ON SACRED GROUND: THE BIRTHPLACE OF CLEVELAND BASEBALL!!

                                                         

( all photos and videos courtesy of 216 Sports Network photography and The Baseball Heritage Museum)

         All my life I have been a baseball fan. My two favorite players of all time are Ken Griffey Jr. and  Albert Belle. As a kid growing up my friends and i would play games upon games of baseball from sun up to sun down. I even went so far as to be the kid with the best swing on the street( i tried my hardest to emulate my swing to look like Griffey's). 

As I grew up i saw the wars between the Indians and Mariners in the playoffs. Two Indians' World Series appearances. The Home run race between Sammy Sosa and Mark Mcgwire. On top of playing the numerous baseball video games that came out every year, and of course the magical 2016 year the Indians had before falling to the Cubs in the World Series( I still think Rick Vaughn should have been in attendance!). 

                        (For those of you wondering, yes there was women's baseball, GO PEACHES!)

What I didn't realize was that just a few miles away from my house in Cleveland's midtown sits a hidden gem not a lot of people know about. That said gem is historic League Park. The birthplace of Cleveland baseball! For those that do not know about League Park here is a short history. League Park was built in 1891 as a wooden structure and then rebuilt with concrete and steel in 1910. The stadium would be the home for the Cleveland Spiders(1891-1899), Cleveland Lake Shores(1900), The Cleveland Indians( 1901-1932, 1934-1946), and the Cleveland Buckeyes of the Negro League(1942-1950). In between hosting baseball League Park was also host to the Cleveland Tigers of the NFL( 1916-1922), Cleveland Indians/Bulldogs( 1924-1927), the Cleveland (now L.A.) Rams(1937,1942,1944-45), and the western reserve(now Case Western Reserve University) Red Cats( 1929-1932, 1934-1941, 1947-1949).

League Parks sits on what is now E.66th and Lexington Avenue, and is arguably the biggest site in the area. So much history sits in this park. If you're wondering what kind of history I'll fill you in. In 1891 famed pitcher Cy Young threw the first pitch in League Park history and leads the Cleveland Spiders to a win over the Cincinnati Reds 12-3. In October and 1920 the Cleveland Indians Beat the Brooklyn Robins(now Dodgers) to win their first World Series title in team history, But that wasn't the only first in the park. Elmer Smith hit the First Grand Slam home run in series history, Jim Bagby hit the first home run by a pitcher in a World Series game, and Bill Wambsganss executed the first and so far only unassisted triple play in World Series history! To add to the stigma, League Park was also the site where Baseball Hall of Famer George "Babe" Ruth hit his 500th home run and was the first player in history to achieve this milestone. The most special feat completed on League Park soil was in 1945 when the Cleveland Buckeyes won the Negro League World Series. 

                                                ( scale model of League park in 1910)

I was fortunate enough to take a tour of League park and the Baseball Heritage Museum which resides in the original ticket office of League Park. I was also able to interview the founder of the Baseball Heritage Museum in League Park Bob Zimmer and here is what he had to say...

Q: What sparked the idea for the Museum? 

Bob Zimmer: In 1997 when Cleveland was hosting the All-Star game. I was working at my Dad's Jewelry store. I saw this as a opportunity to bring in new business and clients. A friend of mine Jack Caine who was following the Negro Leagues suggested I contact Wilmer Fields who was president of the Negro League Baseball Players Association at the time. He was here for a one day event where life, and experiences as a Negro League player was discussed. Wilmer planted the seed for what is now the Baseball Heritage Museum at League Park here in Cleveland.

Q: Where was the original Museum located?

Bob Zimmer: The original Museum was in a building that we owned on E. 4th street which was also home to the Krause Costume Company back at the turn of the century. They provided costumes for the theatres throughout the country.We were looking at converting the upper floors into a museum to talk about Negro League Baseball. It took some time and got some support. After the second time E. 4th street was being renovated we decided to think about moving the museum. Thankfully Vern Fuller who was a former Indians player who hosted a number of events and meetings about how the museum could succeed and expanding the focus on more than just Negro League baseball. When we moved we were at the Colonial Market Place( now the 5th street Arcade), Then I sat in on a meeting on transportation livable communities initiative which included League Park. I would be remised if I didn't mention that if it wasn't for Fannie Lewis we would not be where we are now. That was the start and then we got involved with the restoration of League Park and we made the decision to move from our downtown location into the ticket office of League Park which is the home of Cleveland baseball.

Q: How do you feel about having the museum on the site of League Park?

Bob Zimmer: It's really inspirational. League Park is really holy ground for Cleveland baseball. from the Spiders, to the Naps, to the Indians. The 1920 World Championship was won on this field. The dimensions are exactly the same as they were when the park was originally built. The Cleveland Buckeyes won their championship in 1945 on this field. We will actually be celebrating the Buckeyes in September as well as Negro League Baseball each month and will continue until September of 2025 when the Buckeyes won their 1945 championship. Of course 2024 is a great year for the museum when we helped cut the ribbon so to speak as that was the year the museum moved into the ticket office of League Park back in 2014.

Q: Will we ever see expansion to League Park?

Bob Zimmer: Probably not. There won't be any Grand stands built to hold twenty-five thousand people, but I think that the reality is that this place is so iconic and unique world wide that the traffic that comes through and importance of this park make the stories told last forever.

Q: What's next for the museum, any expansion plans?

Bob Zimmer: We are looking at doing more events. Getting out into the community more. League Park academy has about one-hundred twenty-five kids that get to hone their skills and learn more about the sport of baseball. We have great staff including Auntie Brenda Vereen, Michael Cunningham, and Ricardo Rodrigues that help keep the museum running. We will also have events coming up such as "Catch with mom" for mother's day where mothers and children can come up and play catch with their children on the field. We will have a ton of events coming up for people to come in and see the museum and step on the field.

                                                (The view from home plate to center field)

I actually had a chance to step on the field and walk the same bases as "Babe" Ruth, Satchel Paige, Cy Young and many others. stepping to the same batters box as Ruth when he hit his 500th home run. Walking on the same Pitchers mound as Satchel Paige as he got ready for another inning was as breathtaking as you could ever imagine. Yes, the Baseball Hall of Fame is on my bucket list as a sports fan, But if you actually want to see a historic site and walk on the same field as baseball legends, you can't do any better than the Baseball Heritage Museum at League park. 

For more information about hours of operation or upcoming events, head over to www.baseballheritagemuseum.com.