The Bystander: Red Sox Nation’s Transplant Citizens

Consensus: October is the best and busiest month in American sports.

October brings us all the pageantry, history, and tedium of the baseball playoffs. It’s the month when the NFL and college football really start to heat up, and the contenders separate themselves from the pretenders. Finally, at month’s end, the NBA and NHL return—a friendly reminder that winter is just around the corner.

The 10th month is also particularly hectic for Harvard students.

Seniors are frantically hunting for jobs, juniors are jockeying for student leadership positions, sophomores are praying for some concrete sign of social acceptance, and freshmen...well, freshmen are certainly up to something.

On Sunday night, Steven A. Franklin ’10 found himself in the thick of this heady brew. I caught up with him around midnight, on Mt. Auburn Street, as he sauntered home after a punch event.

Steve—whoa, watch it buddy, careful where you walk! How did it go?

“I dunno man. I’m just going to enjoy the free beer while it lasts. I don’t have high hopes about all of this.”

It sounds like you’ve got a good attitude. Too bad you didn’t hit it off with any of the dudes in the club.

“Didn’t really get a chance to,” he sighed. “They were all watching the Red Sox-Indians game the whole time. There was this one guy named Bennett Braddock [pictured]. Real asshole. He made me do a beer bong each time the TV cameras showed a hottie in a pink Sox hat.”

This explains your slightly meandering path home. I promise, once you get to know him, Bennett’s a real...fun-loving guy. So, any thoughts on this scintillating Rockies-Red Sox World Series?

“Juiced about the Red Sox!” he shouted with an awkward pump of his fist. “I just knew they were going to pull off this comeback.”

You, a Red Sox fan? I refuse to believe it. You’re an all-American, with deep Midwestern roots.

“Yeah man, I love it back home. I’ve got some heartland values and all that. But I’m living in Boston right now, and while I’m here, the Red Sox are one of my teams.”

But you can’t let all these obnoxious Northeasterners get away with it! You’re just reinforcing their sadly myopic misconception that the United States is nothing more than one really long stretch of I-95.

“I like rooting for the Red Sox. It’s fun to be a fan around here. You feel like you fit in.”

Myself, I’ve always enjoyed being a bit of a contrarian. However, I do admire your conciliatory outlook. Keep it up, and you might make it into the final club after all.

He shook his head vigorously. “Like I said, I’m not even sure that whole thing is really for me. I think the guys are a bit too sophisticated for me.”

You did say that you met Bennett Braddock, right?

“I want to turn this place into Harvard State, man, not Harvard in the Hamptons. Plus, I started getting real pissed off when the NFL came up in conversation.”

People were hating on the Patriots?

“The Patriots? I’m from Indianapolis, man. Screw the Patriots! Peyton is God!”

Don’t you just love October?