I was 17 in 1986 when the Boston Red Sox lost to my beloved New York Mets, thanks in part to an errant ball through the wickets of Bill Buckner. I didn’t know much about “The Curse of the Bambino” at the time, I was just thrilled that my team had won its first World Series in those 17 years. Who cared about a 75 year old curse?

My Mets haven’t won a World Series since that ’86 Series. I moved to San Francisco, some seven years ago, and I’ve become a Giants fan, and they haven’t won a World Series I since I moved here (OK, OK, they haven’t won since they moved here either, some fifty-eight years ago.)

Yet these extended streaks are nothing compared to the what Boston fans have had to endure. Since 1918 they haven’t won a World Series.

Until tonight.

Tonight, the Boston Red Sox are champions of the world, eighty-six years since their last championship. Their long-suffering fans can rejoice tonight (and tomorrow night, and the night after that…).

The team was three outs away from elimination in the American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees. They came back from a three games to none deficient to take the next four games from New York, a feat that had never been done ever in the history of baseball.

And then they faced a St. Louis Cardinals team that was just overmatched and overwhelmed, and beat them four straight.

Never has any team ever won eight games in a row in the post season.

Congratulations to the Boston Red Sox. You played a great pair of series, and you deserve to be Champions.