Jacobs Field The Jake
Facility Statistics
Location	2401 Ontario Street Cleveland, Ohio 42865
Broke Ground	January 1992
Opened	April 4, 1994
Surface	Kentucky Blue Grass
Owner	Cuyahoga County
Construction Cost	$175 million USD
Architect	HOK Sport
Tenants
Cleveland Indians	1994-present
Seating Capacity
1994	43,345
Dimensions
Left Field	325 ft / 99 m
Left-Center	370 ft / 113 m
Center Field	405 ft / 123.5 m
Right-Center	375 ft / 114 m
Right Field	325 ft / 99 m
Backstop

Jacobs Field is a baseball stadium located in the middle of downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Part of the Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex, along with Gund Arena, it was built as a replacement for Cleveland Stadium.

Jacobs Field is home to the Cleveland Indians of the American League.

History

Jacobs Field is one of the contributing factors to the revitalization of downtown Cleveland. Opening in 1994, it replaced the cramped Cleveland Stadium, which the Indians shared with the NFL's Cleveland Browns.

In May 1990, city voters approved a 15-year sin tax on alcohol and cigarette sales in order to finance the new sports complex. In June of 1992, the ceremonial first pitch was thrown at the site of the new Jacobs Field before construction of the building began.

Finally, on April 4, 1994, the Cleveland Indians played their first baseball game at Jacobs Field against the Seattle Mariners.

In 1995, Jacobs Field hosted its first World Series, where the Cleveland Indians lost to the Atlanta Braves. In 1997, Jacobs Field was the site of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

The Indians' move to "The Jake" coincided with the coming of age of an outstanding young team, and the Indians soon became the hottest ticket in Cleveland. The ballpark set a major league record between 1995 and early 2001 by selling out 455 straight games. Demand for tickets was so great that they once sold out all 81 home games before opening day.

External links

• http://cleveland.indians.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/cle/ballpark/cle_ballpark_history.jsp