BOSTON – The curse of the Bambino lives in Sussex County Court, where the Boston Red Sox have sued Doug Mientkiewicz, seeking whole possession of the baseball the first-baseman caught for the final out of the 2004 World Series.

“The final out of the fourth and deciding game of the World Series occurred when Red Sox pitcher Keith Foulke flipped the Baseball to Mientkiewicz at first base,” the suit states. “During the ensuing victory celebration and thereafter, Mientkiewicz kept the Baseball. Later Mientkiewicz asserted an ownership claim. The Red Sox assert that their employee Mientkiewicz obtained the Baseball through the course of his employment, that he acquired no ownership interest in the Baseball, and that the Red Sox are the rightful owners of the Baseball. The Red Sox have requested that Mientkiewicz return the Baseball to them.” Mientkiewicz returned the now-famous baseball to the Red Sox in January “for display and promotional purposes through the calendar year 2005.” Mientkiewicz suggested, and the Sox agreed, that any money raised with the capitalized Baseball would go to the Boston Red Sox Foundation. But under terms of the letter agreement with the team, Mientkiewicz is to get the ball back at the end of the year “unless the ultimate issue of ownership has been otherwise resolved.” The Red Sox want to deposit the Baseball with the court until its ownership is determined. Mientkiewicz played for the Mets this year. Whether that has any bearing on this case is unlikely, but the Red Sox mentioned it, so we thought we’d pass it on. The Curse of the Bambino is the baseball legend that the Red Sox were punished by inexorable fate for selling Babe Ruth to the Yankees for $100,000 in 1920. According to the curse, the Red Sox would never win another World Series for that transgression against the cruel Gods of Baseball. Last year, the curse was broken, though another legend has it that it was not broken, but merely transferred to the Cubs.