper and Duffy Lewis--and superstar pitcher Smoky Joe Wood. But it was one of the most famous errors in Fall Classic history that gave the Sox the title. In the 10th inning of the deciding game, Giants center fielder Fred Snodgrass dropped an easy fly ball and Boston went on to score two runs in the inning to win their second world championship.

The miscue came to be known as the "$30,000 Muff," which was how much the World Series winner took home in 1912.

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

Library of Congress

Babe Ruth traded to the Yankees on Dec. 26, 1919

Babe Ruth

This isn't technically a single moment at Fenway Park but it's a date that shadowed the Fenway faithful for 86 years. The 24-year-old Ruth, a converted pitcher who had only been a full-time hitter for one season, was dealt to the rival Yankees on Dec. 26, 1919. With Ruth hitting cleanup, the Bronx Bombers got the bulk of the future Hall of Famer's 714 career homeruns and four World Series titles over nine years. What did the Red Sox get in return? $100,000 in cash, a $300,000 loan and 86 years of agony.

The Sox, who had won three titles in five years before the Ruth trade, would have to wait nearly a century for their next World Series championship. The epic drought, which came to be known as the "Curse of the Bambino," was laid to rest in 2004. That's when the Red Sox finally got the last laugh over the hated Yankees, vanquishing their rivals in the ALCS, sweeping the Cardinals in the World Series and killing the Babe's curse. But for legions of Boston fans who never lived to see a championship, the Ruthian jinx was no joke.

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

AP Photo

Ted Williams homers in last at-bat at Fenway, Sept. 28, 1960

Ted Williams crosses home plate at Fenway Park

In a town replete with baseball nicknames, the legendary Ted Williams had many: "The Splendid Splinter", "Teddy Ballgame", "The Thumper." But on Sept. 28, 1960, the player best known as "The Kid" capped his illustrious Red Sox career in unforgettable fashion. In his last game at Fenway Park, the 42-year-old Williams homered in his final at-bat - the 521st of his career. Sadly, the star refused to give a curtain call - a snub that reflected his strained relationship with the Fenway faithful and sports writers.

Despite his uneasy relationship with Boston, Red Sox fans remain in awe of his resume: Williams was a two-time MVP, won six batting titles and two Triple Crowns. The Hall of Famer's No. 9 jersey is one of only seven Red Sox jerseys to hang above the right field grandstand at Fenway Park.

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

AP Photo/Harry Cabluck

Carlton Fisk's home run in 1975 World Series

Carlton Fisk watches his 12th-inning home run

Even though the Sox would go on to lose the '75 Series, this dramatic hit endures as Fenway's most iconic moment. In one of the most dramatic Fall Classics ever, the Cincinnati Reds were on the verge of winning the title when the Red Sox staged a furious comeback. Bernie Cabo hit a pinch-hit three run homerun in the eighth-inning to tie the game at 6. Boston then loaded the bases in the ninth with no outs but failed to score.

Finally in the 12th inning, Sox catcher Carlton Fisk lifted a long drive off the Reds' Pat Darcy. The ball sailed toward the Green Monster in the Fenway night and Fisk emphatically signaled the ball to stay fair. It did - barely - clanking off the foul pole and sending the Fenway fans into euphoria.

Alas, the joy was short lived - and the Curse of the Bambino extended - as the Reds would go on to win Game 7 at Fenway the next night 4-3.

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

AP Photo/Ray Stubblebine

Bucky Dent's home run in 1978 playoff game

Bucky Dent hits a home run off a pitch from Boston Red Sox Mike Torrez

Last season, Red Sox nation bemoaned the team's historic September collapse, culminating in a deflating, playoff-missing defeat to the lowly Baltimore Orioles on the season's last day.

Well, that low point has nothing on this painful memory in Fenway lore. In 1978, he Red Sox squandered a 14 ½ game lead over the Yankees in July and the two teams finished the season tied with 99 wins apiece. That forced a one-game playoff for the AL East Crown - a game that turned out to be one of the most incredible games in the historic rivalry.

When Carl Yastrzemski took Ron Guidry deep early, Boston fans had their hopes up. But it was Yankees No. 9 hitter Bucky Dent (who had 40 homers in 12 big league seasons) who hit a dramatic three-run homer off Boston' s Mike Torrez to lead the Bronx Bombers to a 5-4 win - and leave the Fenway faithful waiting even longer for that elusive World Series title.

