Barry Chin/Globe Staff

Some believe the 2004 season turned for the Red Sox after a bench-clearing fight against the Yankees on July 24. Boston catcher Jason Varitek and Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez were both ejected when they traded blows to start the brawl.

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Shortstop Orlando Cabrera and second baseman Pokey Reese celebrated after defeating the Angels in Game 2 of the ALDS.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Varitek hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning of ALDS Game 2 that helped power the Red Sox' 8-3 victory.

Barry Chin/Globe Staff

David Ortiz circled the bases after his walk-off home run in the 10th inning of Game 3 gave the Red Sox a series sweep against the Angels.

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Manny Ramirez couldn't handle this ball off the bat of the Yankees' Bernie Williams in Game 1 of the ALCS. New York went on to a 10-7 victory.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

In Game 2, Yankees fans taunted Red Sox starter Pedro Martinez, who a month earlier had called the team his "daddy" after a rough start. Boston lost the game 3-1.

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Martinez heard chants of "Who's your daddy?" from the Yankee Stadium crowd during the game.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Martinez and fellow starter Curt Schilling, left -- who left Game 1 with an ankle injury -- watched from the dugout as the Yankees closed out Game 2 for a 2-0 series lead.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Hope rose that Schilling might be able return in the series when the teams returned to Boston and he threw a bullpen session in front of the Red Sox medical staff.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

Yankees catcher Jorge Posada tagged Red Sox third baseman Bill Mueller out at the plate in the third inning of Game 3. The game was a washout for Boston, which lost 19-8 and fell behind 3-0 in the series.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

The series turned in the ninth inning of Game 4 when pinch runner Dave Roberts stole second base just ahead of the tag of Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter.

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Roberts would then score the tying run on a hit by Mueller to send the game to extra innings. A walk-off home run by Ortiz in the 12th inning gave the Red Sox a 6-4 win.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Martinez returned to start Game 5 the next day, and just missed corralling this bouncing hit by Posada in the sixth inning that started a three-run rally.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

With the Yankees leading 4-2 in the eighth, Ortiz hit a home run that started a two-run rally. He would rescue the Red Sox six innings later too, with a walk-off single that sent the series back to New York.

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A day later, Mueller laid out flat trying to field a pop-up hit by New York's Ruben Sierra in the fifth inning of Game 6.

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Rodriguez was called out in the eighth inning of Game 6 after umpires ruled he illegally tried to slap the ball away from Red Sox pitcher Bronson Arroyo.

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The hobbled Schilling returned to start Game 6 and earned the win after seven strong innings in a game that made his bloody sock famous.

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In Game 7, Ortiz launched a two-run home run in the first inning that scored Ramirez for a 2-0 Red Sox lead.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Jubilation reigned in the Red Sox dugout when the final out was made and the Red Sox closed out their comeback with a 10-3 win in Game 7.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Reliever Alan Embree hoisted Varitek as the Red Sox vanquished their rivals and became the first baseball team to win a playoff series after trailing by three games.

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The victory delighted Red Sox fans in Yankee Stadium after years of seeing the New York club dominate its Boston rivals.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

After two wins in Boston to open the World Series, the Red Sox took a 3-0 series lead in St. Louis. One of the key plays of the game was Varitek tagging out Larry Walker to complete a double play after a Jim Edmonds flyout.

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Johnny Damon started off the Red Sox' World Series-clinching win in Game 4 at St. Louis with a home run.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

Mueller hustled to throw out St. Louis' Scott Rolen in Game 4.

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After a groundout by Edgar Renteria, Varitek and Keith Foulke leaped into each others' arms to celebrate the Red Sox' first World Series win since 1918.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

Red Sox players poured out of the dugout to join the celebration at midfield in Busch Stadium.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

With their eighth straight win, the Red Sox defeated the Cardinals 3-0 in the final game of the series to complete a sweep.

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Back in Boston, jubilant fans celebrated the World Series championship that had escaped them for generations.

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Ortiz, who had four RBI in the series, celebrated with Red Sox players, officials and fans who gathered at the stadium in St. Louis.

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In the celebration, Martinez, right, embraced Schilling, who followed through on his promise a year earlier to deliver a World Series title after being traded from Arizona.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Martinez, hoisting the World Series trophy, collected one of the four wins in the series.

Jim Davis/Globe Staff

Three days after the series ended, hundreds of thousands of fans turned out in Boston to celebrate the World Series title with a duck boat parade featuring the Red Sox.

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Beth Harrison, center, and Gina Abysalh were among the red- and white-clad fans who lined the streets of Boston for the party.

Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff

Streets in the city were packed shoulder-to-shoulder with jubilant Red Sox fans.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

Ortiz carried the Commissioner's Trophy that had eluded Boston fans for 86 years.

Essdras M Suarez/Globe Staff

With the parade falling on a Saturday, young fans such as Colin Jones, 8, left, and Walter Hannon, 10, were able to join the celebration without missing school.

Essdras M Suarez/Globe Staff

Revelers lined the windows and porches of buildings along the parade route to congratulate the Red Sox.

David Kamerman/Globe Staff

Indoors or out, cheering on the Red Sox was the order of the day for fans such as Elizabeth Fula, Julie Antriasian and Wilna Krekorian (left to right).

David Kamerman/Globe Staff

The celebration even extended to the upper reaches of the parade route, as Scott Desatnick and Mike Kaplan rang a bell on Tremont Street to lead the crowd in Red Sox chants.

David Kamerman/Globe Staff

Delighted fans cheered as the parade and the champion Red Sox passed.

Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff

The rally stretched from the streets to the water, and a lone Red Sox fan stood on a pile of rocks near the Science Museum (where the Duck boats enter the Charles) as the players drove by.

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Fans lined the Charles River to cheer the Red Sox on as they sailed by in the amphibious vehicles.

Barry Chin/Globe Staff

The Red Sox players, such as Kevin Millar, Doug Mientkiewicz and Ramirez, were thrilled by their reception from the fans.

Globe Staff Photo

Fans lined the Longfellow Bridge as the Red Sox passed below them in the Duck Boats.

Stan Grosfeld/Globe Staff

One bare-chested fan dove into the river in an attempt to get closer to the Red Sox on the boats.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

Another fan braved the water of the Charles on the overcast day with his clothes on as he tried to get close to the Red Sox.

Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

Ortiz, clad with a life vest, interacted with fans as the Red Sox strolled along the river.

David L. Ryan/Globe Staff

Five months later, on April 11, 2005, Red Sox Nation revelled again at the home opener as the team raised its first championship flag in 86 years.