April 20th, 1912; 5 days after the sinking of the Titanic the Cathedral of Boston was unveiled. Fenway Park was supposed to open earlier but due to a couple of rain outs it was pushed back to the 20th. John F. Fitzgerald threw out the first pitch to a crowd of 24,000 fans and the Boston Red Sox took on the New York Highlanders. With names like Tris Speaker and Duffy Lewis the Sox defeated the Highlanders 7-6 in the 11th inning with a game winning hit by Tris Speaker. The Red Sox were a powerhouse that year with the trio of Speaker, Lewis and Harry Hooper in the outfield and eventually went on to win the pennant and the World Series defeating the New York Giants in 8 games.
I have been lucky enough to see a handful of Red Sox games over the last 25 years, more than I can possibly count and/or remember. I started going to games with Little League Baseball when I was probably 6 or 7 and we would go every summer. When I got older I of course started going with friends and family and now when I can make it home I usually try to schedule my trips around their games. It's been an amazing part of my life and I'm extremely privileged to have taken part in so many games there. I've been trying to remember some of my favorite memories at Fenway and it's been hard because there are a lot to try and remember but I'll list a few that stick out (no particular order).
Mother's Day - Ted Williams Day: Hottest day of the year and I don't think Mom has been back to Fenway since!
Father's Day 2009: Sox beat the Braves 6-5 with a Nick Green walk off homer around Pesky's Pole! Went with Dad, my buddy Mike and his dad. Amazing!
Opening Day 2009: Josh Beckett strikes out 10 and the Sox beat the Rays 5-3. Got tickets off Craigslist because the original opening day had been rained out and the game was pushed back a day. Went with a few friends from high school; it was absolutely freezing out but we had fun.
Sox vs Yankees (circa 1998?): Can't remember the exact year but went to two Sox/Yanks games back-to-back with my buddy Mike from high school and my sister and one of her friends.
All little league games...ice cream, wooden bats, bleachers.
Manny's return to Fenway Park: Took my cousin Brian to go see Manny come back to Fenway as a Dodger. He got a pretty good standing ovation at first but by his 3rd at bat he was getting seriously booed.
Winter Classic 2010: Didn't get to see the Bruins play but Brian and I went to see BU play BC. The girl singing the National Anthem was from BC and she actually got booed from the BU fans...classic!
Tom Glavine vs the Sox: Glavine was lights out. I can't remember watching a more dominant pitcher and it really made the game boring from the Sox stand point. No runs for the BoSox but I think 8 for the Braves.
April 26, 2009: Sox vs Yanks; Jacoby Ellsbury steals home plate!!! I couldn't believe it. And I watched it happen. It wasn't as if I turned away and he scored, I watched as he creeped down the line and bolted. I still remember screaming, along with everyone else, "He's going!" And then his little hesitation before he slid...friggin amazing. AND I almost caught a foul ball but definitely didn't happen. Had sick seats too right near Pesky's Pole only rows up from the field...good job Kristin!
August 30, 2005: Went to the game with my sister and cousin Brian. Sox vs Rays; Rays were up 5-0 and lost 7-6. I think this was the first time I had seen Brian since he turned 21 so it was a good night and it was my 1st time at Cask n' Flagon!
Wade Boggs sighting: Wade was my favorite player growing up until of course he turned to the dark side...but one game we were so close to the third base wall that I had asked the umpire if he could get me his signature. He said no but then there was a ball that went passed Wade and he ran up to the wall...that was the closest I ever got to him. Oh well.
Mo Vaughn sighting: We saw Mo in the parking lot after one game and he was massive!!! He didn't sign any autographs though.
June 1, 2007: Sox vs Yankees and a day that will live in infamy. Got tickets for me and my buddy Mike. We met up with some friends beforehand and when the Sox were getting destroyed we actually left the game early. This is the ONLY game I have EVER left early. We left and it was 9-3, Sox lost 9-5. The rest of that night changed my life forever...but that's another story.
May 18, 2003: Sox vs Angels; I graduated from college on May 17th and my Aunt Rita got me 3 tickets to the Sox game the day after (that was a rough ride). I went with my buddies Mike and Pat and we had the best seats I've ever had at Fenway. We sat right behind home plate, maybe 10 rows from the field. Sox win 5-3. I ended up having an interview for the job in the Keys on the way home and that trip lead me to where I am today!!! I turned 27, 28, and 29 at Fenway park. I've brought buddies, girlfriends, and family members with me to enjoy it. I've sat through the coldest days, the hottest days and some of the rainiest days. I've even had tickets to two games that got rained out; one in 2004 and one in 2010. My sister ended up getting the tickets to the make-up game in 2004 and my friends went to the one in 2010.
I've been to so many games, most with my dad and they've all been amazing experiences. I got some good practice and preparation for high school by learning how to score the games at a young age. Dad has taught me a lot about the game at Fenway and I've taught him a lot about the history of the park!!! I've gone on at least 3 tours of Fenway, seen Theo Epstein outside of Fenway, gotten autographs (thank you Carlos Quintana) outside the parking lot, eaten God only knows how many hot dogs, been to 3 games in one week, at least 8 games in 2009 and if I could I'd go to every game played there. I've seen some of the greatest Sox players play the sport they love! Being inside Fenway, for someone who truly loves the history of the sport is an unforgettable experience, no matter how many times you've been and I look forward to going to many more throughout the years.
GO SOX!
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