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

AP Photo/Elise Amendola

Roger Clemens strikes out 20 batters on April 29, 1986

Roger Clemens poses with the game ball

In 1986, Hall of Famer Tom Seaver spent part of his final major league season with the Boston Red Sox. While at Fenway, he taught young star Roger Clemens a thing or two about the finer points of pitching. In fact, Clemens would later say that it was Seaver who helped him transform from a "thrower" to a "pitcher."

The tutelage paid off early that season. On April 29, 1986, against the Seattle Mariners, Clemens became the first pitcher ever to strike out 20 batters in a nine-inning game. The record stood for 10 years - until it was tied by, who else, Clemens himself. In all, "The Rocket" won 192 games for the Red Sox and no other player in the franchise has worn his No. 21 since he left the team in 1996.

Clemens, however, won't be at the Fenway centennial celebration. The seven-time Cy Young Award winner is in D.C. courtroom, where he stands accused of lying to Congress in 2008 when he said he never used performance-enhancing drugs.

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

AP Photo/Matt York

Ted Williams appears at All-Star Game, July 13, 1999

Baseball legend Ted Williams smiles as he shakes the hands of All-Stars

While it's no surprise Ted Williams is a legend in Boston, it's also no secret that during his playing days, he had a prickly relationship with the fans. After being booed once for committing an error, he made an obscene gesture and spit in the direction of some fans near the dugout.

But time heals wounds and in 1991, Williams tipped his Red Sox cap to the Fenway crowd - a gesture he had refused to do during his playing days, including his last at-bat at Fenway. And eight years later, Williams received the warmest ovation of all when he made an unexpected appearance at the 1999 All-Star Game at Fenway. The emotion was palpable among the fans, the players - and Williams himself.

Said Mark McGwire: "Tears were coming out of Ted's eyes. I had to turn away because tears were coming out my eyes, too."

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

AP Photo

Pedro Martinez bulldozes Don Zimmer, Oct. 11, 2003

Pedro Martinez throws Don Zimmer to the ground

You expect the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry to get physical. But rarely do you expect a 32-year-old star and a 72-year-old bench coach come to blows. But that's what happened during the 2003 playoffs at Fenway Park when Don Zimmer, then the Yankees bench coach, charged at then-Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez, who grabbed Zimmer by the head and threw him to the ground.

What is not in dispute: The Yankees were irked that Martinez hit Karim Garcia with a pitch earlier in the game. What is in dispute: What fueled the Zimmer-Pedro altercation.

Six years after the melee, Martinez said he was just defending himself from a crazy senior charging him and saying some "bad words" about his mother. Zimmer's response in 2009: "Pedro is full of crap. It's what, six years later? If Pedro wants to be a big man, I don't care what he says."

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

Getty Images/Jim Rogash

Jason Varitek punches Alex Rodriguez, July 24, 2004

Jason Varitek strikes Alex Rodriguez

When Red Sox captain Jason Varitek announced his retirement last month, new Boston manager Bobby Valentine had this to say about the longtime catcher: "He is a man's man," Valentine said. "He was a big hitter needed. He was a leader of the pitching staff. He was able to beat up Alex. All that stuff is good stuff."

Valentine was referencing the notorious incident at Fenway Park on July 24, 2004. When Yankees star Alex Rodriguez bristled after being hit by a pitch from Bronson Arroyo. Varitek immediately stepped in, cursed at Rodriguez and shoved his catcher's mitt in A-Rod's face.

The altercation cleared the benches and sparked the Red Sox to an 11-10 comeback victory. It also served notice to the Yankees that the Red Sox were not backing down - and they proved it later that year in the American League Championship Series.

Fenway Park: 10 greatest moments

Getty Images/Jed Jacobsohn

The Red Sox dramatic comeback in the 2004 ALCS

David Ortiz celebrates after hitting the game winning two-run home run

Here's a daunting scenario. You're three outs away from being swept by your nemesis (Yankees) in the American League Championship Series. No MLB team had ever come back from a 3-0 postseason deficit - let alone a franchise that had gone 86 years without a World Series title.

But the Red Sox would not back down. Despite being down in the ninth inning of Game 4 and facing future Hall of Fame closer Mariano Rivera, Boston scratched out a run and then won the game on a two-run homer by David Ortiz in the 12th inning. Big Papi would also win Game 5 with a base hit in the 14th inning, sending Fenway Park into hysteria.

The Red Sox took the next two games to win the pennant, and swept the St. Louis Cardinals in four games to win their first World Series since 1918. The Curse of the Bambino had finally been lifted from Fenway Park.

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