Ortiz Tells Boston Red Sox Crowd: 'This Is Our (expletive) City'
BOSTON (CBS) - It was like a second Opening Day at Fenway Park Saturday afternoon, as the Boston Red Sox played their first home game since the Boston Marathon bombings.
Photos: Red Sox, Bruins Pay Tribute
The Red Sox broke with tradition and wore a different home jersey, replacing the words "Red Sox" with "Boston" on the front.
Read: Boston Bruins Pay Tribute Saturday
Designated hitter David Ortiz, who was playing his first game of the season after recovering from an Achilles injury, told the crowd, "This jersey that we wear today, it doesn't say Red Sox, it says Boston."
After thanking Mayor Tom Menino, Governor Deval Patick and the police, Ortiz may have forgotten he was on live television.
"This is our (expletive) city," Ortiz said into the microphone as the Fenway crowd roared.
"And nobody's going to (take) our freedom. Stay strong!"
Later in the day, Federal Communications Chairman Julius Genachowski implied in a tweet that Ortiz shouldn't worry about getting fined.
The Red Sox and their opponent, the Kansas City Royals also wore a "B Strong" patch on their shirts for the day.
The special ceremony began with a tribute on the center field video board as the song "Hallelujah" played throughout the park.
Law enforcement officers were then invited to stand on the field outside the dugouts as a moment of silence was held for the four people killed and the more than 170 wounded in the week's tragic events.
Volunteers from the Boston Athletic Association then marched out through the left field wall to a standing ovation.
Lynn firefighter Matt Patterson and wounded marathon spectator Steven Byrne of Lowell threw out the ceremonial first pitch with Boston Marathon legends Dick and Rick Hoyt.
Patterson saved the life of a child after one of the blasts. Byrne shielded his friends' sisters from the first explosion, when the second blast threw him over a fence. His clothes caught fire and he was hit in the face and neck by shrapnel from the bomb. A team at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center saved his life. Two of his friends each lost a leg in the attack.
