Ryan Dempster Among Former Red Sox Running Boston Marathon

This morning's Boston Marathon will have a Red Sox feel to it, courtesy of former pitcher Ryan Dempster.

Nearly ten years to the day that Dempster started and won for the Red Sox during an emotional Patriot's Day, Dempster is competing in a different way. He's running the marathon a decade after the horrific marathon bombing which happened during his lone season with Boston.

The events of that day won't be lost on the 16-year MLB veteran.

"I want to run to honor and remember all the people who suffered that day and raise some money for a really special young lady, who is a great person to model yourself after," Dempster told Boston's WBZ-TV.

The young lady Ryan Dempster was referring to is Lingzi Lu, who sadly passed during the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.

Ryan Dempster spent one season with the Red Sox. Among his starts was a Patriot's Day win. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images).

Another Former Red Sox Player Will Run Boston Marathon

Dempster won't be the only former BoSox player running the Boston Marathon this morning. Brock Holt, who joined the club in the same 2013 season as Dempster, will also be participating.

Per his Instagram account, Holt says he and his wife are running with a goal of continuing to raise funds and awareness for childhood cancer.

Both Holt and Dempster were part of the 2013 World Series champion Red Sox, though Holt wasn't active in the postseason.

In addition to their title, Boston's 2013 team is largely remembered for the speech David Ortiz gave at Fenway. Just days after the tragic bombing, Big Papi addressed Boston's home crowd in unforgettable fashion.

"This is our f-ckin' city and nobody's going to dictate our freedom. Stay strong," - Ortiz famously said.

Shortly after Ortiz delivered those unforgettable words, Dempster took the Hill. "Going out there, I get goosebumps just thinking about that," Dempster told WBZ-TV's Dan Roche. "Him saying everything and not being afraid to drop an F-bomb. Because it was all true."

He later added: "We felt a lot of responsibility to go out there day in and day out and give everything we had, especially after everything that took place on Patriots' Day."

The 2023 Boston Marathon's rolling start begins at 9am EST.

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