Fenway Park – Overview

Fenway Park, the oldest Major League Baseball stadium in the nation, has been affectionately referred to as “America’s Most Beloved Ballpark.” Fenway Park’s expansive history is part of what makes it so charming, as it’s been a MLB staple for generations.

When it was determined that Boston needed a new baseball stadium, Boston Red Sox owner John Taylor found a location in the Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood. The stadium’s name was chosen easily after that, with the straightforward choice to name it after its location.

Red Sox Stakeholders broke ground for the stadium on September 25, 1911. This was a risky move, as the city had not yet approved the building permit. But with baseball season right around the corner, time was of the essence, so they took a leap of faith. The construction was completed in just seven months, and yet the stadium still stands more than 100 years later. The stadium was opened on April 20, 1912 and has been home to the Boston Red Sox ever since.

Fenway Park has experienced many renovations and additions throughout the years, resulting in a quirky layout unlike any other MLB stadium. At one point, the owners of the Boston Red Sox discussed demolishing Fenway Park to start fresh with a new stadium. But when the team changed ownership in 2002, the new owners emphasized their commitment to preserving and improving the historic stadium. Their efforts and maintenance paid off, and the government added Fenway Park to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.

Overview

Facts and figures: The capacity of Fenway Park fluctuates between 37,755 and 37,305 depending on time of day and type of event. That capacity includes 13,778 box seats, 6,474 bleacher seats, and 296 seats atop the famous Green Monster. Fenway Park’s total capacity makes it one of the smallest stadiums in Major League Baseball, and very easy to sell out. It’s also small in terms of space, covering just nine acres. It holds the record for shallowest right-field line, left-field line, and outfield, as well as the shortest distance to center field.
The Green Monster and scoreboard: All who know about Fenway Park probably know about the famous “Green Monster.” This refers to the green, 37.2-foot left field wall. The Green Monster was part of the original construction of Fenway Park and was once covered in advertisements. The stadium removed the advertisements in 1947, and painted the wall green. This resulted in the well-known Green Monster nickname. The wall is so large and outstanding that batters frequently hit it during games. At the bottom of the Green Monster is a fully functional, manual scoreboard, which has been a part of Fenway Park since at least 1914. The Red Sox use the scoreboard to this day, and it’s respected by baseball players throughout the league. Left fielders from almost every Major League team have visited the scorekeeper in the room behind the scoreboard.
Sustainability: As one of the most popular baseball stadiums in the United States, Fenway Park has an obligation to practice sustainability, and encourage its thousands of visitors to do the same. This venue creates a lot of recyclable material and waste, so it’s well-positioned to make an impact in the local community. Fenway Park has a single-stream recycling facility, which means all recyclable materials can be placed into the bright blue recycling bins located throughout the stadium. The “Poland Spring Green Team” is a group of volunteers that venture throughout the stands during home games to collect recyclables from visitors. This makes it easy and convenient for fans to contribute to Fenway Park’s recycling efforts. Fenway Park’s solar-powered trash cans use their sustainable energy to compact waste, resulting in increased capacity. In addition to solar-powered trash compactors, there are 28 solar thermal panels on the roof behind home plate. The Red Sox made history as the first major league baseball team to install solar thermal panels in their stadium. These panels help heat Fenway Park’s water, and have replaced 37% of the gas previously used for that purpose. This saves Fenway Park energy and expense, not to mention cuts down a major portion of gas usage. Aramark, the stadium’s catering partner, composts waste food and shares it with area farms. This allows local growers to fertilize their crops with nutrient-rich compost.
Accessibility: Fenway Park prioritizes fans’ experience in the stadium, which is why they have many initiatives for those in need of increased accessibility. All gates entering Fenway Park are handicap-accessible, and elevators are located throughout the stadium. Guests can also take advantage of wheelchair escorts available at the customer service booth. For guests with vision impairments, braille schedules are available in the Red Sox Ticket Office. Lastly, guests with hearing impairments can take advantage of Assisted Listening Devices.
Tours: America’s Most Beloved Ballpark offers many tours for fans to enjoy a behind-the-scenes look. The most popular option is the one-hour walking tour, which is available year-round. Tours are available in Spanish and Japanese with advance notice. Guests can also take a 15-minute tour through the “Nation’s Archives,” which contains memorabilia, photographs, and artifacts. The tour ends at the Right Field Roof Deck, which provides a panoramic view of Fenway Park and the Boston skyline. Private tours are available for groups of 12 or more. Lastly, educational tours are the perfect opportunity for young fans to learn about the history of the stadium. Fenway Park even created a teacher’s guide and Massachusetts curriculum-approved activity packet for the tour.
Hosting events: In addition to tours for your group, Fenway Park can host your private and professional events. The stadium has served as a venue for concerts, presidential visits, fundraisers, birthday parties, and more. Their delicious, five-star catering will blow guests away, almost as much as the impressive venue will. Fenway Park is more than a stadium, containing 11 venues such as the State Street Pavilion Club, Partners Suite, Vineyard Vines Club, Big Concourse, and Sam Deck. Between all these available venues, Fenway Park has the ability to host events from 20 to 20,000 attendees. The stadium is even available for a complete buyout, so occasions of any size can enjoy Fenway all to themselves.

Tips

Pick the right tour for you. Fenway Park offers many tours that vary in schedule, length, and price. Make sure you do your due diligence and read over all information before making your decision.
Check out Wally’s Clubhouse. Wally’s Clubhouse is the perfect place for younger fans and their families to relax amongst entertainment and activities. Examples include face painting, balloon artists, magicians, and coordinated group games.
Consider alcohol-free seating. Fenway Park has created designated areas for those in search of an alcohol-free experience. The stadium sells these seats, located in the CVS Family Sections, on a first-come, first-served basis. Security strictly enforces this non-alcohol policy.
Plan a visit from Wally the Green Monster. Wally the Green Monster is the lovable mascot of the Boston Red Sox, and is available to visit your seat for a meet and greet. Receive a visit from this fuzzy green monster by calling or emailing ahead of time.
Get an autograph before the game. Inside Fenway Park is Autograph Alley, where guests have the opportunity to meet a VIP in the sports world. Before every home game, Autograph Alley hosts a coach, personality, former Red Sox player, or athlete to sign autographs. Check out Autograph Alley, located right nearby Jersey Street Team Store, next time you’re in Fenway!

Trivia

There is one, single red seat in the stadium. The longest home run ever hit in Fenway Park was by Ted Williams in 1946. The ball flew 502 feet, and the stadium painted the red seat in honor of that impressive feat.
The Boston Red Sox have had many notable wins in their home stadium. The Red Sox won their inaugural game in Fenway Park, and went on the win the World Series that season. Since then, the Red Sox have won six World Series in Fenway Park.
Fenway Park’s largest crowd was 47,627, which is way over capacity. The occasion was a doubleheader between the Red Sox and Yankees in 1935. This record-breaking attendance was made possible in part by the lack of fire and capacity regulations during that time.
There is a ladder to nowhere on the Green Monster. Eagle-eyed guests may notice the ladder that neither reaches the ground nor leads to anything. This ladder was built when a net atop the Green Monster was used to catch baseballs hit into the outfield. Since Fenway Park added seats onto the Green Monster, the net was removed, but the ladder remains.
The jersey numbers featured in right field of Fenway Park belong to former Red Sox players, and one Brooklyn Dodger. The numbers are the retired jersey numbers of Ted Williams, Joe Cronin, Bobby Doerr, Carl Yastrzemski, Carlton Fisk, Johnny Pesky, Jim Rice, and David Ortiz. The only non-Red Sox player featured is Jackie Robinson, who was number 42.