Greenville, South Carolina : A ballpark with the “Green Monster”

In my previous column, I wrote about my visit to the house where Joe Jackson spent his final years, which is preserved in the city of Greenville, South Carolina. The couple who manage the house told me the following about the house: The house where Jackson spent his final years was originally located about five kilometers away, but it was moved to its current location in 2006, 55 years after Jackson’s death. The reason for this was that an impressive ballpark, Fluor Field at the West End, was completed that year, and it was thought it would be better to have the house nearby. So now Jackson’s house is located directly across the road from the impressive ballpark.

...I actually had toured the ballpark before touring the inside of Jackson’s house.

Fluor Field at the West End

I arrived at Jackson’s house on Thursday, but couldn’t go inside; it was only open on Saturdays.

So, that day, I was leisurely admiring Jackson’s house from outside. Then, I heard a voice call from behind me: “Hey, hey.” When I turned around, a smiling, elderly white man stood there and started talking to me.

“You’re Japanese, aren’t you?”

I was surprised by the sudden question, but I answered,

“Yes, I am.”

“I thought so. My son is married to a Japanese woman.”

The elderly man showed me a photo of his granddaughter on his cell phone. Shocked by the sudden and unexpected turn of events, I remained silent, but then I regained my composure and said,

“What a cute granddaughter you have.”

The man was pleased.

After we had been chatting amiably for a while, looking at photos, the man said,

“Let me show you around the ballpark.”

The ticket booth at the ballpark directly across the road the man pointed to was closed, and only part of the entrance gate was open. In front of the entrance gate, there were only people setting up tents for food stalls for tonight’s game. There was no way I could enter the ballpark without permission. Or perhaps the man had some special connection to the ballpark, which is why he was allowed in? Without regard for my feelings, the man briskly walked through the partially open entrance gate. Wow, he can really get in! Well, I guess I’ll go in too.

A street stall tent was set up in front of the entrance gate of Fluor Field at the West End, which was partially open.

I went through the gate and up the stairs, and emerged into the aisle of the spectator seats. Below me, the green grass shone in the sunlight, creating a beautiful field. There were a few people on the field getting ready for tonight’s game.

The ballpark, Fluor Field at the West End, is the home stadium of the Greenville Drive, a minor league team affiliated with the Boston Red Sox. The man told me that it was built to resemble Fenway Park, the home stadium of the parent team, the Red Sox. It certainly does look surprisingly similar. But then a question suddenly occurred to me. There’s a green wall on the left field that mimics Fenway Park’s giant left field wall (widely known by its nickname, the Green Monster), but it looks lower than the one at Fenway Park. I asked the man,

“Isn’t the Green Monster lower than the original one?”

The man looked a little surprised, and also impressed.

“You noticed it well. It’s definitely lower than the original one. Otherwise you wouldn’t be able to see the neighboring building very well. But the other dimensions of this ballpark are the same as Fenway Park.”

The man then pointed to the right field side and added,

“That Pesky’s pole is also the same dimensions as the one at Fenway Park.”

On the left side of the beautifully maintained field is the Green Monster. The Green Monster is lower than the one at Fenway Park, so you can see the neighboring building very well.

The right field foul pole at Fenway Park is named “Pesky’s pole” after Boston Red Sox legend Johnny Pesky. I wasn’t sure if the right field foul pole the man was pointing to was the same dimensions as Pesky’s pole at Fenway Park, but as the man said, they were probably the same dimensions.

(Later, I looked up the dimensions of the Green Monsters at Fenway Park and Fluor Field at the West End. The one at Fenway Park is 37 feet tall, while the one at Fluor Field at the West End is 30 feet.)

After touring the ballpark for a while, the man said,

“Please stay and look around for a little while.”

The man disappeared, but soon returned with something in his hand.

“This is a souvenir for you.”

It was a red T-shirt with the Greenville Drive logo on it. I gratefully accepted it.

I didn’t ask about the man’s connection to the ballpark. I thought it would be rude to ask when he himself wouldn’t say anything.

When we finished our tour and parted ways in front of the gate, the man began chatting with the people setting up tents for food stalls for that night’s game.

(If I’ve made a mistake or left out something important, please let me know. I’ll try to make corrections or additions.)