Red Sox President Sam Kennedy said the organization "would love to consider a Celtics game" at Fenway Park, according to Steve Buckley of the BOSTON HERALD. Kennedy said, "It would be very cool." He added the idea has been "kicked around" in conversations with Celtics President Rich Gotham. Kennedy: "It’s something I think we should pursue. I know there are a lot of risks associated with outdoor basketball, but it can be done." Buckley writes the "tricky part would be when to play the game." The Celtics "wouldn’t be able to play in the spring because of the NBA playoffs, and November would present weather challenges." October "might work for a preseason game, though a possible Red Sox postseason would have to be taken into consideration." Gotham said, "Maybe an exhibition game would be more realistic than a regular-season game." Although the Celtics "have never played at Fenway Park," the Harlem Globetrotters "took their magic" to the ballpark in '54, '55 and '63. Kennedy said UFC also "is something that we would have to strongly consider if there’s interest." He added, "We just want to make sure ... we’re creating the right type of atmosphere and event. I wouldn’t rule anything out." Buckley notes Kennedy is "taking a 'Back to the Future' approach to how Fenway Park gets used when the Red Sox are on the road or in their offseason." But Kennedy said, "We want to make sure any events we have, and I say this with humility, are worthy of Fenway Park" (BOSTON HERALD, 11/19).
THE NEW NORMAL? Kennedy said this has been the "busiest and boldest offseason we’ve had in the history of the John Henry-Tom Werner ownership," with Fenway Park set to host a Notre Dame-Boston College football game Saturday, a hurling match Sunday and a ski and snowboarding competition in February. Although Kennedy acknowledged that Henry and Werner "have pushed us to experiment with new and different blue-chip events at Fenway," since arriving in '02, he does not believe the rapid rate of scheduling non-baseball activities at the 103-year-old facility will continue. "There’s definitely sort of a one-off nature to each of these events," he said. "There really is kind of a year-by-year approach. I don’t know what next year will look like. We’ll sit down in March, April, May as we get back into the rhythm of the baseball season and evaluate what worked, what didn’t. But the commitment to doing new and different things and continuing to push the envelope, that would absolutely stay a part of our focus. That’s in our DNA; that’s who we are as far as the Red Sox front office" (Charlie Frankel, Staff Writer).
