Baseball's Everest


This is the view from the top row of the upper left field stands at Cleveland Stadium. It's June 1992, just before a Yankees/Indians game. Rumor had it that a seat here was the farthest from home plate at any major league ballpark. Yes, higher even than the nosebleed seats at Shea Stadium. A long way from the action, and until baseball's resurgence in Drew Carey's hometown, often a long way from other fans. The Indians didn't draw well in that cavernous park whose hulking configurations were far better suited to football than the national pastime. Two years later, the Indians moved into the cozier confines of Jacobs Field where one could never be as far away or, between the overhang and pillars, as shrouded. I wonder if during the time the promotionally savvy Bill Veeck owned the franchise, whether a Binoculars Day promotion was staged? They probably didn't need to -- briefly, before home games were televised, the Indians held the record for the highest season attendance.

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