I was the straw that stirred the drink in New York and was the toast of the town when I hit a Major League record 3 homers in a 1977 World Series game.
Kansas City Municipal Stadium was a baseball and football
stadium that formerly stood in Kansas City, Missouri and was used by the
Royals until what is now called Kauffman
Stadium was completed.
Muehlebach
Field (1923-1937)
Ruppert Stadium (1937-1943)
Blues Stadium (1943-1954)
Tenants
Kansas
City Blues (Minors, 1925-1954)
Monarchs (Negro Leagues, 1923-1950)
Athletics (MLB, 1955-1967)
Royals (MLB, 1969-1972)
Chiefs (AFL/NFL, 1963-1971)
Seating
capacity
17,476
(1923), 30,396 (1955), 35,561 (1972)
Dimensions
(in feet)
1923:
Left Field - 350
Left-Center - 408
Center Field - 450
Right-Center - 380 (estimated)
Right Field - 350
1965 (Charlie Finley):
Left Field - 370
Left-Center - 409
Center Field - 421
Right-Center - 360
Right Field - 325
1972:
Left Field - 369
Left-Center - 408
Center Field - 421
Right-Center - 382
Right Field - 338
Backstop - 70
The stadium hosted the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues, the
Kansas City Athletics of the AL from 1955-1967, the Kansas City Royals of
the AL from 1969-1972, and the Kansas City Chiefs of the AFL and NFL from
1963-1971. It also hosted the minor-league Kansas City Blues from
1925-1954.
Municipal Stadium was originally built as Muehlebach Field in
1925 for the minor-league Blues, costing $400,000. The stadium consisted
of a single-decked, mostly covered, grandstand extending from the right
field foul pole down around most of the left field line. When the New York
Yankees bought the Blues for their farm system in 1937, the stadium was
renamed Ruppert Field in honor of the Yankees owner, Col. Jacob
Ruppert. Ruppert died two years later, and the stadium was renamed Blues
Stadium in 1943.
Fly
to the site of the KC's Municipal Stadium!
If you have Google
Earth installed, click here
to be "flown" to the site of the Municipal Stadium. Of
course the stadium is no longer there, but you can see the old
neighborhood. (If you do not have it installed, get
it from Google. It allows you to view virtually anywhere on
Earth in 3D using satellite imagery.)
The Athletics announced that they would move to Kansas City in November,
1954, and the stadium was quickly renovated and expanded. An upper deck
was built atop the original stands, and the facility – renamed Municipal
Stadium – was ready by Opening Day in 1955. The scoreboard from Braves
Field was bought and moved to Kansas City. Temporary bleachers were
also added in the left field corner and parts of the outfield. The
bleachers were shifted somewhat around from year to year.
Municipal Stadium was home to many of the shenanigans of A's owner
Charlie Finley, including his attempt to shorten the rather distant fences
by creating a 296-foot Pennant Porch in right-field, fronting a
tiny bleacher section, to mock the famed short fence in right field at Yankee
Stadium, home of the powerful Yankees. The move was quickly vetoed by
the league. So Finley rebuilt the fence to the bare legal minimum of 325
feet, and repainted the fence to say One-Half Pennant Porch. Later
he tried the ruse of putting a canopy over the little bleacher, which just
happened to have an extension that reached out 29 feet over the field. The
league, not amused by Finley's sense of humor, again ordered him to cease
and desist. According to legend, on a road trip that the A's made to New
York, a Yankee hitter lofted a long fly ball to left field which, in the
cavernous left field of Yankee Stadium, became a routine out. Yankees
public address announcer Bob Sheppard is alleged to have then said over
the microphone, "In Kansas City, that would have been a home
run."
A small zoo and picnic area stood behind the right-field fence. It
housed the team mascot, a mule appropriately named "Charlie O".
A mechanical rabbit, nicknamed "Harvey," rose out of the ground
with new baseballs for the umpire and a compressed-air device blew dirt
off of home plate.
Kansas City Municipal Stadium!
Blues Stadium as
seen before the second deck was added.
Postcard
courtesy of LCPC
During the years when two All-Star Games were scheduled each year
instead of one, Municipal Stadium hosted the first of the two 1960 games,
with the NL winning the contest 5-3.
FIRSTS
at KANSAS CITY MUNICIPAL STADIUM
Game
04/12/1955
Tigers 2, Athletics 6
Umpires
Bill Summers, Eddie Hurley
Hank Soar, Ed Runge
Managers
Lou Boudreau, Athletics
Bucky Harris, Tigers
Starting Pitchers
Alex Kellner, Athletics
Ned Garver, Tigers
Ceremonial Pitch
Former President Harry Truman
Attendance
32,147
Batting
Batter
Harvey Kuenn (fly out)
Hit
Fred Hatfield (double)
Run
Bill Wilson
RBI
Joe DeMaestri
Single
Joe DeMaestri
Double
Fred Hatfield
Triple
Alex Kellner (04/18/1955)
Home Run
Red Wilson
Grand Slam
Jim Hegan (08/12/1955)
IPHR
Bob Cerv (04/22/1958)
Stolen Base
Minnie Minoso (04/23/1955)
Sacrifice Hit
Ewell Blackwell
Sacrifice Fly
Bill Tuttle
Cycle
Lou Clinton (07/13/1962)
Pitching
Win
Alex Kellner
Loss
Ned Garver
Shutout
Alex Kellner (04/24/1955)
Save
Ewell Blackwell
Hit by Pitch
Ned Garver hit Joe Astroth
Wild Pitch
Alex Kellner (04/18/1955)
Balk
Art Ditmar (07/04/1955)
No-Hitter
(None)
Primary
research by Jim Herdman & David Vincent
Courtesy of Retrosheet.
When the Dallas Texans of the AFL were bought by Lamar Hunt and moved
to Kansas City in 1962, becoming the Kansas City Chiefs, Municipal Stadium
was readied for football. Temporary stands were erected in left field to
expand the stadium's capacity each fall, but had to be removed during the
baseball season.
On September 17, 1964, The Beatles played Municipal Stadium as part of
their first U.S. tour. The date was originally supposed to be an off-day
for the band, but they agreed to perform when Finley offered their
manager, Brian Epstein, a then-record sum of $150,000.
As Municipal Stadium aged, it became clear that new facilities would be
needed, and public bonds were issued in 1967 to fund a complex including
separate football and baseball stadiums. After the A's left for Oakland,
the Royals used Municipal Stadium as a temporary home.
The Chiefs' final home game at Municipal Stadium was played on
Christmas Day in 1971. The double-overtime playoff contest (a loss to the
Miami Dolphins) remains the longest game in NFL history.
After the 1972 baseball season, Municipal was replaced by Kauffman
Stadium for the Kansas City Royals and the adjacent Arrowhead
Stadium for the Kansas City Chiefs. Municipal Stadium was demolished
in 1976, and a municipal garden now stands on the site.
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