Joe DiMaggio owned center field back then, when the original markers were in play behind him. A couple of years later, the Babe leaned on a bat and, in a hushed voice, said so long to the House that Ruth Built. After that, Mantle came along.
They'd been at Hilltop Park -- hence, the previous nickname of Highlanders -- before moving into the Polo Grounds in 1913. John McGraw and the New York Giants got tired of sharing the park, especially after Ruth and the Yankees became more popular, and told them to leave.
FIRST 'STADIUM'
With a capacity of more than 80,000 and outfield distances nearing 150m, Yankee Stadium was so colossal that some said it was the first arena in America specifically named a "stadium."
"I'll miss it. It's too bad that they're going to tear it down," he said. "In Europe, they take care of historical places, turn them into monuments. And here we bulldoze them to make room for something new. I'm not sure that's what you would call progress."
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