Rockies rookie Chris Iannetta, a native of Rhode Island, signs autographs yesterday at Fenway Park.

The providence journal / Bob Breidenbach Bob Breidenbach

BOSTON — Chris Iannetta has had June 12 circled on the calendar ever since he found out the Colorado Rockies would play the Red Sox at Fenway Park as part of Major League Baseball’s interleague play.

The Providence native and former St. Raphael Academy standout, who was selected by the Rockies in the fourth round of the 2004 draft, will be playing in front of the hometown crowd for the next couple of days. “I’ve been looking forward to it all year,” said Iannetta. “I’ve watched a lot of games here, either on television or in person. Being here and being on the field is a lot of fun.”

The only other time Iannetta stood on the holy ground here was when he played in the Cape Cod League during his collegiate summers at the University of North Carolina. He worked out at Fenway but never played an official game at the storied ballpark. He wasn’t in the lineup last night, but he will be before the Rockies leave town.

Leading up to this series, Iannetta was inundated with phone calls from family and friends looking for tickets, but there was no way a rookie from a National League team would be able to score more than just a couple of tickets.

“For the most part I told everyone I couldn’t get tickets, which is true,” he said. “It’s hard enough to get here if you’re the home team, never mind the visitors. Plus, I’m a rookie, and being the low guy on the totem pole is really tough. Immediate family and that’s it, anyone else who wants to come has to find a way just like everybody else.”

There’re plenty of reasons why people from Rhode Island want to see one of their own play at Fenway Park. After all, he grew up just a hit-and-run away from Boston, someone with a dream to play in the majors, and he was able to achieve that goal.

After he made his pro debut with Single-A Asheville in 2004, he split 2005 between Single-A (High-A) Modesto and Double-A Tulsa. He played 44 games for Tulsa last season before making the jump to Triple-A Colorado Springs.

Then August came.

Iannetta was told he was being called up to the majors for the first time, and started 20 of the club’s final 33 games of the season. It was a valuable experience for him because he used the last couple of months of the season to prepare for spring training with the goal of making the team.

“Fortunately, it happened,” he said. “Throughout this season I’m just trying to get used to the league and understand the pitchers on our team. I’m trying to make the most of it.”

The Rockies are a young team and everybody helps out each other, according to Iannetta. The veterans on the club have been very helpful, he said.

“He’s going to be a great player for us,” Rockies first baseman and club leader Todd Helton said. “He’s strong behind the plate; he just hasn’t had enough chances. He had a tough few games to start off the year with. He’s going to be a really good player and that’s what I’ve talked to him about. He has to realize he only has 80 at-bats, it doesn’t mean much. He’s going to have a couple of good games and he’ll be right back to where he wants to be.”

Not all professional athletes can play in front of the hometown team. There are too many distractions on and off the field, but there are some who thrive in that situation. Then there are some would never get the opportunity, but would love to. Iannetta may never play for the Boston Red Sox, but just playing at Fenway Park as a major-leaguer is good enough for him.

“Actually just to play here as a visitor is an awesome experience,” he said. “To actually play for the Red Sox, I would never say no. I’m happy where I am right now, but if I ever had the opportunity down the line I would never say no.”

Because the Rockies arrived in Boston Sunday night, he was able to go home. With Monday being an off-day, Iannetta went to Newport to see his younger brother, Matt, play for the Gulls.

“It’s nice to be back in New England,” he said.

As Iannetta and the rest of the Colorado Rockies took batting practice before last night’s game, Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek, in the other clubhouse, had to think for a moment to when he was a rookie. But it didn’t take long for the veteran to remember the difficult transition to the majorleagues.

“For me, I was in a platoon mode, so I was constantly learning the whole time,” said Varitek. “The more you get to be out there, the quicker you can get through that learning curve. You’re catching guys you don’t know and you’re seeing hitters you’ve never seen before and you’re in a must-win situation. But, it’s all fun. It’s all part of what the game is supposed to be. It’s baseball.”

It’s just Iannetta’s fourth pro season. Everything he’s accomplished still hasn’t sunk in. Someday it will and no doubt this series at Fenway Park, while playing in front of the hometown crowd, will be a fond memory.

“It’s still kind of weird,” he said. “I don’t think about it too much what I’m actually doing. That’s for later on to look back on, but right now I’m just taking one step at a time.”