In an effort to make sure there’s an ample supply of new Red Sox fans for its broadcasts, NESN is launching a show that seeks to find dates for Boston baseball fans.
NESN, the regional sports network in the New England area, calls its new show “Sox Appeal” and is teaming up with Scout Production, creator of “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy,” for 10 episodes that will begin airing in July.
The show is a version of speed dating set inside Boston’s legendary Fenway Park. A Red Sox fan will go through three two-inning-long blind dates during a ballgame. During the seventh-inning stretch, the fan will pick one of the three dates to sit with for the remainder of the game. Look out for a strikeout if the fan chooses the wrong partner and gets rejected with 35,000 fans looking on.
“A blind date is tough enough for anyone, but it will be particularly challenging with our curveball-a baseball game in a ballpark full of the world’s most passionate fans,” said Scout principal and executive producer David Collins. “Hopefully some of these couples will hit themselves a homerun of a date, but I’m sure more than a few will strike out.”
Mr. Collins added that the concept could be applied to other sports and other geographies. “There probably is a version for the Yankees, Lakers and Canadiens out there,” he said.
The concept of “Sox Appeal” was created by producer Ges Selmont in association with Scout Productions and NESN.
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