polo grounds

[tonypug]

From the last Dodgers-Giants game at the Polo Grounds

(photo from ebay)

That sure looks like Gil Hodges at bat.

[zman]

That sure looks like Gil Hodges at bat.

I'm glad you said that because that's what I was thinking too but I wasn't sure about it.

[MSUlaxer27]

Last of the sequence of 5

The more I see pictures from Giants games at the Polo Grounds from the inside, the more I think: What a horrible place to watch a baseball game. I would have liked to see a game at the Polo Grounds to say I was there and experience it once...but after the remodeling (and removal of the Roman Frescoes) this place was an anticeptic dump. A piece of history was lost when it was knocked down, but we're not talking about the original Penn Station here (a lost jewel to say the least).

I guess it's fitting the Mets played here first moving from one characterless football stadium to another. Speaking of which, I am glad that aside from the the overhang in right field (still 300 feet away) the Mets did not try to emulate any of the absurd dimensions of the Polo Grounds. I'm disappointed that the jints' left, not that they knocked down the Polo Grounds.

[zman]

I agree that the removal of those beautiful Roman frescoes was unfortunate. I grieved over the loss of the copper facade when they remodeled Yankee Stadium too. The loss of beauty is a mournful thing.

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

The more I see pictures from Giants games at the Polo Grounds from the inside, the more I think: What a horrible place to watch a baseball game. I would have liked to see a game at the Polo Grounds to say I was there and experience it once...but after the remodeling (and removal of the Roman Frescoes) this place was an anticeptic dump. A piece of history was lost when it was knocked down, but we're not talking about the original Penn Station here (a lost jewel to say the least).

I guess it's fitting the Mets played here first moving from one characterless football stadium to another. Speaking of which, I am glad that aside from the the overhang in right field (still 300 feet away) the Mets did not try to emulate any of the absurd dimensions of the Polo Grounds. I'm disappointed that the jints' left, not that they knocked down the Polo Grounds.

You do have the right to your opinion. but i have talked to alot of people including dodger fans that said that the polo grounds was a great place to watch baseball games.the polo grounds was not a antiseptic dump like you say it was. if you want to go see a antiseptic dump then go to detroits comerica park and the new comiskey park in chicago.the polo grounds has gone down as one of the greatest sports venues in history like it or not.

[MSUlaxer27]

The Polo Grounds was (were?) renowned for the games, players and teams that played there, not for the architecture (after removal of the frescoes) itself. If it still existed people wouldn't talk about the Polo Grounds with the same reverence as they do speak of Fenway, Wrigley and Tiger when it was open.

Simply put, the Polo Grounds was a football stadium masquerading as a ballpark. (Even if baseball was played there first). I don't hear anyone wishing that the LA Dodgers would still play their games in the LA Coliseum (and it had quirky dimensions like the pologrounds: 250 down the leftfield line, 440 to right center) It couldn't have been an enjoyable experience. I love rooting for the Mes at Shea, I love the experience of being at their games (where ever they play), but I do not enjoy the experience of being at Shea since it's not designed for baseball, neither was the Polo Grounds.

It's like Notre Dame's stadium, the experience of watching your team play on the same field (I was not there to watch the Irish if you can tell by my screen name) as some of the most storied names in college football was a great experience, but the "actual" experience of being in Notre Dame Satdium was not enjoyable. They cram 20 people onto a bench seat that was made for 10 people to sit on.

In the same way I can see how people who grew up with Giants can miss rooting for them (If the Mets moved I'd be crushed), but I can't see how anyone who actually wants to enjoy the game (good sight lines, closer to the field) can miss the Polo Grounds. I root for the team, not the building. Hell, I'd even take the Mets still playing at 155th & 8th, if it was in a new building. The Polo Grounds was outdated in 1964, it would be completely obsolete by this point.

Those NY Giants fans who post here and saw games in the PG and have also seen a game in one of the better modern parks (say the Jake, Camden or PNC or even one of the old ones :Tiger, Fenway or Wrigley) How did/does the stadium experience compare?

I would have been nice if the Giants (and dogers) still played in NYC and SF/LA were awarded the expansion franchises in 1962 so that the link to the origins of NY baseball weren't severed. If they were here I would hope that they still would be getting ready to move into a new BALLparks in 2009.

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

The Polo Grounds was (were?) renowned for the games, players and teams that played there, not for the architecture (after removal of the frescoes) itself. If it still existed people wouldn't talk about the Polo Grounds with the same reverence as they do speak of Fenway, Wrigley and Tiger when it was open.

