FORT MYERS, Fla. -- When the press box opened at JetBlue Park on Friday morning, there were a dozen roses at the seat that would have been occupied by Nick Cafardo, the widely respected reporter for The Boston Globe who passed away unexpectedly on Thursday.
There was a somber feeling that could be felt around Red Sox camp, a day after the 62-year-old Cafardo suddenly collapsed while roaming the Spring Training complex on his day off. He died just hours later.
Prior to Friday’s exhibition game against Northeastern University, the Red Sox held a moment of silence for Cafardo, with the public address announcer describing him as a giant in New England journalism.
In the morning, manager Alex Cora spent over seven minutes paying tribute to Cafardo in his news briefing, and took no other questions.
Save for a short break in the late 1990s and early 2000s when Cafardo covered the Patriots, he was an institution around the Red Sox since 1984, when he started his baseball beat-writing career for The Patriot Ledger.
In 1989, Cafardo started covering the Red Sox for The Boston Globe and stayed with the paper for the rest of his career.
“It’s a tough day,” said Red Sox lefty David Price. “Very sad. We all feel for his wife and both of his kids. You saw a lot of different faces in the Boston media, but he was one of the few constants that you saw every single day.”
The fact that Cafardo spent the final day of his life at the ballpark on a scheduled day off could best be described as fitting to anyone who knew him.
“It's funny because he was actually the guy that got on me with the off-days [for players],” said Cora. “I didn't know why. I remember Mookie Betts had an off-day the sixth day [last season] and he's like, 'Why?' And then Hanley [Ramirez] in Oakland and he's like, 'Why?' And then yesterday I realized it was an off-day for him and he showed up. I was like, 'That's why he got on me. He never took an off-day.'"
For Cafardo, any day at the ballpark was a good day. He had a genuine passion for what he did and followed the Red Sox daily while still doing a renowned national notes column that ran every Sunday.
“Sad day yesterday for all of Boston and New England,” said Red Sox pitching coach Dana LeVangie, who grew up in the same Massachusetts suburb as Cafardo.
What stood out about Cafardo?
“His willingness to be around,” said LeVangie. “His work ethic of taking no days off. His willingness to get multiple opinions and thoughts. I think he went in to every story with no stone unturned.”