Chances are pretty good that if your dad was a baseball fan while you were growing up in Southern California, you have probably attended at least one Dodger game in the Left Field Pavilion at Dodger Stadium. And though the LFP has long had a reputation of being “a little rough out there,” it is clearly where the most passionate Dodger fans are found- bar none.

Virtually unchanged since Opening Day in 1962, the Left Field Pavilion is home to the most passionate Dodger fans anywhere.

After having attended a dozen or so Dodger games at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum as a kid, it’s hard to explain how much in awe I was when my dad took me to my very first game at brand new, state-of-the-art Dodger Stadium in 1962 – in the Left Field Pavilion of course, because that’s where dad’s took their kids to see Dodger games.  “Now this is a ballpark” I remember my dad saying as we climbed the steps into the LFP at ‘The Ravine,’ as it was then and is still affectionately called. Back then, an adult ticket into the LFP was $1.50 ($.75 for kids). According to Dodgers historian and noted author Mark Langill, the Dodgers initially tried a reusable token system for general admission into the pavilions similar to subway tokens used in Brooklyn but the tokens quickly became collectors items and disappeared in alarming numbers, and the system was scrapped. Langill added that these tokens turn up on eBay or at memorabilia shows from time to time and they command a pretty good price – certainly a lot more than $1.75.

During the inaugural 1962 season, the Dodgers tried a reusable token system for general admission into the pavilions but the tokens quickly became collectors items and disappeared in alarming numbers.

To this very day I still vividly recall my first game in the LFP… the smell of fresh concrete and grilled Dodger Dogs, the brilliant green grass (which I didn’t realize at the time had actually been painted), and those malts… oh those frozen chocolate malts – “Not until the 5th inning” my dad would scold me when I begged him for one within minutes of our arrival.

And then there was ‘the trough,’ where men (and little kids) stood shoulder to shoulder (well, maybe not so much little kids) to relieve themselves. As a youngster, I had never experienced anything quite like the trough. It didn’t take me long to realize that the trough was no place for a little kid. Thankfully, there were plenty of stalls.

The infamous trough

Although a lot has changed at Dodger Stadium during its rich 50-year history, there is one thing that absolutely has not; not even a little bit – the Left Field Pavilion. It is today almost exactly as it was on Opening Day in 1962. Sure, there have been a few modifications, but you can pretty much count them on one hand. One such changed happened within days of the inaugural Home Opener in 1962, but only after Dodger owner Walter O’Malley was fried in the local media for having installed only two drinking fountains throughout the entire stadium (none in the pavilions). And while O’Malley claimed until his dying day that this was merely an oversight, everyone knew that it was actually a calculated ploy to force thirsty fans to purchase beverages (especially beer) to quench their thirst. To his credit, O’Malley immediately had additional drinking fountains installed throughout Dodger Stadium, including the pavilions. But aside from this and a few automatic hand dryers added to the restrooms, walking into the LFP today is exactly as it was on April 10, 1962 – it’s like stepping back into my very childhood and I absolutely love it!

Walter O’Malley took a lot of heat from the local media for not installing drinking fountains throughout Dodger Stadium prior to the stadium’s 1962 grand opening – “an oversight” which he quickly rectified.

In 2009 and just prior to Frank and Jamie McCourt making headlines with rumors of infidelity, excessive lifestyles, etc., and the subsequent ‘Dodger Divorce’ as it was called in the media, Frank McCourt had unveiled what he called ‘The Second 50’ in which he detailed his plans to completely refurbish Dodger Stadium and add shops and restaurants reminiscent of City Walk, Downtown Disney, The Grove and the like. And while these proposed changes may have appealed to many, I knew that they would destroy that stepping back in time thing that was so very important to me. Gone would be the LFP as we know it today (and in 1962). Gone would be the thrill of catching batting practice home run balls. Gone would be the trough (ok, I guess I could live with that). But alas, the ugly Dodger Divorce and subsequent bankruptcy brought McCourt’s Second 50 plans to a screeching halt. Now this is not to say that refurbishing and modifications are not needed at Dodger Stadium, they most certainly are, and the new Guggenheim Dodger ownership group has already indicated that they intend to make some changes at the Ravine, but they have also indicated that they want to keep Dodger Stadium basically the same as it has been for the past 50 years.

Dodger right fielder Ron Fairly caught Joe Pepitone’s deep fly ball in front of the Yankees bullpen to preserve Drysdale’s incredible 1-0 complete game 3-hit shutout in Game-3 of the 1963 World Series.

