Late Saturday, standing in the Players Club wearing a Colorado Rockies-purple tie, Steinberg revealed Millar was coming to town for Game 7. Apparently the Sox couldn't get Jake Westbrook's high school girlfriend.
Millar was certainly a fan favorite during his time in Boston. He's the one who told everybody to "Cowboy Up" in 2003. In the hours before Game 4 against the Yankees in the 2004 ALCS - while most of Red Sox Nation had conceded defeat after the 19-8 beatdown in Game 3 - Millar said, "Don't let us win tonight. This is a big game. They've got to win because if we win, we've got Pedro coming back in Game 5 and Schilling in 6, and then you can take that fraud stuff and put it to bed. Don't let the Sox win this game."
Two nights later, at frosty Yankee Stadium, Millar grabbed the bottle of whiskey and tried to get teammates to take a shot before Game 6. The legend was born.
Still, it was odd to see an active member of another AL team throwing out the first pitch in a Game 7 at Fenway .
"I don't get it," said smiling Sox manager Terry Francona. "This is another one of those things where he can pull it off. He's a member of the Baltimore Orioles, he's going to be spurring on the Red Sox and nobody is going to say a word. He'll probably bring the house down. I love it, but I don't get it. It's Millar. It's hilarious."
The Sox got permission from Orioles boss Andy MacPhail before calling Millar with the request.
"I was in Houston yesterday at a wedding," said Millar. "It all happened real fast and at 6 a.m. today I was driving to the airport. We were able to get a babysitter, so here I am. It's probably a first. It's certainly a little different. It's usually a retired player or an actor or a famous person."
Millar said that his friend Trot Nixon, now with the Indians, was not happy. We can only wonder what Eric Gagné was thinking. On Aug. 12 Millar hit a walkoff, three-run homer off Gagné.
"This is all in fun," said Millar.
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