Comments on: The Red Sox want to bring the right field fence in by nine feet

By: The Red Sox scuttle plans to bring the right field fence in | HardballTalk

The Red Sox scuttle plans to bring the right field fence in | HardballTalk — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 14:52:00 +0000

[...] You’ll recall back in October the Red Sox sought approval from the Boston Landmarks Commission to widen Fenway Park’s bullpen by about nine feet which, in turn, would have made hitting homers to right nine feet easier. They have released a statement, however, saying they’ve changed their minds: “The Red Sox recently sent a letter to the Secretary of State’s office withdrawing a request to consider expansion of the right field bullpen area this off-season. As we moved through the review process over the last several months, issues arose regarding implementation that required additional discussion and consideration of other design possibilities. Given the tight construction timeline we are operating on to have the ballpark ready for Opening Day 2011, and the fact that we’re already deep into the off-season, plus the impact any work on the bullpen area would have on other work currently being done on the right field seating bowl, we decided to take this project off the table for 2010-2011 off-season. We are going to review the feedback received during this process, and determine the next best steps. It is still on our radar screen, but there is no immediate timetable for this project and, as we do on an annual basis, we will review all potential off-season projects as we get closer to the end of next season.” [...]

By: indianagary

indianagary — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 03:12:30 +0000

I’m not sure moving in the RF fence right now is a great idea. Our biggest rivals, the New York Yankees, have a line up built for their short right field porch in the Bronx. Why would we want to make our home field more accommodating to their line up?

Just my 2 cents, here.

By: ta192

ta192 — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 21:45:26 +0000

Big deal guys. Teams used to change fence depths very frequently, many using the expedient of chain link to hold down the cost. The sun will still rise in the East and set in the West; spare me the Chicken Little act…

By: WhenMattStairsIsKing

WhenMattStairsIsKing — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:57:33 +0000

Couldn’t agree more.

By: JBerardi

JBerardi — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 17:33:03 +0000

Boggs hit .369/.464/.527 at Fenway, although some of that was with the Yankees and Rays. Still pretty solid numbers, I’d say.

By: BC

BC — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 17:17:36 +0000

That’s true. I think Wade Boggs hit .400 for his career there – kept putting dents in the Monsta.

By: JBerardi

JBerardi — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 17:07:25 +0000

I hadn’t thought of that. Actually, if the made the wall higher, guy could rob home runs much more effectively out there. The wall is more or less at waist hight right now, so most leaping catches out there lead to guys going end-over-end into the bullpen. If they put a more climable wall out there, you’d see some more exciting plays out there and keep the offense i check. I like it.

By: mcsnide

mcsnide — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:59:09 +0000

This may not be accurate, but I believe that I read somewhere that 10 feet of distance approximates 1 foot in height in terms of the HR. So move the fence in, get your bigger bullpen, but raise the fence a foot. And everything theoretically balances out.

By: hasbeen5

hasbeen5 — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:54:41 +0000

I’d go with a lob wedge

By: ertwngr

ertwngr — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:53:24 +0000

imagine how many home runs J D Drew will be able to hit once they move that fence. I bet he goes all the way from 22 to 23 or maybe even 24.

By: JBerardi

JBerardi — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:47:38 +0000

“Seems silly to me. I thought the Sox philosophy was now “run prevention”?”

Uhh, yeah: http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/MLB/2010.shtml#teams_standard_batting::7

By: Mr. Jason "El Bravo" Heyward

Mr. Jason "El Bravo" Heyward — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:46:37 +0000

They should bury the bullpen under RF and have the relievers come out of a trap door. How sweet would Papeldouche look sprinting up from stairs and appearing in the middle of right field?

By: JBerardi

JBerardi — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:46:21 +0000

Yeah, if you hit it down the RF line. But look:

http://www.redsoxdiehard.com/features/summer99/pics/peskyspole.jpg

If you hit the ball even a few feet to the left of the foul pole, you quickly get into the second deepest part (next to the CF triangle) of the Fenway outfield. Not that many home runs get hit around that pole. In fact, Fenway is pretty much a neutral park in terms of home runs. Most of it’s offensive boost comes from the Monster turning short fly outs into doubles.

By: roadduck99

roadduck99 — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:45:12 +0000

They could take out three rows of bleachers.

HA HA HA HA HA!

By: JBerardi

JBerardi — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:35:24 +0000

Craig, the Red Sox did explain why they’re doing this, which seems like an important piece of information. More important than, say, bitching about the length of Red Sox games (which basically just reflects the fact that they always have a great offense– horror of horrors!):

The team is hoping to increase the width of the bullpens at Fenway Park by approximately eight feet, a change that would make it safer for pitchers warming up and cut down on the dimensions in right field.

According to team president Larry Lucchino, who spoke to reporters at Fenway today while showing off other improvements, the home and visiting team bullpens at Fenway are 21 feet across, eight feet shorter than the distance recommended by Major League Baseball. For years, pitchers have complained about the tight quarters while warming up.

http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/extras/extra_bases/2010/10/new_fenway_bull.html

Now, I’m not sure that I’m wild about making Fenway into even MORE of a hitter’s park, but I don’t think that’s really the point of doing this. They just want a proper-sized bullpen.

By: Erik Gonzalez

Erik Gonzalez — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:32:45 +0000

Craig, you neglected to mention that this change has nothing to do with hitting more HR but rather to make the Fenway bullpen meet the MLB criteria for bullpen dimensions. You also neglect to mention that NuYankee Stadium has a RF of 362′ while the modifications to Fenway will bring it to 371′ or so – that is a significant difference. I know you media love the Sox-Yankees thing, but it ain’t here.

By: Richard In Big D

Richard In Big D — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:24:41 +0000

Since we can no longer lengthen the flight of balls with steroids, we mudt shorten the distance they must fly in order to be home runs. Ludicrous! Why not just use SuperBalls?

By: Jonny 5

Jonny 5 — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:20:13 +0000

Bad idea. The historic nature of the park should never be comprimised over hitting more home runs. It’s kind of sickening to even consider. Leave it as it is.

By: Mr. Jason "El Bravo" Heyward

Mr. Jason "El Bravo" Heyward — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:04:01 +0000

Yay, longer games! I always hated how the BoSox played their games in the blink of an eye, assuming the blinking is being performed by Dick Cheney’s eyelids.

By: BC

BC — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:03:16 +0000

You can already hit a sand wedge out down the right field line. It's 302 feet!! What, is it going to be 290 now?????

By: fndan9

fndan9 — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:01:10 +0000

Seems silly to me. I thought the Sox philosophy was now “run prevention”?

Damn, Granderson has the longest HR at Fenway this year???