Per my request, strapping With Leather reader Doug sends in a photo of his Boston "B" tattoo, which is certainly more authentic than the likely fake we saw in today's earlier post (bonus: if you look at it from a certain angle, it looks like boobies!). Aside from the several thousand needle jabs it took to get this art, Doug tells the story of how it was really hurt:

I got that sucker just before the first pitch of  the '03 ALCS – I was sure we were the team of destiny, and I didn't want to be the kind of chump who gets a team tat after they win it all.  It hadn't even healed by the time Game 7 ended [with Grady's Follly and Aaron Boone's walk-off home run].

Doug, I'm not gonna lie to you: that sucks. And is also hilarious. But I give you bonus points for moxie, and for going with the open display of ink on your forearm. Those other cowards with portarits on their back hide the glory of sports fandom every time they put on a shirt.

Which is partly why I wear fishnet shirts. But that's another story.