SB Nation User Blog: non sequitur

back from Fenway

non sequitur — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 20:54:21 -0000

So I got to catch a game at Fenway this past Saturday. Charming place. If I was supposed to feel magic in the air, though, then something went wrong. But that just may be because I'm a humorless bastard.

I had seats in the bleachers just to the RF side of dead center, third row (Section 36, for those for whom this means something). I stayed all nine innings of a 12-2 blowout of the A's, in part because it was so crowded and cramped that it would have been hard to leave earlier.

Tidbits:

Lots of people were wearing Jason Bay Red Sox jerseys even though the guy had been signed only 48 hours earlier. Bay was given a standing ovation every time he came to bat. Manny having worn out his welcome is apparently more than just a media creation.
I don't think they play any music over the PA system composed after the disco era. The highlight: "Makin' It". Stuff I recognize from my early childhood probably isn't a good sign for Fenway's hipness factor.
The top of the eighth is when they seem to reserve the most terrifying rituals. First was The Wave. This wasn't the limp wave you sometimes see -- EVERYONE did it, and it went around the ENTIRE park FOUR FREAKING TIMES.
Then, after the top of the eighth, everybody sings "Sweet Caroline" as I'm sure you've heard. They continue singing it even after the PA system stops playing it. ... All told, an impressive example of collective effervescence if you can get past being creeped out.

I took tons of pics, but nothing anyone hasn't seen. Plus, they were all grainy, because I apparently still haven't mastered low-light shots. The only thing I have to offer was an Aramark vendor in the stands who instead of carrying around her tray in her arms balanced it on her head.

That's Jason Bay in left.

Ok, so I can say I've been to Fenway. Hooray.

advice on seeing a game at Fenway?

non sequitur — Wed, 14 May 2008 18:53:12 -0000

So I have to be in Boston the weekend of Aug 1-3 (Fri/Sat/Sun). I haven't been to the East Coast in about 15 years, and I figure I should take the opportunity to visit Fenway. Boston happens to be at home that weekend (hosting the A's, but the visiting team doesn't matter to me).

I went to the Red Sox's website but it appears you can't buy tickets to home games there. I suspect that, Boston being Boston, they were all sold out before the season began, or perhaps you can only buy one if your family has been in New England for 800 years or you're a Kennedy or something along those lines.

Does anyone know I might go about purchasing tickets in advance? Or do I just have to wing it and deal with scalpers? Since it's a weekend I imagine it would be even more difficult to get a ticket. But any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

can Bonds pull a HR?

non sequitur — Fri, 28 Apr 2006 01:49:14 -0000

Anyone know something about the mechanics of hitting? If Bonds' swing is mostly or all upper body now, I'm wondering if it's actually easier for him to go opposite field rather than pull, for homerun power. I know nothing about the mechanics of hitting unless Krukow is explaining things, but it seems to me that turning on an inside pitch requires healthier legs, whereas going opposite field is more just a natural "uncoiling" of the body that isn't so demanding on bad knees.

Of course, I'm just talking about HR's here. Even if there's a shred of truth to this that doesn't necessarily mean that opposing pitchers shouldn't continue to pitch him primarily away or play the shift against him. Obviously, if you're the other team you want to get him out, not just prevent the homerun. But when Barry has pulled, he's hit mostly grounders or low line drives. I can only recall one fly ball that might have gone out in a different park.

c'mon, Barry...

non sequitur — Wed, 30 Nov 2005 19:05:24 -0000

According to a little articlette on ESPN, Bonds intends to play for the US in the Baseball Classic. He was supposedly recruited to do so by Bobby Bonilla. That Bonilla is just a bad influence on our poor impressionable left fielder. I'd rather Bonds just lie on a beach somewhere until Spring Training.

Is there a DH in the Baseball Classic? If so, can Sabean work out some guarantee that whoever manages the US team won't Bonds in the field?

perception vs. reality on Omar's HR?

non sequitur — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 06:39:07 -0000

In both the FSN and KNBR post-game interviews, Omar identified the pitch he homered off of as a change-up. But according to the FSN radar gun it was a 92-mph pitch, which has to be a fastball to anyone other than the A.J. Burnett's or Billy Wagner's of the world. Now, obviously Omar hit the damn thing himself, so he couldn't really have misidentified it, but how does one reconcile this discrepancy? Is it just a matter of terminology? Is Omar just messing with us?