June 3, 1989: The 1st Retractable-Roof Stadium

June 3, 1989: The SkyDome opens in Toronto, next-door to the CN Tower. It is the 1st stadium with a retractable roof.

The last competitive sporting event at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto was held on May 28. The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Chicago White Sox, 7-5. The Jays went on a weeklong roadtrip, and then opened the SkyDome.

Exhibition Stadium

Exhibition Stadium had been home to the Canadian Football League's Toronto Argonauts since 1959, and the Jays since their debut in 1977. It may have been the single worst stadium in Major League Baseball since the debut of concrete and steel stadiums, and football fans didn't like it, either. The 1982 Grey Cup, which the host Argonauts lost to the Edmonton Eskimos (now the Edmonton Elks), became known as the Rain Bowl, and fans chanted, "We want a dome!" In 1989, they got their wish.

Exhibition Stadium was demolished in 1999. In 2007, BMO Field, current home of the Argonauts and soccer’s Toronto FC, was built on the site. The Argonauts moved there in 2016.

In 1992, the Baltimore Orioles opened Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the 1st "retro ballpark," making the SkyDome obsolete before its 3rd anniversary. But not totally: As of the Autumn of 2020, there were 6 teams in Major League Baseball with retractable-roof stadiums: Toronto, Arizona, Seattle, Milwaukee, Miami and Texas; and 11 in the NFL: Houston, Detroit, Seattle, Arizona, Indianapolis, Dallas, Minnesota, Atlanta, Las Vegas, and one for the two Los Angeles teams.

Roof closed

The SkyDome was renamed the Rogers Centre in 2005, following its purchase by broadcast executive Ted Rogers, who had bought the Blue Jays in 2000. In spite of all the great sports figures who have called the building home, he is the only person with a statue outside it, erected after his death in 2008.

The Rogers Centre hosted back-to-back World Series in 1992 and 1993; and the Grey Cup in 1989, 1992, 2007, 2012 and 2016. From 2008 to 2013, the Buffalo Bills played one "home game" a season there. 

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June 3, 1989 was a Saturday. Football was out of season. The hockey season ended 9 days earlier, with the Calgary Flames beating the Montreal Canadiens. The NBA Playoffs were between the Conference Finals and the Finals, and the Detroit Pistons beat the Los Angeles Lakers.

These games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The Toronto Blue Jays were on their between-stadiums roadtrip, beating the Boston Red Sox, 10-2 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The New York Yankees lost to the Milwaukee Brewers, 2-0 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Richard Dotson went the distance for the loss, but it took 3 Brewer pitchers to complete the 5-hit shutout: Bill Krueger for 5 innings, Mark Knudson for 3 1/3rd, and Dan Plesac for 2/3rds. Robin Yount, Paul Molitor and Don Mattingly each went 0-for-4. Rickey Henderson went 0-for-2 with 2 walks.

* The New York Mets beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 9-3 at Shea Stadium. Darryl Strawberry and Howard Johnson hit home runs in support of Ron Darling. Barry Bonds went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The Montreal Expos beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 7-5 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Atlanta Braves, 4-0 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. Don Robinson only went 3 innings, was replaced by Atlee Hammaker, who went 5, ended up as the winning pitcher, Mike LaCoss pitched the 9th inning, completing the 5-hit shutout.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the San Diego Padres, 6-2 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. Tony Gwynn went 3-for-4 with a home run.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Detroit Tigers, 4-2 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. Cal Ripken hit a home run.

* A doubleheader was split at Comiskey Park in Chicago. The Minnesota Twins won the opener, 5-4. The Chicago White Sox won the nightcap, 2-1.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, 6-5 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Tom Pagnozzi hit a sacrifice fly to bring Ozzie Smith home with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

* The Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 5-4 at the Astrodome in Houston. This game went a shocking 22 innings. It gets to the point where pitcher Fernando Valenzuela became the Dodger 1st baseman in the 21st inning. Finally, in the bottom of the 22nd inning, Rafael Ramírez singled Bill Doran home with the winning run.

* The California Angeles beat the Kansas City Royals, 4-3 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). George Brett did not play.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Cleveland Indians, 7-0 at the Oakland Coliseum. Bob Welch pitched 8 innings of 7-hit shutout ball, and Eric Plunk completed an 8-hit shutout.

* And the Texas Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners, 6-1 at the Kingdome in Seattle. Nolan Ryan allows just 1 hit, a single by Harold Reynolds.