James Keating | April 2, 2025
April 26, 1995. Opening Day. Not just the start of another baseball season, but the opening of a new baseball cathedral.
Colorado is about to play their first regular season game at Coors Field. As enchanting of an environment game no. 1 on the corner of 20th and Blake Street would feel to fans, those in attendance were about to witness something truly magical.
The start of the 1995 MLB Season was weird. A players’ strike in 1994 canceled the first World Series since 1904 and a lockout by owners to begin the new year delayed Opening Day. Fans, rightfully so, were rather salty about the whole thing.
Baseball was supposed to be America’s pastime. For a while, it felt more like America’s punchline. The Rockies, though, felt different in the midst of a turmoil. They were new. They were exciting. And they had something no other team had: Coors Field.
Read more from the 30 in 30 series
- Coors Field Moment No. 1 – Game 163: Colorado completes their improbable run to Rocktober
- Coors Field Moment No. 2 – Dante Bichette christens the Rockies’ new baseball cathedral
- Coors Field Moment No. 3 – Todd Helton, Troy Tulowitzki and the Colorado Rockies are World Series bound
- Coors Field Moment No. 4 – Nolan, Bloody Nolan: Arenado’s walk-off cycle spurs Rockies to end postseason drought
- Coors Field Moment no. 5 – The Toddfather delivers a walk-off domino for Rocktober
The stadium in LoDo was a love letter to the city of Denver. Nestled against the Rocky Mountains, baseball at altitude made it a perfect storm for chaos. And on April 26, chaos arrived in the form of Dante Bichette (remember you can separate the art from the artist, IYKYK).
Colorado was playing the New York Mets, the same club they kicked off their existence back in 1993 as an expansion franchise. The game was tight. It was one where every pitch mattered, every out felt like a victory, and every beer tasted better because, well, baseball was back.
By the bottom of the ninth, the Rockies were trailing 7-6. Down to their last out, Larry Walker roped an RBI-double to tie the score and send it to extras. The crowd was electric… at least those who decided to stick around the nearly five-hour game on a cold, early spring night.
Trailing by a run once again in the bottom of the 14th, Bichette stepped to the plate with one out and two on.
Now, let’s pause. If you’re writing a script for the first game of record at Coors Field, this is exactly how you’d draw it up. Your star player. Last licks. A chance to win it all. You wouldn’t be wrong it calling it almost too perfect.
But this was real life. And in real life, Bichette didn’t just deliver. He delivered in the most Coors Field way possible.
On a 2-1 pitch from Mets reliever Mike Remlinger, the 30-year-old right fielder crushed a fastball to left field. The sound of the bat was that perfect sound baseball fans romanticize so often. Crack. Soaring into the Rocky Mountain night sky, Coors Field erupted as Bichette christened to new ballpark with a Rockies win, 11-9.
Bichette’s homer wasn’t just a game-winner. It was a statement. It was Coors Field and the Rockies announcing itself to the baseball world: “We’re here, and we’re going to mess stuff up.”
Before you curse me for calling Bichette a star player, check the record. Bichette had a monster season in 1995, leading the league in home runs (40), RBIs (128) and hits (197). He’d finish second in National League MVP voting. And, just as importantly, he’d usher in the Blake Street Bombers.
Fast forward 30 years later and Bichette’s walk-off is a reminder of what makes baseball so special. It’s not the numbers. Not the stats or the standings. It’s the moments. The memories. The feeling of being part of something bigger than yourself.
And on April 26, 1995, Dante Bichette gave us a moment.
So here’s to Coors Field. And here’s to the night Denver fell in love with baseball all over again.
Postscript: Believe it or not, a couple of exhibition games occurred at Coors Field on March 31 and April 1 against the New York Yankees. Not only were these not regular season games, but it included almost no one you’ve ever heard of as replacement players were the ones posturing as Rockies and Yankees during the MLB work stoppage. I imagine it was a lot like watching your boozed up buddy try to cover their favorite songs at karaoke.
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