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 Wrigley Field Historical Information
Built in 1914, The Friendly Confines is the third-oldest ballpark in the major leagues behind Boston's Fenway Park (1912). Originally known as Weeghman Park, Wrigley Field was built on the grounds once occupied by a seminary. Weeghman Park was the home of Chicago's entry in the Federal League and was the property of Charles H. Weeghman, a wealthy restaurant-chain owner ... the club was known as both the Federals and Whales. The cost of building Weeghman Park, which has a seating capacity of 14,000, was estimated at $250,000. The first major league game at the ballpark took place April 23, 1914, with the Federals defeating Kansas City 9-1 ... the first homer in ballpark history was clubbed by Federals catcher Art Wilson - a two-run shot in the 2nd inning off Kansas City's Chief Johnson. When the Federal League folded for financial reasons after the 1915 season, Weeghman purchased the Cubs from the Taft family of Cincinnati and moved the club to the two-year-old ballpark at the corner of Clark and Addison streets. The first National League game at the ballpark was played April 20, 1916, when the Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-6 in 11 innings ... a bear cub was in attendance at the game. The park became known as Cubs Park in 1920 after the Wrigley family purchased the team from Weeghman ... it was officially named Wrigley Field in 1926 in honor of William Wrigley Jr., the club's owner.
The Chicago Franchise's Homes Before Wrigley Field 23rd
Street Grounds, 1876-1877 Lakefront
Park, 1878-1884 West
Side Park, 1885-1891 South
Side Park, 1891-1893
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 The
Bleachers
The Wrigley Field bleachers were constructed in 1937, when the outfield was renovated to provide improved and expanded seating. The bleacher wall is 11 1/2 feet high. The basket attached to the wall was constructed in 1970. The original vines were purchased and planted by Bill Veeck in September 1937. Veeck strung bittersweet from the top of the wall to the bottom, then planted ivy at the base of the wall. In 1989, private boxes were constructed on the mezzanine level, formerly occupied by the press box and broadcasting booths. A new press box and broadcasting booths were constructed in the upper deck directly behind home plate. The scoreboard was constructed in 1937. The clock atop the scoreboard was not part of the original scoreboard, it was added in 1941. With the exception of a few modern touches, such as the electronic message board, the original scoreboard remains just as it was in 1937. The score-by-innings and the pitchers' numbers are still changed by hand. The numbers signaling batter, ball, strike and out, along with "H" and "E" to signify hit and error, are eyelets. Hitting the Scoreboard In the long history of Wrigley Field, no batted baseball has ever hit the centerfield scoreboard. Two balls barely missed -- one hit by Roberto Clemente to left- centerfield, the other by Bill Nicholson to right-centerfield. In 1941, the Cubs became the first major-league baseball team to provide fans with organ music. Gary Pressy has been the Cubs' organist since 1987 and plays on a Lowery Heritage organ. He shares a Wrigley Field press box-level booth with public address announcer Paul Friedman and messageboard operator Les Brettman. The Chicago Cubs Quintet has been performing Dixieland music at Wrigley Field since 1982. Leader Ted Butterman and the other members strike up the band at the corner of Clark and Addison Streets an hour-and-a-half prior to game time each day. Once the game begins, the Quintet visits all seating areas of the ballpark to perform for fans between innings. The band also plays at Cubs special events, such as the All-Star Kids Clinic and Cubs Convention. The pinstriped flags atop the left- and right-field foul poles represent the retired uniform numbers worn by two of the greatest Cubs. On August 22, 1982, Ernie Banks became the first Cub to have his number retired. The fabled number 14 now flies from the left-field foul pole at Wrigley Field. On August 13, 1987, the Cubs retired Hall of Famer Billy Williams' number. The number 26 now flies from the right-field foul pole. A longtime tradition of Wrigley Field is the flying of a flag bearing a "W" or an "L" atop the scoreboard after the game. A white flag with a blue "W" notifies passers-by of a Cubs victory; a blue flag with a white "L" denotes a Cubs loss. Wrigley Field was the last major league ballpark to add lights. On August 8, 1988, the Cubs played the first night game in Wrigley Field history. The night debut was rained out after 3 1/2 innings, and the first official night game occurred the next night, when the Cubs defeated the New York Mets, 6-4. Three banks of lights on 33-foot steel towers are on each of the leftfield and rightfield rooftops; there are no light towers behind the bleachers. The project cost $5 million. The field is lit up with a total of 540 GE Powr*Spot floodlights using 1,500-watt Multi-Vapor metal halide lamps. The minimum average illumination levels are 250 footcandles for the infield and 150 footcandles for the outfield. Also installed at the ballpark were auxiliary lights for the grandstands, bleachers, concourse, scoreboard, park exterior and parking lots owned by the Cubs.
