AngelsWin.com Today: # 34 – April 19, 1966, Official Opening of Anaheim Stadium | Top-50 Greatest Moments in Angels Baseball

[AngelsWin.com]

When the Los Angeles Angels were born in 1961, home was a more transient notion than a place for them to call their own.

They spent their inaugural season at tiny Wrigley Field, a former minor league ballpark ill suited for Major League play with its 345-foot power alleys and paltry 20,457 seating capacity. The next year, the Angels moved into newly constructed Dodger Stadium, or Chavez Ravine as the American Leaguers called it, where they appeared as sub lessees who got to use the field while the “real” tenants were away.
The Angels needed their own home.

In the ensuing years, Angels owner Gene Autry was courted by many southland cities, including a strong wooing from Long Beach, but eventually settled on Anaheim, which offered a 160-acre parcel near the intersection of three freeways. Ground was broken Aug. 31, 1964, on the $24 million facility, and 19 months later it was ready for the Angels to move in.

The new stadium featured 43,204 seats and outfield dimensions derived from a scientific study intended to insure offensive balance. But the real calling card was the $1 million “Big A” scoreboard in left field. At 230 feet, it was the tallest structure in Orange County at the time and featured a state-of-the-art video display that could not only show fans the score and lineups, but also lead cheers and highlight statistical milestones.

The Angels hosted the San Francisco Giants for a pre-season exhibition at their new stadium on April 9, 1966, during which Willie Mays hit the “unofficial” first home run in Anaheim Stadium history.

Ten days later, the stadium officially opened Major League play, with Tommy John and the White Sox facing off against Marcelino Lopez and the Angels. Outfielder Rick Reichardt connected for a solo home run, the stadium’s first, in the second inning, giving the Angels a lead they’d hold until the sixth. But the Sox tied it on a Tommie Agee solo homer in the sixth and took the lead with two in the eighth to hand the Angels a 3-1 defeat in their home opener. Jim Fregosi’s first inning double was the stadium’s first hit.

The Angels notched their first Anaheim home victory the next night, defeating the White Sox, 4-3, in 11 innings.

The new location and facility were both a hit with fans. The Angels drew only 566,727 fans during the 1965 season at Chavez Ravine, but nearly tripled that figure to 1.4 million their first year in Anaheim.

Since that first season, the venue has hosted the 1967, 1989 and 2010 MLB All-Star Game and the 2006 World Baseball Classic. It has also witnessed Hall of Fame achievements such as Don Sutton’s 300th victory, Rod Carew’s and George Brett’s 3,000th hits, and Reggie Jackson’s 500th home run. While tenants in Anaheim/Edison Field/Angel Stadium, the Angels have won eight division titles and one World Series Championship.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CAL/CAL196604190.shtml

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[Chuck]

Anyone here vividly remember this moment in 1966? 

[Angel Oracle]

I was still in Charlotte when Angel Stadium debuted, less than two months from moving back to SoCal at age 9.

At the time, only 2 of those 3 freeways existed as the 57 would not open until the 1970s.   Orange County looked totally different when I moved there late in 1967, from what it looks like today.  The 55 was a two lanes in each direction freeway, the 91 ended at the 55 with Santa Ana Canyon Road being the main highway into Corona, and Irvine Blvd. was just a one lane each way highway with orange groves from just east of Tustin all the way to the old El Toro Marine Base.   Essentially, only Mission Viejo existed by the 5 fwy from Tustin to San Juan Capistrano.   The 405 dead ended at Harbor Blvd. 

[Chuck]

How about @tomsred @LAAMike @Bruce Nye & others?

[Bruce Nye]

I didn't move to SoCal until 1968.  Then I became an Angels fan.  

[tomsred]

8 hours ago, Chuckster70 said:

How about @tomsred @LAAMike @Bruce Nye & others?

I didn't move to Southern California until 1978.  I became an Angels fan that year.  I lived in Camarillo at that time, and it was a long drive to an Angels game.  Most of the time I listened to the game on a radio in my front yard, with lots of static and interference.  I'm lucky I still have any hearing left.

[LAAMike]

I guess Chuck is referring to my general "oldness".  I cannot remember the first game I saw at the Big A.  I do remember going to the Coliseum when the Dodgers first came to LA.  I also remember the California Sun and the Anaheim Amigos.  I now live in Camarillo and like "tomsred" find that this is a long haul to Angel Stadium. 

[Angel Oracle]

Anaheim Amigos (ABA) and Southern California Sun (WFL), now there's two blasts from the past.

Never went to an Amigos game, but did go to the first Sun reg season home game ever in 1974.

Didn't the Amigos move to L.A. (name chg to Stars) and then Utah, before folding along with most of the ABA teams in 1976?

[makepeac]

Regarding the late WFL, one bit of trivia. Instead of using standard first down chains on the sidelines they adopted a new technology called the dicker-rod invented by Tustin resident George Dicker whose son Keith went to THS in the same timeframe as myself and AO. Even though it only took one person to man instead of the standard three man chain crew, it never caught on. 

[greginpsca]

On 2/27/2017 at 8:58 AM, Chuckster70 said:

Anyone here vividly remember this moment in 1966? 

I remember Mays hitting the 1st homerun in the preseason game.

[yk9001]

Good story.  AO, what location were they looking at in Long Beach?

[Angel Oracle]

Somewhere near downtown LB, don't remember the exact location.

One possible future site, albeit at least 12 years down the road, could be around/in El Dorado Park, in addition to the Great Park.   El Dorado Park is near multiple major freeways, while Great Park is near two toll roads and one major freeway.