Looking back (2026): Before you read this one, you need to know how it aged. That Red Sox team we watched on the final day of the season? They won 108 games that year. A few weeks after we flew home, they steamrolled through the playoffs and won the whole World Series, beating the Dodgers no less. So when you get to my "Go Red Sox!" at the end of this post, just know that it worked. You're welcome, Boston.
Fenway Park is my favorite ballpark in the bigs. HANDS DOWN. As a San Francisco Giants fan, I know how blessed we are with AT&T Park, now Oracle Park. It's gorgeous. I've been to Yankees Stadium, I've been to Wrigley. But, Fenway is by far and away the coolest, most rich, amazing place I've ever seen a baseball game played. And, we got to go on the last day of the season, and see them play their rivals the New York Yankees. Is there any better way to finish one of the best vacations I've ever had? I don't think so. Let's play some baseball.
End of a PERFECT TRIP
I have to give this some context. My wife Amy planned this amazing trip to the EAST COAST. I ran four half marathons in four different states. We drove 1,600 miles and did so many cool things that I honestly cannot list them all. And, this game, in Boston, against the Yankees was the cherry on top. When we go on vacations, and you have to remember our kids were 3 and 6 respectively, I NEVER come home refreshed. And, on the way to the airport, I said I didn't want to go home. I wish I could have redone this entire trip. And, maybe, someday we will. This game was the final act of one of the best vacations I've ever been on.
The Biggest Fans ….. EVER
Now, I am not sure that we were the biggest fans but I know we looked the part. On the way into town, some two weeks prior to the game we picked up an Andrew Benintendi Jersey for my son and a Red Sox t-shirt. And, on the way to the game, we swung by our local Target and my wife and daughter got all decked out too. Truly, if I wasn't a Giants fan, I'd be a Red Sox fan, just so I could wear those colors and go to Fenway. And, check out the picture, best and biggest fans ever!
Looking back (2026): Sadly, none of the gear survived. The jersey, the Target haul, all of it long gone. But here's a fun one: Benintendi is still out there playing, these days with the White Sox. And it turns out Gage was wearing the jersey of a guy who would win the World Series about a month after this photo was taken. Kid knows how to pick 'em.
Speed Pitch, Claire Snoozes & THE GREEN MONSTER
Fenway Park had a little bit of a LOT. We started off the game with what you'd expect, walking around and checking out this amazing ballpark. Gage did his first ever SPEED pitch. We got the obligatory Lemon Ice and it was as you'd expect, DELICIOUS. And, Claire who had not been sleeping perfectly on this trip? Well, she finally got some much needed downtime around inning 3. Poor thing needed some sleep! And, Gage and I walked all the way down to the GREEN MONSTER where the nicest of nice attendants told Gage and I we could sit and watch a bit of the game, right there next to the monster, looking up and dreaming the dream. And, just moments after we stood up to walk away, either JD Martinez or Xander Bogarts homered. 🙁 . Oh well.
Looking back (2026): That speed pitch turned into another tradition. Gage ended up doing them at ballparks all over as we traveled, and watching the number on the radar gun climb over the years has been one of the quiet joys of this whole quest.
What a trip! What a Fenway Visit! Go Red Sox! There are not many fields that I think I want to go back to, most are unmemorable. But Fenway? Red Sox? We'll be back!
Looking back (2026): "We'll be back" is officially in the works. Here's the crazy part: Claire was so small on this trip that she doesn't remember ANY of it. The best vacation I've ever been on, and one of my two kids has no memory of it. That blows my mind, and honestly it's half the reason we're talking about going back. We'll have to pull out the photos with her in the meantime. Fenway, we're coming for round two.