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The ballpark

And the amazing thing about giving up 15 runs in the 1950 opener -- see Mike McDermott's post below -- is that they scored 10 in that game!

Just back from a walk around Fenway. Mary Murphy and I had taken our own tour before the gates opened, but I wanted to see if the changes did make the sort of difference in reducing traffic and congestion that the team had hoped.

A quick checklist:

-- Behind the plate, where the beerstand is, is just as crowded as ever.

-- It is easier to get around the upper part of the third-base grandstand, at least a little.

-- The new open area behind the third-base grandstand -- the Jordan's 3rd-Base Deck, I believe they're calling it -- is very popular. The live models posting as ballplayers who were there before the game (Mary got a couple of pictures of them) are gone, however, and a good thing. Seeing real people standing on pedestals in uniform, staring in for imaginary signs and swinging at make-believe pitches, was extremely disconcerting. It reminded me of those live models behind the smoked glass in George Hamilton's office in the old movie Doc Hollywood.

-- The place seems more open and airy this year, and that's because some of the brick walls on the third-base side have been replaced with glass.

The fans seem to like it. Or at least they're happy, anyway. And why wouldn't they be, ahead 12-1 in the fifth?

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 3:55 PM to Martone | Permalink