A difficult decade of Red Sox baseball at Fenway Park concluded in 1929 with another last-place finish. Symbolic of the team's decade of misfortunes, the 1929 Red Sox finally had the ability to play Sunday games in Boston, but Fenway Park's proximity to a house of worship forced the team to play its Sunday home games at Braves Field instead.

The Red Sox

Record: 58-96, 8th in American League
Manager: William F. Carrigan
Attendance: 394,620

In Bill Carrigan's last year managing the Red Sox, the team finished last once again. Right-hander Ed Morris led the staff with a 14-14 record, while only Russ Scarritt drove in more than 70 runs. Jack Rothrock was the team's only .300 hitter, at .300 exactly, and his six home runs led a Red Sox team that hit only 28 total.

Over the offseason, both the Braves and Red Sox were given formal approval to schedule Sunday games and the clubs agreed with the City of Boston not to charge more for these contests. Due to its proximity to a church, Fenway Park couldn't host Sunday games in 1929 but the American League gave the Red Sox approval to play Sunday games in Revere, and the city of Revere presented blueprints for a 41,000 seat stadium. However, Red Sox owner Bob Quinn worked out a deal with Braves owner Emil Fuchs for the Red Sox to play on Sundays at Braves Field. There was even some talk of departing Fenway Park altogether and becoming co-tenants at Braves Field.

On April 14, 1929, the Braves shut out the Red Sox 4-0 in an exhibition, the first organized Sunday baseball game ever played in the city of Boston. Two weeks later, the Red Sox played the first regular season, professional Sunday ballgame in Boston, a 7-3 loss to Philadelphia. However, despite Sunday ball, the team drew a couple of thousand less than it had in the year before.

Non-Red Sox Baseball At Fenway Park

Boston College's baseball team returned to Fenway Park in April 1929 but lost to Pittsfield in a seven-inning game. In the later summer months a trio of local league games was played at the ballpark

More Than a Ballpark™

The Boston Wonder Workers soccer team returned to Fenway Park in 1929. Several football games were also played at Fenway Park and the final football match of the year featured a pair of New England military football teams.

*Started in the 1910s, a late May memorial service coinciding with the Memorial Day weekend was often held at Fenway Park through the mid-20th Century.

August 10, 1929
 Boston Wonder Workers Defeat New Bedford Whalers

In the opening game of what would be their last full season in the American Soccer League (the team would play four games in 1930 before going out of business), the Boston Wonder Workers defeated the New Bedford Whalers in a match that featured all of the goal scoring in the first half. Both squads represented a soccer league that sports historians view as the best yet to play in the United States. Many teams featured international stars from the United Kingdom who were lured to the states by teams that also arranged for their stars to work for companies affiliated with their owners. Fenway Park was an occasional venue for the Wonder Workers who also played at the old South End Grounds.