Frank "Pat" Pieper began working for the Chicago National League franchise in 1904, three years before the team officially was nicknamed the "Cubs." Pieper was born Feb. 17, 1886, in Hanover, Germany, and moved to the United States with his family in 1887. He came to Chicago in 1904 and immediately found a job in baseball. In 1916, he became the field announcer for the Cubs in their first season at Weeghman Park (later renamed Wrigley Field). In those days, Pieper used a megaphone and walked from bullpen to bullpen to deliver the batting orders to the crowd. In 1932, a public address system was installed at Wrigley Field. Pieper claimed he missed just 16 home games during his tenure with the Cubs, none coming after 1924. After 71 seasons with the Cubs (59 as announcer), Pieper died in 1974 at the age of 88. Pieper was inducted into the Cubs' Walk of Fame in 1996. LONGEST MAJOR LEAGUE HOMERUNS EVER??? There really isn't one correct answer to this question; the home run that Mickey Mantle hit at Griffith Stadium in Washington on April 17, 1953. The entire baseball world was led to believe the ball had traveled 565 feet from home plate to the point where it landed. In truth, that figure derived from the distance from home plate to the place where a neighborhood child retrieved the ball. However, the actual distance in the air was probably about 510 feet (most sources still have this as #1). The same process happened again with Mantle on September 10, 1960 at Briggs Stadium in Detroit when a ball he hit was reported to have traveled 643 feet but it is readily apparent once again that the ball had bounced several times before it reached the estimated distance (this is the home run that the "Guinness Book of Records" has as #1). While we’re on Mantle, his home run off the facade at Yankee Stadium on May 22, 1963 traveled between 370 to 374 feet and was between 115 to 117 feet high. If it was still going up like some people claim it would have traveled an estimated distance of 620 feet if left unimpeded. However, the reality is that the ball was already on its way down, and those reporting the trajectory were victimized by a common optical illusion. It is a scientific fact that if Mantle, or anyone else, had sufficient strength to hit a ball that was still traveling upward when it met the towering facade, he would also have enough strength to clear that same facade by a distance of at least 100 feet. In order for the ball to be rising at roof level, it would have to have been traveling at a lower angle than that which produces maximum distance. If Mantle had provided the same power or velocity, but had launched the ball at a higher and more efficient angle, it would have passed out of Yankee Stadium at a height of over 200 feet! Mantle hit the facade on two or perhaps three occasions, but never cleared it. When you’re talking about tape measure home runs you can’t leave out Babe Ruth. It was said that Ruth once hit one 587 feet in an exhibition game against the Giants back in 1919. His tremendous blow to right-center field in Detroit on June 8, 1926 has often been reported as traveling 628 feet, but again was it measured where it first landed or where it came to a rest. Included among the other great exaggerations in the history of tape measure home runs are Dave Nicholson’s Comiskey Park rooftopper on May 6, 1964 who’s shot was calculated at 573 feet. The calculations were on the assumption that the ball traveled completely over the left-center-field roof. However, subsequent investigation indicated that the ball landed on the back of the roof before bouncing out into the night. Also, when Dave Kingman launched his wind-aided blow in Chicago’s Wrigley Field on April 14, 1976, "The New York Times" somehow concluded that it had flown 630 feet. It has been confirmed that the ball struck against the third house beyond Waveland Avenue, which is situated about 530 feet from home plate. Yet another claim (by the "Guinness Book of Records"), has a minor league player by the name of Roy Edward "Dizzy" Carlyle having hit one 618 feet at Emeryville Ball Park, CA on July 4, 1929. In today’s age of tape measure home runs Mark McGwire is of course in a league of his own. McGwire has hit several home runs over 500 feet and one over 540 and his is measured accurately every time he hits one. |
Wrigley
Field has been the site of such historic moments as:
West
Side Grounds, 1893-1915