Bovard Field was a stadium in Los Angeles, California, on the campus of the University of Southern California. The Trojans football team played here until they moved to Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 1923 and it was the home of USC baseball until Dedeaux Field opened in 1974, about 500 yards (460 m) to the northwest. The football stadium and running track held 12,000 people at its peak, and ran southwest to northeast, near and parallel to today's Watt Way.[1] The elevation of the field is approximately 175 feet (53 m) above sea level.
 | |
| Location | University of Southern California Los Angeles, California |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 34°01′18″N 118°17′07″W / 34.0218°N 118.2853°W |
| Owner | University of Southern California |
| Operator | University of Southern California |
| Capacity | 12,000 |
| Surface | Natural grass |
| Construction | |
| Closed | 1973 (baseball) 1923 (football) |
| Demolished | 1973, campus expansion |
| Tenants | |
| USC Trojans football USC Trojans baseball | |
The baseball field was aligned (home to center field) similar to Dedeaux Field, but a few degrees clockwise, nearly true north, but just slightly west. Home plate was located in today's E.F. Hutton Park and left field was bounded by Watt Way.[1][2] Beyond first base, a large eucalyptus tree came into play; while its trunk was in foul territory, some of its branches crossed into fair territory and guarded the foul line in shallow right field.[3]
Mickey Mantle
editIn March 1951, a 19-year-old Mickey Mantle of the New York Yankees, about to embark on his rookie season in the majors, went 4-for-5 with a pair of home runs, one from each side of the plate against the Trojans in an exhibition game. The home run as a leftie was a massive shot that went well beyond the right field fence into the football practice field, during spring drills.[4][5][6][7] He also had a triple for a total of seven runs batted in for the game, which the Yanks won 15–1.
References
edit- ^ a b "34.0218 N, 118.2853 W". Historic Aerials. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
- ^ "University of Southern California". Maps of.net. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
- ^ "Rod, the tree, recommissioned". St. Petersburg Times. Florida. Associated Press. June 5, 1973. p. 2C.
- ^ Leavy, Jane (October 22, 2011). "No true sense of history without a sense of place". New York Times. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
- ^ Eckhouse, Morris (March 26, 2011). "The homer(s) Mickey Mantle hit at USC". ESPN. p. October 23, 2015. Archived from the original on October 9, 2015.
- ^ Moore, Jordan (March 24, 2011). "USC baseball remembers the Mick". University of Southern California Athletics. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
- ^ Holmes, Baxter (March 25, 2011). "The home run that launched the myth of Mickey Mantle". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 23, 2015.