Chicago’s Wrigley Field is baseball’s second-oldest ballpark and it has nearly unmatched charm and character. Count Boston Red Sox rookie righty Josh Winckowski among those not impressed with the Friendly Confines. He called the home of the Chicago Cubs a “little underwhelming” following his start Saturday afternoon (CHC 3, BOS 1).
“A little underwhelming,” Winckowski told reporters, including MassLive.com. “Fenway kind of has a presence to it. I really didn’t get that here, to be honest. I said to my mom last night, this place is very stock standard, if you ask me. I didn’t really feel anything, to be honest. It kind of just felt like another ballpark.”
Winckowski has pitched in a grand total of three MLB stadiums (Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, and Progressive Field in Cleveland), which I guess is enough experience to tell “stock standard” ballparks from the cream of the crop. For the record, I don’t love the old ballparks, though I appreciate their history. By and large they’re cramped, but to each his own.
The 24-year-old Winckowski pitched well Saturday, allowing two runs (one earned) in six innings. He did take the loss though, and because of that, calling Wrigley Field a “little underwhelming” is going to come off as sour grapes. General rule of thumb: bagging on a stadium after losing is going to make you look like a chump.
The Red Sox acquired Winckowski in the three-team trade with the New York Mets that sent Andrew Benintendi to the Kansas City Royals. He is in the rotation because Nathan Eovaldi is on the injured list with a back issue.
KVSP