Yankee Stadium: 20 Facts Before Its Last Game
Fallen & Forgotten
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Yankee Stadium drew about 4.3 million in reported attendance in 2008. That was its last year. The Yankees moved across the street, crews took the old building apart, and public ballfields went up on the ground where it stood. This is a countdown of 20 facts about the original Yankee Stadium, ending with Lou Gehrig at a microphone on July 4, 1939.
The Yankees didn’t start with a home of their own. They rented the Polo Grounds from the New York Giants, and the Giants told them to leave. John Bauer’s account for the Society for American Baseball Research traces the move across the Harlem River. The new park opened April 18, 1923, against Boston. Babe Ruth hit a three-run homer and the Yankees won 4 to 1. Construction Equipment Guide gives a budget cap of $2.5 million covering land, design and building work, and says White Construction stayed under it. SABR puts the expected total closer to $3 million.
Joe Louis beat Max Schmeling in the first round on June 22, 1938, a fight PBS puts at 124 seconds. On December 28, 1958, the Colts beat the Giants 23 to 17 in the first NFL championship game decided in sudden-death overtime, Alan Ameche scoring from a yard out. Don Larsen threw a perfect game on October 8, 1956, 97 pitches, Yogi Berra catching. Roger Maris hit his 61st home run on October 1, 1961, off Tracy Stallard. Reggie Jackson hit three home runs on October 18, 1977, each on the first pitch, off three different pitchers.
The city bought the stadium and the land in the early 1970s and leased the park back to the club. SABR puts the approved budget at $24 million, covering the purchase and the rebuilding. By the time it reopened, city officials expected a bill of at least $100 million, more than four times the first number. SABR also cites a 1976 newspaper report describing an earlier estimate above $80 million, worked out before the job started and never shared with the approving board or the public.
That rebuild kept the stadium in use for more than 30 years, then counted against it. The project’s final environmental review records the state historic preservation office finding the building ineligible for the State and National Registers of Historic Places, tied to the changes made in the 1970s. The city’s landmarks agency also found it ineligible. The new stadium took more than 22 acres of parkland from Macombs Dam Park and part of John Mullaly Park. New York City’s Independent Budget Office traced the replacement parks budget from $116.1 million in 2005 to about $195 million by January 2009.
The last game was September 21, 2008, a 7 to 3 win over Baltimore. Jose Molina hit the park’s last home run in the fourth inning. Mariano Rivera recorded the final three outs. Thornton Tomasetti, the engineering firm on the job, dates the demolition’s completion to 2010. Heritage Field opened on the site in April 2012, and a blue outline runs through the turf where the old diamond was. Designer Stephen Doyle described how that marking took shape in an interview published by PRINT.
Sources: Society for American Baseball Research, Baseball Hall of Fame, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Construction Equipment Guide, NYC Independent Budget Office, NYC City Planning Commission, Thornton Tomasetti, PRINT, PBS, Associated Press.
#YankeeStadium #Yankees #BaseballHistory
Yankee Stadium: 20 Facts Before Its Last Game
Fallen & Forgotten
166 views
Yankee Stadium drew about 4.3 million in reported attendance in 2008. That was its last year. The Yankees moved across the street, crews took the old building apart, and public ballfields went up on the ground where it stood. This is a countdown of 20 facts about the original Yankee Stadium, ending with Lou Gehrig at a microphone on July 4, 1939.
The Yankees didn’t start with a home of their own. They rented the Polo Grounds from the New York Giants, and the Giants told them to leave. John Bauer’s account for the Society for American Baseball Research traces the move across the Harlem River. The new park opened April 18, 1923, against Boston. Babe Ruth hit a three-run homer and the Yankees won 4 to 1. Construction Equipment Guide gives a budget cap of $2.5 million covering land, design and building work, and says White Construction stayed under it. SABR puts the expected total closer to $3 million.
Joe Louis beat Max Schmeling in the first round on June 22, 1938, a fight PBS puts at 124 seconds. On December 28, 1958, the Colts beat the Giants 23 to 17 in the first NFL championship game decided in sudden-death overtime, Alan Ameche scoring from a yard out. Don Larsen threw a perfect game on October 8, 1956, 97 pitches, Yogi Berra catching. Roger Maris hit his 61st home run on October 1, 1961, off Tracy Stallard. Reggie Jackson hit three home runs on October 18, 1977, each on the first pitch, off three different pitchers.
The city bought the stadium and the land in the early 1970s and leased the park back to the club. SABR puts the approved budget at $24 million, covering the purchase and the rebuilding. By the time it reopened, city officials expected a bill of at least $100 million, more than four times the first number. SABR also cites a 1976 newspaper report describing an earlier estimate above $80 million, worked out before the job started and never shared with the approving board or the public.
That rebuild kept the stadium in use for more than 30 years, then counted against it. The project’s final environmental review records the state historic preservation office finding the building ineligible for the State and National Registers of Historic Places, tied to the changes made in the 1970s. The city’s landmarks agency also found it ineligible. The new stadium took more than 22 acres of parkland from Macombs Dam Park and part of John Mullaly Park. New York City’s Independent Budget Office traced the replacement parks budget from $116.1 million in 2005 to about $195 million by January 2009.
The last game was September 21, 2008, a 7 to 3 win over Baltimore. Jose Molina hit the park’s last home run in the fourth inning. Mariano Rivera recorded the final three outs. Thornton Tomasetti, the engineering firm on the job, dates the demolition’s completion to 2010. Heritage Field opened on the site in April 2012, and a blue outline runs through the turf where the old diamond was. Designer Stephen Doyle described how that marking took shape in an interview published by PRINT.
Sources: Society for American Baseball Research, Baseball Hall of Fame, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Construction Equipment Guide, NYC Independent Budget Office, NYC City Planning Commission, Thornton Tomasetti, PRINT, PBS, Associated Press.
#YankeeStadium #Yankees #BaseballHistory