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Stadiums
Arlington Stadium
By Wikipedia
Arlington Stadium was a baseball stadium located in Arlington,
Texas, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. It served as the home
for the Texas Rangers (MLB) from 1972 until 1993, when the team moved into
The Ballpark at Arlington (now Ameriquest Field in Arlington).
Left
Field - 330 ft
Left-Center - 380 ft
Center Field - 400 ft
Right-Center - 380 ft
Right Field - 330 ft
Backstop - 60 ft
History
Arlington Stadium, originally named Turnpike Stadium, was
designed to be a stadium for both the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth and
was used as a minor league ballpark for seven years. In 1972, the
Washington Senators announced their intentions to move to Texas and the
stadium underwent a rapid expansion and a name change to "Arlington
Stadium."
The circular layout of the stadium, with a disproportionate number of
outfield seats (thus limiting potential revenue), was by no means an ideal
baseball facility (it was the late 1970s before an upper deck was finally
installed above the infield seating areas), but it would remain the
Rangers' home for over two decades.
The stadium, though, had two advantages. First, before installation of
a wrap-around scoreboard, the predominant gusty winds from the south would
kill many fly balls that would otherwise have been home runs. Second, the
large number of metal bleacher seats would come in handy on Bat Night, the
promotional game where children under age 12 would receive (most years) a
real bat that could be pounded on the bleachers. As Bat Night would (in
some years) be the only sell-out, the spectacle of 10,000 kids banging
their bats all at once would create a deafening sound.
The stadium eventually began to show its age and inadequacy, and the
City of Arlington approved the construction of a new stadium for the Texas
Rangers. The last game was played in Arlington Stadium on October 3, 1993,
resulting in a 4-1 win by the visiting Kansas City Royals, witnessed by
41,039 fans. Following the 1993 season, the Texas Rangers moved to the
nearby Ballpark in Arlington and Arlington Stadium was demolished in 1994.
The foul poles and home plate from Arlington Stadium were moved to the new
stadium.
Arlington Stadium never saw a playoff game or an All-Star Game, but was
host to several of Nolan Ryan's greatest moments, including his 5,000th
strikeout and his seventh no-hitter.
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STADIUM
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Stadiums
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