Tony Conigliaro

The embodiment of the squandered hopes of generations of Red Sox fans. Tony C., born in Revere MA, was the a star player of the Sox' "Impossible Dream" team in 1967 and was hit in the eye with a pitch, taking him out for a year and a half. He made a good comeback the year of his return but because of the injury he was never the same. Later he had a heart attack from which he never recovered fully and died while in a coma in 1990. The Red Sox have since instituted the Tony Conigliaro award for players who have overcome adversity, and Major League Baseball started making helmets with the now standard protective earflap.