Goodbye to a good man

The Patriots losing Jeff Nettles dominated the headlines and the Commerce Bank Ballpark buzz Monday night, but somewhat lost in the shuffle was the goodbye to community relations director Matt Rothenberg, who worked his final Patriots game.
The Patriots did a nice montage of Rothenberg moments on the scoreboard during the seventh-inning stretch, and he joined broadcaster Brian Bender on the radio for three innings of play-by-play.
Rothenberg has been with the organization since interning in 2003 and is leaving to pursue graduate school opportunities.
I got to know Rothenberg personally while covering the team for two years, and realize he is a good guy and an extremely hard worker always willing to help out a frazzled reporter (ie: me) in the time of a crisis. He will be missed by the Patriots staff and those of us independent of the team who work closely with the staff every day.
Here, in Rothenberg's own words, are his top 5 moments since he became an Atlantic Leaguer:

#1 - 2005 AL Championship, #2 - 2003 AL Championship:
The 2005 championship was more gratifying than 2003 because of the hard work you put in as a member of the full-time staff. The first one was a great experience to cap off my internship with the Patriots, but the second one was about the result of hard work from the end of the 2004 season through the entire 2005 season. Both championships were great, though, and earning the rings and having the memories will definitely last a very long time. Although I would have liked one of them to occur in Bridgewater so our fans could enjoy it more, it was
nice to be able to go up to Nashua (both times) and watch it and soak in all the excitement of a championship.

#3 - Donald Trump at Commerce Bank Ballpark (9/10/2004):
With all the promoting and buzz about it, you knew it was going to be a great night -- one to remember. Of course, how many people enter a ballpark via a helicopter landing in center field? Few, if any, others.
Working here, I've had the opportunity to get close to people I've only seen on TV or on
baseball cards, so to be close to Donald Trump and get right up in his face and taking pictures of him -- it kind of makes you feel like the paparazzi. But the atmosphere surrounding his appearance was just phenomenal; you couldn't ask for a better night.

#4 - Largest crowds in Atlantic League history(7/3/04 & 7/3/06):
To set the record of 8,048 against Long Island in 2004 and then beat that with 8,062 against the Road Warriors in 2006, you get a feel for what Commerce Bank Ballpark has become: a fantastic gathering place for the community. You could feel the electricity running through the
ballpark on each night. Unfortunately, Lancaster had to top our records this season, but knowing our fans, I have a feeling we're going to take it back the record soon enough.

#5 - Joe Gannon's no-hitter against the Patriots (8/17/04), and his near
no-hitter (6/6/06):
While not a great moment in Patriots history, it was the first -- and only -- no-hitter I've ever witnessed in person. Considering how many are thrown at the major league and minor league levels each year, it's something that happens very rarely. To have nearly witnessed a second
one in 2006 -- by the same pitcher, no less -- it would have been quite unique. At the same time, though, to have been one-hit by Gannon, and with that hit being a grand slam by Mike Lockwood to win the game, it couldn't have been a better result.