April 10, 1962: Dodger Stadium Opens

April 10, 1962: Dodger Stadium opens in Los Angeles. The Cincinnati Reds spoil the party, winning 6-3. Wally Post hits the 1st home run, off 1955 World Series hero Johnny Podres. Frank Robinson goes 1-for-4 for the Reds. Maury Wills goes 0-for-3 for the Dodgers. No one knew yet, but he would steal a new record of 104 bases this season.

This was Doug Harvey's 1st game as a major league umpire. In a career that lasted until 1993, he was so admired for his accuracy and fairness that the players nicknamed him "God." He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Walter O'Malley, owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, wanted out of Ebbets Field, which had only 31,497 seats and 750 parking spaces. He tried to get baseball's 1st domed stadium built in Downtown Brooklyn, across from the Atlantic Avenue Terminal of the Long Island Rail Road, which would have cut down on his need for parking, as so many Dodger fans had taken advantage of the post-World War II economy and veterans' benefits to move out to Long Island.

But Robert Moses, who controlled construction in New York City, refused to condemn the land necessary to build the stadium. So he looked for options elsewhere. Los Angeles offered him the best deal. In order to cut down on travel costs, he talked Horace Stoneham, owner of the New York Giants, who was already considering moving, to move to San Francisco. This took the National League's best rivalry to the West Coast.

For 4 years, including the 1959 season in which the Dodgers won the World Series, they played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, a football stadium that resulted in a way-too-close left-field fence, while Dodger Stadium was built in Chavez Ravine, north of downtown.

It was a beautiful stadium, with lots of parking all around it, and a view of the San Gabriel Mountains in front of it -- when not obscured by the infamous L.A. smog, that is. And the common saying was that, "You could eat off the floors." Why would you want to?

From 1962 to 2021, the Dodgers have won 11 National League Pennants and 5 World Series while playing home games at Dodger Stadium. It's been home to many legendary pitchers: Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Don Sutton, Fernando Valenzuela, Orel Hershiser and Clayton Kershaw. It's also seen legendary home runs, including by Dodger stars Steve Garvey, Kirk Gibson, Max Muncy and Mookie Betts. But it's also seen notable home runs by opponents, such as Reggie Jackson, Jack Clark, Charlie Culberson, George Springer and Steve Pearce.

The stadium has hosted other sports. Never American football, but soccer: On August 3, 2013, in a doubleheader called the International Champions Cup, the Los Angeles Galaxy beat Juventus of Turin, Italy, 3-1; and Real Madrid of Spain beat Everton of Liverpool, England, 2-1. On January 25, 2014, the NHL Stadium Series came to Chavez Ravine, and the 2 L.A.-area teams played each other. The Anaheim Ducks beat the Los Angeles Kings, 3-0.

But only one boxing card has ever been held there, and it ended in tragedy: On March 21, 1963, Davey Moore, Heavyweight Champion of the World, fought Cuban fighter Ultiminio "Sugar" Ramos, and was knocked out in the 10 round, dying 2 days later from a head injury. This led Bob Dylan to write a song, "Who Killed Davey Moore?" (UPDATE: In 2023, the climactic fight in the movie Creed III was filmed there.)

Concerts there have been sporadic. In the stadium's 1st 22 years, only 2 stands were held there: The Beatles on their final tour, on August 28, 1966; and Elton John on October 25 and 26, 1975. Michael Jackson and his brothers held 6 concerts on their Victory Tour there between November 30 and December 9, 1984. The Three Tenors -- José Carreras, Plácido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti -- sang there on July 16, 1994, in celebration of the next day's World Cup Final at the nearby Rose Bowl.

It's hard to believe, but Dodger Stadium has not only lasted longer than Ebbets Field did, but it is now the 3rd-oldest park in MLB, behind Fenway Park and Wrigley Field.

But Dodger fans, so quick to call it the best ballpark, and to come over 3 million strong every year, usually leading MLB in attendance, don't seem to like being there that much. The joke is that they arrive in the 3rd inning, and leave at the 7th-inning stretch. In 1982, just a year after a Dodger World Series win, Johnny Carson, in his monologue on The Tonight Show, said, "The only reason people go to Dodger games is to see if they can beat the traffic home."

