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The scene of baseball's first ML night game on May 24, 1935, Crosley Field opened in 1912 as Redland Field, but was renamed when Powell Crosley bought the Reds in 1934. Originally 360' down each line and 420' to center, the park was open almost a decade before Pat Duncan hit the first over-the-fence home run, on June 2, 1921. In January 1937 the park virtually disappeared when a massive flood covered it with over 20' of water, and Reds pitchers Lee Grissom and Gene Schott posed for a wire-service photo rowing a boat over the center field fence. A billboard behind the left field fence advertised "Hit this sign and win a Seibler suit," which the Reds' Wally Post did a record 11 times. Crosley Field was abandoned by the Reds for Riverfront Stadium. The city of Cincinnati impounded towed cars there before it was torn down and then reconstructed on a Reds fan's farm in nearby Kentucky. (SCL)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » April 11, 1912: In Cincinnati, the Reds open Redland Field, the first sell-and-concrete stadium, with a 10–6 win over the Cubs. » April 21, 1912: Reds SS Jimmy Esmond, a .195 hitter, hits the first home run at Redland (later, Crosley) Field, off Bill Steele. The inside-the-park blow is his only roundtripper of the year. Nobody will hit one out of the Cincinnati park until Pat Duncan does it on June 2, 1921. Esmond's 3-run homer leads the Reds to a 7–1 over the Cardinals. » May 18, 1912: The $400,000 Redland Field is dedicated in Cincinnati. A number of dignitaries, including Pennsylvania governor John Tener, AL Prexy Ban Johnson, and White Sox owner Charles Comiskey are on hand. Designed by Harry Hake at a cost of $225,000, the field replaces the aging Palace of the Fans on the same site, and looks very much like the Crosley Field that will eventually replace it. The Reds then delight the 20,000 fans by beating Christy Mathewson and the Giants, 4–3. » August 23, 1914: The Giants lose their 5th straight, to Cincinnati 3–2, and the idle Braves move into a tie for first place. Herb Moran, playing his last game for Cincy before being sold to the Braves, doubles in the game-winner in the 9th. The 3rd place Reds will win all three games with the Giants at Redland Field, but will soon head in the other direction, losing 19 in a row in September to finish last. » August 7, 1915: At Redland Field, New York's Christy Mathewson pitches a five hitter to beat Pete Schneider and the Reds, 5–4. » February 3, 1934: Powel Crosley, local millionaire, heads a syndicate that buys just over half the stock in the Cincinnati Reds from Sidney Weil. No price is announced. Crosley, owner of a 500,000 watt radio station, is on the board of the Central Trust Bank, and it is the bank that had loaned money to Sidney Weil and his syndicate to buy the Reds. Weil was in the process of raising money to pay off the bank when Crosley's purchase takes place. The Reds' home park will be renamed Crosley Field. » May 23, 1936: At Crosley Field, Sammy Byrd hits a grand slam in the bottom of the 9th to give the Reds a 4–3 win over Pittsburgh. Bucs starter Bob Swift loads the bases and reliever Cy Blanton serves up just one pitch to Byrd who lets it fly. Byrd will hit one more homer this year and then retire next March 10 to play professional golf. » January 27, 1937: In Cincinnati, the worst flood in the city's history inundates Crosley Field, covering home plate with as much as 21 feet of water. The lower grandstand is completely covered. Reds pitchers Gene Schott and Lee Grissom row a boat out from the center field wall and the resulting photo appears across the country. » April 28, 1939: At Crosley Field, the Reds skin the Cubs again, as Ival Goodman hits a 3-run homer in the 9th, good for a 7–6 win. » October 7, 1939: The Series resumes at Crosley Field, and Yankee power proves too much for the Reds. Bump Hadley pitches well enough in relief of Lefty Gomez to wrap up a 7-3 victory. Yankees OFCharlie Keller hits 2 HRs. » April 23, 1940: A flood at Crosley Field washes out a game against the St. Louis Cardinals, the first time a flood