Grand Oaks Among Bay Area Sports Bars to Host Red Sox, Cardinals Fans for World Series

By Bay City News Service

As the World Series kicks off this evening, many local Boston and St. Louis fans are planning to head to Bay Area watering holes to cheer on their teams.

The first game of the series between the Cardinals and the Red Sox starts at 5:07 p.m. PST at Fenway Park in Boston.

The Connecticut Yankee in Potrero Hill in San Francisco is known as a Red Sox locale, with Boston memorabilia decorating its walls. Owner Fritz Frisbie expects Red Sox fans to come out in throngs.

"They'll get rowdy, but it'll be good," he said.

He said that although many of the fans hail from the East Coast, some have become "California-ized" and will be sipping on locally brewed beers like Anchor Steam.

Because the bar is already outfitted with Boston gear, Frisbie said no additional preparation is required other than turning on the TVs.

San Francisco resident Jacob Zimmer is from Central Missouri and grew up going to Cardinals games.

Even though he has lived in the Bay Area for 10 years, he said, "I have not given up my team."

Last year, Zimmer, 36, put together a Facebook group called "St. Louis Cardinals Nation of San Francisco" to allow fans to find and connect with each other.

Tonight, a watch party will be held at Greens Sports Bar at 2239 Polk St. in San Francisco. He said other viewing parties at that bar during the National League Champion Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers proved successful, with the Cardinals securing a spot in the World Series.

"We've had some good luck there," he said. Zimmer encouraged Cardinal fans to show up in their team's gear.

He is prepared for some Boston fans to be at the bar — he said he knows one of the bartenders is a Red Sox fanatic — but he's not worried about things getting out of control.

"St. Louis is a baseball town," he said. "So baseball is just rooted in us."

As for tonight's game, he said, "I think we've got a good shot."

He conceded that the first two games tonight and Thursday will be tough for the Cardinals because both will be on Boston turf at Fenway.

Staying in more neutral territory is Grand Oaks Restaurant and Sports Lounge, located at 3701 Grand Ave. in Oakland.

Owner Ken Ham said he expects groups of fans from both teams to arrive this evening.

He pointed out that if the Oakland A's had made it to the World Series, there would be much more fanfare.

The A's made it to the playoffs but lost the American League Division Series to the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers went on but ultimately fell to the Boston Red Sox. 

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