Red Sox Add Orlando Cepeda as Designated Hitter, Carlton Fisk and Thurman Munson Brawl at Fenway Park in 1973

Editor’s note: Fenway Park opened on April 20, 1912. NESN.com will be celebrating Fenway’s 100-year anniversary with unique content from now until April 20, 2012.

There was plenty of excitement for the Red Sox and Fenway Park in 1973.

After it was revealed that the American League would use a designated hitter for the '73 season, the Red Sox signed Orlando Cepeda, who is believed to be the first player ever to be signed solely as a DH. He would knock in 86 runs, second on the team to Carl Yastrzemski. Tommy Harper stole a then-Red Sox record 54 stolen bases for a Sox squad that would ultimately finish in second place with an 89-73 record.

Carlton Fisk was lighting up the box score with his bat, as he hit a team-leading 25 homers. It was his extracurricular activities that were lighting up the headlines, though, especially during an Aug. 1 game against the Yankees. New York catcher Thurman Munson collided with Fisk during a ninth-inning suicide squeeze, resulting in a full-on brawl between the two.

A July music festival at Fenway was a major reason the park didn't host another concert for three decades. Jazz musicians, including Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, and B.B. King, took the stage at Fenway for the Newport-New England Jazz Festival. When singer Donnie Hathaway took the stage, patrons ran onto the field. Order was temporarily restored before chaos ensued. Fans jumped on both dugouts while onlookers were shoved, threatened and even robbed.

For more information on Fenway Park, visit Fenway Park 100.