What in the Heck?

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=130167309362>

There were also two snapshots from 1948 of the exterior of Shibe park that sold for $58. This was about a week ago.


Perhaps it's time to start selling off some of my old snapshot photos?

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Posted By: Brett

Those are really neat photos ! I wish I could have could gone to Shibe Park to watch a few games, but I wasn't even born yet

Why did so many national league teams get new ball parks in the 60's and early 70's ? Were the stadiums falling apart or what ? They replaced them with those really ugly looking round stadiums. whoever designed those should never be allowed to design parks again lol.

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Posted By: Chris Counts

I agree Brett. I started following baseball in 1970, which was right about the time the Reds abandoned Crosley Field, the Pirates left Forbes Field and the Phillies bailed on Connie Mack Stadium. I didn't realize it at the time, but in baseball's effort to go modern, so much of its history was lost forever ...

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Posted By: Mark Steinberg

You are so right. As kids, we thought the astroturf was cool, and those circular stadiums seemed so modern (almost Jetsons-like). I remember marveling at the little triangular patches of dirt around each of the bases at Riverfront (instead of having a full dirt infield). I still remember my Dad praising that there were no posts to get in your way either (Crosley had a few seats directly in back of tall wood posts).

Of course, now all of my fondest memories are of Crosley Field and not Riverfront (or Cinergy, or whatever awful corporate name it was eventually saddled with). It had a huge measuring stick that showed how high the flood waters rose one year. And I'll never forget the Hot Peanuts Vendor out in front for every game.

I was lucky enough to see Hank Aaron get his 3,000th hit there as well... a seeing eye single up the middle. I think he went 4 for 4 on that day, and that was actually his worst at-bat! I guess the older you get, the more you appreciate what is really important! Sorry... this was waaaaay to long!

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Posted By: Dan P.

Brett--

I grew up in Philly (still live in the area). I went to many games in Shibe Park as a kid (it was already renamed Connie Mack Stadium by that time). Shortly after the Phillies moved to the Vet, Connie Mack Stadium was destroyed by a fire.

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Posted By: leon

I was born in 1961 and remember the Astrodome getting built.....they don't get anymore round than that. It was far thinking at the time. It's still in existence today but not being used......Here's an excerpt taken from Wikipedia...

When the Astrodome opened, it used a natural Bermuda grass playing surface. The dome's ceiling contained numerous semitransparent plastic panes made of Lucite. Players quickly complained that glare coming off of the panes made it impossible for them to track fly balls, so all of the panes were painted over, which solved the glare problem but caused the grass to die from lack of sunlight. For most of the 1965 season, the Astros played on green-painted dirt and dead grass. As the 1966 season approached, there was the possibility of the team playing on an all dirt infield.

The solution was to install a new type of artificial grass on the field, ChemGrass, which became known as AstroTurf. Because the supply of AstroTurf was still low, only a limited amount was available for the home opener on April 18, 1966. There wasn't enough for the entire outfield, but there was enough to cover the traditional grass portion of the infield. The outfield remained painted dirt until after the All-Star Break. The team was sent on an extended road trip before the break, and on July 19, 1966, the installation of the outfield portion of AstroTurf was completed and ready for play. The infield dirt remained in the traditional design, with a large dirt arc, similar to natural grass fields. The "sliding pit" configuration, with dirt only around the bases, did not arrive in Houston until the mid 1970s.

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Posted By: Jim VB

Like most issues, the driving force behind this was money.

Remember that back in the 1950-1960's, the major source of revenue for all baseball teams was attendance, not TV contracts. Almost annually, the National League champion faced off against the Yankees in the World Series. In 1952, 1953, 1955, and 1956 that was the Dodgers vs. the Yanks. Average attendance in Yankee Stadium approached 70,000. In Ebbetts Field it was 35,000. This disparity helped drive the Dodgers and the Giants westward.

In 1959 the Dodgers drew 90,000+ in the Series against the White Sox, because they played in the Coliseum. But in 1961, the National League was back to drawing 35,000 for the Pirates in Forbes Field.

Clearly, the stadiums were the problem, not the team, or the league designation.

In addition, both leagues had expanded and new stadiums were being built. Cities like Pittsburgh, Philly, and Cincy were afraid they would be left behind (or worse their teams would leave town.) They reacted with new stadiums, but for the sake of fiscal prudence, designed stadiums that could be used for multiple sports. "Astro-turf" allowed them to use a field for baseball, football, concerts, or anything else they could think of. They did not have to worry that Monday's Rolling Stones concert would tear up the grass before Wednesday's baseball game or Sunday's football game.

This neutral, round design, led to bland stadiums. Thank God that the infusion of TV money helped convince teams and cities that they could afford to have multiple stadiums in the same city, for different sports.

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Posted By: Mark Steinberg

Great insight, Jim.... The TV revenue did a lot to save the sport in those smaller markets. The great bonus is that once they went back to the "traditional" baseball-specific stadiums with character, attendance has skyrocketed as well. After people saw what happened in Baltimore (Camden Yards) everyone wanted a Park like that in their home town.