Simply put, the Polo Grounds was a football stadium masquerading as a ballpark. (Even if baseball was played there first). I don't hear anyone wishing that the LA Dodgers would still play their games in the LA Coliseum (and it had quirky dimensions like the pologrounds: 250 down the leftfield line, 440 to right center) It couldn't have been an enjoyable experience.

I wish the Giants still played in NYC and SF was awarded the expansion franchise in 1962 so that the link to the origins of NY baseball weren't severed. If they were here I would hope that they still would be getting ready to move into a new BALLpark in 2009.

You sound like that you were a fan of those 1960 and 1970 cookie cutter stadiums that everyone cant stand. the polo grounds was unique because of its dimmensions.all of the old ballparks were diffrent in there own way.and because of the polo grounds unique dimmensions it has gone down as one of the unique ballparks in history. again you have the right to like or not to like anything you want but nobody will ever change my mind on the polo grounds. as i said in the other post if you want to see a crappy antiseptic stadium go to detroits comerica park and the new comiskey park.and by the way the polo grounds has alot of fans on this board.

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

The more I see pictures from Giants games at the Polo Grounds from the inside, the more I think: What a horrible place to watch a baseball game. I would have liked to see a game at the Polo Grounds to say I was there and experience it once...but after the remodeling (and removal of the Roman Frescoes) this place was an anticeptic dump. A piece of history was lost when it was knocked down, but we're not talking about the original Penn Station here (a lost jewel to say the least).

I guess it's fitting the Mets played here first moving from one characterless football stadium to another. Speaking of which, I am glad that aside from the the overhang in right field (still 300 feet away) the Mets did not try to emulate any of the absurd dimensions of the Polo Grounds. I'm disappointed that the jints' left, not that they knocked down the Polo Grounds.

By the way you sound like someone that likes the idea of the yankees tearing down yankee stadium for that new dump next door in a couple of years.and i bet that you never knew why the polo grounds had its shape in the first place.

[Brownie31]

You sound like that you were a fan of those 1960 and 1970 cookie cutter stadiums that everyone cant stand. the polo grounds was unique because of its dimmensions.all of the old ballparks were diffrent in there own way.and because of the polo grounds unique dimmensions it has gone down as one of the unique ballparks in history. again you have the right to like or not to like anything you want but nobody will ever change my mind on the polo grounds. as i said in the other post if you want to see a crappy antiseptic stadium go to detroits comerica park and the new comiskey park.and by the way the polo grounds has alot of fans on this board.

POLO GROUNDS 1957: You expressed my sentiments perfectly. Brownie31

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

POLO GROUNDS 1957: You expressed my sentiments perfectly. Brownie31

Hey brownie31 did you ever get a chance to see a game at the polo grounds.

[Brownie31]

Hey brownie31 did you ever get a chance to see a game at the polo grounds.

POLO GROUNDS 1957: No, unfortunately. The only MLB stadiums I saw games were Candlestick Park and Atlanta Fulton County Stadium. However, I have seen many a game in Birmingham's 1910 Rickwood Field. It combines elements of both Forbes Field and Shibe Park and is being preserved. The Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field are lost treasures. Brownie31

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

POLO GROUNDS 1957: No, unfortunately. The only MLB stadiums I saw games were Candlestick Park and Atlanta Fulton County Stadium. However, I have seen many a game in Birmingham's 1910 Rickwood Field. It combines elements of both Forbes Field and Shibe Park and is being preserved. The Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field are lost treasures. Brownie31

I have seen photos of rickwood field its the oldest ballpark in the country.i am glad to hear that its still around. do they still play baseball there.

[Brownie31]

I have seen photos of rickwood field its the oldest ballpark in the country.i am glad to hear that its still around. do they still play baseball there.

Indeed it is the oldest. Yes, along with high school games, once a year the Birmingham Barons play a game at Rickwood. The Barons and their Southern League opponents dress in throwback uniforms usually from the 1910s through the 1960s. The game scenes from Tommy Lee Jones' "Cobb" were filmed at Rickwood and vintage ads were put on the outfield which are still there. For more info try www.rickwood.com. Brownie31

[MSUlaxer27]

Thank you for allowing me to have the "right to my own opinion". That is so generous of you. Don't assume that because I do not share your opinion on the Polo Grounds that I do not know NY baseball history. The Polo Grounds was built the way it was due to geographic constraints. (Coogans Bluff, The Harlem River and the IRT rail yards in additon to another ball park on the site).

