Today marks the fifth anniversary of the championship hailed by Sports Illustrated as "the most amazing season in history."

On this date in 2004, the Boston Red Sox won their first World Series in 86 years. Bells rang throughout New England as generations of Sox fans celebrated as one.

Where has the time gone?

Chances are, you know exactly where you were as Keith Foulke threw the ball to Doug Mientkiewicz to end the game – and the overblown "Curse of the Bambino."

The Sox were champs, and remained the toast of the town over the coming days, weeks and months.

That winter, writers speculated that the long-awaited championship ultimately might have a negative effect on the team's fan base.

After all, Red Sox Nation was created on the unyielding pursuit of a decades-old quest. The quest was over, the team was the best in the game. How would Sox fans ever identify themselves?

Five years later, it's clear that winning didn't drain Boston fans of their passion for baseball. The Sox have sold out 550 consecutive games, the longest such streak in baseball history.

But a fan base that once embraced its team's weaknesses as part of a flawed identity is now much more demanding.

This month, the Sox made the postseason for the sixth time in seven years, the best run of playoff appearances in franchise history. Three losses to the Angels later, Sox fans were calling radio stations to talk about the dramatic overhaul needed to get the team back on track.

There was a time when playing October baseball was enough. Clearly, 2004 changed all that.

As the 2009 season ended, there were only four members of that incredible band of self-proclaimed "idiots" left on the roster. There is a very strong chance the core group will be whittled down by the start of 2010.

• Jason Varitek may have played his final game with the Sox, his offensive skills eroding as we see time catching up with the captain. For the fourth straight year, he hit lower than .260. He did not make an appearance in the AL division series against the Angels. For the first time, the Sox have an alternative behind the plate; Victor Martinez will be the starting catcher next year. Varitek may be back, but he will be no more than a backup.

• David Ortiz went through the most trying season of his career. The man once called "The Greatest Clutch Hitter in Red Sox History" hit a mere .238 and had the lowest on-base percentage plus slugging percentage of his Red Sox career.

He was identified as a user of performance-enhancing drugs and had a contentious year with the media. His power numbers improved dramatically as the year went on, but he was once again anemic in the playoffs. With one year left on his contract, you certainly don't have to strain to see the end of Big Papi's career with Boston.

• Tim Wakefield just underwent surgery for his ailing back. By all accounts, the operation went well and he will return next season.

That said, the man who was once the most durable pitcher in the organization was left off the division series roster because of injury for the third straight year.

Wakefield, 43, is closing in on the franchise record of 192 wins, but the 17 wins he needs to tie Cy Young and Roger Clemens will be harder to come by. Can he withstand two more seasons? If so, he'll finish his career with more wins than anyone to wear the Red Sox uniform.

• Kevin Youkilis made his major league debut in 2004 and recorded two at-bats in that fabled postseason. Just a year removed from being dubbed "The Greek God of Walks," Youkilis was on the World Series roster, though he did not play against the Cardinals.

Since then, he has transformed himself into one of the game's best hitters, an MVP candidate who has sacrificed on-base percentage for better slugging numbers. Since Manny Ramirez was sent to the Dodgers, he has been the team's cleanup...