Tonight is the first game of the 2015 World Series, so I jumped into my Internet-enabled time machine to see what I could find.
The shot above is considered one of the best World Series photos of all time, and centers on University of Pittsburgh students watching the Pirates take on the Yankees from the school’s Cathedral Of Learning building. Note the number of sportcoats in the shot.
The Pirates won the series with what is remembered as the greatest World Series home run ever, the only ninth-inning, game-seven walk-off homer. Just watch the crowd storm the field to honor the conquering hero. Vintage Americana. — CC
I’m native to Pittsburgh, and this World Series game is the stuff of legend for kids growing up in the greater metropolitan area. The game was played at Forbes Field, which no longer exists, and the area is now entirely consumed by the University of Pittsburgh campus. However, the wall from left field where the home run ball crossed over remains in-tact (in front of the business school), and the third base line where Mazeroski ran in to score the winning run of the game is laid in brass bricks on the sidewalk that runs along the west side of Schenley Plaza. I used to walk along it almost every day on my way to class whilst I was in law school.
I recall I was in the third grade, and the teacher allowed anyone to bring in a radio to listen to that last game. Small transistor radios were the rage. I didn’t own one though. We listened to the game and Maz’s home run. Everyone in class cheered, I think school was dismissed early that day.
Forbes Field was in Oakland, just a stones throw from Pitt. Looks kind of dangerous so close to the edge of the top of the Cathedral. I bet no one is allowed on the roof now.
Coats and ties were the order of the day. The first Pirate game I ever attended, I wore a suit and tie. A warm Sunday afternoon game, I took my coat off. Shocking.
Cheers!
A more civil time, as I barely recall. I would have enjoyed living then. It’s all so…what?…crude now. Thanks for the video. I don’t much care for baseball, but I enjoyed this clip.
OK, that may have been the greatest home run to finish a World Series, but did you just see that home run to start THIS World Series???
So now we’ve added baseball to jazz and football as elements of Ivy?
Christian
I barely had time to sit down and I see a guy racing around the bases. First World Series inside the park home run since 1916…Babe Ruth was the pitcher.
Curmudgeon
Yes!
“Greatest” depends. The only other walk off series winning HR, I believe, was that of Joe Carter for Toronto in 1993.