The Exploding Scoreboard

In 1960, Bill Veeck installed a scoreboard at Comiskey Park in Chicago that shot off fireworks, Roman candles, and pinwheels every time a White Sox player hit a home run. It cost $300,000 to build, stretched 130 feet wide, and was the largest scoreboard in baseball. It had strobe lights and a series of animated panels that went wild after home runs, cycling through flashing sequences that lasted several minutes.

Opposing players hated it. Jimmy Piersall of the Cleveland Indians threw a ball at it. Al Kaline of the Tigers called it "bush league." When the Yankees visited and Roger Maris suggested they didn't need fireworks in New York because they had real achievements to celebrate, Veeck responded by setting off the scoreboard after a Yankees home run, just to annoy them.

The scoreboard was an extension of Veeck's philosophy that baseball was entertainment, not just a sport. He had already sent a midget to the plate (Eddie Gaedel, during his ownership of the St. Louis Browns in 1951), installed the first outdoor shower in the bleachers, and given away live animals as between-inning prizes. The exploding scoreboard was his most lasting innovation. It was the direct ancestor of every modern stadium light show, video board celebration, and fireworks display that follows a home run today. Every time you see a scoreboard erupt after a walk-off, Veeck is the reason.

The original scoreboard was replaced in 1982 when Comiskey Park was renovated, and again when the new Comiskey Park (now Guaranteed Rate Field) opened in 1991. But the concept survived. Veeck had changed what fans expected from a ballpark experience, and no team has been willing to go back.