Take me out to the ballgame … and see the new brick wall: a Chicago contractor hits a home run at historic Wrigley Field

Masonry Construction, July-August, 2004 by Jenni Spinner

Wrigley Field--home of the Chicago Cubs--is one of baseball's treasures. From the ivy gracing the brick outfield wall, to the organ serenading the fans, to the original scoreboard still turned by hand, the park is loaded with character and charm. The historical stadium is as much an attraction as the action on the field.

However, Wrigley's seating capacity (approximately 39,000) is dwarfed by other major league arenas. For example, a sold-out Yankee Stadium crowd consists of about 58,000 fans. Cubs management has been challenged with coming up with ways to keep the park's historic look and intimate feel intact, yet make "The Friendly Confines" more economically viable and less ... well, confining. Thanks to the work of one Chicago area contractor, the Cubs were able to do just that.

At the end of the 2003 season, Cubs management approved a proposal to construct three additional rows--adding 213 seats--behind home plate between the two dugouts, by bringing the brick wall 8-feet 8-inches closer to the field. The job was handed to Fred Jacobs, president of Shelby Enterprises, who along with his crew has been working at Wrigley Field for 20 years maintaining the park, performing rehabilitation, and designing projects is needed. Because the historical ballpark is nearing its 100-year anniversary, keeping up its breathtaking appearance requires a lot of attention.

"Basically, we are tuckpointing every chance we get," Jacobs said.

Even before the proposal to add the rows of seats behind home plate was given the official thumbs up, Jacobs and his workers set to the task. First, they installed 2-inch retention pipes running out to Waveland and Sheffield, the streets on which the many home runs land (the pipes were put in to combat the water that built up behind home plate after heavy rains). After the proposal received formal approval, the old wall was torn down, and a four-man crew of masons--led by Wayne Pemberton--built the new wall.

The original plan called for reusing the existing brick, but because they were in such worn condition, Jacobs had to purchase new materials. The 8000 brick that make up the new wall, obtained from Beck Brick, Des Plaines, Ill., were matched to the old so that the new ones would blend in seamlessly with the rest of the park.

The laborers worked right up until opening day, and the new wall they constructed, according to Jacobs, greatly improves upon the previous one. "The old wall was in horrible shape," he said. "The mortar joints were splitting and it was 6-inches out of plumb in 4 feet."

Jacobs noted that he and his firm have not received a flood of compliments about the new wall behind home plate, which is actually a good thing. Because the masons worked hard to blend the new wall into its surroundings, both die-hard fans and first-time Wrigley Field visitors would be hard pressed to tell the difference between the new wall and the decades-old brick of the other walls.

The 213 seats in the new section quickly sold out for the 2004 season, fetching more than $200 apiece for some games.

Since Wrigley Field was built in 1914, numerous structural and cosmetic changes have been made to "The Friendly Confines" from time to time: for example, the legendary outfield wall ivy was added in 1937 and lights were erected in 1988. However, the second-oldest major league park (after Boston) remains a world-class attraction, and every ticket holder is a winner.