My first foul ball ...

I have been going to the Sox since 1974 and have never gotten a ball. As I wrote earlier ... Franky got a ball in 10 minutes of his first game - I have to wait 31 years (http://litoblog.blogspot.com/2005_06_01_litoblog_archive.html).

We used to go with the boy scouts and sit way up top in the bleachers - what is now named the dunkin dugout. We actually thought we had a chance .... Forget the fact we were sitting 100 feet further than the Teddy Ballgame's red seat.

There was a time before a game around 1976 when we were trying to get balls and Ernie Whitt was a rookie cather. We were on top of the wall in center field (you know the area where people can't sit today) and we yelled down "Mr. Whitt how about a ball" . He proceeded to taunt us by throwing the ball up - just short of our reach about 10 times. Loser. I am sure the User Friendly Management at Fenway would not want to hear this story - maybe if I send them an email - I can get some free tickets.

I was a game once when I was around 24. We were skipping work early in the spring and Zibba catches a foul ball. There we are on the scoreboard and the broadcast - it was a real Ferris Bueller moment. Well we spent the next 15 minutes Zibba to give the ball to the kid behind us - #1 why does a 24 year old want a ball #2 is he really going to carry that thing around all night (yes a day game was an all day and night affair back then) and #3 - he could really make the kids day. Finally he reluctantly gave the ball to the kid.

Well last Thursday we were at the game sitting in seats next to the dugout ... ya know the same seats from Sports Illustrated and the Fox Broadcast - see the link below - at 35 seconds. (http://us.f2.yahoofs.com/bc/432ee43e_cba9/bc/videos/2003ACLSMontage.WMV?bfAYxLDBJO9AiWOw)

Well when you sit in those seats if you are a kid - you are almost guaranteed to get a ball. Atleast twice an inning a player or coach rolls a ball across the dugout. They usually point to kids and roll the ball.

Eric Rocco was in the scrum for each of the balls. Driving to the game, I was telling him that he could not bring the ball home to his kids - because #1 his kids have balls from the game #2 the experience of getting the ball at the game is the thrill - not possessing the ball. Check out ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com/20-USED-RAWLINGS-OFFICIAL-MAJOR-LEAGUE-BASEBALLS-NR_W0QQitemZ7180850209QQcategoryZ73894QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem) you can get 20 used game balls for $75). So if you want to give your kid a ball ... just buy him one.

Well ... about the 6th inning Eric is at the bathroom or something. There is a foul and two guys are fighting over the ball - it squirts free and I grab it. So while he is gone and I am taking pictures of myself with the ball and someone calls me and says - stop taking pictures of yourself with the ball. Well - when he gets back - I show him the ball before he can start busting me about keeping the ball - I stand up and yell "hey kid" and throw the ball to some kid with a glove. The whole section starts cheering - it was like Papi just hit one out. So I got a ball - but don't really have it - btw when I told Franky I gave it to some kid - he cried.

BTW - when we were at the game I mentioned that I had a piece of Fenway Park from when it was resurfaced in 1976. My mother won it for me in a Jimmy Fund charity raffle back then.

At the game I commented that I am sure most of them probably got thrown away with the baseball cards. I guessed that it was probably worth $200. Yesterday, I found it laying on the floor in the upstairs hallway and commented to Liz that I bet it was worth $500 (she said, "if it is worth $500 why is it always hanging around in Franky's room"). I did a quick search on ebay ... and according to this guy (http://cgi.ebay.com/Authentic-Piece-of-the-Green-Monster-Fenway-1976_W0QQitemZ5243698705QQcategoryZ50117QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem) it has a book value of $2000 and he will let it go for $950. As you might imagine - it is not on the floor in Franky's room anymore.