“Nobody gave a (expletive), the team sucked, there was no life, there was no nothing,” is how Bobby D’Angelo, owner of 47 Brand, which runs the 19 Jersey Street team store outside Fenway Park, summed up the prevailing attitude about the team the last few years that began to shift the middle of this season. “Now, it’s not like it’s ‘the same old Red Sox, they’re blowing it,’ it feels much different. Honestly, it kind of feels like ‘(expletive), we like this team.’ Which is pretty cool.”
The measure of fans’ feelings for its hometown baseball team has always risen and fallen with its win-column totals.
All that positivity results in a greater willingness to devote time and money to the Red Sox.
It almost makes the job of marketing the Red Sox, who did win four World Series in a 15-year span earlier this century, look easy — again.
Troup Parkinson, the team’s executive vice president/chief marketing and partnerships officer, doesn’t think there’s anything easy or even hard about “selling” the Red Sox.
A team composed of players who enjoy a palpable camaraderie and is also a playoff contender offers a potent, time-proven formula for keeping fans locked in in every way.
“Are we better on the marketing side when the team is really good? Sure,” said Parkinson. “Are we better on the sponsorship side when we’re really good? Of course. Do we sell more tickets when the team’s really good? Of course. But I also believe that our baseline is not as really good or really bad as that.
“Positive sentiment always helps. But I think if you’re being straight up with fans, and your marketing is authentic, it’s coming directly from the players.”
Whether it’s players sporting their “Turbulence” T-shirts and waving their wing-arms after getting on base or the hope and lift provided from its young players, especially Roman Anthony, an appealing product on the field creates tangible fan loyalty.
“If it’s authentic, that is what moves the needle – I think you get into trouble when you try to sort of create authenticity, because it doesn’t work,” said Parkinson.
One example: the team’s second iteration of its “City Connect” jersey, Fenway Greens.
Introduced in May, sales have already exceeded the club’s first edition yellow-and-blue variety that were first introduced in 2021. They’ve also out-sold every other MLB teams’ City Connect jerseys, Parkinson said.
Alex Bregman and the Red Sox wore the new Fenway Greens when they clinched a postseason berth Friday at Fenway Park.Barry Chin/Globe Staff
It’s more than the design and that the team tends to win when it wears them, he thinks.
“There’s got to be more than that to make it the highest selling City Connect ever already, wouldn’t you say?” he said. “There’s got to be. I think that absolutely leads to fan interest and excitement, coupled with they love how it looks, they love how the team thinks it looks.
“You need everyone’s sort of ‘authentic buy-in’ for everything you’re doing. And I think that’s a really good example of where we are.”
Attendance at Fenway Park, said Parkinson, is up 5 percent from last year
More than a third of the games, 31 heading into this final weekend, were sellouts. There were seven sellouts in 2024.
New season ticket sales are up 100 percent from a year ago.
Concession sales inside the stadium are up about 5 percent – “there wasn’t a massive hit,” from the concessions workers’ job actions, Parkinson said — and so are merchandise sales, both inside and outside the ballpark. (D’Angelo said jersey and cap sales have increased between 30-35 percent since Anthony came aboard the first week in June.)
TV ratings on Red Sox-owned NESN have also taken a leap, up 49 percent in overall household viewership and up 132 percent among adults ages 25-54.
“People want to be a part of it once they know what you got,” said Parkinson. “I think it speaks to hope.”
And hope is a draw.
Jim Holzman, owner of ACE Ticket, said overall, Red Sox ticket prices are up about 50 percent from a year ago. In the final weekend series a year ago, the average seat was going for $80. Entering this weekend, it was about $120. A year ago, the average September ticket went for $64, this month it’s been $95.
“People are excited that we’re in a playoff race — this year, the whole scene has been different, every game is a must-win,” said Holzman. “There’s definitely serious interest, and that’s after the last few years of mediocrity. It’s fun to be here late in the season and caring about the team.
“Hope is definitely better than no hope.”
Michael Silverman can be reached at michael.silverman@globe.com.
