Former Boston Red Sox president and CEO Larry Lucchino passed away at the age of 78 on Tuesday morning. Lucchino is best remembered around New
England for his role in the organization's historic, curse-breaking 2004 World Series title, as well as helping lead the team to championships again in 2007 and 2013. A statement from the Lucchino Family on the passing of Lawrence Lucchino: pic.twitter.com/RaOebQCtd4 The Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania native had numerous other claims to fame however, including being a member of Princeton University men's
basketball team for three seasons from 1964-67. Though he averaged just 2.9 points per game across 36 contests in three years, Lucchino has the distinction of being a member of the Tigers' only program to make it to the Final Four, in 1965. That team was captained by the late Basketball Hall of Famer and former U.S. senator Bill Bradley. Lucchino graduated from Princeton in 1967 and received a Juris Doctor degree from Yale Law School, where he was a classmate of former
Democratic presidential nominee,
first lady and U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Lucchino is also a member of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame and was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2016, one year after his tenure as president ended. He first joined MLB in 1988 as the president of the Baltimore Orioles and stayed with the organization through the 1993 campaign. Lucchino was the president and CEO of the San Diego Padres from 1995-2001, a run that included a National League pennant in 1998. Lucchino met then-intern Theo Epstein during their days in Baltimore and the pair moved to the Padres organization together, where the latter served as the director of player development. When Lucchino took over in Beantown, he hired Epstein as the Red Sox' general manager in 2002. Epstein stayed in Boston through 2010 and returned to the franchise in February as part owner of Fenway Sports Group and a senior advisor. Lucchino departed from Boston in 2015 but stayed close to the area, joining a group that bought the organization's Triple-A affiliate, now known as the Worcester Red Sox, and serving as the chairman and principal owner of the club. Lucchino's lasting impact will be felt heavily in Boston, but well beyond eastern Massachusetts as well. Larry Lucchino's passing is heartbreaking for so many. He changed sports with Janet Marie Smith Camden Yards. He saved Fenway and the Fens, and brought Theo Epstein with him. Look what he's done for Worcester. Brilliant, emotional. You can a make a pretty good case that none of what the Red Sox became — the four championships, the preservation of Fenway Park, etc. — happens without Lucchino. He was tough and could be irascible. But he was also a visionary with a keen sense of
baseball history. https://t.co/MvFpAwhAAZ