Opening Day is days away and Boston, a city usually full of passionate baseball fans, has been quiet in the anticipation to the start of the season.
NBC Boston interviewed Red Sox fans in the Fenway neighborhood to get a feel for fans' attitudes toward baseball's return. The results would've been shocking a few years ago, but the Red Sox are steadily falling out of favor among Bostonians — the reason why is clear among die-hards, but casual fans are surprised by the lack of excitement around the team.
“I feel like usually, other years, I kind of hear about it or people are talking about it, but this year I didn’t even know that they were like starting. I had no idea,” Samantha Perez said.
Other people interviewed gave similar answers as Perez. Two fans could not name a single current player on the team, and another could only name Rafael Devers, the Sox's undisputed star.
Bostonians in the Fenway neighborhood share thoughts about Opening Day, highlighting apathy around the 2024 Red Sox
Boston is shockingly low on star power for one of the most valuable teams in MLB. The Red Sox used to sign quality talent that didn't come cheap — they were touted as a team that would go to any lengths to field a winner. Now, ownership's change in its spending philosophy has created a lack of interest in the club.
“You know, when I was a kid, it was must-see TV when Pedro Martinez was pitching,” Frank Marr, another Sox fan, said.
And Marr is right, the Red Sox were "must-see TV" when ownership was committed to making the team better. Ever since the change in direction, the team is approaching too difficult to watch.
It’s the first day of spring and Opening Day is right around the corner. But if you talk to people around Fenway Park, you’ll find not only that many are unaware when the baseball season starts, they can’t even name a current Red Sox player. https://t.co/GgRROaaXdh
— NBC10 Boston (@NBC10Boston) March 19, 2024
There are members of Red Sox Nation who will watch every single game, rattle off the names of the entire roster, and continue to buy tickets at Fenway Park despite ownership's clear mistreatment of the Red Sox and their fans. And that's exactly what Fenway Sports Group is banking on. The product on the field doesn't matter to them — there will always be a market for the Red Sox, no matter how small it gets. People will show up to Fenway Park, no matter what, because it's a historical site.
People will still be Red Sox fans even if the team doesn't play well — and more power to them — but Boston's aura is definitely dimmer without palpable excitement around the Red Sox. Even casual fans used to be aware of the players on the team, but now that the roster is young and relatively inexperienced, there isn't anyone on the team to draw them into paying attention.
There are still tickets available for Opening Day at Fenway Park on April 9. Hopefully, when ownership sees all the empty seats, the apathy toward the team becomes as clear to them as it is to Red Sox Nation.