 The stadium opened in May 1928 following a parade and a large inauguration ceremony.Royals' general manager Frank Shaughnessy had a lighting system installed in the stadium for the 1933 season.The stadium saw the launching of the baseball career of Gene Mauch, who later came back to manage the Montreal Expos, plus future Hall of Fame members Sparky Anderson, Roberto Clemente and Jackie Robinson, the latter debuting in professional baseball with the Montreal Royals in 1946, and who went on to break baseball's color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.