Baseball: July 2014

Bowman Field in Williamsport, PA

This month I attended a game in my 48th minor league stadium, Susquehanna Bank Park at Historical Bowman Field in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The stadium was built in 1926 and is currently the home of the Williamsport Crosscutters. Originally the field was named Memorial Field but was renamed in 1929 to honor J. Warren Bowman.

The outfield wall of Forbes Field

Bowman Field hosted its first game on 27 April 1926, which was the first of a two game series between the Williamsport Grays and the Harrisburg Giants of the Negro National League. The Grays played as a member of the New York-Pennsylvania League in 1926, but opened against the Giants as a warm-up exhibition. The Giants, a much more experienced team, won both games easily.

Homeplate from the final game at Forbes Field, 28 June 1970

On my way to see two games at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, I stopped by to recce the remains of old Forbes Field. The former home of the Pittsburgh Pirates, from 1909 to 1971, was the site of some historic players and games, including Roberto Clements and Honus Wagner. The stadium saw Bill Mazeroski’s World Series winning homerun as well as the final three homeruns of the Babe Ruth’s career. Today, all that remains of the great stadium are the outfield wall and home plate, which is situated inside Posvar Hall (University of Pittsburgh).

PNC Park (July 2014)

Statue of Satchel Paige at PNC Park