Today in History: Red Sox win the World Series for the first time in 86 years

A lot of people hear about the "curse of the great Gambino" and perhaps they don't really know what it means. It does mean something pretty profound in the baseball world though and it all came to an end today... which was a very special day indeed.

The year was 2004

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If you don't know what the "curse of the great Gambino" is let me educate you real fast: The Boston Red Sox sold star player Babe Ruth (sometimes referred to as "Bambino") in 1920 to the New York Yankees for an absurdly small amount of money. Prior to selling Babe off to NYC, the Red Sox had been an incredibly successful ball club. They won the first ever World Series and managed to win 5 more titles until.... you guessed it, they sold Babe Ruth. They then managed to be a decent team for the most part but didn't manage to win the big show for nearly a century.

The curse was broken in 2004 though.

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The craziest thing about the Red Sox winning in 2004 wasn't just the curse, it wasn't that nobody expected it to happen, it was the fact that they were LOSING badly when all of a sudden they turned it all around. They were facing none other than the New York Yankees (the team they sold Babe Ruth to) in the American League Championship series and were down 3 games to none. Let me go ahead and tell you how astronomically impossible it is for any team.... ever .... to come back from 3 games down and win the series.... It never happens!

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Not only did the Red Sox lose the first 3 games but in game 3 they lost, at home in Fenway Park, 19-8 in a terribly embarrassing at-home thrashing of the highest degree.

In game 4 Boston was losing again and it looked like the Yankees were going to simply sweep the Sox out as it was the bottom of the 9th and New York was on top 4-3. The game got tied in the 9th and then ended up being a victory for the Sox in the 12th inning when David Ortiz hit a home run giving the Red Sox their first victory in the matchup.

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The Boston Red Sox would go on to win the next 3 games as well becoming the first team ever to win a 7-game series after being down 3 games to none.

They would later face the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series and defeat them in 4 straight games which in itself is an accomplishment that is very rarely done.

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Winning the World Series is an incredible accomplishment in itself. Advancing to the World Series after your team just took a beating and was down 3 games to none is even better. Advancing from that section and then taking on the best team in the other division and then dominating them.... well, that is almost unheard of.

But sweeping the World Series 4-0 when there is a self-induced "curse" on your team for having sold the most recognizable player in the history of the sport nearly 100 years prior.... man,.... that is something that deserves to be in the history books... for sure.

_{Keep in mind that the World Series is going on right now... and my team the Nationals look like they could win the big dance}