On Friday before the series opener against the Yankees, Johnny Pesky's number will be immortalized at Fenway Park when the Red Sox retire No. 6. The team will honor Pesky a day before his 89th birthday. "This is very flattering for me," Pesky said. "To be still with the Red Sox, I'm very proud of that." Pesky has been involved in baseball for 69 years, including the last 40 with the Red Sox. "We inherited a set of rules," president Larry Lucchino said. "We have looked at them and considered them to be useful, but guidelines rather than firm rules. I think that Johnny Pesky's career cries out as exceptional. ... We consider Johnny a worthy exception to the rules that were set down."