Image Credit: David - Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Earlier this week, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced they would be dedicating a seat to former player Kirk Gibson at Dodger Stadium. The Kirk Gibson seat denotes the landing spot of the game winning home run ball hit by Gibson during Game 1 of the 1988 World Series. The Boston Red Sox have a similar landing spot marked at Fenway Park which is likely where the Los Angeles Dodgers got the idea from. The lone red seat, located in Fenway Park's right field bleachers, marks the longest home run in the stadium's history.

 

One June 9, 1946, legendary Red Sox slugger Ted Williams hit a 502 foot bomb off of Fred Hutchinson of the Detroit Tigers. The ball struck the head of Joe Boucher, a construction engineer from Albany, New York. At the time, the right field bleachers were actual metal bleachers instead of the individual seats they are today. The individual seats weren't introduced until the late 1970's and the Boston Red Sox decided to finally paint the seat red in 1984. The lone red seat is located in section 42, row 37, seat 21 at Fenway Park. Today, the seat is often visited by Red Sox fans who wish to have their picture taken while sitting in it. Hutchinson was not interested in keeping the baseball and was likely not feeling well after being struck in the head. 

Former Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz went on record to say that he's never even come close to hitting a baseball near the lone red seat during games or batting practice. If you plan on visiting Boston, Massachusetts during baseball season, make sure to book a tour of Fenway Park the day of the game if possible. You won't regret it.

  

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