Public frustration with the Boston Red Sox has reached new heights, literally.
On Friday afternoon, as players and staff went through pregame drills and batting practice on the field at Fenway Park, a plane circled overhead. Trailing behind it was a banner that read, “FIRE CRAIG! SELL THE TEAM!” in red letters.
The plane flew around the Boston ballpark for over an hour, but was gone long before the scheduled 7:10 p.m. ET first pitch down below. The Federal Aviation Administration institutes Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFR) for all aircrafts, including unmanned and remote-controlled devices such as drones, within a three nautical-mile radius, from one hour before until one hour after the conclusion of MLB, NFL, NCAA division one football games and NASCAR races.
The flyover was commissioned by the online sports betting company Underdog, whose logo was also on the banner, after the Red Sox fired manager Alex Cora and most of their coaching staff last Saturday in Baltimore. Underdog created the banner and sent it to Fitchburg, where a plane was commissioned to fly from Fitchburg Municipal Airport to Fenway and back.
The Red Sox are far from the first sports franchise to see this sort of protest, though it’s usually funded by fans. John Henry is the second MLB principal owner to be targeted by a flyover in the last year. Pittsburgh Pirates fans paid for banners to grace the skies over PNC Park on two occasions last season, with messages for owner Bob Nutting. A “SELL THE TEAM BOB” banner flew over on the day of the Pirates’ home opener, and a “YOU SUCK AT THIS BOB! SELL THE $! TEAM!” made the rounds in July.
In 2014, New York Jets fans paid for multiple flyovers with banners urging the NFL team to fire general manager John Idzik.
Last September, a Miami Dolphins fan named Kyle Sullivan launched two successful GoFundMes to have banners flyover his favorite team urging them to “FIRE GRIER. FIRE MCDANIEL.”
That same month, 16-year-old Joshua Reynolds raised $2,350 on GoFundMe for a banner urging New York Giants owner John Mara, “MR MARA ENOUGH IS ENOUGH CLEAN HOUSE” to fly over MetLife Stadium. The previous December, protest banners flew over back-to-back Giants home games, but inclement weather saved them from a trio scheduled for their final home game.
The sky was a brilliant and cloudless blue on Friday, though, as Underdog’s message looped America’s oldest ballpark, which welcomed its team back after one of the most chaotic road trips in franchise history and amidst a stunning 12-19 start to the season.
“The fans deserve to be heard,” said a spokesperson for Underdog, “we want to amplify their voices.”