ROLLING STONES Concerts Leave Damage To FENWAY PARK Field

(From Sports Business Daily)

Friday night's TIGERS/RED SOX game will start at 8 pm ET, AN HOUR LATER THAN ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED, because of THE DAMAGE DONE TO THE FENWAY PARK PARK FIELD by two ROLLING STONES CONCERTS, according to DAN SHAUGHNESSY of THE BOSTON GLOBE.

FORTY THOUSAND SQUARE FEET OF OUTFIELD SOD IS BEING REPLACED.

RED SOX Groundskeeper DAVE MELLOR said, "It's THE MOST DAMAGE I've seen from a show IN 20 YEARS."

RED SOX President and CEO LARRY LUCCHINO -- "We will not forget that we are first and foremost A BASEBALL TEAM as we plan for the next NON-BASEBALL EVENT at FENWAY."

Lucchino added of the field condition, "I wouldn’t say we're EMBARRASSED. I think we're a little DISAPPOINTED IN OURSELVES that we didn't give ourselves A LARGER WINDOW and more FULLY ANTICIPATE THE DEMANDS of THE STONES or the type of concert they wanted to run.
I think the idea of AN ANNUAL FENWAY CONCERT is still a good idea and this DOESN'T PURSUADE ME OTHERWISE, but it does convince us that we need to RESTRAIN THE ACTS or select acts that have a somewhat LOW LEVEL OF PRODUCTION DEMANDS."

In BOSTON, JAY FITZGERALD reports THE RED SOX ARE SELLING 18-INCH BY 9-INCH CHUNKS OF SOD FROM LAST YEAR's FIELD AT FEWAY PARK FOR $150.

RED SOX Special Assistant to the President and CEO JONATHAN GILULA -- "MLB OVERSAW IT LIFTED OUT OF FENWAY, so it has been AUTHENTICATED.