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The namesake of this fine establishment and the home to some of Philadelphia's best baseball, Shibe Park adorns this tee. Built in 1909, Shibe Park was revolutionary in its time. It was the first steel and concrete ballpark in America, built by the same engineering staff that had built Philly's first skyscraper, the Witherspoon Building (which still stands, a block away from our store). It was luxurious, larger than any ballpark in the country, and pricey, with a half million dollar pricetag. It was also an immediate success, hailed by the Philadelphia Public Ledger as "a palace for fans, the most beautiful and capacious baseball structure in the world."
With the A's team starting a dynasty, the park was packed the first few years. The 1910, 1911, and 1913 A's teams all won the World Series, and went but lost in 1914. The Athletics would win twice again, in 1929 and 1930, followed by a narrow 7-game loss in 1931. The beautiful ballpark, located at 21st and Lehigh, had hosted 7 World Series in its first 22 years.
The Phillies moved into Shibe in 1938, after the nearby Baker Bowl fell into disrepair. The two teams were both awful in the 1940s, and in 1954, the A's left town for Kansas City. The Phillies became the only game in town, as owner Bob Carpenter reluctantly bought a stadium that had no parking lot and was in a neighborhood that was headed downhill. The Phillies became desperate to move out, and finally did so when the Vet was built in 1970.
Shibe Park played host to 8 World Series, two All-Star games, and where Ted Williams had gone 6-8 in a doubleheader in the final game of the 1941 season, raising his average over .400. It was also where Lou Gehrig hit four home runs in a game, and came about a foot from hitting a fifth.
The stadium's concrete and steel construction served as the inspiration for two ballparks built soon after Shibe was. Fenway was completed in 1912 and Wrigley in 1914.
Shirt is a Next Level 60/40 combed ringspun cotton/polyester, and artwork was done by Philadelphia artist Scott Siano.
Part of the Shibe Originals collection - designs by Philly artists and exclusively available at Shibe Vintage Sports.
