Red Sox fans around the state are seeing the color of theirteam's famed logo over a decision by Fox Sports to essentiallyimpose a Connecticut television blackout of tonight's game againstthe Chicago Cubs, who this weekend are making their first appearancein Boston's Fenway Park since the 1918 World Series.
Instead, the Fox affiliate in the Hartford-New Haven market, WTIC-TV Channel 61, will air the annual interleague Subway Series betweenthe Mets and Yankees, as will Fox 5 in New York, which is availableon some Connecticut cable and satellite systems.
And while no one can doubt that the loyalties of Major LeagueBaseball fans in Connecticut are divided between the Red Sox,Yankees and, to a lesser degree, the Mets, right now it's Bostonfans who are squawking the loudest over the perceived slight by thenetwork.
'Money really does talk,' Kristen Oslander of North Branford saidvia email responding to a question about the blackout on theRegister website and on Twitter. 'They are forgoing history to showa match-up that we see at least once a year on Fox. Thanks forletting the fans vent.'
Oslander, a devout Red Sox fan, was angry enough that shecomplained directly to Fox 61. Peter DiMatteo, a spokesman for thestation, told Oslander that officials at Fox 61 'are frustrated aswell' at the two games both being scheduled at the same time: 7 thisevening.
'We realize whatever game we air, there is going to be largeamount of people that are going to be upset and until Fox and MLBstops scheduling both teams at the same time, we will continue tohave this unfortunate situation,' DiMatteo said in an email toOslander. 'We try to look at different factors when making adecision. Thus far this season, more people have been watchingYankee games than Red Sox games so we are trying to follow what theviewers are telling us.'
Reader Andy Sauer said the decision to air the Mets-Yankees gameon Fox 61 was 'a predictable move' by the network and the station.
'I've always felt Fox 61 leaned (toward) the Yanks,' Sauer saidvia Twitter. 'Maybe their numbers tell them it's a better bet, but Iwon't be watching.'
A spokesman for Fox Sports in New York, who declined to give hisname, described the Connecticut television market as 'one of thosetricky ones.'
'It's not always set in stone that you get the Yankees,' he said.
Rich Hanley, an assistant professor of journalism at QuinnipiacUniversity and director of its graduate journalism program, said theblackout of the Red Sox-Cubs game is a matter of good businesssense.
'What they are trying to do here is protect the audience for thenetwork because of the rights fees they pay to air the games,' saidHanley, adding that while he occasionally watches baseball, he'smore of a football fan. 'And although the Red Sox-Cubs game has somehistorical gloss to it, once the game starts, it's just anotherregular season game. It's just a contest between two franchises thathave traditions of losing.'
Last year, the NFL game between the Giants and Vikings wasblacked out in the state.
When the Red Sox and the Cubs last played at Fenway in 1918,Boston beat Chicago to win the Series. The Red Sox didn't earnanother title until 2004, and Cubs fans have been waiting foranother title since 1908.
Several people felt strongly enough about the blackout tocomplain about it on SeeClickFix, a website devoted to raisingawareness about local quality of life issues.
'A Red Sox/Cub game is history,' said one of those whocomplained, Paul Munson. 'I can watch a Mets/Yankee game any time.'
Hanley said there have been cases in the past where networks havearranged to air blacked-out games on other outlets in a givenmarket. But he said it is unlikely that Fox Sports would have a last-minute change of heart that would allow that to happen in this case.
'But I don't see Fox wanting to let the Connecticut market go toNESN (New England Sports Network, which carries most of the Red Soxgames) or WGN' -- the Chicago superstation that carries the Cubsgames and is available on some Connecticut cable systems, Hanleysaid.
The Fox Sports spokesman declined to comment on whether thenetwork had considered such an option. He said the decision of whatgame to air on Fox affiliates around the country is made 'as acollective effort,' with both sides having input.
The choice to air the Mets-Yankees game in Connecticut may bringa few more patrons into Christopher Martins, the popular bar andrestaurant on State Street in New Haven. But it doesn't make BrianVirtue, co-owner of the business and a huge Red Sox fan, very happy.
'It really irritates me, because we've been fighting this battleforever,' said Virtue, who once circulated a petition among hispatrons to bring NESN to Comcast Cable several years ago.
The petition wasn't successful, so Virtue bought a satellite dishto allow the restaurant patrons who are Red Sox fans to see thegames. Comcast has since added NESN and the restaurant has gottenrid of the satellite dish.
Of course, Yankees fans don't see what all the fuss is about.
'The Yankee/Met game will be more entertaining and draw a largercrowd,' a reader named David wrote on the Register website Friday.'Which is why Fox-61 is showing that game instead.'
Call Luther Turmelle at 203-789-5706 or follow him on Twitter@LutherTurmelle. To receive breaking news first, simply text theword nhnews to 22700. Standard message + data rates apply.lturmelle@nhregister.com
