Attended my first Fenway game of 2011 yesterday, and a couple of things occurred to me in between beer runs and cursing Russell Martin:

First, as I’ve noted many times in this here blog, there aren’t many places where someone over 6 feet tall can sit comfortably at Fenway. The grandstands and Monster seats represent, for me, the two extremes–the former, a type of torture device, and the latter by far the best non-swanky-suite option. I place the State Street Pavilion seats in the same category as the Monster seats, at least the back row where I sat yesterday. Here, in the back row, you get the same barstool-type seats and a handy counter to hold your drink, food, pride, etc. The other seats looked equally comfy, but they’re not of the barstool variety.

As to my other thoughts, I’ll let the photos explain:

As Crawford struggled at the plate, going 1-for-5, I didn’t think this messaging did him any favors. Even his mugshot seems apologetic.

Youk’s batting stance looks even more bizarre from the third base side.

The two new video screens installed during the off-season are pretty cool.

The best seat in the house had to be the one right behind Kevin Millar and John Henry, who were perched in the owner’s seats.

This guy is a f$%king force of nature. That is all.