has caused the postponement of an NL game. The teams will later decide to replay the game on May 13th when both teams will be heading east from St. Louis, but they neglect to inform the NL office. » May 13, 1940: In a replay of their washed-out game of April 23rd called on account of darkness, the Reds and the Cards neglect to inform the league office, and no umpires are assigned to Crosley Field. Coach Jimmy Wilson and P Lon Warneke are pressed into service as umpires before umpire Larry Goetz, at home in Cincinnati on a day off, arrives to officiate. Warneke will later become a full-time umpire, while Wilson will return to active duty at the end of the year and star in the World Series. Johnny Mize of the St. Louis Cardinals hits three home runs, and the Reds Bill Werber has five hits and collects four doubles in a 14-inning, 8–8 tie with the Reds. Mize's is his 3rd 3-homer game, breaking the tie for the National League record he shared with George Kelly. After 1910, there will be only five games this century in which active players umpire: Besides today these are: 1912: Ham Hyatt (Pit-N) and Ed Phelps (Bro-N); 1935: Jocko Conlan (Chi-A); 1941: Johnny Cooney (Bos-N) and Freddie Fitzsimmons (Bro-N); and 1978: Don Leppert (coach, Tor-A) and Jerry Zimmerman (coach, Min-A). (as noted by historian Wayne McElreavy) » May 20, 1941: At Crosley Field, the Reds score six runs in the 9th to defeat the Braves, 9–6. Frank McCormick finishes the scoring with a 3-run homer. » April 27, 1947: The Reds attract their largest recorded attendance—36,961 at Crosley Field, and reward the faithful with a sweep of the Pirates, winning 6–1 and 2–1. » May 13, 1947: At Crosley Field, 27,164 fans watch the Reds beat the Dodgers, 7–5. It is estimated that nearly 9,000 of the fans are black, attracted to the game because of Robinson. As fans head for the exits after the game, the organist plays Bye, Bye, Blackbird. » June 18, 1947: Ewell Blackwell of the Cincinnati Reds no-hits the Boston Braves at Crosley Field 6-0. Rookie Frankie Baumholtz, who played in the NBA the previous winter, collects with four hits. » July 2, 1950: At Crosley Field, Monk Dubiel makes his 4-hitter hold up as the Cubs win 16–0 over the Reds. Andy Pafko drives in five runs with a double, triple and home run, Bill Serena adds a 3-run homer, and Hank Edwards has three RBIs on four hits. » August 26, 1950: Roy Campanella of the Dodgers hits three HRs in a 7–5 win over the Reds at Crosley Field. » April 21, 1951: 22nd Led by Gus Bell, who belts a homer, three doubles and a single, the Pirates defeat the Reds, 7–5. The second game of the twinbill is postponed because of a sloppy Crosley Field. » May 12, 1951: In the 2nd game of a double header, Stan Musial, on the Cards bench because he has flu, pinch hits in the 8th inning and blasts a 3-run homer into the RF stands at Crosley Field. Teammate Bill Howerton had earlier hit a 2-run pinch homer, only the 3rd time in National League history that two pinch hitters have hit four-baggers (it will happen four more times in the 1950s). The Cards win 8–6, after dropping the opener, 7–2. » May 15, 1951: At Crosley Field, Braves P Vern Bickford pitches a 2-hitter, but Ewell Blackwell bests him by allowing one hit, as the Reds win, 1–0. Connie Ryan's 6th inning hit is the 1st off Bickford, and Johnny Pramesa's homer in the 7th is the other. The only Boston hit is a 5th inning double by Bob Elliott. The Reds tie the National League record (set in 1911) for nine innings by going to bat just 24 times. » July 28, 1951: The Giants go 7–0 at Crosley Field this year by defeating the Reds, 3–1. Willie Mays has his third homer in six days and Larry Jansen wins to go 15–2 against the Rhinelanders. » September 25, 1951: At Crosley Field, Reds catcher Johnny Pramesa clouts a grand slam in the 14th inning to defeat the Cardinals, 7–3. » May 24, 1952: At Crosley Field, Reds catcher Andy Seminick drives in six runs with two homers, one a grand slam, in an 11–5 win over St. Louis. » July 14, 1953: The NL wins its fourth All-Star Game in a row, 5-1 in Cincinnati's Crosley Field behind the stellar pitching of Robin Roberts