Baltimore Orioles And The History Of Camden Yards
In April 1992, Camden Yards opened it's doors as a brand new $100 million facility that was designed under the architectural guidance of HOK Sport and constructed by Danobe Construction. Located just two blocks from Babe Ruth's birthplace in downtown Baltimore, the centerfield at this 85-acre facility is also the site at which Ruth's father once operated Ruth's Café. In the beginning, there was some debate over the name to be given to the new ballpark. Some felt that it should be named Oriole Park after it's tenants, the Baltimore Orioles, but others were set on calling it Camden Yards. In a pleasing compromise, the park was ultimately named Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
Just like every other ballpark in Major League Baseball, a number of memorable events have been hosted at Camden Yards. Among them, the 1993 All-Star game was held here. In September 1995, Cal Ripken Jr. awed fans by competing in his 2,131st consecutive game and, ultimately, breaking the record set by Lou Gehrig. The following year, in 1996, Eddie Murray hit his 500th career homerun. In addition, the only no-hitter ever pitched at this ballpark was thrown by Hideo Nomo in 2001.
Spectators who visit Camden Yards will be greeted with a variety of amenities, including the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame memorabilia, the Camden Club and sports bar, a cafeteria and gift shop. Additionally, fans can enjoy a stroll on Eutaw Street, which houses cement imprinted bronze baseballs that are designed to commemorate homeruns that have been hit at the facility. The design is Camden Yards is in amenity in itself as it has revolutionized the way that new facilities are constructed. A combination of steel columns, beams and trusses have made it a classic, while it's 48,000 spectator capacity have made it accessible. Although it's concrete trusses, a brick facade, natural grass playing surface and an asymmetrical playing field have served as inspiration to modern facilities being built, Oriole Park at Camden Yards itself was influenced by other ballparks, including Fenway Park, Ebbets, Forbes and Wrigley Field.
Baltimore Orioles fans can also participate in regular tours at Camden Yards, which includes a closeup look at the suites, scoreboards and control rooms, press levels and the dugout. Public tours are given daily with private tours available upon reservation. For those who desire an even closer look, perhaps a meeting with one or more of the Baltimore Orioles players or coaches would fit the bill. Time permitting, baseball notables may sometimes be found signing autographs up until 45 minutes prior to the opening pitch.
Collectors who wish to request an autograph from any one of the players on the Baltimore Orioles roster should send their letter and a SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope) to:
Player's Name
c/o Baltimore Orioles
Oriole Park At Camden Yards
333 W. Camden Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
Fans requesting an autograph should limit their request to two items per letter. Popular items to have signed include photos, index or trading cards, baseballs, etc. Patience is key when requesting autographs through the mail, but the best time to reach an athlete is often during the off-season.
Cristi
http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/baltimore-orioles-and-the-history-of-camden-yards-53635.html
Your Piece Of The 'G is Ready - www.OwnTheG.com.au
Related posts:
- History Of Sports Memorabilia The other day I was cataloguing three boxes of...
- Joe Dimaggio Baseball Memorabilia: An Abc For The New Collector For most baseball fans, the excitement derived from the...
- Sports Memorabilia Collectible Items Every day in the life of a sports fan...
- Exhibit Showcases Priceless Sports Memorabilia A new exhibit at the Sports Legends Museum at Camden...
- Guide To Babe Ruth’s Baseball Memorabilia Baseball is the number one sport that has captured...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Tags: Acre Facility, Babe Ruth, Baltimore Orioles, Brick Facade, Cal Ripken Jr, Consecutive Game, Eddie Murray, Hall Of Fame Memorabilia, Hideo Nomo, Homerun, Lou Gehrig, Major League Baseball, Memorable Events, Natural Grass, Oriole Park, Oriole Park At Camden Yards, Sports Bar, Star Game, Steel Columns, Steel Trusses
May 12th, 2010 at 7:55 pm
Camden Yards / Memorial Stadium?
I’m from Boston, and love stadium architecture and history. Aside from Fenway Park, my favorite park in baseball is Camden Yards. To Oriole fans or people in Baltimore who have been lucky enough to see Camden Yards, describe everything thats so great about it and for those who remember, your thoughts on Memorial Stadium?
