The instant the ball rolled between Bill Buckner's legs New England broke into a collective moan. Mets fans uncontrollably squealed with glee. Then it was over and there was only silence. Local taverns packed with people watching Game 6 of the 1986 World Series suddenly filled with malice and fans walked away leaving money on the table. Boston's long awaited world championship was there -- and then it was gone. All that remained for Red Sox fans was the grim certainty of an inevitable loss in Game 7 and more proof that this was not the year.
The Red Sox didn't have a chance. This team and its fans didn't recover from such defeats. Never had and never would.
Like a ghost, Babe Ruth still haunts the Red Sox.
Sox fans were at a crisis point as Buckner's gaffe sent the whole history of the team careening across the consciousness. The championship seasons of 1903, '04, '12, 15, '16 and '18 were too remote to remember, but most fans knew of 1946, when Pesky held the ball, and 1948 when Galehouse pitched. More recent wounds, like those inflicted by 1978 and Bucky Dent, had not yet healed.
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