Braves Field
"The Wigwam" "The Bee Hive" (1936–1941) | |
(NFL) (1946) |
Braves Field was a
Braves Field was also home to multiple professional
Located on Commonwealth Avenue at Babcock Street, the baseball field was aligned northeast, much as Fenway Park has been since it opened in April 1912. Most of the stadium was demolished in 1955, but significant portions of the original structure still stand and make up part of the Nickerson Field sports complex on the campus of Boston University.
Professional football
While built for baseball and having a rich baseball history, Braves Field briefly served as host for football teams. Braves Field was one of two homes (with
Baseball history
Before the Braves became the first modern-era franchise to relocate, in 1952, the Boston Braves franchise had been in Boston since 1871. Before Braves Field, the franchise had played at South End Grounds, with play at Congress Street Grounds in 1894 while South End Grounds was rebuilt following the May 15, 1894 Roxbury Fire.[7]
Shortly after the Boston Red Sox opened Fenway Park in 1912, Braves owner James Gaffney purchased the former Allston Golf Club, one mile west of Fenway Park to build a new park for the Braves. Construction of the $600,000 Braves Field began on March 20, 1915, and was completed before the end of the 1915 season.[8][9] The park was constructed entirely of steel (approx 750 tons) and an estimated 8 million pounds (3,600,000 kg) of concrete.[10] Braves Field officially opened on August 18, 1915, with 46,000 in attendance to see the Braves defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 3–1.[11] In his Opening Day coverage, J. C. O'Leary of The Boston Globe described brand new Braves Field as "the finest ballpark in the world. There is not another like it anywhere, and the probability is that it will stand preeminent for the next 25 years." Braves Park was the largest stadium built in that era, with 40,000 capacity and a trolley system leading to the park.[3]
Braves Field was nicknamed The Wigwam by fans. Later it was nicknamed The Bee Hive and the name changed to National League Park, from 1936 to 1941, a period during which the owners changed the nickname of the team to the Boston Bees. The renaming of the team and stadium were both eventually dropped. During this span, it hosted the fourth Major League Baseball All-Star Game in 1936. With its capacity to hold more fans than Fenway Park, Braves Field was used by the Red Sox in the 1915 and 1916 World Series; with Braves Field still under construction, the Braves had used Fenway Park for their World Series title in 1914.
Looking at design, James Gaffney wanted to see the game played in a wide open field conducive to allowing numerous inside-the-park home runs. Thus, the stadium was built in what was, at the time, the outskirts of Boston, in a large rectangular plot, contrasting with the cozy and lopsided block containing Fenway Park. The stands were almost entirely in foul territory, leaving little beyond the fence into which players could hit home runs – with the fences over 400 feet (120 m) away down the lines and nearly 500 feet (150 m) to dead center, hitting the ball over the outer fences was all but impossible during the dead-ball era. A stiff breeze coming in from center field across the Charles River further lessened any chances of seeing home runs fly out of the park.[12] The only possible target in the outfield was a small bleacher section, which came to be known as The Jury Box after a sportswriter noticed during one slow mid-week game that there were only twelve individuals sitting in the 2,000-seat stand. Ty Cobb visited the park and commented, "Nobody will ever hit a ball out of this park."[12] The large foul ground area further favored the pitchers.
It took seven years and a livelier ball before a batter hit a home run that cleared the outer wall on the fly.
At the advent of the lively ball era, it became clear that the fans were unhappy with Gaffney's vision of how baseball should be played, and inner fences were built, and regularly moved, being moved in and out based on whims. Later, the ownership of the team even went so far as to shift the entire field in a clockwise direction (towards right field) at one point. One year after opening Braves Field, Gaffney had sold the Braves, but kept Braves Field. Gaffney and his heirs then leased the stadium out to Braves owners until 1949, when his heirs sold it back to the Braves for approx. $750,000.[3]
On Sunday, September 21, 1952, the Brooklyn Dodgers defeated the Braves, 8–2, before 8,822 fans in the final Major League game at Braves Field. Roy Campanella hit the last home run to help Joe Black defeat a Braves team with 20 year-old rookie Eddie Mathews hitting 3rd.[13]
Closing and renovation
After purchasing the Braves from
The old ballpark was used as-is until 1955, when
World Series games
World Series games were played at Braves Field in 1915, 1916, and 1948. The Boston Red Sox played their home games in the 1915 and 1916 World Series at the new Braves Field, as its capacity at the time was larger than Fenway Park, while the Braves hosted three games of the 1948 World Series.