May 13th, 2010 at 1:57 am
I was just a wee little boy when I made my first baseball game at Memorial stadium in the mid/late 80s. I couldn’t tell you who the Orioles player let alone if they won or lost. I have only an extremely vague memory of Memorial stadium for baseball.
The thing I know best about Memorial Stadium is that it housed the 1954 until 1991. It saw 6 world series, it saw the Orioles win two of them on it’s feild (the 83 Orioles won the world series in Philly).
It saw Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, Jim Palmer, Earl Weaver, Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken Jr on a regular basis.
It was also the home of the Baltimore Colts who after winning the 1958 championship game in NY against the Giants, the Colts won the 59 Championship game against those same Giants. Johnny Unitas made his homefeild there, as did Raymond Berry, Lenny Moore, Art Donovan, John Mackey, etc.
Memorial Stadium also played host to the first Baltimore superbowl champions, the 71 Colts (defeated Dallas).
So there is a lot of history for both baseball and football for Memorial Stadium. That stadium WAS Baltimore sports. My father who was an avid Baltimore Colts fan growing up in the city said the stadium was often referred to around the league as the "world’s largest outdoor insane asylum" because it was clearly the loudest stadium in the NFL for it’s time with it’s horse shoe shape as an enclosed stadium didn’t allow for a lot of sound to escape from thousands of fans screaming at the top of their lungs when the Colts defense was on the feild.
As for Oriole Park, I love it. I wish I could say I could say that it feilded a more competative team though, that’s another story however.
It just feels like a great baseball atmosphere with a quality well built stadium. I know I’m fortunate to live within close vicinity of the stadium. Ripken played there, I was there when it had an electric atmosphere for the 97 ALDS, when the O’s knocked off the Mariners, Mike Mussina outdueled Randy Johnson.
It was the last breathe of Baltimore dominance in baseball until the team went downhill. But Camden Yards remains a great stadium, it needs a new world series flag though. The 3 flags that it has come from Memorial Stadium.
References :
May 13th, 2010 at 1:59 am
Wild Bill Hagy died last week.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/bal-to.cowherd22aug22,0,6070926.column
References :
May 13th, 2010 at 2:01 am
As you know, it has become the standard for many new parks. Colorado and Pittsburgh are two parks I have also seen that have some of the Camden Yards feel to them.
In the lower deck, the seats seem closer to the field. In the upper deck, the angle of the steps is higher, but yet seems closer. The architechural style that combines an old-fashioned look with some modern nuances is great.
Another factor is the open view beyond the outfield. One can see the Baltimore skyline over the outfield as well as the warehouse, a big distinctive at OPCY. In Pittsburgh, the river separates the park from the skyline of the city, so that is scenic, much like it is in San Fran. In Colorado, I sat in the upper deck and saw this marvelous view of the mountains over the left field bleachers. I thought that a pitcher who gives up a tape-measure shot to deep left could see the mountains and be calmed by the beauty of the view for a moment.
At Memorial Stadium, there was some charm and history, but it did seem as if the field was a bit farther away. The field there was oval shaped because football was played there too. My reference to open-view outfields has Tiger Stadium as a reference point. I went there as a kid and learned to love baseball, partly because of the majesty of seeing homeruns hit into or over the upper deck of an enclosed park. I saw Willie Horton poke one into the light tower over left field as well as some upper deck shots by numerous others. I went to Tiger Stadium in its last year of use. It held many memories, but it looked as if it really needed to be retired. It looked old and beat up. Memorial Stadium did not have that look in its last year of use.
Sorry for the digressions, but I imagine that you and I would have a good time talking baseball.
References :
May 13th, 2010 at 2:03 am
I moved away from the East Coast before Oriole Park opened but I used to go to Memorial Stadium when I was a kid.
There are memories of some rookie named Cal Ripken, Jr. who everyone hoped would be as good as his dad, Earl Weaver kicking dirt on umpires’ shoes, and the chants of "Ed-ee, Ed-ee!" There was also Wild Bill and the O-R-I-O-L-E-S cheer and "Thank God I’m a Country Boy" playing.
However, my most enduring memory has to be the drunks fighting. The Baltimore cops would let them tire themselves out while they got about 20 or more cops together in the tunnel. They would burst out of the tunnel, billy clubs drawn, beat the drunks until they passed out, then drag them to jail. Ah, the days before cell phone cameras when cops could do such things and everyone would know the perps got what they deserved.
References :