UPDATE: On June 3, 2023, the Yankees began an Interleague series there, losing to the Dodgers, 8-4. And many of the home fans did leave early. Thinking of Los Angeles, I played The Doors' "Riders On the Storm" on YouTube. Just as Jim Morrison got to the line, "There's a killer on the road, his brain is squirming like a toad" -- and don't tell me he ever wrote a better line -- the YES Network's camera switched to the L.A. fans driving out, hitting the road.

You can't make this stuff up.

* 

April 10, 1962 was a Tuesday. There were 7 other MLB games played on this day:

* For the 1st time, a regular-season Major League Baseball game is played in the Southern United States -- or, to put it another way, in a city that had once been a part of the Confederate States of America. I have a separate entry for this event.

The expansion Houston Colt .45s make their debut at Colt Stadium in Houston, and beat the Chicago Cubs, 11-2. Román Mejías hit Houston's home run, and hit a 2nd homer later in the game. Hal Smith also hit one out for the Colt .45s (often listed as simply the Colts), while Ernie Banks homered for the Cubs. Former Philadelphia Athletics MVP Bobby Shantz went the distance for the Colts to be the winning pitcher.

Colt Stadium, which seated 32,000, was basically an oversized high school football stadium, and was never going to be more than a stopgap facility for a real stadium. It was completely exposed to the elements: Not just the heat, but mosquitoes. As Sandy Koufax said, "Some of those mosquitoes were twin-engine jobs."

Three years later, the Astrodome opened, and the home team was renamed the Houston Astros. Colt Stadium remained as a practice facility for a few years, and NRG Stadium, current home of the NFL's Houston Texans, was built on the site.

* The New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles, 7-6 at Yankee Stadium. Johnny Temple hit a home run off Whitey Ford, but Bill "Moose" Skowron and Roger Maris both hit them off Billy Hoeft, and, in the 8th inning, Mickey Mantle won the game with a home run off Hal Brown, to make Ralph Terry the winning pitcher, for the 1st of 23 times that season.

Mantle finished 1-for-3 with that homer and RBI, Maris 1-for-4 with a homer and 3 RBIs. Yogi Berra did not play. Brooks Robinson went 2-for-4 for the Birds.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-0 at Fenway Park in Boston. Dick Donovan pitched a 5-hit shutout, with Carl Yastrzemski getting 2 of the hits.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 6-0 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Bob Friend pitched a 5-hit shutout. Roberto Clemente went 1-for-3, and his hit was a grand slam home run.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Los Angeles Angels, 2-1 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

* The Kansas City Athletics beat the Minnesota Twins, 4-2 at Kansas City Municipal Stadium.

* And the San Francisco Giants beat the Milwaukee Braves, 6-0 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Juan Marichal pitched a 3-hit shutout, striking out 10, while Warren Spahn was knocked out of the box in the 4th inning. Willie Mays went 1-for-4 with a home run and an RBI, while Hank Aaron went 0-for-4.

Four MLB teams opened their seasons the day before. The Phillies beat the Reds, 12-4. And the Washington Senators beat the Detroit Tigers, 4-1 in the 1st MLB game at District of Columbia Stadium in Washington. President John F. Kennedy threw out the ceremonial first ball at the stadium that would later be named for his brother, Robert F. Kennedy.

Two MLB teams started their season the next day: The St. Louis Cardinals and the other expansion team, the New York Mets.

April 10 was also the day the 1962 Stanley Cup Finals got underway. The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the defending Champion Chicago Black Hawks, 4-1 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. The Leafs would win the Cup in 6 games.

And Game 3 of the NBA Finals was played at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena. The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Boston Celtics, 117-115. Elgin Baylor had 39 points and 23 rebounds for the Lakers, Bill Russell 26 points and 32 rebounds for the Celtics. The Lakers led 2 games to 1, but the Celtics would win the title in Game 7.