Red Sox players, coaches and officials applaud President Bush as he arrives for Wednesday's ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House. (Joe Gromelski / S&S)
Red Sox players, coaches and officials applaud President Bush as he arrives for Wednesday's ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House. (Joe Gromelski / S&S)
Red Sox players, coaches and officials laugh as President Bush makes a joke during Wednesday's ceremony. (Joe Gromelski / S&S)
Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek presents Vice President Cheney with a Red Sox jersey during Wednesday's ceremony at the White House. (Joe Gromelski / S&S)
Former Red Sox outfielder Dom DiMaggio was among the guests at Wednesday's ceremony. Also representing the older alumni were Johnny Pesky and Jimmy Piersall. (Joe Gromelski / S&S)
Well-dressed Red Sox players Kevin Millar, Jason Varitek, David Ortiz and Johnny Damon meet the press after Wednesday's ceremony at the White House. (Joe Gromelski / S&S)
WASHINGTON — It was a clear day, with the wind blowing out. A perfect day for Boston Red Sox baseball.
President Bush welcomed members of the 2004 World Series champions to the White House on Wednesday in front of a few hundred members of Red Sox Nation.
The fans started chants of “Here we go, Red Sox, here we go!” punctuated by the obligatory “Yankees suck!” as they waited for the President and Vice President Dick Cheney to appear.
“The last time this team won a championship, Woodrow Wilson lived here,” the president said.
Bush worked the crowd with a number of jibes directed toward the team, singling out center fielder Johnny Damon.
“I appreciate the way this team played baseball,” he said. “It took a lot of guts, and it took a lot of hair.”
Damon whipped his trademark locks around.
But, Bush said, “No one expected the answer to the curse of the Bambino would be a bunch of idiots,” referring to the team’s self-assigned moniker. “But those idiots don’t know baseball.”
“They cheered in New England, and they cheered in Baghdad, Iraq,” Bush said.
Curt Schilling, who pitched in the postseason despite a sutured ankle, and catcher Jason Varitek, the team’s new captain, presented President Bush a home jersey with No. 43, and Cheney with an away jersey with his name and No. 2.
The ceremony got a late start; schedules got bunched up because the president had earlier posthumously awarded Jackie Robinson a Congressional gold medal.
Sen. John Kerry, D.Mass., Bush’s opponent in last year’s race, arrived late due to scheduling conflicts.
“Senator Kerry has just arrived. I like to see John Kerry, except when we’re fixin’ to debate.”
Bush welcomed lawmakers from Massachusetts, including Boston mayor Thomas Menino.
“You’ve had a heck of a year, mayor!” Bush said, referring to the Red Sox’s title as well as two Super wins by the New England Patriots.
“It’s one of the great, spectacular comebacks in sports history, and it’s a wonderful thing,” said Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., referring to Boston’s unprecedented playoff win over the New York Yankees after being down 3-0 in the seven-game set.
Massachusetts Congressman Edward Markey laughed off the cold. “Our hearts are warm,” he said.
Most of the squad flew in from spring training in Ft. Myers, Fla. Notably absent was World Series MVP Manny Ramirez, who team officials said was visiting his sick grandmother.
The team was joined by former Red Sox Dom DiMaggio, Jimmy Piersall and Johnny Pesky, who played on the 1946 team that lost the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. The Sox swept the Cards in 2004.
Damon, Varitek, David Ortiz and Kevin Millar met with reporters afterward.
Asked what they thought of the visit, they didn’t miss a beat.
“We don’t think, remember?” Damon said with a grin.
“No, that’s last year’s thing,” Millar said. “We need a new shtick.”
They laughed when asked a question about Yankee third baseman Alex Rodriguez, who has had a war of words with some Boston players since the Red Sox beat the Yankees in last year’s playoffs.
“All right, the first A-Rod question!” Millar laughed, then wondered aloud when the first steroid question would be.
Soon it was asked, and Millar responded with a dead-on impersonation of basketball announcer Marv Albert — “Yes!”
Varitek answered.
“I will not get any smaller this year, OK?”
As for the visit, the four agreed it was “truly an honor,” as Millar noted.
“I’m a huge Bush fan,” Damon said. “He’d fit right in with this team.”
Does that mean he’s an idiot? a reporter asked.
“You said that,” Damon said.
And the captain jumped in.
“Let’s clear this up. No. He is NOT an idiot.”
Following the ceremony, the players took a trip up 16th Street to visit some of the wounded at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
The Sox seemed moved as they shook hands and spoke with recovering servicemembers in the Physical Therapy Clinic, according to a Walter Reed press release. Media were not allowed to accompany the team on the visit.
Many servicemembers shared their stories about how they were injured fighting in the Global War on Terrorism, and the players listened intently as they signed autographs on caps, baseballs and T-shirts they brought to give out to the patients.
