FenwayFanatics.com was born out of the mind of one diehard Boston Red Sox fan shortly after he watched his team blow a late-inning lead in Game Seven of the 2003 American League Championship series and eventually lose the pennant to the New York Yankees. The site contains a wealth of information about the team, from yesteryear to today, and also includes some commentary related to the state of the current organization as well as the world of baseball from the perspective of an everyday fan.

About The Author

Anyone who knows me knows that I obsess over the Red Sox to a fault. As an example, when my son was born, my wife and I gave him the middle name of Champion. It’s actually a family name, but perhaps in secret it was because I thought that he might be a lucky charm for my favorite sports team. Is that the reason they won it all the following year for the first time in 86 seasons? I’d like to think so.

I made my first visit to Fenway Park in 1982 with my father and several Little League teammates. Boston was hosting the Milwaukee Brewers that day and lost a barnburner, 11-10. Among the players on the field that day for the Red Sox were Jerry Remy, Dwight Evans, Jim Rice, Carl Yastrzemski, Dave Stapleton, Rich Gedman, Wade Boggs, and Bob Stanley. For Milwaukee, Paul Molitor and Robin Yount batted first and second, respectively, in the lineup while some guy named Rollie Fingers pitched the last few innings for the Brewers to earn the win. However, at that age, I was honestly more interested in the popcorn and a pennant to hang in my room at home.

Four years later, I watched “Rocket” Roger Clemens strike out 20 batters in late April, then followed the Red Sox as they took first place in the East in May and never surrendered that position for the rest of the season; from that point forward, I was hooked. Unfortunately, the season ended with bitter disappointment, the same disappointment that my father, and perhaps my grandfathers, had felt over the years, and I would bear witness over the years to come. I suffered through 13 straight post-season losses. I sat in Fenway Park and witnessed humbling championship series defeats in 1999 and 2003. When Boston fell behind three games to none in the 2004 American League Championship Series, I cringed at the thought of another lost opportunity. Still, I put on my favorite cap and made my way to Fenway Park for Game Four. The rest, they say, is history.

I can say with pride that I have seen Boston win not one but four World Series in my lifetime, something that the pundits believed would never happen. No longer do oppenents taunt us with chants of “1918!” or whisper out loud about some “curse.” Despite all this, had all this never happened, I would continue to carry the torch for my team today, as my loyalty has never wavered. When I die, I hope that they bury me with my David Ortiz jersey, my 1986 team picture from the Boston Globe, and my tickets from Game Four of the 2004 ALCS and Game One of the 2004 World Series. At the very least, I know that I’ll die happy.