The Red Sox defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 4 games to 1 to win the 1915 World Series. On Monday, October 11, the Red Sox won Game 3 at Braves Field, 2–1, in front of 42,300. The next day, the Red Sox won Game 4 in front of 41,096, also 2–1.[18] As a young pitcher on the Red Sox, Babe Ruth only appeared in the series once, as a pinch hitter, going 0–1 in Game 1.[19]
The following year, the Red Sox played the
In 1948, the Boston Braves captured the National League pennant with 91 wins. The Braves then played the
1936 All-Star Game
On July 7, 1936, the
Longest Major League game
On Saturday, May 1, 1920, at Braves Field, the Braves and
Brooklyn and the Braves met again on Monday, May 3, after an off-day for the Braves. That game lasted another 19 innings, a 2–1 Boston win.[31] In between, on Sunday, May 2, Brooklyn played at home against Philadelphia (a 4–3 Brooklyn win) in a game that went 13 innings.[32] This gave Brooklyn 58 innings played in three days and three games.[26]
No-hitters
There were four no-hitters pitched at Braves Field, none of them was a perfect game;
Date | Pitcher | Team | Score | Opponent | Attendance | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
June 16, 1916 | Tom Hughes | Boston Braves | 2–0 | Pittsburgh Pirates | N/A | [33] |
April 27, 1944 | Jim Tobin | Boston Braves | 2–0 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 1,447 | [34][35] |
August 11, 1950 | Vern Bickford | Boston Braves | 7–0 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 29,208 | [36] |
May 6, 1951† | Cliff Chambers | Pittsburgh Pirates | 3–0 | Boston Braves | 15,492 | [3][37] |
- † Second game of a doubleheader
3-home-run games
There were only two three-home-run games at Braves Field:[3]
Date | Player | Team | Score | Opponent | Attendance | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
June 2, 1928 | Les Bell† | Boston Braves | 12–20 | Cincinnati Reds | 18,000 | [38] |
May 13, 1942 | Jim Tobin‡ | Boston Braves | 6–5 | Chicago Cubs | 3,443 | [39] |
- † Bell also hit a triple.
- ‡ Tobin is the only modern era (post-1900) pitcher to hit three home runs in one game.[3]
Dimensions
As noted above, the fences were moved repeatedly throughout the ballpark's existence, sometimes within a given season.[citation needed]
Year(s) | Left | Left-center | Center | Right-center | Right |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1915–1920 | 402' | 402' 6" (1915) 396' (1916) |
440' | 402' | 402' (1915) 375' (1916) |
1921–1927 | 375' (1921) 404' (1922) 403' (1926) |
402' 5" (1921) 404 (1922) 402' 6" (1926) |
440' | 402' | 365' |
1928–29 | 353' 6" | 330' (April 1928) 359' (July 1928) |
387' (April 1928) 417' (July 1928) 387' 2" (1929) |
402' | 364' (1928) 297' 9" (1929) |
1930 | 340' | 359' | 394' 6" | 402' | 297' 9" |
1931–32 | 353' 8" | 359' | 387' 3" | 402' | 297' 11" |
1933–1935 | 359' (1933) 353' 8" (1934) |
359' | 417' | 402' | 364' |
1936–1939 | 368' | 359' | 426' (1936) 407' (1937) 408' (1939) |
402' | 297' (1936) 376' (1937) 378' (1938) |
1940–41 | 350' (1940) 337' (1941) |
359' | 385' (1940) 401' (1941) |
402' | 350' |
1942 | 334' | 365' | 375' | 362' | 350' |
1943 | 340' | 355' | 370' | 355' | 340' (April 1943) 320' (July 1943) |
1944–45 | 337' | 355' | 390' (1944) 380' (1945) |
355' | 340' (April 1944) 320' (May 1944) |
1946–1952 | 337' | 355' | 370' (1946) 390' (1947) |
355' | 320' (1946) 320' (1947) 319' (1948) |
- Center field at the flag pole: 520'
- Deepest center field corner: 550' (1915), 401' (1942), 390' (1943)
- Backstop: 75' (1915), 60' (1936)
Seating capacity
Years | Capacity[40] |
---|---|
1915–1927 | 40,000 |
1928–1936 | 46,500 |
1937–1938 | 41,700 |
1939–1940 | 45,000 |
1941–1946 | 37,746 |
1947 | 36,706 |
1948–1954 | 37,106 |
References
- ^ "1948 Boston Braves Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Babe Ruth Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f "The Ballparks: Braves Field, Boston, Massachusetts". This Great Game. Archived from the original on August 10, 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ a b "Brooklyn Robins at Boston Braves Box Score, May 1, 1920". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 25, 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Boston Redskins (1932-1936)". www.sportsecyclopedia.com. Archived from the original on January 13, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "1932 Boston Braves Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 5, 2013. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "South End Grounds". ballparks.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2016. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Braves Field – History, Photos and more of the Boston Braves former ballpark". ballparksofbaseball.com. Archived from the original on November 20, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Braves Field". www.bahistory.org. Archived from the original on April 8, 2016. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Braves Field: An Imperfect History of the Perfect Ballpark – Society for American Baseball Research". sabr.org. Archived from the original on December 21, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "St. Louis Cardinals at Boston Braves Box Score, August 18, 1915". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ a b c Frank, Stanley (July 1947). Diamonds Are Rough All Over. Retrieved February 24, 2012.
