Last week in these pages, we reported on a pair of local psychics who held a ritual at Fenway Park — complete with effigies and burning incense — designed to lift the so-called Curse of the Bambino (see " Sweet Spell of Success, " TJI, August 10). The day that story went to press, the Sox began a four-game losing streak.

Now there’s yet another effort under way to banish the ghost of Babe Ruth. This week, State Representative Angelo Scaccia (D-Readville) announced he’s sponsoring a resolution to honor the man who has been blamed for everything from Pedro’s shoulder to Butch Hobson’s elbow. In September, the Babe’s daughter, Julia Ruth Stevens, will attend an official ceremony that will, say those involved, lift the Curse once and for all.

The latest exorcism was actually the idea of local concert promoter and onetime sportswriter Harvey Robbins. " The Babe was probably the greatest baseball player who ever lived, " says Robbins. " And we unceremoniously sold him to the New York Yankees. He was treated in a shoddy fashion, and he went on to lead our archrivals to unprecedented victories. Because of that sale, we have gone 82 years without a championship. "

Robbins, 60, says he has been a regular at Fenway Park since he was three. " I’ve seen Ted Williams come and go, " he says. " I’ve seen managers and players come and go. No matter who they had or what they did, they never won. It’s been a lifetime — longer than a lifetime — and I think it’s something other than what went on on the field. "

But isn’t all this talk about curses a bit, er, silly? " It’s part of our reality, " says Robbins. " You have to recognize the problem before you can solve it. I hope that what we’re doing will lift the Curse. Without this, the ball will go through Bill Buckner’s legs again, or Bucky Dent will come back. There will be one form of disaster or another. "

Issue Date: August 16 - 23, 2001