Remembering Johnny Pesky
The Boston Red Sox family mourns the loss of Red Sox Hall of Famer Johnny Pesky, the beloved fixture at Fenway Park who spent 61 years (including the last 44) with the club and passed away Monday at the age of 92. We invite our fans to share your condolences and special memories here in the comments below.
Johnny was signed by the Red Sox as an amateur free agent in 1940 and spent 73 years in professional baseball. With the Red Sox, he served as a player, coach, manager, broadcaster, instructor and ambassador.
“We have lost a dear and beloved friend,” said Red Sox Principal Owner John Henry. “Johnny was happiest when wearing the Red Sox uniform. He was able to do that for 61 wonderful years. He carried his passion for the Sox, for Fenway Park, and for baseball everywhere he went, and he was beloved in return. We will miss him. We share the sadness that his family and legions of friends are all feeling.”
The Red Sox will host a public tribute at Fenway Park at a later date. Please feel free to leave your comments below.
Official Red Sox Fan Guestbook 
He was the nicest man I ever met. He took the time to talk to us and pose for a picture and he autographed a baseball for my son. We kept calling him Mr. Pesky and he told us to call him Johnny, he was like your favorite uncle. And he made us feel just that wa y, like we were visiting family not a baseball legend.
I took a tour of Fenway with my wife’s sixth grade class in 2004. Johnny was participating in batting practice . We were told by the tour guide that we wouldn’t’ distract any of the players or coaches. Well we did a bit of cheering and Johnny looked over . My wife told Mr Pesky that we were a visiting 6th grade class from Vermont, and the kids would love to meet him. He stopped practicing, walked up into the seats and sat with all of us. We talked and took pictures for about 30 minutes. He signed everything the kids had..shirts,hats,dollar bills …. We all were able to get pictures with him. He reminisced about skiing in Vermont with Jim Lonborg. A real class act…Will never forget that special visit …He went out of his way to meet us!!!
I have never met Mr. Pesky , but if I did I think I would have given him a big hug. He always made me smile whenever he was on the field. And he made me cry when he had his number retired and he was so emotional . I hope that he is up in heaven telling all his new friends about his wonderful life at fenway park. I will always think of him as the greatest redsox fan that ever lived. I know we all will miss him. But his memory will always bring a smile to my face. RIP #6
I worked as a security guard at Fenway Park over four seasons (1997-2001). I was never very high ranking and certainly not a vital cog in the Red Sox machine. For the most part, I just blended into the background of Fenway on game days. Johnny Pesky struck up a conversation with me in my first year and somehow it lasted through two or three innings. From that day forward, he would always pause to talk when he saw me. Maybe it was about the game going on in front of us, or about our summer plans, or about players of the past, or about my classes at college… the topics spanned the spectrum. One thing was consistent, though. He was always genuine, aways sincere, and aways positive. When you grow up a Red Sox fan in Boston and get a job at Fenway, it means the world to you that a legend like Johnny Pesky routinely takes the time to see how you’ve been and talk a little baseball. He never had the “do you know who I am” attitude. He never made anyone feel small or unimportant. He had an incredible way of building you up, making you feel valued and apprecited as a key part of the Red Sox. He loved Fenway, the Red Sox, a he game so much. My time as a Red Sox employee was magical largely thaks to Johnny Pesky. I will always cherish those conversations we had, and I will always share them with others so his legacy of kindness and sincerity cntinues to live on.
A great player and and even greater human being.
I remember that in 2006, I had a chance to speak with Johnny. I knew that if I said, “It was your job to get on for Ted”, a story would follow. “That’s right!”, he answered, pointing with his finger. “We ran our legs off for that turkey!” “Ted used to say the only hits I got were stinky little ones, but I could bunt. Me and Dominick ran this little play. We called it the ‘bunt and run.’ What we’d do was we would do it on the second hit and run sign. I told Dominick to ignore the first sign, and on the second sign for hit and run, I would bunt toward third base, pulling the third baseman in. They would throw me out at first, and Dominick would keep running and go to third. We did this five straight days, but the reporters got hold of it and it was in the papers. When we went to New York, we tried the play. They threw me out at first and also threw Dominick out at third. And Dickey said to me, “Gotcha! I read the papers too!”
