The makeover of Omaha’s Rosenblatt Stadium is complete, as the grounds of former home to the College World Series and pro baseball have been revamped by the neighboring Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium.
The ballpark grandstand is long gone, taken down last summer, with the press box going last. Thanks to some contributions from the likes of Warren Buffett, the zoo took control of the property and revamped the ballpark grounds into a memorial of sorts, complete with rubberized basepaths and seating from the old ballpark. From Omaha.com:
Bricks from the entrance of Rosenblatt Stadium line the new concourse of the shrunken field, and the structure, with the iconic peaked roof above the old grandstand, is painted the same shade of blue as the old stadium. The Rosenblatt arch that sat on top of the stadium’s scoreboard marks the new attraction.
Red, yellow and blue seats are lined up outside the baselines in another nod to the stadium. The yellow foul poles still stand at the edge of the new parking lot to give people a sense of how big the field was.
Rosenblatt Stadium also served as home of the Omaha Storm Chasers (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) when the team played under the Royals and Golden Spikes names. Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium opened in 1948 and was named after the former mayor of Omaha.
Image by Mark Kullman, courtesy of the Omaha Storm Chasers.
RELATED STORIES: Rosenblatt Stadium demolition proceeds; press box taken down; Rosenblatt Stadium demolition begins today; Rosenblatt Stadium memorabilia going to auction; Zoo plan would preserve part of Rosenblatt Stadium
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