Red Sox fans, dressed in winter coats, hats and gloves didn’t let the bitter temps cool their optimism on Opening Day.
It took just a few innings for the sellout crowd to start booing as the Orioles jumped out to an 8-2 lead through the midway point of game one before eventually walking away with a 10-9 victory. The crowd showed life when the Red Sox scored five runs between the eighth and ninth innings, cutting a six-run deficit to one.
Methuen resident Jake Conway, 28, attended his first Opening Day with his father John, 69, both long-time Red Sox supporters.
“I feel like they did enough to sneak into the Wild Card,” Jake said, expressing more confidence than his father. “There’s always the probability of ‘We tried, we made it. We’re in the playoffs, we’re in the hunt.’”
John Conway has attended around 20 opening days, as he used to walk plenty of times to the ballpark from his nearby childhood home. He said he’s encouraged third baseman Rafael Devers signed a 10-year, $313.5 million extension during the offseason, but the team needs more solid pieces to be contenders, he said.
The elder Conway also highlighted how the Red Sox have the most expensive ticket in the entire league. The average gameday cost for a family of four is $235.41, well above the average MLB game cost of $149.03, according to Bookies.com.
“They are cheaping it out a little bit, and it’s the most expensive ticket in the major leagues,” Conway said. “They are not spending the money, they are charging the money. They know people will come.”
Just two hours before Thursday’s first pitch, dozens of tickets remained on sale via StubHub, starting as low as $14. At game-time, the temperature hovered at 38 degrees, much colder than the Winter Classic in January.
Fenway staffer Justin Alvino worked his first day at the ballpark on Thursday, manning the kids concourse in right field inside Gate B. He called his job a “perfect combination” of his two passions — being a Red Sox fan and working with youngsters.
Fans of all ages took to the concourse throughout the game, testing their pitch speed in a pitching cage, comparing their height to current and former Red Sox players, and engaging in a virtual home run derby.
The kids concourse is pivotal to attracting the younger generation to the game, Alvino said.
“It didn’t take much for me to fall in love with baseball,” he said, “but I think things like this – you remember something like this as a kid. It’s now more multidimensional than coming here and just watching the game.”
Pittsfield residents John and Holly Soules traveled across the state with their two young daughters for the family’s first Opening Day experience.
“There’s been a few negative sentiments about the team, but I am an optimist,” John Soules said. “I actually think the Red Sox will do very well this season.”
While the hometown crowd went home disappointed, Orioles fan Steve Redmer will have a happy trip back to Baltimore. Redmer and his brother had talked for years about visiting Fenway before his brother died in 2019, so he “fulfilled that promise” Thursday.
“Every team in the league should be worried about Baltimore right now” Redmer said. “They will be very competitive this year.”