and Warren Spahn. Cardinal OF Enos Slaughter gets two hits, scores twice, and robs Harvey Kuenn of an extra-base blow. » April 24, 1954: At Crosley Field, Wally Post belts a 2-out home run in the 9th inning with a man on to give the Reds a 6–5 win against the Cubs. Kiner and Sauer belt back-to-back home runs for the Cubs in the 7th. » April 28, 1956: Redlegs rookie LF Frank Robinson hits the first HR of his 586 lifetime blasts, off Cub P Paul Minner in Crosley Field. The Cubs lose the opener 9-1. Cincinnati OF Wally Post hits 4 HRs in a doubleheader sweep for the Redlegs. » August 18, 1956: Redlegs OF Bob Thurman hits three consecutive HRs; Ted Kluszewski and Frank Robinson add two each, and Wally Post, one, in a 13-4 win over Milwaukee at Crosley Field. The eight HRs tie a major-league record. » April 29, 1959: At Crosley Field, the Reds outslug the Cubs, 18–8, on 18 hits, including home runs by Robinson, Bell (2), and McMillan. » May 3, 1959: At Crosley Field, Jerry Lynch cracks a 3-run homer in the bottom of the 9th and the Reds top the Dodgers, 6–3. » August 11, 1959: At Crosley Field, Joe Nuxhall fans four Braves in the 6th inning,—Mathews, Adcock, Crandall, and Logan—and 10 overall as the Reds win 4–3 to move into 2nd place. The 3rd strike to Crandall gets by catcher Dutch Dotterer, giving Nuxhall the chance for the four K's. Jim Davis, in 1956, was the last pitcher to K four in a frame. » June 14, 1960: The Cubs sign Danvars, Mass. high school superstar Danny Murphy (.489: 11-0) to a $130,000 contract, making him the highest paid player of the bonus era so far. In four days, the 17-year-old will start in the outfield at Crosley Field when The Reds Jay Hook stops the Cubs and Keith Morehead, 7–1. Murphy will hit just .120 this year and after three seasons drop to the minors. He'll resurface as a pitcher with the White Sox in 1969, one of the few players to make the majors as a position player and pitcher. » August 15, 1960: In the first of two games at Crosley Field, Frank Robinson and Eddie Mathews exchange punches after Robbie slides in hard at 3B in the 7th inning. Robbie comes out on the short end with a swollen eye, bloody nose, and jammed thumb, but comes back in the nitecap with a double and homer to lead the Reds to a 4–0 win. Bob Purkey wins the shutout, despite allowing 11 hits. » September 7, 1960: At Crosley Field, Frank Robinson homers in the 15th inning as the Reds edge the Dodgers, 4–3, Marshall Bridges is the winner in relief, pitching six innings of shutout, and allowing two hits while striking out 7. » September 18, 1960: Pittsburgh's Vern Law joins the 20-win circle with a complete-game 5–3 win in the first game of a Sunday doubleheader at Cincinnati's Crosley Field. » May 4, 1961: At Crosley Field, Reds pitcher Joey Jay pitches a one-hitter to beat the Phils, 4–0. Johnny Callison's 1st-inning single is the only hit. » April 18, 1962: At Crosley Field, the Reds roll over the Dodgers, 14–0. Jim O'Toole tosses a 4-hitter for the win, while Joe Moeller, making his first ML start is kayoed in the 2nd. Pinson has five RBIs. » May 12, 1962: At Crosley Field, the Reds' Joey Jay and the Pirates' Al McBean match goose eggs for nine innings before the Bucs push across two runs in the 10th. The Reds come back with three runs to win, 3–2. Frank Robinson drives in the winning run with a single. » August 20, 1962: At Crosley Field, Frank Robinson connects for a grand slam in the 10th inning as the Reds defeat the Dodgers, 7–3. » April 18, 1963: Johnny Edwards has a grand slam and a sac fly to drive in all the runs in the Reds 5–0 victory over the Giants at Crosley Field. » August 13, 1963: At Crosley Field, the Reds and Giants deal aces as Jim Maloney outpitches Juan Marichal to win, 4–0. Maloney allows just two hits. » September 11, 1963: At Crosley Field, the Reds score nine runs in the 4th enroute to a 14–3 thrashing of the Braves. » May 3, 1964: Trailing the Mets 5–1 in the 7th at Crosley Field, pinch hitter Marty Keough belts a 3-run homer and Hal Smith adds a 2-run pinch single in the 8th for a 6–5 Reds win. » July 1, 1964: At Crosley Field, the Reds score four runs