Crosley Field Scoreboard, 1967
Photographer: Sarge Marsh
Photo Subject: Crosley Field, Cincinnati, July 30, 1967 - Cincinnati Reds' Pete Rose in left field with one of baseball’s best scoreboards in the background. The 58-foot Art Deco-style scoreboard with a seven-foot Longines clock perched on top was added in 1957 and it took five people to man it. Note the fifteen-degree slope of the field called ‘the Terrace’ by local fans.
Fun Fact: Reds team historian Greg Rhodes on the topic of the Terrace:
"If you were to launch into a conversation with any random person who saw a game at Crosley, it would take about a minute before the Terrace came up. It was such an odd little feature, and everyone remembers it."
Crosley Field was the home of the Reds from 1912 to 1970, although it was called Redland Field from 1912 to 1933. The street behind left and center fields was about six feet higher than the playing field, and when the stadium was built, the natural grade of the land was left intact. Beginning about 20 feet from the concrete outfield wall, the ground sloped upward toward street level.
When you look at the photo, you see left fielder Pete Rose playing very deep for rookie pitcher Joe Niekro. Niekro was by no means a power-hitter pitcher, and if you look at the scoreboard you can see his batting average is .067. So why is an experienced outfielder like Pete Rose playing deep for a .067 hitter with a 1 and 2 count on him.
"Crosley Field was a tough place for outfielders to play," said Frank Robinson, who played left field for the Reds from 1956-65. "You couldn't just run up the Terrace, you had to climb it. And if there was a ball over your head, you could never climb it fast enough to make a play against the wall. Most times, if a ball hit that wall, it would come off like a shot, and it would be the shortstop who retrieved it," Robinson recalled.
It seems the best strategy to play the Terrace was to play deep, on the edge of the Terrace. It was better to sprint in to catch a short fly than risk falling on your face chasing a ball that might go over your head.
Painting Detail: Printed on 13 ” x 19” canvas and painted using Schmincke Mussini and Marshall’s oil paints. Finer details were made using Prismacolor pencils.
Acknowledgement: Mike Dyer, Cincinnati Enquirer, “Crosley Field: A Chapter in our History”.