Nothing exciting going on this Christmas morning as far as the Red Sox are concerned. Ian Browne from MLB.com conducted a couple of interviews with Jacoby Ellsbury and Red Sox radio broadcaster Joe Castiglione about their thoughts on the holiday season among other things.
Here are excerpts from both.
MLB.com: Given what just happened to you on the baseball field, winning the World Series with the Red Sox and playing such a big role, does that make this Christmas and this holiday season even more enjoyable for you than normal?
Ellsbury: Yeah, everybody is excited. My family is very proud and excited. It’s just been fun, them sharing the moment and the memories with me. They were in Boston for the World Series and in Colorado, and for my birthday in September. It’s been a memorable year. This time of year, you can kind of reflect back on what happened throughout the course of the year — not only myself, but the rest of the family. We have some great memories of 2007.
MLB.com: It had to mean a lot to you, not just winning the World Series, but breaking into the Major Leagues earlier than you could have expected. How memorable was this year as a whole?
Ellsbury: Very memorable, just the way I started off in Double-A, then went to Triple-A and got the first callup before the All-Star break, then being a September callup and being put on the postseason roster — just the whole year, just kind of how everything unfolded. I couldn’t be more grateful than to see what’s happened on the baseball field and now to be able to enjoy it all with my family.
MLB.com: You’re coming off a great year professionally. The Red Sox just won the World Series — again. Does that make this holiday season even more enjoyable?
Castiglione: I think so. You still pinch yourself that we won again, the second time in four years. It’s really different than the first time in some ways. Not that it’s any less exciting. It’s like comparing your kids. You really can’t compare. The first one was more about the miracle and ending curses and winning it for people no longer with us. This year was about being the best ballclub. It was really a wire-to-wire season. It really is special to go into this time of year knowing that you won it all because I certainly remember ’86 and ’03 and others. Not that you think about baseball constantly during the holidays, but it adds a nice twist to it when you’ve won it all.
MLB.com: What does it mean to you to be the only Red Sox broadcaster to ever be at the mic when the team has won the World Series? You’ve now done it twice, and nobody else can even say they’ve done it once.
Castiglione: It’s just a feeling of how blessed I am of being able to be in that position. I’ve never dreamed about it. I thought about winning it all once, but I never thought about being the first to call the last out. I remember in 1986, I did the top of the 10th of Game 6 against the Mets and I said to Ken Coleman, ‘Do you want me to do the bottom of the 10th or go to the clubhouse?’ He said, ‘It’s up to you.’ I thought after 20 years, he should call the last out. Plus, I wanted to be down there. But we all know what happened. Yeah, it is amazing. I’ve been in that position at the right place at the right time. I know a lot of great broadcasters who have never had the chance.