I do not like Shea (the original cookie cutter stadium) nor any of the other monstrosities built in Philly, Atlanta, Cincinnati, St. Louis or Pittsburgh in the 60's and beginning of the 70's. Shea was built before all those other stadiums yet is still in use. I apologize if I'm excited that NY National League basball fans will have their first "baseball" stadium since they knocked down Ebbets Field.

As far as Yankee stadium goes when accidents like this happen:

More than 20,000 people had been expected at Monday night's game at the stadium, which turns 75 years old Saturday. Mayor Rudy Giuliani said someone almost certainly would have been killed if the collapse had happened during the game.

The 18-inch joint, used to connect beams, crushed one of the blue plastic seats to pieces and gouged a 6-inch hole in the concrete. The joint tore another hole in the ceiling of the upper deck.

Then maybe it is time for it to be replaced.

When, in your august opinion, is it OK to replace a stadium?

Should we ever take advantage of improvements in construction and technology to improve the experience of attending a game?

I am well aware that there are many fans of the Polo Grounds on this site, as should be expected. I don't agree that the PG should be venerated as a great ballpark. The Polo Grounds may have worked in the beginning of the 20th century when teams played small ball, but that time and style of play is long, long gone. Why constrain a modern team to playing in an archaic stadium.

[StanTheMan]

Count me among the fans of the PG on this board.....

What does the LA Collesium dimensions have to do with anything? The PG was incredibly unique, shaped like no other ballpark..... but it was far from the "Whiffle Ball" fields in Houston, or some of the other hitter friendly old parks, like Shibe Park.

Babe Ruth at the Polo Grounds, from 1920-22.
He hit 75 HR's and the PG's and 73 on the Road.

Willie Mays played at the PG from 1951-52, and 1954-57
He hit 94 home runs at the PG and 93 on the Road.

The Wonderful dimesions of the PG forced the outfielders to play closer together than any other park. Many balls which were doubles into the gaps at every other stadium in the Majors at the time were line drive outs at the PG. It was a wonderful ballpark for lots of reasons... and many people did not like it, for some of the same reasons.

For example, Vic Wetz's 450+ foot out on "the catch" in the 1954 World Series is well remembered. That ball is a HR in most other parks. Rhodes hit a Home Run in the 10th inning to win that game, a ball that travelled about 265 feet or so.

You don't care for that type of ball... I would have LOVED to have seen a game there, and generations of fans in NYC apparently loved to go there as well.

The sheer battle between pull hitters, who must have thought they could reach out and TOUCH the foul poles they appeared so close..... and the pitchers who dared to throw them inside pitches would have been wonderful to observe. And those same pull hitters, who really got a hold of one, but did not pull it enough, could hit 425 foot outs with regularity. It must have been a wonderful spectacle, in my opinion, and made for a game which was undoubtedly unique, but unquestionably Major League Baseball.

Take Mel Ott's numbers, at the PG from 1926-47
323 Home Runs at home, but only 188 on the road.... He must have figured it out!!!

So what could he do that the Babe and Willie Mays could not? Heck if I know, but painting the PG as an absurdity, or a Football Field is ridiculous. The played football at Wrigley and Yankee Stadium too... what dumps!!

The PG IS one of the legendary locations that baseball was played in the country... and always will be. Without modern technology (internet boards, the PG in video games, which is a blast btw, etc) the legend of the PG may have suffered.

But the legend of the PG is going strong, and will be here forever, imo.

Bryan in Indy

[rcl986@aol.com]

[QUOTE=MSUlaxer27]The more I see pictures from Giants games at the Polo Grounds from the inside, the more I think: What a horrible place to watch a baseball game. ]

Far, far ,far from a horrible place to watch a game. Growing up in Manhattan in the fifties gave me the opportunity of seeing many games at both the Polo Grounds and Yankee Stadium. Later on I saw a number of games at both Fenway Park and Shibe Park in Philly. They ALL shared one major attribute, THEY WERE TRUE BASEBALL PARKS. They shared the same "feel" or aura for the game, they offered the same excitement upon entering, they all made you feel like you were in someplace special.
As to the sightlines and game viewing at the Polo Grounds, unless you were sitting directly behind a pole or twenty rows back in the bleachers most seats were pretty good. I can speak from first hand experience having sat in the extreme right field upper deck with Police Athletic League tickets; in upper box seats (first row) between home and third with my Dad for the Giants / Dodgers opener in '53; in general admission seats, both upper and lower decks on both foul lines and in reserved seats usually between home and first in the upper deck. These particular seats were great because unless there was a sell out (usually the Dodger games) they too were sold at general admission prices, which was, at the time $1.25. If I have one regret about those days and those ballparks it's that I never got to Ebbets Field in person. Even as a Giants fan I know now I missed something very special. I guess the closet park (in physical attributes) to Ebbets that I visited was Shibe. But please, don't sell the seating and sightlines of any of these old parks short based solely on what you observe in half century old and older photos because you'd simply be wrong!

