Feeding The Green Monster

ESPN baseball columnist Rob Neyer convinced a publisher that they should give him a book advance so he could get an apartment near Fenway, attend every game at Fenway in the 2000 season, and write a book about it.

This qualifies Rob for God like status in my world.

The resulting book, although good, left me feeling a little empty. It is written diary style, but too much of it is the mundane results of the games. How Pedro pitched, how good the bullpen looked, Ramon Martinez got rocked again, etc. Mixed in were occasional stories of the people of Fenway, and Rob's misadventures procuring tickets. (If you ever have the opportunity to attend a baseball game with Rob, I suggest you volunteer to take care of the tickets.)

If I had been writing the book, I would spent my time getting to know the 100 year old ushers that populate Fenway. Half those guys probably saw Ted Williams play, and a few may even be able to remember it. I would have got to know the scalpers, the street vendors , the season ticket holders that were always there in the same seats. IMHO, that is where the real story was, and Rob missed it completely. However, it was an honest mistake on Rob's part. He is a true baseball geek, and I think the action on the field was way more interesting to him than the other stuff. He may be right, but the other stuff would have made a better book.

However, if you are a Red Sox fan, you probably should own the book. Daydreaming about what you would do with a summer to spend at Fenway is a fine way to waste away the hours.