Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Way Out in Left Field
From Lake Claremont Press friend, Brian A. Bernardoni:
The Way Out in Left Field Society is honored to announce that Chicago Cubs baseball legend and Hall of Fame Shortstop Ernie Banks and Dutchie Caray of the West Side Rooters Social Club will be part of the official ceremony to unveil the West Side Grounds Historic Plaque, and they want you to be there as well: Saturday, September 6, 10 a.m. –Noon, 912 S. Wood Street.
Modern baseball history started here.
It was the home of the first intra-city battle for the World Series, where in 1906, the home-team Chicago Cubs hosted their cross-town rivals, the White Sox. In fact, at the West Side Grounds the Chicago Cubs won four Pennants and back-to-back World Series titles. It was home to "Tinkers to Evers to Chance,” the great double-play combination. The phrase way out in left field was born here.
It all happened at a park at 912 S. Wood called the West Side Grounds, the home to beloved Chicago Cubs between 1893 and 1915. In 1916 the Chicago Cubs moved to Wrigley Field at Clark and Addison after their purchase by Charles Weeghman.
And like most history, it has largely remained a forgotten site. Until now.
For the past three years, a group of die-hard, regular-guy Chicago fans known as The Way Out in Left Field Society* have been raising money and working with the Illinois Historical Society, the Illinois Medical District Commission (IMD), and the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) to officially mark this historic location.
Their efforts have garnered support from not only the IMD and UIC but also various baseball organizations including the Chicago Cubs, the West Side Rooters Social Club, and the Society of American Baseball Researchers to name a few.
So join Ernie and Dutchie on Saturday, September 6, as supporters and officials from the Illinois Medical District, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Alderman Robert Fioretti, The Way Out of Left Field Society, West Side Rooters Social Club, and the Illinois Historical Society gather at Taylor and Wood, currently a part of Chicago’s Illinois Medical District, to designate the site of the former West Side Grounds with a historic marker. A celebration in keeping with this park and the game we all love follows.
The mission of The Way Out In Left Field Society is to promote, explore, and discover the hidden, forgotten, eccentric, and historical places, people, and occurrences of baseball, and to enjoy the legacy of the game with other fans who are just as passionate, odd, strange, misguided, and peculiar as the people who were considered way out in left field.
* * * * *
* The name is taken from a phrase we believe was born at the West Side Grounds. Although challenged and debated over the years, the most logical explanation for the phrase is that it was first used at the West Side Grounds. A mental hospital called the Neuropsychiatric Institute was located directly behind the left field wall. The Institute housed mental patients who could be heard making strange and bizarre comments within listening distance of players and fans. Thus, if someone said that you were “way out in left field,” the person was questioning your sanity and comparing you with a mental-health patient.
Ernie Banks and Dutchie Caray Help Commemorate Chicago's West Side Grounds, The First Championship Home of the Chicago Cubs
The Way Out in Left Field Society is honored to announce that Chicago Cubs baseball legend and Hall of Fame Shortstop Ernie Banks and Dutchie Caray of the West Side Rooters Social Club will be part of the official ceremony to unveil the West Side Grounds Historic Plaque, and they want you to be there as well: Saturday, September 6, 10 a.m. –Noon, 912 S. Wood Street.
Modern baseball history started here.
It was the home of the first intra-city battle for the World Series, where in 1906, the home-team Chicago Cubs hosted their cross-town rivals, the White Sox. In fact, at the West Side Grounds the Chicago Cubs won four Pennants and back-to-back World Series titles. It was home to "Tinkers to Evers to Chance,” the great double-play combination. The phrase way out in left field was born here.
It all happened at a park at 912 S. Wood called the West Side Grounds, the home to beloved Chicago Cubs between 1893 and 1915. In 1916 the Chicago Cubs moved to Wrigley Field at Clark and Addison after their purchase by Charles Weeghman.
And like most history, it has largely remained a forgotten site. Until now.
For the past three years, a group of die-hard, regular-guy Chicago fans known as The Way Out in Left Field Society* have been raising money and working with the Illinois Historical Society, the Illinois Medical District Commission (IMD), and the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) to officially mark this historic location.
Their efforts have garnered support from not only the IMD and UIC but also various baseball organizations including the Chicago Cubs, the West Side Rooters Social Club, and the Society of American Baseball Researchers to name a few.
So join Ernie and Dutchie on Saturday, September 6, as supporters and officials from the Illinois Medical District, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Alderman Robert Fioretti, The Way Out of Left Field Society, West Side Rooters Social Club, and the Illinois Historical Society gather at Taylor and Wood, currently a part of Chicago’s Illinois Medical District, to designate the site of the former West Side Grounds with a historic marker. A celebration in keeping with this park and the game we all love follows.
The mission of The Way Out In Left Field Society is to promote, explore, and discover the hidden, forgotten, eccentric, and historical places, people, and occurrences of baseball, and to enjoy the legacy of the game with other fans who are just as passionate, odd, strange, misguided, and peculiar as the people who were considered way out in left field.
* * * * *
* The name is taken from a phrase we believe was born at the West Side Grounds. Although challenged and debated over the years, the most logical explanation for the phrase is that it was first used at the West Side Grounds. A mental hospital called the Neuropsychiatric Institute was located directly behind the left field wall. The Institute housed mental patients who could be heard making strange and bizarre comments within listening distance of players and fans. Thus, if someone said that you were “way out in left field,” the person was questioning your sanity and comparing you with a mental-health patient.
Labels: Baseball, Chicago Cubs, Chicago history, White Sox
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this should be a great time! Brian Bernardoni and his buddies have put heart and soul into this project, and i am so excited for them to have it come to fruition!
I wish I was at their games.. Seeing it on the Tv set wasnt really as exciting..
Being there with adrenaline fully pumped into your vains really tells a lot about how much love we really have for the game. I guess its in our hearts to feel the players pain, the players game, and as a fan hope to make it to fame.. :)
Chicago Laser Hair Removal
Being there with adrenaline fully pumped into your vains really tells a lot about how much love we really have for the game. I guess its in our hearts to feel the players pain, the players game, and as a fan hope to make it to fame.. :)
Chicago Laser Hair Removal
We have a new book for Chicago sports fans coming out this summer, by Anbritt Stengele, owner of Beverly's Sports Traveler sports tourism company. It's called Sports Traveler Chicago. Stengele's a former competitive figure skater and all-round sports fan who brings her passion for Chicago sports teams to this book. In the meantime, read her amazing story at sportstraveler.net.
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