The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1909-11-12
SdIlV HChl DdIUTUdy. NC IIIIc-U
Norfolk. Position. Columbus
cRowplNe BACK RLEAcHERlTEs.
More Grandstand Room Is Required In
the Big Parks Each Year.

the Big Parks Each Year.
While the bleacherite will never,
let us hope, be eliminated from base
ball, he is being crowded back from
his old position along the foul lines
to small stands erected back Of the
outfield says the Philadelphia Even
ing Telegraph. The tendency of the
club owners Is to find more room for
grandstands, and the old style Of hav-
twice as many fans as can gather
in the grandstand is being reversed.
The Chicago National League club
was probably the first to extend the
grandstand down the foul lines further
than first and third base. This was
done merely by putting a cover over
the bleachers and connecting the
structure with the grandstand. When
Shibe park in Philadelphia was built
the proportion of grandstand seats
to bleacher space became larger than
it was at Columbia park, although the
structures were built on the old plan
Of making the former extend only as
far as the base bags.
The New York National League
club, instead of building new struc-
lures, took up the Chicago idea of roof
ing the bleachers and erecting open
stands around the entire field. Forbes
Field at Pittsburg, is what might be
termed a "rich mans park" The
grandstand there starts at the right
Hn1H
around the home plate and down the
left field foul line to well beyond third
base. The bleacher at this point is
only about one half as big as the
left fed sun gallery" at Shibe park.
In addition there is a small bleacher
back of center field and few rows
of seats extending at an angle from
the grandstand to the center field
bleacher.
In Pittsburg the capacity Of the
grandstand, which is upwards of
eighteen thousand, takes UP sixty per
cent of all those that can be accomo-
dated inside the park when a game
is played under National commission
rules.
Three new stands will be con-
| structed at major league parks before
next season opens-Chicago, Cleveland
and Detroit. The Chicago American
| League club is building an immense
| concrete and steel structure, which,
it is claimed, will seat thirty thous-
and persons. The Forbes park plan
/ is followed, except that where Pitts
has a bleacher in left field, at Chi
cago this structure will be covered
and will be called pavilion" Every
bleacher seat will be back of the out.
! fields.
While the magnates have no desire to
discriminate against the bleacher boys,
they have undoubtedly been forced to
encroach upon the space of these best
of all patrons by the demand from
the class that can pay more for tick
cts, During the past five years the
percentage of people who are willing
to pay the highest price asked for
seat, has grown immensely, and in
! baseball as well as In football, 1t
is getting to be case of where It
requires a pull as well as the coin
to get the best tickets on big oc.
casions.
There was time when Philadel.
phia park, with its cantilever, capable
OF seating about six thousand per-
sons. led all ball parks. By next sea.
son the list of major league grounds
that will surpass the once famous
structure at Philadelphia park will
include Shibe park, Forbes Field, the
two Chicago parks and the Polo
grounds In New York. With the Phil.
lies as we'll as the Boston Ameri.
cana and the New rOck Americans.