Official MLB 1993 CLEVELAND STADIUM FINAL SEASON Jersey Patch - Cleveland Indians - NEW/MINT

This is the official on-field baseball jersey patch worn exclusively by Major League Baseball players on the Cleveland Indians team during the final commemorative 1993 season at Cleveland Municipal Stadium.

The patch is in new/mint condition and can be applied to your favorite cap or apparel item (it is recommended that the patch be sewn to your cap or apparel item of choice with a nice border stitch to assure it is secured appropriately and has a nice clean finished look).

Measurements: Width 5 1/4" x Height 4 "

Cleveland Stadium, commonly known as Municipal Stadium or Lakefront Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium located in Cleveland, Ohio. It was one of the early multi-purpose stadiums, built to accommodate both baseball and football. The stadium opened in 1931 and is best known as the long-time home of the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball, from 1932 to 1993 (including 1932-1946 when games were split between League Park and Cleveland Stadium), and the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL), from 1946 to 1995, in addition to hosting other teams, sports, and being a regular concert venue. The stadium was a four-time host of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, one of the host venues of the 1948 and 1954 World Series, and the site of the original Dawg Pound, Red Right 88, and The Drive.

Through most of its tenure as a baseball facility, the stadium was the largest in Major League Baseball by seating capacity, seating over 78,000 initially and over 74,000 in its final years. It was superseded only by the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum from 1958 to 1961, while it was the temporary home of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and by Mile High Stadium in 1993, the temporary home of the expansion Colorado Rockies. For football, the stadium seated approximately 80,000 people, ranking as one of the larger seating capacities in the NFL.

Former Browns owner Art Modell took over control of the stadium from the city in the 1970s and while his organization made improvements to the facility, it continued to decline. The Indians played their final game at the stadium in October 1993 and moved to Jacobs Field the following season. Although plans were announced to renovate the stadium for use by the Browns, in 1995 Modell announced his intentions to move the team to Baltimore citing the state of Cleveland Stadium as a major factor. The Browns played their final game at the stadium in December 1995. As part of an agreement between Modell, the city of Cleveland, and the NFL, the Browns were officially deactivated for three seasons and the city was required to construct a new stadium on the Cleveland Stadium site. Cleveland Stadium was demolished in 1996 to make way for FirstEnergy Stadium, which opened in 1999. Much of the debris from the demolition was placed in Lake Erie to create an artificial reef.

Home of the Cleveland Indians for 61 years, fans of the team were ready to move out of the “Mistake by the Lake” in 1993. The idea for a new stadium in Cleveland was first mentioned in 1903. By the 1920s a 25,000 seat stadium was proposed. However, Osborn Engineering designed a much bigger stadium that could house many activities. In 1928, a $2.5 million bond was issued by the city to build the stadium. It became the first stadium built using public money. A landfill full of old used cars and tires near Lake Erie was chosen as the site for the stadium. Groundbreaking was held on June 24, 1930. Constructed of steel and concrete, the stadium became known as Lakefront Stadium. The stadium was not constructed as an attempt to get the Olympics in 1932 because Los Angeles had already been chosen to host the games.

Lakefront Stadium was completed by July 1, 1931. The first event was held two days later. There was one problem after the stadium opened, it had no baseball tenant. The Cleveland Indians, playing at League Park, were happy that a new stadium was being built. However the city did not sign the team to a lease before the stadium opened. This allowed the Indians to negotiate a favorable lease. The first Cleveland Indians game at Lakefront Stadium was on July 3, 1932. When the team stepped onto the field players saw an enormous stadium. Lakefront Stadium had a capacity of 78,189. The stadium consisted of a covered double-decked grandstand that extended from behind homeplate, down and around the foul poles to an uncovered section of bleachers in the outfield. There were 37,896 seats in the lower level, 29,380 seats in the upper level and 10,913 bleacher seats. Lakefront Stadium became a pitchers park because of its size. Original dimensions were 322 ft. (left and right), and 463 ft. (center). The stadium also had lights, a sound system and a scoreboard behind the bleachers in centerfield. Lakefront Stadium also became home of the Cleveland Browns (NFL).

MEMORABLE MOMENTS

AT CLEVELAND MUNICIPAL STADIUM

World Series: 1948 & ’54

All Star Game: 1935, ’54, ’63, ’81

348 strikeouts by Bob Feller in 1946.

500th career home run by Ted Williams on June 17, 1960.

Joe DiMaggio’s 56 game hit streak come to an end

Team record 111 wins in 1954.

Initially, the Indians attracted huge crowds to Lakefront Stadium but that soon changed. Because of the size of the stadium, when the Indians attracted only 20,000 fans, it looked as the stadium was empty. The Indians played at the stadium full time until the end of the 1933 season. From 1934 until 1946, the Indians played at League Park during the weekdays and played at Lakefront Stadium during the weekends and holidays. The lights that had been installed when the stadium opened were never used for baseball. Modern lights were installed in 1939 and the first night Indians game was on June 27, 1939. After the 1946 season, the Indians moved all of their games to Lakefront Stadium. Once the Indians made Lakefront Stadium their permanent home it became known as Cleveland Municipal Stadium. In an effort to make the stadium more hitter friendly, a fence was erected in front of the outfield shortening the dimensions to 321 ft. (left and right) and 410 ft. (center). A standing room area was behind this fence.

During the remainder of its existence as a baseball stadium, Cleveland Municipal Stadium housed some very good and bad teams as few changes took place. Two renovations occurred in 1967 and 1974 when the original wooden seats were replaced by plastic ones and a new scoreboard replaced the old one. During the 1980s and early 1990s the Indians were a terrible team and attendance was low. In 1985, Richard and David Jacobs bought the Indians and began to lobby for a new stadium. Voters approved a bond and a new stadium for the Indians was built in downtown Cleveland. The last Indians game at Cleveland Municipal Stadium was on October 3, 1993 and the team moved to Progressive Field the following season. The Cleveland Browns (NFL) played at the stadium until 1995. It was demolished in November 1996 after the Browns moved Baltimore. A new stadium was built for the expansion Cleveland Browns on the same site of Cleveland Municipal Stadium. FirstEnergy Stadium has been home to the Cleveland Browns since 1999.

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