City officials said that they did not have a timeline for replacing the street signs on the roadwayGETTY IMAGES
The Boston Public Improvement Commission "agreed to rename" Yawkey Way, "returning the stretch by Fenway Park to its original moniker: Jersey Street," according to a front-page piece by Milton Valencia of the BOSTON GLOBE. The proposal had for weeks "pitted some of Boston's power brokers against one another." The BPIC on Thursday "provided little insight into its decision-making -- suggesting it had little choice given neighbors' support of the name change." But the decision will "reverberate throughout the city and baseball history, forging an unbreakable link between the Yawkey name and the allegations of racism that trailed" late Red Sox Owner Tom Yawkey. The Red Sox and Owner John Henry "requested the name change to Jersey Street in February, saying the organization wanted to create a new environment at the 'front door' of its ballpark." The Red Sox in a statement Thursday called the decision "an important step in our ongoing effort to make Fenway Park a place where everyone feels welcome" (BOSTON GLOBE, 4/27). City officials said that they "did not have a timeline for replacing the street signs on the roadway, saying new signs need to be created and other city agencies need to be officially notified" (BOSTON HERALD, 4/27).
CLOSING A CHECKERED CHAPTER: THE ATHLETIC's Jen McCaffrey writes the Red Sox became "increasingly uncomfortable in celebrating the Yawkey Way name." Red Sox President & CEO Sam Kennedy said, "This petition was not an effort to erase the Yawkey legacy from our history, and we respect the philanthropy of the Yawkey Foundation. It was about us: the Red Sox, Fenway Park, and our future." The team has "not yet addressed the plaques commemorating Yawkey throughout the park or the Morse Code on the Green Monster with the initials of Yawkey and his wife, Jean" (THEATHLETIC.com, 4/27). USA TODAY's Bob Nightengale writes the Red Sox "ensured that they no longer will honor or celebrate their racist past." In "one swift decision, the Red Sox are breaking the celebratory link between Yawkey and all of his problematic beliefs" (USA TODAY, 4/27).
