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| Finally saw some baseball atop the Green Monster! |
Yesterday, I had the chance to watch something that hasn't happened to the Boston Red Sox in 51 years: a suspended game that didn't continue the next day. The Red Sox didn't know how long the resumed game would last and realized they could use this unique opportunity to create a fun atmosphere for the next generation of baseball enthusiasts and they absolutely hit a home run! There were activities all around the park from a pre-game walk on the warning track to running the bases after the game and everything in between. A perfect day to enjoy baseball in Boston.
The team opened up the park to all kids 18 and under for free, and all other fans were admitted for a $5 general admission ticket with all proceeds from the tickets going to the Jimmy Fund to supplement fundraising efforts from the 18th Annual Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon that just concluded yesterday.
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I could not believe how crowded it was
on the concourse after the game! |
I arrived at the park around noon, and it was the day to watch some baseball atop the Green Monster (or Monstah as we say here in Boston)! As a kid, I never imagined that I'd be able to watch a game where the nets used to catch homeruns, but I got to live out that dream today as the team let fans choose any available seat that they wanted and I was surprised to find out that the Monster seats were fair game. I couldn't believe it. For a whole 12 minutes, I was able to watch the Red Sox win from one of the most coveted seats at the old ball park! It was truly magical and I hope to be able to do again at some point.
“We haven’t had a suspended game that wasn’t played the following day in over 50 years,” said Red Sox President and CEO Sam Kennedy. “This is a unique opportunity to open up the ballpark to kids this summer and also help raise money for our friends at the Jimmy Fund who will be concluding their annual telethon just hours before the makeup game takes place.”
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| The food lines were so long, and the food was so delicious! |
There was a special kid-friendly $1 food menu including Kayem Fenway Franks, cotton candy, popcorn, chips, cracker jacks, candy, and Hood sports bars. The lines were so long, but so worth it!
The gates opened at 11 a.m. with fans being able to walk along the warning track prior to the game and then various activities on the kids concourse in center field. Even though it was quite hot, there were a lot of young fans at the ballpark and many parents pushing strollers on the concourses. After the game, kids were invited to run the bases, thanks to Marshall's sponsorship, and the line was so long it stretched from the center field kids concourse entrance to the field all of the way back to the oldest Red Sox logo (1908) on the first base line.
I kept walking around wondering how many hot dogs would be sold throughout the day as every line I went to was 40 people deep. One vendor I asked after the game said he sold 150 hot dogs himself, and that one of the stands probably sold over 2,000. Surprisingly the shortest lines were for coffee - I guess everyone had their iced coffee fix prior to coming to Fenway.
The baseball portion of the day only lasted 12 minutes when Brock Holt (#12!) hit a walk off single to end the game - more on that later. Maybe I'm the only one that found it interesting that the game lasted 12 minutes and ended on a play by a player who wears #12. As I was watching the video highlights of the game a broadcaster said
it could be 12 minutes or 12 innings. Quite foretelling!
I found my answer on hot dogs after reading some recaps of the day. According to
Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald: "The Sox had 16,441 scanned tickets at the gate on Thursday afternoon, 15,140 of which were new tickets. More than 6,000 of them were given away free to children while adults made a $5 donation to the Jimmy Fund. With discounted food prices including $1 hot dogs, more than 11,000 hot dogs were sold. Kids were allowed on the warning track before the game and ran the bases afterward. Nearly 4,000 children participated." (source:
https://www.bostonherald.com/2019/08/22/red-sox-win-suspended-game-vs-royals-in-12-minutes/)
On August 7, the Red Sox were playing the Kansas City Royals and were tied 4-4 in the top of the 10th inning with catcher Meibrys Viloria facing a 2-1 count against Red Sox reliever Josh Taylor and the game was suspended due to unrelenting rainfall. The two teams wouldn't meet up until a mutual off-day, when Kansas City was traveling to Cleveland after a series in Baltimore and the Sox had finished a series against the Phillies and were preparing to head out west to play the San Diego Padres. When play resumed today at 1:05 pm, Taylor was pitching to Nick Dini, who was pinch hitting for Viloria. The Royals went in order, 1-2-3, and then the Sox came up to bat. Benintendi struck out, Vasquez doubled and then Chris Owings went to pinch run for him. Sam Travis was intentionally walked. The game ended when Holt singled on a line drive to left field and Chris Owings scored.
According to Elias, the last time the Red Sox played a game that was suspended and did not resume the following day was June 13, 1968 – the second game of a doubleheader at Fenway Park against the Angels. That game was suspended in the sixth inning with a 1-1 score. The game resumed on August 4 with the Red Sox winning 5-1 on a walk-off grand slam by Ken Harrelson.
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Have you ever seen the food prices at Fenway
so good, so good, so good? |
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| The "run the bases" line seemed to go forever! |
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| Tessie, one of the two mascots, was on hand for photos! |
DISCLOSURE: I am providing this recap of the day for your enjoyment. I donated money for admission to the continuation game in support of The Jimmy Fund and all of the amazing work they do. As part of the #RedSoxParents program, I was provided with tickets to a Red Sox Game earlier this week for promotional purposes. No other compensation was provided and all opinions are my own.
