Courage, high drama and an enduring mystery will take center-stage this fall as part of a ground-breaking baseball exhibit at Scottsdale Stadium.
The exhibit opens Oct. 3 and celebrates both the Arizona Fall League season and an iconic Major League Baseball milestone.
Scottsdale Scorpion ticket holders get in free during Fall League games and the exhibit is free to the public on selected other days.
The exhibit celebrates what is widely considered the greatest moment in baseball history — Bobby Thomson’s home run in the bottom of the ninth to win the 1951 playoff series for the Giants against the rival Brooklyn Dodgers.
Oct. 3 is the 75th anniversary of the Thomson home run and is opening day for the Fall League at Scottsdale Stadium.
The exhibit also honors Cactus League players who have worn our nation’s uniform. From fighting in wars to creating iconic American moments, many prominent stars who trained in Arizona have been shaped by military service.
Several players are tied to both exhibit themes, including Bobby Thomson who served in the Army during World War II.
The ball Thomson hit into the left-field bleachers to clinch the 1951 pennant – “The Shot Heard ‘Round the World” – has never been found.
Or has it?
Phoenix resident Eric O’Mara claims he has the ball, which will be on display at Scottsdale Stadium. The exhibit will present never-before-seen evidence that will write a fresh chapter in the search for Thomson’s ball – evidence that both supports and rebuffs O’Mara’s claim.
“Thomson’s home run was a monumental event not just for baseball, but for the United States,” said Mike Phillips, president of the nonprofit Arizona Baseball Legacy and Experience, which is producing the exhibit. “It was the first baseball game televised coast-to-coast and was listened to across the globe through the Armed Forces Radio Service.
“Our exhibit will explore how Thomson’s home run changed not just his life and the life of his family, but how its impact changed American pop culture. On many levels it was a remarkable event.”
The Scottsdale Stadium exhibit is produced by the Arizona Baseball Legacy and Experience and sponsored by the City of Scottsdale.
For more information on the exhibit, visit www.ABLEAZ.org
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