33 years ago - 10 cent beer night - Cleveland Indians fans got tanked

[johnnie]

From Wikipedia:

"Ten Cent Beer Night was an ill-fated promotion held by the American League's Cleveland Indians during a game against the Texas Rangers at Cleveland Municipal Stadium on June 4, 1974.

The idea behind the promotion was to offer as many eight-ounce cups of Stroh's beer as the fans could drink for just ten cents apiece, thus increasing ticket sales. However, the stunt also had the effect of slowly turning the calm and orderly baseball fans into a rowdy and raucous crowd devoid of all inhibition. Ultimately, the game was forfeited to Texas on the orders of home plate umpire Nestor Chylak because of the crowd's uncontrollable rowdiness, and because the game could not be resumed in a timely manner."

Early in the game, the Rangers took an early 5-1 advantage. Meanwhile, throughout the contest, the Indians' fans in attendance continually misbehaved. A woman ran out to the Indians' on-deck circle and lifted her shirt, and a naked man sprinted to second base as Grieve hit his second home run. A father and son team got into the act one inning later, running out in the outfield and mooning the bleacherites.<2> The ugliness escalated when Cleveland's Leron Lee hit a line drive into the stomach of Ferguson Jenkins, dropping the hurler to the ground. The fans in the upper deck of Cleveland Stadium cheered, then chanted, "Hit 'em again! Hit 'em again! Harder! Harder!"

As the game progressed, and the crowd became more inebriated, more fans ran onto the field and caused problems. Mike Hargrove, who had come in at mid-game, was the target of hot dogs and spit, and at one point, was very nearly hit with an empty gallon jug of Thunderbird wine.

The Rangers later argued a call in which Lee was called safe in a close play at third, spiking Jenkins in the process and forcing him to leave the game. Texas' anger enraged fans, who began throwing objects on the field.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Indians managed to rally and tie the game at five runs apiece, but with a crowd that had been consuming as much alcohol as it could for nine innings, the situation finally boiled over. After Texas outfielder Jeff Burroughs violently reacted to a fan stealing his glove and cap, the Texas players, led by manager Billy Martin, charged out to his aid with other members of his team onto the field with bats to defend the players against an avalanche of drunken fans pouring onto the field or hurling bottles from the stands. As soon as they arrived, hundreds of fans poured into the outfield, some armed with knives, chains and portions of stadium seats that they had broken apart. Realizing the Rangers might be in danger of their lives, Ken Aspromonte, the Indians' manager, ordered his players to grab bats and help the Rangers. Fans began throwing steel folding chairs and Cleveland relief pitcher Tom Hilgendorf was hit in the head by one of them.<3> Mike Hargrove, involved in a fight with a fan, had to fight yet another on his way back to the Texas dugout. It was becoming obvious that the game could not continue. Every base was stolen as souvenirs, apparently the bases were kept and never returned and many fans threw a vast array of objects, such as cups, rocks, radio batteries, hot dogs, popcorn containers, and even several chairs. As a result, umpire crew chief Nestor Chylak, realizing that order would not be restored in a timely fashion, forfeited the game to Texas. He, too, was a victim of the fans as one hit him with part of a stadium seat, cutting him in the head.<4> He also was cut in the hand by a rock.

As Joe Tait and Herb Score called the riot on radio, Herb Score mentioned the lack of police protection and Cleveland's best riot police then came on the scene.

Later that season, the team's promotion of three additional beer nights were changed from unlimited amounts to a limit of four beers per person. American League president Lee McPhail commented, "There was no question that beer played a part in the riot."<4>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_Cent_Beer_Night




Indians reliever Tom Hilgendorf cringes in pain after getting cracked in the head with a chair.




