Shibe Park, known later as Connie Mack Stadium, was a baseball park located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was the home of the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League (AL) and the Philadelphia Phillies of the National League (NL). When it opened April 12, 1909, it became baseball's first steel-and-concrete stadium. In different eras it was home to "The $100,000 Infield", "The Whiz Kids", and "The 1964 Phold". The venue's two home teams won both the first and last games at the stadium: the Athletics beat the Boston Red Sox 8–1 on opening day 1909, while the Phillies beat the Montreal Expos 2–1 on October 1, 1970, in the park's final contest.
Shibe Park stood on the block bounded by Lehigh Avenue, 20th Street, Somerset Street and 21st Street. It was five blocks west, corner-to-corner, from the Baker Bowl, the Phillies' home from 1887 to 1938. The stadium hosted eight World Series and two MLB All-Star Games, in 1943 and 1952, with the latter game holding the distinction of being the only All-Star contest shortened by rain (to five innings).
Phillies Hall-of-Fame centerfielder and longtime broadcaster Richie Ashburn remembered Shibe Park: "It looked like a ballpark. It smelled like a ballpark. It had a feeling and a heartbeat, a personality that was all baseball."
Read more about Shibe Park: Baseball At The Park, Professional Football, Boxing, Politics, Soccer, Religion, Through The Turnstiles, Last Years, Contemporary Culture, Gallery: Vacancy, 1973
Famous quotes containing the word park:
“Is a park any better than a coal mine? Whats a mountain got that a slag pile hasnt? What would you rather have in your gardenan almond tree or an oil well?”
—Jean Giraudoux (18821944)