Johnny Pesky

"A day dripping with schmaltz and bling..."

-- The NY Sun's Michael Silverman describes, not innacurately, yesterday's Opening Day extravaganza at Fenway:

On a sunny beautiful day that had more than an October-like nip in the air, the Red Sox had a hoot and a holler handing out their World Series rings to themselves. Video tributes, specially commissioned ballads, James Taylor on the guitar, enormous satin banners unfurled over the Green Monster, a standing ovation for a grinning Mariano Rivera, a moment of silence for ex-Red Sox Dick Radatz interrupted by an "A-Rod, you suck!", F-16 flyovers, Carl Yastrzemski, Bobby Doerr, Dom DiMaggio, Rich Gedman - the greats and near-greats of the Red Sox past all showed their faces in pre-game ceremonies that lasted more than hour and were politely tolerated by the Yankees, gathered en masse in their dugout.

The Globe's Dan Shaughnessy writes:

This was the day the Sox raised the World Series flag and dropped the curtain on Boston Baseball's Bacchanalia…

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The Boston Pops and the Boston Symphony. Bobby Orr and Bill Russell throwing out first pitches. A championship banner stretching the length of the Green Monster. The visiting Yanks showing class. Thundering cheers for Dave Roberts and Derek Lowe, returned for the occasion, and for NY's Mariano Rivera. Generations of Sox –Dom DiMaggio and Bobby Doerr and Bruce Hurst and Oil Can Boyd and Luis Tiant and Fred Lynn and Jim Rice and many more – gathering in the outfield as Johnny Pesky and Yaz raised the banner. My wife's boss, who has season tickets, selling his seats for $1,500.

Shaughnessy writes:

Baseball. The best game. The New England game . . . the thing that brought so many people together in yesterday's celebration for the ages.

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The Globe has gone to free registration, which is a pain, but it's worth it for the audio slideshow and photo gallery of the Opening Day ceremonies.