Members of the Europe-Africa Region team from Brno, Czechia and former major league player Johnny Damon enjoy themselves as they play Wiffle Ball on the front lawn of UPMC Williamsport. The Little League World Series players joined former major league player Johnny Damon to play the game with members of the Girl Scouts and Lycoming County Child Development Center children. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Former Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees star Johnny Damon regaled a downtown Williamsport luncheon audience Friday with stories of his playing days and his World Series winning teams.

Taking questions from Williamsport Crosscutters Vice President of Marketing Gabe Sinicropi, Damon drew his share of laughs with funny stories and some of the teammates and opposing players from his 18-year career.

Damon, who compiled a lifetime batting average of .284, is perhaps best remembered as one of the colorful members of the 2004 Red Sox club that broke the so-called “Curse of the Bambino” when it captured the team’s first World Series championship since 1918.

“We had such a fun team,” he recalled.

The team, dubbed “The Idiots” by teammate Kevin Millar, almost didn’t make it to the World Series that year after being down in games 3-0 to the Yankees before coming back to take the next four contests and the American League Championship.

“We didn’t want to go home,” Damon said.

The team stayed loose, even drinking shots of Jack Daniels whiskey before playoff games.

“We didn’t care about the curse,” he said.

Damon, who appeared in the 2005 movie Fever Pitch about a young rabid Red Sox fan, recalled how the movie had to be altered. The film starring Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore originally was to end as Red Sox seasons so often did – without a championship.

But a new ending was filmed after the Red Sox captured the World Series.

Damon wanted to stay with the Red Sox but became a Yankee when his former team refused to pay the kind of money the Yanks were dangling before him.

He was even willing to cut his long locks to fit the team’s more conservative look.

“The boss signs your checks,” he said. “He wants you to believe in the Yankees.”

The new team and new city paid off for Damon who ended up playing on the Yankees World Series Championship club of 2009, the team’s first in nine years.

“So that felt good,” he said.

Damon, who stole 408 bases in his career which included stints with the Kansas Royals, the Oakland A’s, Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Rays, and Cleveland Indians, talked a bit about how the game has changed since his playing days.

“The whole game doesn’t judge the heart of a baseball player anymore,” he said.

Sabermetrics is too often used to make managerial decisions and strategy.

Grady Little, who was his favorite manager, was not one to follow analytics.

“He had a way to talk to people,” he said

Damon said Pedro Martinez and Roger Clemons were two of the toughest pitchers he faced. One reason was because they were unafraid to back hitters off the plate.

“They were tough,” he said.

Another pitcher he found difficult to face was Yankees star closer Mariano Rivera.

His favorite teammates were Jermaine Dye and Mike Sweeney from back in the early days of his career with the Kansas City Royals.

“They are very special,” he said.

He referred to Yankees teammate Derek Jeter as Mr. Consistent and with a laugh added, “You knew he was going to have a hot girlfriend.”

He said he was glad to see Montoursville native Mike Mussina, another former Yankees teammate, get elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

“He was a great teammate,” he said.

Of today’s Major League players, he said Aaron Judge of the Yankees has all the attributes of a star player.

“Team means everything to him,” he said.

His favorite player as a kid growing up in Kansas was Royals third baseman George Brett.

When asked if he had advice for youngsters eyeing a Major League career, he said, “Go out and have fun. Hopefully, you are good enough.”

Following the luncheon, Damon stuck around to sign autographs for attendees.