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National Ballpark Museum an American treasure, a gift for baseball fans and collectors
Steps from Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies in downtown Denver, sits the National Baseball Museum, a collection recognized by Smithsonian Books as one of the top 20 finest private baseball collections in the world.
The Museum is a true one-of-a-kind treasure, honoring 14 classic ballparks—built in a 14-year span from 1909-1923—the only museum dedicated to ballparks. And it absolutely is a must-visit.
Museum curator, founder and president Bruce “B” Hellerstein takes visitors back in time with tributes to such iconic baseball havens as Crosley Field, Ebbets Field, Shibe Park, the Polo Grounds, Tiger Stadium and, of course, his all-time favorite stadium, Yankee Stadium.
I was most excited to see the tribute to Comiskey Park, the former home of my beloved Chicago White Sox—and the Museum delivers. I’ll even admit, the Museum’s section for Wrigley Field is as majestic and special as walking into the Friendly Confines in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood.
“This [museum] is a gift to the community, to the city and the sport of baseball,” said Hellerstein, who welcomes all museum visitors, thanks them for visiting and is more than willing to share stories and memories of baseball’s past, particularly stadium tales.
“We celebrate baseball. This is the only museum that is dedicated to the old, classic ballparks, 14 of them, such as Wrigley Field. To me, they are American treasures.”
The National Baseball Museum is a walk back in time, stadium by stadium, with memories everywhere—and plenty of stories from Hellerstein.
“I always tell people about the old classic ballparks that they were [made of] steel and concrete; and they were defined by their neighborhood, their location,” he said before going into specific details about a stadium’s construction.
When we stopped at the tribute to Crosley Field, Hellerstein said Johnny Bench was the best catcher ever, followed by Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez.
Memories from Forbes Field are near the museum entrance with its famed storefront windows.
“Forbes Field was a rarity, [built] on a college campus, the University of Pittsburgh. I promise you, you will never see another MLB stadium on a college campus,” Hellerstein said. “Forbes was really special.”
In the 1980s, Hellerstein began displaying his collection in his basement and in 1999 obtained tax-exempt status. In 2010, he secured the Museum’s present location and new name, The National Ballpark Museum.
Visitors stop by from around the world, all with a personal favorite story—and Hellerstein will gladly offer many more about every stadium. For instance, a New England tourism report voted Fenway Park the No. 1 most visited destination in the area, he said.
“So many people are obsessed to see all of the ballparks, and women lead the parade,” Hellerstein said. “More women come in here than men, which is very interesting.”
Case in point, he recently had three busloads of women from Philadelphia. “They were a hoot,” he said.
The Museum also has attracted groups of fans for the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, and others.
Hellerstein is quick to offer comments about such MLB legends as Reggie Jackson, Harmon Killebrew, Felipe Alou, Nellie Fox, the Negro Leagues, baseball history in Denver, presidents throwing out a ceremonial first pitch, historical Wrigley Field or the final home run at Tigers Stadium, which just happened to be a grand slam and was home run No. 11,111 in stadium history. And guess what year Tiger Stadium was built? You guessed it, 1911.
Hellerstein also is quick to share the tale of a man years and years ago riding on a train in New York, writing a love letter to his baseball-loving girlfriend. He wrote: “Take Me Out To The Ballgame,” which only took him about 15 minutes, he said.
“I love telling that story—and it’s one people never forget,” Hellerstein said. “These old ballparks will never, ever be duplicated.”
And so is the National Baseball Museum, which of course features bats, balls, helmets, jerseys, ticket stubs, newspaper clippings, bobbleheads, bases, pennants, programs, magazines, chairs, and so much more.
Also at the Museum:
• Mini replica stadiums.
• A portion of the foul pole from Comiskey Park, plus a street sign from South Shields Avenue in Chicago.
• Turnstiles and original lighting fixtures from Tiger Stadium.
• A framed jersey, half for the Giants and half for the Dodgers, autographed by Bobby Thomson and Ralph Branca.
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• Seattle Pilots jersey and hat.
• Stadium brick, autographed by Rod Carew from Metropolitan Stadium, former home of the Minnesota Twins.
• Stadium seat signed by Nolan Ryan.
• Ernie Harwell bobblehead.
• Right-field panel from Yankee Stadium.
• Super-sized banners that once flew at Wrigley Field, including the “W” flag that was raised after a Cubs’ victory.
• Ivy in the Wrigley Field section, obviously.
And Hellerstein positioned an autographed Mickey Mantle statue in the ivy because the New York Yankees legend never played at Wrigley. As noted near the statue, the only time Mantle was at Wrigley was for the 1962 All-Star Game, but he didn’t play.
• Griffith Stadium sign.
• Fenway Park ground’s crew chair from 2004.
• Dr. Anthony Fauci bobblehead.
• A vendor’s used carrying case for Fenway Franks.
• Authentic piece of the left field wall at Fenway Park, aka, the Green Monster.
• Comiskey Park home plate.
• Bricks from the Polo Grounds, Wrigley Field and Shibe Park.
• Babe Ruth figure.
• Game-used base from a Father’s Day game.
• Super-sized card, photos and a vintage SCD story about the career of Tony Bartirome, Hellerstein’s favorite player for the old Denver Bears.
