Video: 'Apr. 9, 1965 | Houston Astrodome Opens'
(Friday, April 9, 1965, 7:30 p.m. CST) — The Harris County Domed Stadium, later known as the Astrodome, opened tonight in Houston with a historic exhibition baseball game between the Houston Astros and the New York Yankees, marking the first Major League Baseball game ever played indoors.
A crowd of 47,876 filled the futuristic stadium for tonight’s contest, including President Lyndon B. Johnson and first lady Lady Bird Johnson (LBJ was at the stadium from 7:53 to 9:36 p.m. CST). The Astros defeated the Yankees, 2–1, in a tightly contested game that heralded a new era in American sports architecture.
But while the opening was celebrated as a technological milestone, it also revealed a critical design flaw. During daytime batting practice, players struggled with glare caused by the stadium’s transparent roof panels and the crisscrossing girders supporting the dome. Outfielders lost sight of fly balls in the harsh light.
Video: 'Houston Astros first game in the Astrodome'
“Players shagging fly balls in left and center field particularly stumbled, hesitated, covered their heads in self-defense or threw up both hands in despair,” United Press International reported, noting that fielders often missed the ball “by yards and yards.”
Although overcast skies during subsequent exhibition games over the weekend helped mask the issue, team officials feared the glare could turn future games into what one executive called a “keystone comedy act.” In response, the Astros painted over the clear roof panels before their next afternoon home game.
Video: 'April 9, 1965-Yankees vs. Astros Exhibition Game (WCBS Radio)'
The fix solved the visibility issue for players but created another problem: the stadium’s natural grass could no longer thrive without sunlight, eventually prompting a switch to synthetic turf, famously branded as AstroTurf.
The event was both a celebration of innovation and an early lesson in the unforeseen challenges of building the “Eighth Wonder of the World.”
