Baltimore Orioles stadium history may seem a bit boring on the surface. After all, the Birds haven’t moved around much during their seven decades in Charm City.
Truth is, though, plenty of interesting stuff has gone down on the orang and black playing fields.
Here are 50 facts you need to know about Baltimore Orioles stadium history.
- The Baltimore Orioles moved to the city in 1954 and have primarily played in two different stadiums since then.
- The first stadium the Orioles played in was Memorial Stadium, which was built in 1950 and served as the team’s home until 1991.
- Memorial Stadium had a capacity of about 54,000 seats for baseball games.
- The Orioles played their first game at Memorial Stadium on April 15, 1954, against the Chicago White Sox.
- The Orioles won their first World Series championship in 1966 while playing at Memorial Stadium.
- The final game at Memorial Stadium was played on October 6, 1991, against the Detroit Tigers.
- Oriole Park at Camden Yards opened on April 6, 1992, as the Orioles’ new home stadium.
- Camden Yards was the first retro-style ballpark in Major League Baseball.
- The stadium was built on the site of an old railroad yard in downtown Baltimore.
- The seating capacity of Camden Yards is about 45,000.
- Camden Yards has a natural grass playing surface.
- Camden Yards features the B&O Warehouse, located beyond the right field fence.
- The B&O Warehouse is over 1000 feet long and is used as office space by the Orioles.
- Camden Yards hosted the 1993 All-Star Game.
- Cal Ripken, Jr., broke Lou Gehrig’s record for consecutive games played at Camden Yards on September 6, 1995.
- Through 2022, the Orioles have never played a World Series game at Camden Yards.
- Camden Yards was briefly closed to fans during the 2015 Baltimore protests following the death of Freddie Gray.
- The Orioles played a game in an empty stadium on April 29, 2015, against the Chicago White Sox due to safety concerns related to the protests. This was the first Major League Baseball game ever played without fans in attendance.
- Oriole Park at Camden Yards has hosted numerous concerts and other events in addition to baseball games.
- Camden Yards has been used as a filming location for several movies and TV shows, including “The Wire” and “Veep.”
- The Orioles wore throwback uniforms to honor the Negro League Baltimore Elite Giants during a game against the Astros on the road a Minutemaid Park on May 30, 2014.
- Oriole Park at Camden Yards has a restaurant and bar located in center field called the “Center Field Roof Deck Bar.”
- Camden Yards features the Orioles Hall of Fame, honoring notable players and figures from the team’s history.
- Oriole Park at Camden Yards was designed by the architecture firm HOK Sport (now Populous).
- The design of Camden Yards inspired a trend in Major League Baseball of building retro-style ballparks.
- Oriole Park at Camden Yards has a bronze statue of Babe Ruth, who was born in Baltimore and began his professional career with the Orioles.
- The Orioles have retired the numbers of six players: Brooks Robinson (#5), Cal Ripken Jr. (#8), Frank Robinson (#20), Eddie Murray (#33), Jim Palmer (#22), and Earl Weaver (#4).
- Oriole Park at Camden Yards has a section of bleachers called the “Eutaw Street Reserve,” which are located above Eutaw Street and provide a unique view of the ballpark.
- Oriole Park at Camden Yards has hosted multiple playoff games, including American League Championship Series games.
- Camden Yards has a restaurant located on Eutaw Street called “Boog’s Barbecue,” which is named after, and owned by, former Orioles player Boog Powell.
- Oriole Park at Camden Yards has a scoreboard in center field that is shaped like the front of an old-fashioned steam engine train.
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