Toucher & Rich: Red Sox Players Skip Pesky's Funeral -- Big Deal?

BOSTON (CBS) -- A story in the Boston Herald's gossip column caught the attention of the city's sports fans Thursday morning, as the Inside Track reported that just four members of this year's Red Sox team attended team legend Johnny Pesky's funeral on Monday.

While the immediate thought may be that the team plane did not get in from New York until the wee hours of Monday morning, the presence of David Ortiz, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Clay Buchholz and Vicente Padilla eliminates that excuse for their teammates.

With Pesky being revered in Red Sox Nation for 60 years, the story has rightfully caused strong reaction from fans and media. However, Toucher & Rich questioned whether the story should be that big of a deal.

"You've been away for a week from your family and your kids, this is the one off day, it's been on the calendar for a long time," Rich Shertenlieb said. "You're looking forward to getting home, seeing your family. ... Don't you want to spend that time with your family? You've been away for an entire week, and you get such little time during the season to just hang out and maybe do something."

Also in the story was the note that many more players attended Josh Beckett's charity bowling event and concert that same night.

"Maybe it's something fun that's at night, and funerals are basically for families and very close friends," Fred Toucher said.

The team also honored Pesky with a ceremony prior to Tuesday night's game.

"That's the way they celebrated Pesky and honored him. ... Every player was there. That's how they honored Johnny Pesky," Jon Wallach said. "They honored him in their own way at the ballpark, where Pesky spent most of his time anyway."