Maine Monster
Encyclopedia
Hadlock Field
Hadlock Field is a Minor League baseball stadium in Portland, Maine. It is primarily home to the Portland Sea Dogs of the Eastern League. It is also the home of the Portland Bulldogs and Deering Rams baseball teams. The stadium is named for Edson J...
in Portland
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, which is the home of the Portland Sea Dogs
Portland Sea Dogs
The Portland Sea Dogs are the Double-A minor league affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Established in 1994 and based in Portland, Maine, the Sea Dogs play in the Northern Division of the Eastern League....
, a double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
. It is similar to the Green Monster
Green Monster
The Green Monster is a popular nickname for the thirty-seven foot , two-inch high left field wall at Fenway Park, home to the Boston Red Sox baseball team...
at the Red Sox' home, Fenway Park
Fenway Park
Fenway Park is a baseball park near Kenmore Square in Boston, Massachusetts. Located at 4 Yawkey Way, it has served as the home ballpark of the Boston Red Sox baseball club since it opened in 1912, and is the oldest Major League Baseball stadium currently in use. It is one of two "classic"...
.
Dimensions
The Maine Monster is 315 feet from home plate along the foul lines. It is 160 feet long and made of wood. Like the Green Monster, it is 37 feet high and green. There is a 12-foot screen above the wall to catch home run balls.Seats cannot be added to the Maine Monster because there is a railroad track running immediately behind it.
| Green Monster | Maine Monster | |
|---|---|---|
| Distance from Home Plate | 310 feet | 315 feet |
| Height | 37 feet | 37 feet |
| Length | 240 feet | 160 feet |
| Height of Screen | 23 feet* | 12 feet |
| Color | Green | Green |
| Material | Hard Plastic | Wood |
History
On September 18, 2002 the Portland Sea DogsPortland Sea Dogs
The Portland Sea Dogs are the Double-A minor league affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Established in 1994 and based in Portland, Maine, the Sea Dogs play in the Northern Division of the Eastern League....
announced a new affiliation with the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
after nine years of affiliation with the Florida Marlins
Florida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1993 as an expansion franchise called the Florida Marlins, the Marlins are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Marlins played their home games at...
. To help train future Red Sox left fielders for the Green Monster and to add character to the ballpark, a likeness of the Green Monster was built. Construction started on October 28, 2002. The name, Maine Monster, was chosen from a contest of fans.
Advertisements
Most of the advertisements on the Maine Monster are similar to those on the Green Monster. Next to the scoreboard on both walls, there is a W.B. Mason sign. Above the Maine Monster there are miniature versions of Fenway's CokeCoca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
bottles and Citgo
Citgo
CITGO Petroleum Corporation is a United States-incorporated, Venezuela-owned refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. The company is owned by PDV America, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petróleos de...
. In place of the Green Monster's Jimmy Fund logo, there is a sign for TD Banknorth
TD Banknorth
TD Banknorth, formerly just Banknorth, was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Toronto-Dominion Bank which conducted banking and insurance activities, primarily serving the northeastern area of the United States, headquartered in Portland, Maine...
's "Strike Out Cancer in Kids" program. Unique to Portland's stadium are the Hannaford
Hannaford Bros. Co.
Hannaford is an American supermarket chain based in Scarborough, Maine. Founded in 1883, Hannaford now operates stores in New England and upstate New York. Formerly known as Shop 'N' Save, Hannaford is owned by the American subsidiary of the Belgian Delhaize Group, Delhaize America, which owns over...
and Sullivan Tire signs above the Maine Monster.
The scoreboard
Unlike the scoreboard on the Green Monster, which is manually operated from inside the wall, the scoreboard on the Maine Monster is electronic. Along both sides of the scoreboard are the initials of Sea Dogs' owner Dan Burke and his wife in Morse code. This is just like the Green Monster scoreboard which does the same thing with former Red Sox owner Tom YawkeyTom Yawkey
Thomas Austin Yawkey, born Thomas Austin , was an American industrialist and Major League Baseball executive. Born in Detroit, Michigan, Yawkey became president of the Boston Red Sox in 1933, and was the sole owner of the team for 44 seasons, longer than anyone else in baseball history.-Early...
and his wife.