Posts by Byron Bennett
The Coop Has Flown – Cooper Stadium in Columbus, Ohio
Cooper Stadium (“the Coop”) was a minor league baseball ballpark located at 1155 West Mound Street, in Columbus, Ohio. Christened Red Bird Stadium when it was opened on June 3, 1932, the ballpark originally was home to the American Association Columbus Red Birds. The Red Birds were the top minor league affiliate of Branch Rickey’s…
Read MoreOnce Dodgertown Now Historic Dodgertown
Dodgertown, located at 3901 26th Street in Vero Beach, Florida, was the spring training home of the Brooklyn Dodgers commencing in 1948. The major league squad also trained in Ciudad Trujillo, Dominican Republic in 1948, and from 1950 through 1957, the Dodgers’ big league club played their Spring Training games at Miami Stadium. Dodgertown was…
Read MorePayne Park – Spring Training In Sarasota From John McGraw to Tony LaRussa
Payne Park was located at the southeast corner of Adams Lane and South Washington Boulevard in Sarasota, Florida. The stadium was part of a 60 acre park named in honor of Calvin Payne, a Sarasota winter resident who donated the land to the city in 1923. From 1924 to 1988, the ballpark was the spring…
Read MoreWaterfront Park/Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg, Florida
Professional baseball first came to St. Petersburg, Florida, as early as 1908 when the then- independent St. Paul Saints played an exhibition game against the National League Cincinnati Reds. In 1914, businessman and future mayor Al Lang convinced the St. Louis Browns to come to St. Petersburg and train at Sunshine Park – also known…
Read MoreCrescent Lake Park/Huggins-Stengel Field in St. Petersburg, Florida
Crecent Lake Park is located at 1320 5th Street N in St. Petersburg, Florida. In the southern most part of the park, tucked away in a residential neighborhood, is an important and relatively unspoiled historical baseball site. Beginning in 1925, the ball field at Crescent Lake Park was the spring training home of the American League…
Read MoreLA Coliseum – The Third Oldest MLB Ballpark Still Standing
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is located at 3911 South Figueroa Street in Los Angeles, California. Erected as a memorial to World War I Veterans, the Coliseum opened in 1923, the same year as the original Yankee Stadium. The Coliseum hosted both the 1932 and 1984 Olympics. From 1958 until 1961, it was the home…
Read MoreCleveland’s Municipal Stadium On The Banks of Lake Erie
Municipal Stadium was located at 1085 West Third Street in Cleveland, Ohio. Also known as Lakefront Stadium, the ballpark was situated on the banks Lake Erie just north of downtown. Built in 1931 and designed by the same engineering firm (Osborn Engineering) that designed such ballparks as Fenway Park, Tiger Stadium, Forbes Field, and old…
Read MoreMiami’s Joe Robbie, Pro Player, Dolphin, Land Shark, and Sun Life Stadium
The ballpark currently known as Sun Life Stadium was home to the National League Florida Marlins (currently known as the Miami Marlins) from 1993 to 2011. It is located just north of Miami, Florida, at 2269 N.W. 199th Street, in the suburb of Miami Gardens. Opened in 1987, and financed by former Miami Dolphins owner…
Read MoreThe Six Different Ballparks Known As Oriole Park
Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Maryland, is considered by some to be one of the most beautiful ballparks in the country. Now over 20 years old, it helped usher in the era of “retro ballparks” that swept both major league and minor league ballparks over the past two decades. Oriole Park at Camden…
Read MoreSan Diego Stadium – Qualcomm And Jack Murphy
Qualcomm Stadium is a multipurpose ballpark located at 9449 Friars Road, seven miles north east of downtown San Diego, California. From 1969 to 2003, it was the home field of the National League San Diego Padres. For one season – in 1968 – it was the home to the Pacific Coast League San Diego Padres.…
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