Public domain, via Library of Congress #LC-DIG-pga-02288
New York’s Polo Grounds, 1887
On Thursday, April 13, 1911, at New York’s Polo Grounds, the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the New York Giants, 6-1.
via baseball-reference.com
It was an unremarkable game – the second of the season – and Giants losing pitcher Christy Mathewson was not yet in the form that would lead him to 26 wins that season and an NL-leading 1.99 ERA.
Despite their uninspiring 0-2 start, the Giants would go on to win 99 regular season games and the NL pennant. (They would lose the World Series to the Philadelphia A’s.)
But, this is not about the Giants. (The Phillies ended their season 19.5 games back of the Giants and it’s not about them either.)
Public domain, via Library of Congress #LC-USZ62-58783
Fans at the Polo Grounds, a day earlier, April 12, 1911.
A few hours after the game, around midnight, the grandstand of the Polo Grounds was engulfed in flames. By morning, the grandstand and the right field bleachers had burned to the ground.
The Baseball Bloggess 