in the bottom of the 9th to tie the Cubs, 5–5. Pete Rose ends the game with a 10th inning homer. » August 11, 1964: At Crosley Field, Joey Jay strikes out 13 Dodgers as the Reds win, 4–2. » September 1, 1964: At Crosley Field, Jim Maloney strikes out 13 in the Reds 2–1 win over Chicago. » April 13, 1965: At Crosley Field, Reds rookie Tony Perez connect for his first homer, a grand slam off Braves hurler Denny Lemaster, to help the Reds win, 8–3. » August 12, 1966: At Crosley Field, long-ball lovers enjoy 11 home runs in one game, tying the most in any contest and setting a major-league record for an extra-inning contest. Art Shamsky hits three for Cincinnati, including two in extra innings. But Pittsburgh prevails 13–11, scoring three in the 13th inning. Shamsky, who did not enter the game until the 8th, when he hits a 2-run homer to put the Reds up 8–7. His solo homer in the 9th ties the score at 9-9, as does his 2-run homer in the 11th. Shamsky's pair of extra-inning homers is a first in the National League, and just the 3rd time ever in the Majors (Vern Stephens, 1943: Willie Kirkland, 1963). Also going deep are Rose, Deron Johnson, Bob Bailey (2), Clemente, Jesse Gonder, and Jerry Lynch. For Lynch, it is his 18th pinch-hit home run, a ML record. » September 23, 1966: At Crosley Field, Reds ace Jim Maloney strikes out 13 in a 7–0 win over the Mets. » June 7, 1967: At Crosley Field, Reds P Gary Nolan strikes out 15 Giants, including Willie Mays four times. But her still loses, 4–3. Willie McCovey belts a 3-run homer in the 8th to tie the game, and reliever Bob Lee allows the last run to score to pin the loss on Nolan. » June 11, 1967: At Crosley Field, Don Pavletich belts a pinch grand slam in the bottom of the 9th to give the Reds an 8–4 win over Houston. » August 8, 1967: At Crosley Field, Reds P Milt Pappas allows two hits in beating Houston, 5–0. » June 23, 1968: At Crosley Field, the Reds tip the Cubs, 9–8, when Don Pavletich hits a 2-out, 2-run double in the 9th inning. » July 18, 1969: At Crosley Field, the Astros take a 9–0 lead after batting in the 6th, only to lose, 10–9. The Reds score a run in the 6th, two in the 7th, and tie it with six in the 8th. Cincy wins it in the 11th when Ted Savage drives in a run off Jack Billingham. » August 4, 1969: The Reds win another squeaker, this time 1–0 over the Mets at Crosley Field. Jim Maloney (5–2) allows two hits and beats Jerry Koosman. » September 27, 1969: Jim Maloney fires a one-hitter in beating Houston, 3–0, at Crosley Field. Joe Morgan's 3rd inning single is the only safety. » April 6, 1970: In the last home opener at Crosley Field, the Reds top the Expos, 5–1, behind Jim Merritt. It is the first win for manager Sparky Anderson. The Reds have three homers in the 4th, when Lee May, Bernie Carbo, and Bobby Tolan connect. It is Carbo's first ML hit. Joe Sparma takes the loss. » April 18, 1970: The Reds score seven runs in the 4th but the Giants roar back to win, 16–9, at Crosley Field. Ron Hunt has a grand slam for SF and Jim Johnson is the winner in his only ML decision. » May 17, 1970: At Crosley Field, Hank Aaron collects his 3,000th hit, a first-inning infield single, and his 570th home run, off Wayne Granger, but the Reds beat Atlanta, 7–6 in 15 innings. Pete Rose's 9th inning homer knots the game at 3–3, and the Reds score another three in the 10th to tie the game at six apiece. The Reds score in the 10th on a double by Tony Perez and homers by Johnny Bench (who starts the game in CF) and Lee May. Don Gullett pitches the last two innings and drives in the winner with a single. Perez is 5-for-7 in the contest. Aaron is collared in game 1, a 5–1 Reds victory. The DH draws 33,217, the largest crowd at Crosley Field since 1947. » May 29, 1970: The Reds strand 16 runners in the first eight innings against the visiting Expos, but win, 6–4, on Bobby Tolan's 9th inning homer. The Expos have never won a game at Crosley Field. » June 24, 1970: Before 28,027, the Reds play their final game at Cincinnati's Crosley Field, beating the Giants 5–4. Johnny Bench and Lee May hit back-to-back homers off Juan Marichal in the 8th for the win.