Is Buckner Forgiven?
It's been 21 years since the ball went through Bill Buckner's legs. That one moment erased everything else he did in his baseball career. There was no forgiving Bill Buckner for years and years by Red Sox fans.
It seems times have changed. A new Survey USA poll was released that says that 82% of respondents think Buckner should be forgiven. The survey was taken in the Boston and Manchester, NH areas.
I guess I am willing to forgive Bill Buckner. But, and I bet a lot of you feel this same way, if the Sox had not won two World Series Championships in recent years, and we were still hearing chants of "1918," we wouldn't be so forgiving of Bill Buckner. And he sure as hell (no pun intended) wouldn't be throwing out any opening day pitches.
Just so you know, Buckner forgives you too, for hating him from 1986-2004. After yesterday's game he said, ""I really had to forgive, not the fans of Boston, per se, but I would have to say in my heart I had to forgive the media for what they put me and my family through. So, you know, I've done that and I'm over that."
It's a new winning century in Red Sox nation, and we are all in a forgiving mood.
2 comments:
One thing that rubs me the wrong way is the word "forgive". To me, he did nothing to us, and therefore there is no reason for us to need to forgive him - we are the ones that need forgiveness for what was done to him.
He had a terrific year in 1986, and without him we wouldn't have gotten to the WS. The game was screwed up long before the ball was hit to him - Clemens came out too early, relief pitching was god awful, passed balls, etc. He did make a poorly timed error, but there is no reason I need to forgive him for that - it was not an offense that needs forgiving. Clemens asking to come out of the game might need forgiving, but not an error. Had he made the play, they probably would have lost in the next inning - the Mets were on a roll, and the Sox were floundering and out of pitching.
Okay - 'nuf said. I love it the Sox were gracious and helped Bill put this behind him!
Good points rooster. It was a tie game before the error. Everyone does seem to forget that. Unfortunately for Buckner, he personally took on all Red Sox fans' frustrations that had been building up for decades.
While many think he was treated unfairly. And, it's hard to argue that he wasn't treated unfairly, professionals have to live with the consequences of being in the spotlight. If we are to give sports figures endless glory for one key or clutch play (i.e. Bird steals the inbound pass, Flutie's hail mary, etc.) then we can understandibly hold athletes responsible for one key flub for a long time.
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