The Red Sox might not be playing this season at Fenway Park, but a group of heroic Boston locals will be able to catch the team in action every year going forward.
Former Red Sox star David Ortiz joined actor and Boston native John Krasinski in gifting lifetime Red Sox season tickets to Boston healthcare workers on the pandemic front lines. The uplifting moment occurred on Krasinski’s “Some Good News” YouTube series, which he launched two weeks ago as a way to highlight stories of hope and heroes in this difficult time.
“I know we’re all missing baseball season, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t bring baseball to you,” Krasinski told a group of six employees working within the COVID-19 unit at Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. At that moment, Ortiz, clad in a Red Sox jersey and hat, appeared on the video conference screen.
“I gotta tell you guys from the very bottom of my heart how much I love you and respect you for what you guys are doing,” the former first baseman said. “Taking your lives, taking your time, that’s something that it goes beyond everything so the Red Sox are gonna donate four tickets for life to you and everybody at Beth Israel.”
Krasinski quipped that he has been on the waiting list for Red Sox season tickets for 16 years, proving the enormity of the gesture on behalf of Ortiz and the organization. The surprises didn’t end there, however, as six healthcare workers on the video call were then brought to a vacant Fenway Park to take the field and explore the famed venue.
It is highly unlikely that the nine-time World Series champions will hit the diamond in Boston this year. The MLB remains in limbo as contingency plans for the delayed season are ironed out and players are tracking their health. One scenario that could bring baseball back to the masses is the possibility of housing games solely in Arizona without fans but televised nationally, a prospect which Dr. Anthony Fauci approved of.
Watch the full video below.
