Fenway Park Turns 100
The 100 most fascinating characters, moments, and tales in our beloved ballpark's history.
20-29. The Most Important Red Sox Games Played at Fenway
- Sox Upset Giants, October 16, 1912: Eight years after the New York Giants refuse to play the Olde Towne Team in the World Series (Giants manager John McGraw deemed the club, part of the upstart American League, unworthy of challenging his National League team), the Sox defeat the Giants — and their ace pitcher, Christy Mathewson — in the 1912 series.
- The Drought Begins, September 11, 1918: The Sox beat the Cubs in the sixth and deciding game of the World Series — and don’t win another championship for 86 years.
- Enter the Radio Era, April 13, 1926: WNAC’s Gus Rooney calls the team’s first-ever radio broadcast, a 12-11 Opening Day loss to the Yankees.
- A Modern Fenway, April 17, 1934: The park reopens after seven months of renovations, with the Sox suffering a 6-5 loss to the Washington Senators.
- Bid Babe Adieu, August 12, 1934: Babe Ruth makes his last appearance at Fenway as a Yankee. The Sox pack an estimated 47,000 fans into the park for the event, and turn away at least another 15,000.
- Color Barrier Finally Broken, August 4, 1959: Pumpsie Green makes the Sox the last team in the majors to integrate (and socks a triple in his first-ever Fenway Park at-bat).
- Impossible Dream, October 1, 1967: The Sox defy 100-to-1 preseason odds and clinch their first pennant in 21 years.
- Fisk goes Deep, October 21, 1975: Carlton Fisk’s game-winning midnight blast in the epic sixth game of the ’75 World Series becomes the most-replayed home run in major league history.
- The Steal, October 17, 2004: Dave Roberts’s legendary ninth-inning steal in Game 4 of the ALCS sets the stage for David Ortiz’s two-run walk-off dinger in the 12th. The victory allows the Sox to avert a sweep by the Yankees, and propels the team to the greatest comeback in postseason history.
- The Single, October 18, 2004: The next day, Ortiz’s 14th-inning hit wins Game 5, sending the Sox back to Yankee Stadium, where they go on to win the American League championship.
30. Following their 1915 World Series win, the Red Sox actually cut the price of box seats from $1.50 to $1, and the top grandstand from $1 to 75 cents.
31. Approximately 3.4 million people visit Fenway Park each year.