Ballparks - # 17 - Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City
Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO
(from Google Images)
8/1/98
In 1998, on the weekend of my birthday, we visited Kansas City. Southwest Airlines had bargain fare deals and our Orioles were going to play the Royals. It would be a great chance to savor a good steak dinner, check out the famous jazz quarter where all the greats played, visit the Negro League Baseball Museum and see the O’s lose.
In 1969, the Kansas City Royals became one of four expansion teams added to the Majors along with teams in San Diego, Montreal and Seattle. The city had a team for a while. Before they moved to Oakland, the Athletics played in Kansas City from 1955 to 1967.
The town appears to have a superiority complex as it was also the home for the NBA (now Sacramento) Kings, the old Negro League Monarchs and the current NFL Chiefs.
The team is another of those small market, low budget organizations that can’t collect high-priced stars. Despite that, they’ve managed to make it to four World Series and have won it all twice…in 1985 and 2015.
The thirty year stretch between when Dodger Stadium was completed in 1962 and the latest White Sox field was done in Chicago was the (not so) golden age of symmetrical, boring, plastic, multi-purpose stadia. The venues offered parking, better views than being stuck behind support beams and the fake grass stood up to the wear and tear of football. That said, Kaufman Stadium was the only new park constructed in that period that was exclusively for baseball…and they had the good sense to toss the Astro-turf and plant real grass there in 1994.
Away from downtown at the junction of two interstates, it is part of the Truman Sports Complex with Arrowhead Stadium where the Chiefs play next door. No corporate name here. Ewing Kauffman was a pharmaceutical entrepreneur and the first owner of the team. Originally called Royals Stadium, it took the name of the popular owner in 1993.
The seating capacity is a modest 40,000. Among the milestones that occurred here are the first of Nolan Ryan’s record seven no-hit games in 1973 and Hall of Famer Pail Molitor’s 3,000th hit in 1996.
The August 1 link at the top will take you to the box score and anything else you might want to know about that game. As expected, my O’s took it on the chin again, losing 9-5. It was fortunate they scored five runs since they managed just five hits all night. The visiting team lineup included future Hall of Famer, Cal Ripkin and otherwise would-be HOF but lying steroid juicer and disgraced (but Sweet-Swinging lefty) Rafael Palmeiro.
I brought the camera to the stadium to essentially document that we were there, not to search out interesting images of the place itself. The pictures are scant but at least document another ballpark on this Quest.
That trip will always be remembered for the visit to the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum which included Harry’s grave. The Dead President Quest began that day.
In 1998, on the weekend of my birthday, we visited Kansas City. Southwest Airlines had bargain fare deals and our Orioles were going to play the Royals. It would be a great chance to savor a good steak dinner, check out the famous jazz quarter where all the greats played, visit the Negro League Baseball Museum and see the O’s lose.
In 1969, the Kansas City Royals became one of four expansion teams added to the Majors along with teams in San Diego, Montreal and Seattle. The city had a team for a while. Before they moved to Oakland, the Athletics played in Kansas City from 1955 to 1967.
The town appears to have a superiority complex as it was also the home for the NBA (now Sacramento) Kings, the old Negro League Monarchs and the current NFL Chiefs.
The team is another of those small market, low budget organizations that can’t collect high-priced stars. Despite that, they’ve managed to make it to four World Series and have won it all twice…in 1985 and 2015.
The thirty year stretch between when Dodger Stadium was completed in 1962 and the latest White Sox field was done in Chicago was the (not so) golden age of symmetrical, boring, plastic, multi-purpose stadia. The venues offered parking, better views than being stuck behind support beams and the fake grass stood up to the wear and tear of football. That said, Kaufman Stadium was the only new park constructed in that period that was exclusively for baseball…and they had the good sense to toss the Astro-turf and plant real grass there in 1994.
Away from downtown at the junction of two interstates, it is part of the Truman Sports Complex with Arrowhead Stadium where the Chiefs play next door. No corporate name here. Ewing Kauffman was a pharmaceutical entrepreneur and the first owner of the team. Originally called Royals Stadium, it took the name of the popular owner in 1993.
View From our Seats, Kauffman Stadium (1 August 1998)
We sat in the lower grandstand…down the third base line.
No protective netting in those daring old days.
The seating capacity is a modest 40,000. Among the milestones that occurred here are the first of Nolan Ryan’s record seven no-hit games in 1973 and Hall of Famer Pail Molitor’s 3,000th hit in 1996.
The August 1 link at the top will take you to the box score and anything else you might want to know about that game. As expected, my O’s took it on the chin again, losing 9-5. It was fortunate they scored five runs since they managed just five hits all night. The visiting team lineup included future Hall of Famer, Cal Ripkin and otherwise would-be HOF but lying steroid juicer and disgraced (but Sweet-Swinging lefty) Rafael Palmeiro.
Center Field, Kauffman Stadium (1 August 1998)
A charming feature – instead of seating beyond the outfield
fence, there is a 322-foot-long fountain and water display.
The dark walls and absence of people gives this
park the best visibility for batters to track incoming pitches.
I brought the camera to the stadium to essentially document that we were there, not to search out interesting images of the place itself. The pictures are scant but at least document another ballpark on this Quest.
That trip will always be remembered for the visit to the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum which included Harry’s grave. The Dead President Quest began that day.
posted by Ted Ringger @ 8:33 AM
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