[DODGER DEB]

Here is a great view of the POLO GROUNDS.....

From an eBay listing.

c.

[StanTheMan]

Another great aspect of the PG... is the fact that is WAS a Home Run Hitters Park for pull hitters, but at the same time, the park was "Neutral" when it came to total offense/runs.

Meaning that a fan at a game at the PG was very likely to see a Home Run (the PG had the highest frequency of HR's at any park until Coors Field Opened) but the total number of runs scored in games at the PG when compared to other parks placed the PG in a very average position. This is of course due to the short distances down the line, but was more than offset by they HUGE distances to the power alleys and even longer distance to CF.

A high percentage of PG runs were scored of Long Balls, but not all games were 10-9, not even close...... In fact the amount of runs scored was VERY Average.

From some fans' standpoint..... one who likes the HR, (who doesn't!!!), and enjoys the fact that those HR's could come at ANY time, from just about ANY batter (who hits one down the line), but also wants to watch a game with a normal scoreline, where defense, baserunning, etc. are all important, (i.e. NOT Coors Field, or TENRUN Field in Houston) the Polo Grounds may have been the best park of all Time.

From a certain point of view.

[DODGER DEB]

This great, but sad, photo was taken on September 29, 1957, the last game played at the Polo Grounds. It shows Mrs. John McGraw, wife of the great manager John McGraw, one of the last to leave the Polo Grounds....for the last time.

From an eBay listing.

c.

[musial6]

I saw my first major league game at the Polo Grounds in 1942.There were lots of servicemen in the stands. They got in free if in uniform..You were obliged to pass any foul balls in the stands to the nearest serviceman. You would be booed mercilessly if you didn't.

The PG lacked the intimacy between players and fans that Ebbets Field provided. It really was a cavernous ball park. Still, I enjoyed watching games there. Ah, where are the snows of yesteryear?

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

Well everyone last month a dream came true for me when i got this polo grounds seat.i always wanted one. it now sits next to my old comiskey park seat.now i can sit in my own polo grounds seat and have a hot dog and a cold rheingold beer and listen to the giants and mets play baseball at the polo grounds on audio tape.i can now close my eyes and i am sitting in the polo grounds watching the ball game. DREAMS do come true sometimes.

[Brownie31]

Well everyone last month a dream came true for me when i got this polo grounds seat.i always wanted one. it now sits next to my old comiskey park seat.now i can sit in my own polo grounds seat and have a hot dog and a cold rheingold beer and listen to the giants and mets play baseball at the polo grounds on audio tape.i can now close my eyes and i am sitting in the polo grounds watching the ball game. DREAMS do come true sometimes.

POLO GROUNDS 1957:

Congratulations! Enjoy!

Brownie31

[rcl986@aol.com]

Well everyone last month a dream came true for me when i got this polo grounds seat.i always wanted one. it now sits next to my old comiskey park seat.now i can sit in my own polo grounds seat and have a hot dog and a cold rheingold beer and listen to the giants and mets play baseball at the polo grounds on audio tape.i can now close my eyes and i am sitting in the polo grounds watching the ball game. DREAMS do come true sometimes.

Well PG57 you finally made it. It's a beauty and well deserved by such a great Polo Grounds proponent. Congratulations and Welcome to 155th and 8th.

[DODGER DEB]

Well everyone last month a dream came true for me when i got this polo grounds seat.i always wanted one. it now sits next to my old comiskey park seat.now i can sit in my own polo grounds seat and have a hot dog and a cold rheingold beer and listen to the giants and mets play baseball at the polo grounds on audio tape.i can now close my eyes and i am sitting in the polo grounds watching the ball game. DREAMS do come true sometimes.

I am SO HAPPY for you, PG1957!

I am sure just sitting in it will bring you back to "that wonderful time".

Enjoy!

c.

[Yankeebiscuitfan]

Well everyone last month a dream came true for me when i got this polo grounds seat.i always wanted one. it now sits next to my old comiskey park seat.now i can sit in my own polo grounds seat and have a hot dog and a cold rheingold beer and listen to the giants and mets play baseball at the polo grounds on audio tape.i can now close my eyes and i am sitting in the polo grounds watching the ball game. DREAMS do come true sometimes.

All I can say is WOW! Great stuff. I envy you.

Enjoy!