Exhibition Stadium

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Team: Toronto Blue Jays	First Blue Jays Game: April 7, 1977
Opened: 1879	Reopened: 1959
Capacity: 23,303 (1959), 38,522 (1977), 43,737 (1978)	Dimensions: Foul Lines 330, Power Alleys 375, CF 400
Surface: grass (1879-1971), 3-M Tartan Turf (1972), Monsanto (artificial) Turf (1974)	Last Blue Jays Game: May 28, 1989
Owner: City of Toronto	Demolition: February 1, 1999

Memorable Moment:

October 6, 1985: Phil Niekro wins his 300th game.

Here is a brief timeline of the construction and destruction of this stadium.

1879: Park built as the Toronto Fair Grounds.
1885: Detroit of the National League comes to town for an exhibition game.
1906: Fire.
1920s: Used for horse shows and motorcycle racing.
1947: The stands burned and were immediately rebuilt at a cost of $3 million.
1950s and 60s: Park was renamed CNE Stadium. Home to stock car racing. Special guests included the Three Stooges, Ed Sullivan, and Bob Hope.
1959: The Argos of the Canadian Football League moved here. The south grandstand was built for $650,000.
1976: In an effort to attract the San Francisco Giants, CNE Stadium was redesigned for baseball, by Bill Sanford, for $17.8 million.
1977: MLB awards Toronto and expansion franchise.
April 30, 1984: First MLB game to be called due to wind.
1989: Last Blue Jays game, as they move to SkyDome.
1999: Stadium is demolished.

Exhibition Stadium today.
Exhibition Stadium's home plate.

In 1976, Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) Stadium was reconfigured for baseball to lure the San Francisco Giants there. The budget was for $15 million. The actual cost was $17.8 million. As a result the dome was never built and they had to use the football scoreboard which was beyond the right field fence by a good couple hundred feet. This is the only stadium in history to have the infield seats exposed and the outfield seats were covered.

On April 7, 1977, the first game between the new Toronto Blue Jays and the Chicago White Sox was held. The wind was blowing at 33 km/hr and the wind chill was -10F. Snow was falling for the first three innings and the infield carpet was being cleared by a Zamboni machine borrowed from the Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL team). After the third inning, the snow stopped falling and the sun came out. The entire game was played.

There was a "murder" in this park. Dave Winfield of the Yankees caused an uproar when he killed a seagull by throwing a baseball back to the infield. Manager Billy Martin scoffed at the notion that it was done on purpose by saying if it was, it was the first time Winfield hit the cut off man all year.

The snow game.