Varitek awarded for catching milestone

September 20, 2006 | MLB.com | By Mike Petraglia

 

BOSTON -- When a Hall of Fame catcher comes to visit and present an award, you can't help but listen, especially if your name is Jason Varitek.The Red Sox captain was given a bronze catcher's mitt by none other than Carlton Fisk before Tuesday's game with the Twins. The award, presented by the man who caught more games than anyone in the history of the game, was given to Varitek for becoming the first catcher in Red Sox history to catch 1,000 games."I'm just lucky, very lucky to have been playing that long," said a humble Varitek.

 

"You make your own luck, though. And Jason has worked hard to do that. He should be proud to catch 1,000 games," said Fisk.

 

Asked if he felt Varitek was a throwback, Fisk said the Red Sox captain just plays the game the right way.

 

"That's such an overused phrase -- 'throwback,'" Fisk said. "There's only one way to play the game, whether you played in 1902 or 2002. Jason and I just happen to believe in playing tough."

 

Following a wide smile, all Varitek could do was nod his head in agreement.

 

Fisk held the Boston club record with 990 career games caught before Varitek surpassed that total on July 18 against Kansas City. The Sox backstop caught his 1,000th game on July 31 and currently has appeared in 1,009 games behind the plate.

Varitek ironically had the night off because Doug Mirabelli was catching Tim Wakefield.

 

That turned out to be a fortunate turn of events, since Fisk was flying in from the Midwest, rushing to Fenway in time for the press conference and pregame ceremony. Fisk arrived and chatted about his cross-country travels and then was joined at the press conference by Varitek, who noted that he wasn't starting.

 

"They don't let me catch a knuckleballer," Varitek said to Fisk with a smile.

 

"They didn't let me catch one, either," replied Fisk, without missing a beat.

 

Fisk caught in a Major League-record 2,226 games in all or parts of 24 seasons with the Red Sox [1970; 1972-80] and White Sox [1981-93]. He ranks second all-time in home runs for a catcher (351 of his career 376). The 1972 American League Rookie of the Year was an 11-time All-Star selection. A 2000 inductee to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, Fisk was named to the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1997 and had his No. 27 retired by the team in September 2000. The Red Sox named the Fenway Park left-field foul pole in his honor in June 2005, a lasting reminder of his famous 12th-inning home run in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series.

 

Varitek also received the 2006 Red Sox Heart and Hustle Award from the local chapter of the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association. The honor is presented to a player who exemplifies the values, tradition and spirit of the game of baseball. A national winner will be selected from the individual club honorees later this year.

Following Tuesday's news conference, Fisk and Varitek made their way out to the field for a pregame ceremony in which Varitek was presented a bronzed catcher's mitt signifying Varitek's unique accomplishment.