Red Sox Nation Freebie

I have to admit:  I did not always like to watch baseball.  I used to put it in the same category as watching golf on TV....boring!  But then I started to think about it more after hearing a few public radio stories a couple of years ago.  About the athletic skills it takes to be a good pitcher, the role of catcher as a hard-working leader of the team , the value of developing talent as an organization.  One man noted how baseball is really the only professional sport out there that a 3-hour game takes 3 hours to watch.  No TV timeouts.  A basketball game is 48 minutes of playing time stretched over a 2 or so hour block of time, football is similar.



About the same time, my husband started watching the Boston Red Sox more often.  I have always been a sports fan, but basketball had really been my game of choice.  I started to watch with him and it became a fun family activity.  Now a days, all the kids have Red Sox gear (even lunch boxes!) and the boys got a Red Sox inspired room makeover here at the new house.  I have favorite Red Sox-related blogs to read and have even been known to lurk on the SOSH forum.  We are planning a family road trip to check out the Portland Sea Dogs in action, and introduce our kids to live pro ball.



So suffice it to say that the kids were thrilled with a packet I got in the mail today, straight from 4 Yawkey Way in Boston:

 

  

That's right sports fans, we now have real Fenway Park dirt!  The Fan Pack was a long shot, but it arrived with a handwritten note, a photo of Jonathan Papelbon, a fold up pocket calendar, Red Sox magazine with Youk on the cover and a little packet of Fenway dirt.  I wonder whose job it is to make up those packets anyway?

A fun freebie for fans.  [say that 5 times fast!  I love alliteration!]

Thanks to the good folks on the GottaDeal Forum for the heads up about this possibility.  All it took was a simple email request for a Red Sox Fan Pack to fanfeedback@redsox.mlb.com .  My request was submitted on July 8th and we got it in the mail today, so only a 10 day turnaround.  Great customer service.  I look forward to the day when we can all get to Boston to see a game in person. 

By the way, there is a TRUE fan in Vermont that built what has now become known as "Little Fenway" in his backyard.  See more about it here.  Great story, and one I wanted to share.  I saw Pat O'Connor on a local talk show (he put together a book with the story of his now famous whiffle ball field) and he seems to be a fun guy and real fan.  They recently added a second field, this one fashioned after his wife's favorite team's home digs -- "Little Wrigley".