{"id":177170,"date":"2026-04-16T08:40:56","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T08:40:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170"},"modified":"2026-04-16T08:40:56","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T08:40:56","slug":"%f0%9f%9a%a8-breaking-sports-illustrated-honors-the-red-soxs-historic-4-3-comeback-in-2004-david-ortiz-named-in-one-of-baseballs-greatest-moments-fans-are-reliving-one-of","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n

In a groundbreaking announcement this morning, Sports Illustrated officially honored the Boston Red Sox\u2019s historic 2004 comeback victory against the New York Yankees in the ALCS as one of the greatest events in modern baseball history, calling it \u201cthe turning point in an 86-year era.\u201d<\/p>\n

The focus of this honor is none other than David Ortiz, considered the driving force behind the \u201cImpossible Comeback.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before the 2004 ALCS series, the Boston Red Sox were trailing 0\u20133 to their arch-rivals, the New York Yankees. No team in MLB history had ever successfully come back from that deficit.<\/p>\n

The atmosphere at Fenway Park was a mix of despair and glimmer of hope. The Yankees were just one win away from the World Series.<\/p>\n

And then, everything changed.<\/p>\n

Game 4 became the first turning point.<\/p>\n

In overtime, Ortiz stepped up to the batter\u2019s box in a fateful moment. The pressure was immense; the season was down to a single stroke.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\"Photos:<\/p>\n

And he did the unthinkable:<\/p>\n

A walk-off hit in overtime
\nFenway exploded in a few uncontrollable seconds
\nThe Red Sox came back from the brink of elimination<\/p>\n

That moment wasn\u2019t just a single hit \u2013 it signaled that Boston wasn\u2019t dead.<\/p>\n

If Game 4 was the revival, Game 5 was the affirmation.<\/p>\n

Once again, Ortiz stepped up in the decisive moment and produced a second consecutive walk-off.<\/p>\n

Analysts later called this the \u201cmomentum shift of a century\u201d\u2014a complete turnaround for the entire series.<\/p>\n

The Yankees, who had once dominated, began to falter.<\/p>\n

After Ortiz\u2019s two historic hits, the Red Sox entered Game 6 with a completely different mindset.<\/p>\n

\"Photos:<\/p>\n

Pitching became more stable.
\nThe offense exploded at the right moment.<\/p>\n

The Yankees lost their composure.<\/p>\n

Game 7 at Yankee Stadium became the final confirmation:<\/p>\n

The Red Sox won 4\u20133, completing the greatest comeback in ALCS history.<\/p>\n

This victory was not just a series win.<\/p>\n

It ended the 86-year curse of the \u201cCurse of the Bambino\u201d\u2014a curse that prevented the Boston Red Sox from winning the World Series since 1918.<\/p>\n

After ALCS 2004:<\/p>\n

Red Sox advance to the World Series.
\nSweep St. Louis Cardinals 4\u20130.<\/p>\n

Officially become MLB champions.<\/p>\n

In its latest analysis, Sports Illustrated called this series of moments:<\/p>\n

\u201cA turning point not just for a franchise, but for the psychological landscape of baseball itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

They emphasized that David Ortiz\u2019s role wasn\u2019t just about his shots, but about his ability to \u201ckeep hope alive when everything seemed to be falling apart.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even though the Red Sox team played exceptionally well as a collective, Ortiz is still seen as a symbol of the comeback.<\/p>\n

Clutch hitting in a life-or-death moment
\nThe ability to withstand extreme pressure
\nA never-give-up spirit<\/p>\n

\"Don't<\/p>\n

A former teammate once said:<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody believed it could happen\u2026except Big Papi.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two decades later, the 2004 ALCS is still remembered as one of the greatest playoff series in American sports history.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just baseball.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a story about:<\/p>\n

Belief
\nOverthrow
\nAnd a city that refused to give up<\/p>\n

Sports Illustrated concludes:<\/p>\n

\u201cSome moments win games. The 2004 Red Sox won something much bigger \u2014 they rewrote destiny.\u201d<\/p>\n

And at the heart of it all, the name David Ortiz still resonates as an inseparable part of that history.<\/p>\n

A comeback.<\/p>\n

A curse broken.<\/p>\n

And a legend born in the light of Fenway Park.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/article>\n
<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a groundbreaking announcement this morning, Sports Illustrated officially honored the Boston Red Sox\u2019s historic 2004 comeback victory against the New York Yankees in the ALCS as… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":177171,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-177170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\n\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47 - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47 - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In a groundbreaking announcement this morning, Sports Illustrated officially honored the Boston Red Sox\u2019s historic 2004 comeback victory against the New York Yankees in the ALCS as...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-16T08:40:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtred1-15.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"768\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"768\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"KING\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"KING\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170\",\"name\":\"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47 - NEWS USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtred1-15.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-16T08:40:56+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-16T08:40:56+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c39bbfd04943c9a6066d47398d20dc83\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtred1-15.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtred1-15.jpg\",\"width\":768,\"height\":768},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"NEWS USA\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c39bbfd04943c9a6066d47398d20dc83\",\"name\":\"KING\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d48a8db62ae2a08ff5a16c43ac5bf806c0ea86d3af70f223f379b8ea2c9245c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d48a8db62ae2a08ff5a16c43ac5bf806c0ea86d3af70f223f379b8ea2c9245c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"KING\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47 - NEWS USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47 - NEWS USA","og_description":"In a groundbreaking announcement this morning, Sports Illustrated officially honored the Boston Red Sox\u2019s historic 2004 comeback victory against the New York Yankees in the ALCS as...","og_url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170","og_site_name":"NEWS USA","article_published_time":"2026-04-16T08:40:56+00:00","og_image":[{"width":768,"height":768,"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtred1-15.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"KING","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"KING","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170","name":"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47 - NEWS USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtred1-15.jpg","datePublished":"2026-04-16T08:40:56+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-16T08:40:56+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c39bbfd04943c9a6066d47398d20dc83"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtred1-15.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/avtred1-15.jpg","width":768,"height":768},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=177170#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Sports Illustrated honors the Red Sox\u2019s historic 4-3 comeback in 2004 \u2013 David Ortiz named in one of baseball\u2019s greatest moments! Fans are reliving one of the most iconic moments in MLB history as Big Papi\u2019s heroics are celebrated once again. Will this recognition elevate Ortiz even higher in the eyes of baseball fans?\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/","name":"NEWS USA","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c39bbfd04943c9a6066d47398d20dc83","name":"KING","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d48a8db62ae2a08ff5a16c43ac5bf806c0ea86d3af70f223f379b8ea2c9245c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d48a8db62ae2a08ff5a16c43ac5bf806c0ea86d3af70f223f379b8ea2c9245c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"KING"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com"],"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=177170"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177170\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":177172,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177170\/revisions\/177172"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/177171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=177170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=177170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=177170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}