Armed escort: Bedlam broke out after a fan took a swing at Rangers right fielder Jeff Burroughs (center)




That was classic. I wasn't at that game, but I wish I could have been. 10 cent beer night...what the hell were they thinking? :rofl:


:toast: :toast: :toast: :toast: :toast: :toast: :toast: :toast: :toast: :toast: :toast: :toast:

[LynneSin]

1. Back then Cleveland's ballpark held like 60-70K people

must have been some night although it's a shame it was Stroh's

[johnnie]

3. I saw a few good concerts at that place

It was huge, but the seating sucked. It seems like every time I went to a ballgame, I had a freakin' pole in my way.

[LynneSin]

9. I saw the Eagles play the Browns in that old stadium

It was starting to snow and the Eagles were behind by 23 points at half time. I wanted to get on the road since we were driving back to Philly after the game but my boyfriend at the time insisted we stay for the rest of the game.

Eagles ending up scoring 24 points in the 2nd half and beat the Browns

[johnnie]

10. Eagles ending up scoring 24 points in the 2nd half and beat the Browns

LOL, so typical. Well, at least we have the Cavs for now. :woohoo:

[matcom]

2. 10 Cents is STILL too much to pay for Stroh's

my dad used to buy it knowing that it was the one beer even *I* wouldn't steal out of the basement fridge when I was a teenager

:puke:

:rofl:

[johnnie]

4. I forget waht it even tasted like

Do they still make that?

I was like that with Genny Cream Ale :puke:

If I were at a party and all they had left was Genny Cream, I would call it a night.

[matcom]

5. "Fire-brewed"

what the hell is FIRE-BREWED???

[RetroLounge]

6. Didn't the brewers have a promotion where they gave out baseballs?

If I remember, they got tossed onto the field during the game.

Duh...

RL

[HughBeaumont]

7. A social experiment gone bad?

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Who the HELL thought it was a good idea to get CLEVELAND fans, possibly the most mental in all of sports due to all of their teams having rotten luck and/or managerial skills, drunk as inhumanly possible while playing the Texas Rangers?

Thank GOD the Cavs win (and hopefully, a championship) is going to erase bad scenes like this from Cleveland's . . . storied sports memories.

And Strohs is the shittiest beer I've ever tasted.

[johnnie]

8. Here is a little background also from Wikipedia

"The game had a special significance for both clubs, as there had been a bench-clearing brawl in a Rangers/Indians game one week earlier at Arlington Stadium in Texas, during a "cheap beer night" there.<1> In Texas, the trouble had started in the bottom of the fourth inning with a walk to the Rangers' Tom Grieve, followed by a Lenny Randle single.

The next batter hit a double play ball to Cleveland third baseman John Lowenstein; he stepped on the third base bag to retire Grieve, but Randle disrupted the play with a hard slide into Brohamer. The Indians retaliated in the bottom of the eighth when pitcher Milt Wilcox threw behind Randle's head. Randle laid down a bunt, and when Wilcox attempted to field it and tag Randle out, Randle hit him with a forearm.

John Ellis responded by decking Randle, and both benches emptied for a brawl. During the melee, the intoxicated Texas crowd grew rowdy, and threw beer on the Indians' players."


So a week before that, they got Texas fans drunk and some shit happened..lol.

I wish they could have brought Cleveland fans and Texas fans together and had a "cheap beer night". THAT would have been fun to watch. Like those old Browns/Steelers games, those was fun to be at. Non-stop fights in the stands.

[no name no slogan]

11. They didn't tell you about the promotion the following game

hand grenade night


I heard ticket sales were booming

:hide:

[dembotoz]

12. The Brewers had a beer night or two back in the day....

Went to one of them
3 memories.
1 My parents were at the same game with a group from their chuch. A rather non drinking church. Whomever at the church scheduled it, did not realize...Interesting evening for a totally sober group of folks.
2 Giant snakes of stacked empty cups moving thru the bleachers...
3 Impossible lines in the bathroom. I sort of remember hearing of some guy getting arrested for peeing from the upper deck down to the box seats. I thought it was funny at the time, but then again, I was not in the box seats.

[Blue_Tires]

13. best promotion ever!

along with Disco Demolition Night (there are some DUers that were actually there for it)