AT THE CORNER OF GEORGIA AVENUE and W Street in Northwest Washington, an important piece of the city's baseball history is easy to miss.

On that spot, now the location of Howard University Hospital, once stood Griffith Stadium, the home of the Washington Senators from 1911 to 1961.

Built quickly after a fire destroyed an earlier wood park on the site, Griffith stadium hosted some of the game's greats — Ruth, Mantle, Aaron, Musial and Mays — and was the part-time home of the legendary Homestead Grays of the Negro League.

Local sports fixture Charlie Brotman was the public stadium announcer at Griffith Stadium from 1956 to 1961 and remembers the stadium's personal charms.

"In Griffith Stadium, you were literally on top of the infield in the stands. It was as cozy and fan-friendly as a stadium could be," he said.

But much like RFK, Griffith Stadium had some unique architectural quirks. The left-field wall at the stadium was built about 100 feet longer than the right, effectively checking the power of right-handed hitters while giving the stadium an asymmetrical shape.

Unlike modern parks, which are usually surrounded by vast expanses of parking lots, the stadium was squeezed right in the middle of the neighborhood, with the outfield wall serving as a fence for a row of houses behind. The center-field wall was actually built at a 90-degree angle, jutting into the outfield, to bypass a property whose owners refused to sell it.

"It was a neighborhood stadium," Brotman said. "There was no Yankee Stadium or some big to-do —the owners did the best they could with very little money."

Brotman, who remained stadium announcer for 10 years after the Senators moved to RFK, is impressed by Nationals Park. He says the new stadium's modern amenities are unlike anything the city has ever seen.

"Washington fans have never experienced this," he said. "They're in for a treat."

Written by Express' Dustin Weaver
Photo by courtesy of Henry W. Thomas

Posted by Express at 12:01 AM on March 26, 2008
Tagged in Nationals , Nationals Park , Sports , Top Stories