Green Monster

One of the most recognized features in baseball today is the 37-foot-high left-field wall at Fenway Park, known affectionately as the Green Monster. The origin of the Monster dates back to 1947, when then-owner Tom Yawkey decided that he wanted to minimize the amount of advertising present in the park and had all of the signage on the left-field wall covered with green paint. At the time that Fenway was built, it was not uncommon to simply drop a ballpark inside a city block and fit it as best as possible. The wall runs parallel to Lansdowne Street and the distance from home plate to the left field foul pole is only 310 feet, according to the number posted at the base of the wall in that spot. Because of the odd dimensions of the park, the Monster has been both a blessing and a curse to hitters past and present. Line drives that would easily go for home runs in other parks merely bang off the wall and may yield only a single, while towering pop-ups that might be caught in other parks sail over the wall for a home run.