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Originally
written April 9, 2008
When
I first decided that I was going to pursue visiting
every Major League Baseball park, one of my initial
thoughts was that Boston's Fenway Park was probably
going to be the hardest one to get to. Considered
by many to be the Mecca of all ballparks, due
to its relative age, as well as the fact that
it is the home of the rabid Red Sox Nation, it
most certainly was a lofty task to achieve.
When
I found out prior to the 2007 season that my Atlanta
Braves and the Boston Red Sox would be paired
as the "interleague rivals" for the
year, I figured I had more reason than any to
take my stab at visiting Fenway Park. Frankly,
I had never been to Boston before either, so it
was like killing two birds with one stone.
Biggest
problem - tickets. Fenway Park very rarely sells
individual game tickets, mostly due to the fact
that their die-hard dedicated season ticket holders
have the place sold out years and years before
even they know who they're playing against. So
that left one real option: eBay.
With
two of my friends, which one of them is a native
New Englander, I was able to win an auction for
the Braves vs. Red Sox game I wanted to go to
- for $144 per ticket. Yes, I know, I
paid pretty much three times the actual face value
for these Grandstand tickets, but I'm looking
at the bright side here; at least I didn't get
the obstructed views. Narrowly. Just getting the
tickets was an accomplishment enough.
The
back of the Green Monster
Sunday
morning was met with rain, rain, and more rain.
By the time I got to Fenway Park, I was quite
irritated by all the incessant rain, and I was
hoping that it would just dissipate long enough
for a game to go through. I was getting worried,
because this was an Interleague weekend game
in May, which meant that there would be very
rare opportunity to make it up if were post-poned.
Oh yeah, and also the fact that if I didn't
get to go to this game, I would have
to make another trek up to Boston to catch the
replay!
But
back to Fenway - just walking to the place, anyone
can tell that the entire City of Boston is a different
entity when the Red Sox are playing at home. From
the T train all the way back in Braintree where
I stayed, all the way to Landsdowne street, there
was a steady stream of Red Sox fans all headed
to one destination. I was just stoked that I was
just like them, for an afternoon.
After
entering the gates, it was like nothing I've seen
before. Fenway Park is an old, creaky, dripping
structure, and if not for the simple fact that
it was Fenway Park, I'd be kinda disappointed.
The team store was literally the size of a Wal-Mart,
with everything a fan could possibly dream for,
and then some. The people I encountered while
there were a good mix of classy, intelligent,
as well as belligerent. Granted, I was
there wearing the opposing team's paraphenalia,
but let's face it - I'm a National League guy,
and most certainly not a threat to stand in the
way of a title, unless in the World Series.
In
other words, I only got cussed out once, by a
small group of guys while walking back to my seats.
Otherwise, the people were all friendly.
But
Mother Nature decided to stop being such a bitch,
and there was a game that day. Thank Pujols.
Unfortunately
for me, the people whom I were jawing with earlier
in the day were right - Boston still
had Tim Hudson's number, back from when he pitched
for Oakland. And with that, Boston got the best
of Atlanta, jumping to an early lead, and never
looking back. But the Braves
hung around, and even gave super-closer Jonathan
Papelbon a minor headache in the 9th inning.
It
was during this time that I happened to be the
last remaining Braves fan in the entire New England
region. When Edgar Renteria singled, took second
on indifference, and Jeff Francoeur batted him
in, I was the only sound in the entire park.
30,000 irate stares headed in my direction, and
I had never felt more alone in my life. And then
Matt Diaz roped a single and moved Francoeur into
scoring position, and then with me cheering, and
me getting stared down by 30,000 people again,
it was then, that I had never felt more alone
in my entire life.
Would
I go back to Boston to watch a game at Fenway
Park? Hell yes. That is, if I could get tickets
for not $144 or more, next time. I enjoyed the
place, as well as the City of Boston, and I'd
love to go back for more.
Noteable
performance(s): LHP
Kason Gabbard, goes five
innings in his major league debut, and gets the
win over Atlanta's Tim Hudson. Kevin Youkilis
adds a homer to the right field porch, as he has
a three-hit afternoon. But the most noteable performance
in this particular game would have to be Atlanta's
Andruw Jones, who went 0-for-5 with five
strikeouts, including the game-ending
K while potentially being the game-tying batter.
Game
Result: Boston
prevails against my Braves, 6-3.
Additional
Photos:
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