Lordy, it was only four years ago, but it seems like at least a decade. Most of the characters who wore the Red Sox home jersey that day are long gone, as are many of the members of the opposition, the Seattle Mariners. It was the home opener of the 1998 season, with the Sox returning from a disappointing 3-5 season-opening West Coast road trip to host the M’s on April 10. It was unusual because on this Friday afternoon — Good Friday for Christians, Passover at sundown for Jews — Red Sox ownership had decided that beer would not be sold in Fenway Park that day.

Conspiracy theories about the true reason for the one-day prohibition were on the fly — among them, that it was a league penalty levied on the team for serving alcohol to underage patrons late in the 1997 season. For whatever reason, Fenway was dry that day, although there was no shortage of fans waiting to get down to business at the Cask and Flagon when it opened that morning at 9 a.m., and area liquor stores reported strong "nips" sales. By the time Opening Day festivities began shortly before 1 p.m., the assembled masses were probably more looped than they were on a normal beer-swilling day at the ballpark. But the game itself became one for the ages, with an ending — for those who stuck around — awash in pandemonium and delight.

The Sox were entering their second year under manager Jimy Williams and were coming off a 78-84 injury-decimated campaign. The team finished fourth in 1997, 20 games behind the division-winning Yankees. During the off-season leading up to that Fenway opener, Mo Vaughn, who was entering the final year of his contract, had been unable to agree to terms on a long-term contract extension, a matter which dominated the hot-stove conversation on sports talk radio that winter. In addition, he got nailed with an off-season DWI charge incurred during a trip home from the Foxy Lady strip club in Providence, though he managed to gain an acquittal in March. He got a mostly positive reaction from the fans in the Opening Day pre-game ceremonies that April day, but despite being the heart and soul of the team, Mo was left off the cover of the team’s 1998 program cover in favor of Pedro, Nomar, and Dennis Eckersley.

Dartmouth native and Sox rookie Brian Rose started for the Sox that day, and Randy Johnson, still with Seattle, went up against him. It was a pitchers’ duel for most of the day, though the home team got off to a 2-0 lead in the fourth when Damon Buford took Johnson deep with Jim Leyritz aboard. Rose got into trouble in the sixth and left trailing, 3-2, and with Johnson mowing down the Sox hitters en route to 15 strikeouts in eight innings, the game seemed to be slipping away from the Old Towne Team.

Steve Avery and the Eck got roughed up in the eighth as the Mariners extended their lead to 5-2, and when Sox closer Tom Gordon gave up another pair in the top of the ninth, many in the crowd of 32,805 headed for the exits.

With a 7-2 lead, Mariners manager Lou Piniella decided that Johnson, having thrown 131 pitches, had had enough, and brought in former Sox reliever Heathcliff Slocumb to close out the win for Seattle. Slocumb had been hooted out of town for continually blowing leads during his tenure as the Boston closer, and the trade that sent him to the Mariners for Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe is still considered Dan Duquette’s finest hour as GM. Nevertheless, Piniella had confidence in the fireballing righthander, and despite Slocumb’s penchant for late-inning trouble, Pinella had to believe this victory was in the bag.

But what transpired in the bottom of that ninth inning became the stuff of legend. Troy O’Leary, who had arrived at the park that day on only three hours’ sleep after being present for the birth of his son the night before, got things started for the Sox in the ninth with a pinch-hit, broken-bat single to right. Mark Lemke, who had just been signed and had arrived in Boston just a day earlier, made his first Sox at-bat count by working out a walk. Outfielder Darren Bragg then kicked the rally into gear when he lashed a double into the right-field corner, scoring O’Leary and sending Lemke to third. Utility infielder Mike Benjamin pinch-hit and earned a full-count walk, loading the bases for Garciaparra.

Nomar, coming off his American League Rookie-of-the-Year season and batting in the leadoff spot, fought off some tough pitches before lining a single off reliever Mike Timlin to score Lemke and make the score 7-4. At that point you could sense the Fenway "faithful" in the exitways making a 180 and returning to their seats.

John Valentin was next, and he atoned for his two throwing errors the hard way, getting hit by Timlin’s second pitch to force in Bragg with the fifth run of the afternoon. Up came Vaughn.

The sun had disappeared behind the Green Monster by this time, and it was only a half-hour until sunset, which was not irrelevant to those preparing for Passover. Mo had already fanned three times and been nailed by a Big Unit fastball, but the crowd rose as one when the hefty slugger strode to the plate to face the Mariners’ fourth reliever of the inning, Paul Spoljaric.

It was dusk, it was deafening, it was 7-5, and there were still no outs. All six Sox batters had reached base, three had scored, and three more ducks were on the pond. Vaughn took a strike on the outside corner, and Spoljaric then threw a fastball, up and out of the strike zone — an irresistible pitch on which Vaughn has K’d hundreds of times during his career.

Not this time.

Mo ripped it and launched the ball high and deep into the twilight, and as the ball curled around the right-field foul pole and settled halfway up the grandstand, Fenway was awash in jubilation and ecstasy. The Sox had won, 9-7, rallying for seven runs with no outs off four relievers in the bottom of the ninth to stun the disbelieving Mariners. Vaughn was engulfed at home plate by a welcoming mob of teammates, and the 1998 season had kicked into gear with the most improbable of victories.

The Good Friday miracle launched the Sox into a successful season: they won the wild-card spot in the American League playoffs despite finishing 22 games behind the eventual World Champion Yankees. In the best-of-five series against the Central Division–winning Indians, they won the opener handily before dropping the next three in succession, including two excruciating late-inning home losses. Free agent Mo Vaughn left the Sox at the end of the season and signed a lucrative five-year $80 million contract with the Anaheim Angels, who traded him to the New York Mets this past spring after three lackluster and injury-plagued seasons in Disneyland. But Mo’s heroics that dry Friday and his contributions that season should never be forgotten, and his vaunted leadership and sense of drama continue to be missed by a team sorely lacking heroes.

Sporting Eye runs Mondays and Fridays at bostonphoenix.com. Christopher Young can be reached at cyoung[a]phx.com