My husband and I attended a Spring Training game in 1999. During warm ups, Johnny was in the Red Sox dugout visiting with fans and signing autographs. I tossed him a ball to sign. When finished, Johnny looked at me and said, with a twinkle in his eyes, “you’re gonna catch this, right?” I made sure I did but Johnny hadn’t used a permanent marker and my thumb smugged his signature. Only I know whose signature it is but I enjoy telling people that I “had a catch” with Johnny Pesky. Several years later, my husband connected with Johnny, relayed the story and Johnny signed another ball for me – this time it was personalized and in permanent ink. I treasure both. It was great to see Johnny at the 100th anniversary celebration – so emotional. His warm, friendly smile will be greatly missed.
Having breakfast in Vinnin Square Bickfords, and watching all the young boys flocking to Johnny. They never saw this wonderful man play, but they all knew who he was! A super human being all around!
RIP Johnny, you are with your much beloved Ruthie and with all the “guys” talking bb!
You will be missed and I will be looking for your ghost in Fenway……..
Can’t recall the date or the opponent at the game I attended but Johnny went into the 9th inning with 9 assits at third base. I believe the record was ten at the time. There must have been talk in the dugout because the second batter up hit a wicked one hopper to Vern Stephens at short, who tossed a side armer to John who whirled and threw to first base for the out on the slow runner. The papers the next day said he’d tied the record for assists by a Red Sox thirdbaseman with an assist from Stephens. Two other memories in back to back years. First, Stan Spence in right for the Sox hit a home run followed by Ted with a second followed by Stephens at short with another. The next year, Al Zarilla in right hit one followed by Ted and Junior. Back to back to back. Great memories from over 60 years past. RIP Johnny Pesky.
I first met Johnny in 1973 before a game at Fenway. I remember him smoking a cigar, as he often did. He was as gracious as ever with me and was one of the first major league ballplayers that I had ever met. I talked with him many times through the years and treasure our conversations of his military experiences and times with Ted Williams. Seems I am in the military, those memories are even more special to me. I remember him telling me of his flight school experiences with Ted and of him humbly saying, “I guess I was too dumb to go on much further than flight school”! That was Johnny. I saw him for the last time when I returned from my second deployment to Iraq at spring training in 2009. He talked with my two boys and I took pictures that are still displayed. They of course thought that he was, as they said, PERFECT!” I had always wanted to do something for him to show my appreciation for his service during WWII, so I sent him an American flag that I flew while in combat in Iraq. His son, David called me and thanked me and had Johnny call me later on. That meant a lot to me. Johnny always had time for anybody and everybody! It didn’t matter who you were or what you did. Ballplayers could learn a lot from him! I was close friends with Bob Feller who passed away in 2010. I feel sad today of the loss of both of them but cherish the many stories that I had the privilege to listen to and time with them. It will be a void in my life for sure and part of a great generation gone. It’s a reminder that we need to let that generation know that we appreciate them, while we still can. A sad day for sure, but those memories will forever live in my heart.
I MET MR. RED SOX BACK IN 07 WHILE ON RED SOX DESTINATION TRIP IN BOSTON WITH MY FAMILY. WHAT A GREAT MAN. RIP MR. PESKY. YOU WILL SURELY BE MISSED
He made the entire Red Sox organization better for loving this game and by just being his gracious self. Thank you Johnny for being the consummate player, teammate, mentor and role model.
Johnny Pesky defined the love of baseball. I never got to see him play but he was the color annalist on the games with channel 4 when I first became a Sox fan, then I grew up seeing his love of the game like I saw it in no one else. He will be missed. “PLAY BALL”
When you hear “Johnny Pesky,” you immediately think of class, dignity, grace, tradition. The name invokes memories of Fenway Park and Red Sox baseball and all the passion and beauty that come along with those two.
Opening Day at Fenway Park each April is a day of hope, glory and pageantry, and I cannot recall a single one that didn’t start with our beloved Johnny Pesky saying those two words we love so much: “Play Ball!”
RIP, John Paveskovich, you will be missed!!
My first memory of Johnny Pesky wasn’t from seeing him play ball (even I’m too young for that), but of his rookie card I “won” while playing leansies in elementary school. I would later see “The Needle” many times; when he was managing in Pawtucket, helping young players before games at Fenway or participating in the myriad of events at the stadium. In fact, I’ll always think the saddest day as a Red Sox fan didn’t happen in 1986 or 2003, but when GM Dan Duckette banned Johnny Pesky from the dugout.
