When Rice retired, the whole world was upset.

Jim Rice played his final game on August 3, 1989. A few months earlier, people began speculating that this would in fact be Rice's final year playing baseball. When news of this spread, protests took place all over the world. The most famous of these protests took place in China, with most demonstrations centered on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. While the protesters were there, they decided to make demands for democracy and free media reform in addition to protesting Rice's retirement. Sadly, thousands were ultimately killed by the People's Liberation Army [who were known to be Yankee fans]. It is widely accepted that "Tank Man" was most likely wearing a Jim Rice jersey under his jacket for the now famous photo.