City catches Red Sox fever as team advances

LACONIA — Bar manager Jaime Foster was busy Friday afternoon preparing for the onslaught of Boston Red Sox fans.

They’ve been filling the 405 Pub & Grill for every game of the 2018 World Series.

Normally there would be live music in the bar on a Friday night, but not when there’s a World Series game on television and the Sox are playing in it. All anybody will want to hear is the sweet sound of a Red Sox bat smacking the ball deep into the Dodger Stadium night.

“They love it,” Foster said. “We’ll get them chanting and singing ‘Sweet Caroline’ and ‘Dirty Water.’

“It’s amazing, a great night. The New England sports fans are one of a kind. They take a lot of pride.”

Bud Light seems to be their favorite drink, she said.

Foster doesn’t expect to see any Dodger fans, or at least anyone who will admit to being one.

She said the bar has a special affinity for the Red Sox. The 405 first opened five years ago, when Boston defeated the St. Louis Cardinals, 4 games to 2, to win the 2013 World Series.

For Halloween, the bar will have a party and a best Red Sox outfit contest.

Meanwhile, Olympia Sports in Gilford has been busy selling the team’s T-shirts and hats. Employees are allowed to dress up in Red Sox gear on game days.

District Sales Manager Bryan McComish says people like to buy what they see the team wearing, like the shirts the Red Sox put on when they won the American League Championship series, defeating the Houston Astros, 4 games to 1.

A T-shirt showing the team roster is also a big seller.

If – or as Red Sox fans would say – "When,” they defeat the Dodgers in the World Series, the gear the team dons in the victorious clubhouse will also become hot commodities among the apparel-buying faithful.

McComish said the Red Sox have had a lot of success over the years, and have helped to sell a lot of merchandise, but this year’s team is truly special.

“This team is just a little more exciting,” he said. “It has a historic feel to it.”