It seems whenever we saw Johnny since 2004 he was crying. Crying when the Sox won it all, crying at the ring ceremony, crying during the pole dedication, crying when #6 was retired and crying during Fenway’s centennial this past Spring. He cried because he loved baseball, he loved the Red Sox and he loved Fenway like no other.
We can only hope there really is a Field of Dreams somewhere, and Ted and Dom are welcoming Johnny to the game tonight. But I don’t think Johnny will stay there long. I’d rather believe he finds Fenway is the place he should be, the place he always should be – a friendly ghost whispering words of encouragement to a light hitting rookie, blowing a slight breeze to force an opponent’s blast to go foul or just sitting on the bench watching the game, (regardless of Dan Duckette).
For once, it’s not Johnny shedding the tears tonight across Red Sox Nation.
A grade school student teacher gave me a photo he had taken of Johnny Pesky in a U S Navy baseball uniform, when both were stationed in Hawaii during World War !!. I showed it to Johnny at a meeting of the Society of American Baseball Research meeting in Greenville, RI. He asked “Who’s that?”
I met Johnny Pesky and got his autograph at Spring Training in 2008. Such an honor. Such a legend and such a remarkable person. Such a kind man. I always had #6 as playing softball as a kid. You will be missed. RIP #6.
In the late ’90s, my wife and I were at a game at Fenway. Johhny was sitting at a table not far from the Yawkey Way gate signing pictures of himself and engaging in baseball give and take with the fans. My wife went up to him and said “How are you, Mr. Pesky?” He responded by thanking her but requesting that she simply call him”Johnny”. He was such a humble gentleman and an immortal class act. Godspeed #6.
Meeting Johnny Pesky at a Red Sox event was amazing. This was a result of a serendipitous meeting of another of Johnny’s 1946 teammates at the airport when I worked there. I had done a book review of Teammates with a twist. Instead of having Ted Williams come to that horrible ending in a cryogenics lab as he did in real life, I wrote a letter of goodbye from Bobby Doerr to Ted Williams because he
never got to go to Florida to say goodbye to Ted. I won an award at school for the project. I brought it to work to show my friend; he choked up and excused himself to gather his thoughts. He actually saw Bobby leaving Boston after he had thrown out the first pitch on Opening Day 2005! I went out, introduced myself and told him about it. He invited Erin and I to an event being held a couple of months later honoring John Henry for his community work. I met Pesky and Dom Dimaggio at the event. Unbeknownst to them, Henry was giving the three of them World series rings. It’s a wonderful memory I have, a true act of serendipity. The best part of the evening wasn’t the baseball memories. It was listening to them tell stories about their wives. All of them stayed married for dozens of years, quite unlike the philanderers of today. Love Johnny, but he missed his wife terribly. Grateful he’ll be joining his beloved Ruthie in Heaven today.
Johnny, i have your name on my baseball, you have my name on your foul pole, and we shook hands, Dam i’m going to miss what you meant to me and Redsox Nation, i guess its time to play ball ……again, with Ted,Dom,and the rest of the Greats
I met Johnny the day Jim Rice’s number got retired. Johnny, with some help, released the red flag that hid the number from us the fans. He was probably 90 at the time. He was such a gracious man, taking the time to shake hands with some of us up on the Budweiser deck in Right Field. He will be missed.
I treasure the few moments I was in his presence several years ago in Autograph Alley a
t Fenway. I was able to speak with him a few moments and then stood back and watched as he greeted fans young and old with great warmth. He was in a cast as well after being hit with a ball during spring training so he must have been uncomfortable but the smile never left his face.
I went to my first red sox game in the summer of 2008 and I had the pleasure of meeting johnny and I will never forget it for as long as I live because I am a die hard red sox fan and I always will be no matter where I live
I never physically got to see Johnny play, but I was able to see how he impacted the clubhouse at Fenway Park and how players embraced him as much as fans did. RIP Johnny Pesky, you will be forever missed.
You will forever be “Mr. Red Sox”. R.I.P. #6
He will be missed so much!!!