It certainly seemed like an ordinary day today. You wake up to a bright sun that belies a chilly April morning. Eat breakfast, take a shower, maybe catch a little SportsCenter if there's time. Bemoan the fact that the Red Sox are in last place in the AL East. Just another day in a seemingly endless series of them.
It's these types of days that bad news hits you the hardest.
Mark "the Bird" Fidrych was working on his truck this afternoon, something that was not out of the ordinary for him. He spent his days hauling gravel for a local business, working on his farm, helping out at his mother-in-law's diner, and making the occasional charitable appearance for the town Little League, pancake breakfast, or some other charitable event. In other words, he was the furthest thing you'd expect from a former AL Rookie of the Year who talked to the baseball and strutted around on the mound like a rooster in a hen house.
Although I grew up in Northborough, I didn't know Mark Fidrych very well, so I can't profess to feel the way his family and close friends do right now. All I can share is that the inaugural town Little League parade will never be the same without his presence, signing baseballs for the kids and shaking hands with their parents.I certainly remember how starstruck I was when I was introduced to him at my first Little League parade, and how I left feeling like a million bucks with a signed baseball from one of baseball's great characters. Even as a 12-year old, I was amazed at how such a small gesture could mean so much to so many kids.
Over the next few days and weeks, you're going to read a lot about the man the sports world dubbed "the Bird," so I'll let the columnists wax poetic about his life and what he meant to the sport. His career, much like his life, was way too short.
My thoughts and prayers are with his family tonight. Rest In Peace Bird, you will be missed.
Keywords: Boston Red Sox., Detroit Tigers, Little League, Mark "the Bird" Fidrych, Rookie of the Year
