COLUMN: Furman, I will miss you, dear old friend

Last week, I called Furman Bisher from Fort Myers, Fla., to tell him about the showcase Red Sox training facilities, which were officially christened in February. He was an eager listener.

No sports writer enjoyed spring training more than Furman, whose friends will gather to say goodbye to the esteemed and accomplished columnist today in Atlanta after his passing this past Sunday at the age of 93. We talked about a lot of things in that final conversation, which centered primarily on his missing the forthcoming Masters for the first time since 1949 and his objective to have his ailing back fixed.

As our conversation was ending, I lobbied for him to postpone back surgery so he could join all his friends in Augusta in a fortnight.