{{cite book}}
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ignored (help)[permanent dead link] - ^ "Brooklyn Dodgers at Boston Braves Box Score, September 21, 1952". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Boston Braves, who own Milwaukee minor league... March 3 in History at BrainyHistory.com". brainyhistory.com. Archived from the original on January 7, 2016. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Atlanta Braves Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 3, 2011. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved August 6, 2011.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ISBN 978-0-8027-1608-8.
- ^ "1915 World Series – Boston Red Sox over Philadelphia Phillies (4-1)". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 15, 2008. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Babe Ruth World Series Stats by Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Baseball Almanac Inc. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "1916 World Series Game 2, Brooklyn Robins at Boston Red Sox, October 9, 1916". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "1916 World Series – Boston Red Sox over Brooklyn Robins (4–1)". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on February 7, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ a b c "1948 World Series – Cleveland Indians over Boston Braves (42)". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Train Television Shows Ball Game". The New York Times. October 8, 1948.
- ^ a b "1936 All-Star Game Box Score, July 7". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on November 4, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "All-Star Game History and Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ a b c d "The Longest Game by Innings in Major League Baseball History". todayifoundout.com. November 20, 2012. Archived from the original on December 2, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Boston Braves 1, Brooklyn Robins 1". Retrosheet. May 1, 1920. Archived from the original on February 12, 2021. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
- ^ "Game Length Records". Baseball Almanac. Archived from the original on July 13, 2018. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
- ^ "Innings Pitched Records". Baseball Almanac. Archived from the original on October 17, 2018. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
- ^ "The day the pitchers went 26 innings". go.com. May 9, 2013. Archived from the original on October 31, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Brooklyn Robins at Boston Braves Box Score, May 3, 1920". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "MLB Scores, Standings, Box Scores for Sunday, May 2, 1920". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Boston Braves Box Score, June 16, 1916". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Brooklyn Dodgers at Boston Braves Box Score, April 27, 1944". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Jim Tobin's No-Hit, No-Run Game Sees Only 98 Pitches Delivered". Fitchburg Sentinel. Fitchburg, Massachusetts. April 28, 1944. Archived from the original on October 21, 2017. Retrieved October 20, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Brooklyn Dodgers at Boston Braves Box Score, August 11, 1950". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 11, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Boston Braves Box Score, May 6, 1951". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Cincinnati Reds at Boston Braves Box Score, June 2, 1928". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Chicago Cubs at Boston Braves Box Score, May 13, 1942". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
- ^ "Braves Field Historical Analysis by Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Archived from the original on October 1, 2011. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
Sources
- Lost Ballparks, by Lawrence Ritter
- Green Cathedrals, by Phil Lowry
- Ballparks of North America, by Michael Benson
- Baseball Uniforms of the 20th Century, by Marc Okkonen
External links
Events and tenants | ||
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Preceded by | Home of the Boston Braves 1915–1952 |
Succeeded by |
Preceded by first stadium
|
Home of the Boston Redskins 1932 |
Succeeded by |
Preceded by | Host of the All-Star Game 1936 |
Succeeded by |