Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Take me out to the ballpark, if you're filthy rich


So somewhere admist the media swarm around Belichick yesterday, the Sox slipped in a sting of their own, upping ticket prices around the park. The annual raising of ticket prices at the Fens is about as clockwork as me forgetting where I put my keys every morning. The instinct is to complain. Complain about the prices. B*tch about how they've priced out Joey Superfan in favor of Joe CEO and his corporate account. But I have long moved on from that. These days I only go to games when a friend of a friend of a friend of a cousin of a contractor offers up his season tickets for the night because he has to go to a "contractor convention". Yup, the nostalgia of Fenway has become stale for me, and everything I need from a live baseball game can be delivered to me via crystal clear HD television. Shrink my couch to an 18-inch wide wooden chair and throw an obnoxious fat guy next to me and I feel like I'm there.

But the raising of ticket prices got my 4 brain cells twirling around. As you know, the Sox have one of the smaller stadiums in baseball, thanks to the horrible foresight of the designers in 1912 not knowing Major League Baseball would become a cash cow. So the owners have to make every seat count, and inevitably make it one of the most expensive parks to entertain a family for the night. And when the bidding for the Sox franchise took place in 2001, several of the pontential owners, including present Dodger owner Frank McCourt, planned to build new stadiums for the local nine, thereby bringing in a massive revenue stream for the team and city. But alas, John Henry and his cronies won the battle and purchased the Sox for a mere $660mil, promising to keep the current Fenway, but cake on layers of make-up. They of course made good on that promise, hired this woman, and transformed Fenway from an eyesore into a restored landmark, albeit an even more crowded one. Its difficult to picture how awful the pre-renovated version was until you see a replay of some archived game on NESN. Once you get over the shock of seeing a skinny Roger Clemens, you realize how incredible the stadium looks now compared to that patchwork dungeon Fenway used to be. (you obviously can't see the trough toilet rooms on TV, but that was the most charming feature.)

So what am I babbling on about? Well, I want a new stadium. Sure, this is being fueled by the fact that its mid-November, the Yanks just won the world series, and I have no interest in the 2010 free agent class. But since baseball and buildings are favorite topics of mine, I always enjoy a conversation on the possibilites of a new stadium. I mean even looking through this website is an odd pleasure for me. Now I know the Henry/ Werner/ Luchhino team have vowed to stand by their renovations for the next decade plus (including the 100-year anniversary of the stadium in a couple years), but just think about the fun and anticipation of building a new Fenway. Where would it go? How would you recreate the monster? How many stripper poles do you put in the Remy-Orsillo crow's nest? All awesome things to ponder.

Thoughts, suggestions, detailed floor plans go in the comments section.

4 comments:

BBG said...

So, would you fork over the triple ticket price to see the game in a new stadium? What would happen to the grandstand seats? I kind of like them on a rainy night...sitting dry as a bone while everyone else is getting poked in the eye by umbrellas or putting on their attractive trash bag jackets...although in the summer, those seats can get pretty hot since the only breeze comes from the drunks running to the bathrooms to puke...wonder if Wally would get his own dressing room....

Jon said...

Personally I don't fork over any money to go, because I never go unlesss given tix, like Steve said. If they did build a new stadium hopefully they wouldn't go the way of Yankee Stadium and outprice 99% of the population... as if they haven't already. A new stadium would be an investment for the Henry Co. so by selling 20k more seats a night maybe the price wouldn't go up drastically. When I do choose to give them my $50-100 for a seat for 4 hours I'd rather be somewhat comfortable and enjoy the experience.

Educated Steve said...

I would absolutely pay top dollar to see a new stadium. at least a few times before letting HDTV do the work. but just seeing a new Fenway on TV would be great. and to solve the rain issue, this thing would obviously have a retractable dome, unlike the dipshits up in Minnesota who wasted all that money on an open-air stadium. seriously guys, April in Minneapolis?

BBG said...

retractable dome roof....I like it, I like it...I've probably gone to Fenway to watch a game 4 or 5 times in my life. Only once before I moved out of Mass. Living up here in God's country, it's a hassle going traveling down there to watch a game when I could be sittin' home in my Barca-Lounger eatin' wings & popcorn. But it would be pretty darned exciting to see a new park. Okay guys, where would you like it to go? Same place? Or maybe closer to the NH border? How about Charlestown? Now THAT would be exciting!