Picking my single greatest memory at Dodger Stadium is no easy task as I have many, including watching Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale pitch in person and watching Maury Wills steal a (then) record-setting 104 bases; but if I had to pick just one, it would be Game-3 of the 1963 World Series in which Don Drysdale pitched a complete game three-hit shutout against the New York Yankees and what Dodger legend and former two-time NL batting champ Tommy Davis calls the greatest World Series game ever played. The only run in the game came in the first inning when Yankees pitcher Jim Bouton walked Jim Gilliam, who promptly took second base on a wild pitch and scored on a single by Tommy Davis that caromed off of the pitching rubber. But the most exciting moment of the game came with two outs in the 9th inning when Dodger right fielder Ron Fairly caught a deep fly ball hit by Joe Pepitone with his back just inches from the Yankees bullpen gate to end the game. The Dodgers, of course, went on to sweep the heavily favored Yankees in four games due primarily to the outstanding pitching of Sandy Koufax, Johnny Podres and Drysdale.

Obviously mine aren’t the only memories from the LFP and recently I had an opportunity to ask several fellow long-time LFP season ticket holders what their greatest memories were from the Left Field Pavilion. Here are a few of them:

• Ron “Deep Left” Cooper, a 12-year LFP season ticket holder from Hollywood, CA – “My greatest LFP memory was catching Miguel Tejada’s 300th career home run ball in September of 2010.”
• Bobby “dodgerfilms” Crosby, a 16-year LFP season ticket holder from Chatsworth, CA – “My greatest LFP memory was my first game home run catch. I had to lean over the railing in the rain and made a snow cone catch of a Raul Mondesi home run that he hit off of Curt Schilling on May 12, 1998”
• David “King” Baltazar, a 16-year season ticket holder (six in the LFP) from Long Beach, CA – “My greatest LFP memory was the back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs hit by Jeff Kent, J.D. Drew, Russell Martin and Marlon Anderson on September 18, 2006.”
• Joe “Left Field” Wolfe, a 9-year LFP season ticket holder from Torrance, CA – “My greatest LFP memory was catching Jason Repko’s first Dodger Stadium home run on Opening Day 2005.”
• Ron “somefan” Vargas, an 8-year LFP season ticket holder from Oak Park, CA – “My greatest LFP memory was the back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs and the (Nomar) Garciaparra walk-off against the Padres on September 18, 2006.”
• Danny “Dodger Dstro” Castro, a 2-year LFP season ticket holder from Fontana, CA – “My greatest LFP memory was Matt Kemp’s walk-off home run against the Washington Nationals on April 28, 2012.”

And then there are the LFP employees, several of whom have worked for the Dodgers for many years and none longer than security officer Louie Ocampo. Louie has been with the Dodger organization for 36 years and can be found out in the Dodger bullpen, where he has been assigned for over 20 years. Louie is extremely popular and well loved by the players and fans alike. It is not uncommon for former Dodgers to walk out to the Dodger bullpen during batting practice to visit with Louie when they are in town to play the Dodgers. Another long-time LFP employee is guest services representative Bill Craig who is in his 8th year with the Dodgers. Bill is also assigned to the Dodger bullpen area near the indoor batting cage. Like Louie, Bill is also very popular with fans and with many of the Dodger players and coaches, especially Dodger legend and coach Manny Mota who affectionately calls Bill “Papi.”

Security Officer Louie Ocampo and Guest Services Representative Bill Craig have been with the Dodger organization for 36 years and 8 years respectively, most of which has been out in the Left Field Pavilion.

David Richard (front) and Travis Hildreth have worked at the LFP merchandise booth for 29 and 10 years respectively.

David Richard is another long-time Dodger Stadium employee who works at the merchandise booth in the LFP. David has been with the Dodgers for 29 years and says that his greatest memory was the night that Kirk Gibson hit his historic home run during Game-1 of the 1988 World Series. “People stayed around celebrating for hours after the game,” recalls David. “I didn’t get home until after 2 AM that night, but it was great!”

When you put it all together, the Left Field Pavilion isn’t just an area of Dodger Stadium, it is a lifestyle, a small community unto itself with a personality of its own. And even though the LFP has been given a bad rap for being full of the thugs and gangsters (which was perhaps true at one time), it isn’t like this anymore – due largely to the fact that there are now over 800 season ticket holders in the LFP. As such, the LFP has become a close-knit community comprised of the most passionate Dodger fans found anywhere at Dodger Stadium.