It hosted the New York Giants of Major League Baseball for their first two home games in 1889 following their eviction from the Polo Grounds.
[1][2] On April 20, 1885, ground was broken for Oakland Park and construction was carried out by the New Jersey Exhibition Company (NJEC).
The Giants also used Oakland Park to host spring training and exhibition games[6] On April 19, 1888, the Jersey City Skeeters (under the temporary name Gladiators), managed by Patrick T. Powers, played their first game at Oakland Park against the Syracuse Stars with Jersey City defeating Syracuse 13–1 in front of 2,000 fans.
The New York Giants, led by manager Jim Mutrie, first played at Oakland Park as guests on the morning of September 3, 1888 when they took on their minor league Jersey City Skeeters in an exhibition game.
After a lengthy road trip, on July 8 they finally debuted their new home field at 155th Street and 8th Avenue in Upper Manhattan.
Despite the nomadic nature of their 1889 season, the Giants would win the National League championship, edging out Boston by one game.
In October 1889, the Giants would go on to defeat their arch rival, the Brooklyn Bridegrooms, in the NL-AA World Series 6 games to 3.