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Baylor Ballpark
Opened: 1999
Collegiate coaches named Baylor Ballpark the nation's No. 3 college baseball stadium in a 2003 Baseball America survey. Celebrating its 10th year in 2008, the park remains one of the finest stadiums in college baseball. Baylor Ballpark is a beautiful facility constructed of red brick and exposed green steel beams, which complement the attractive architecture already found on the Baylor campus. The stadium was designed to ensure outstanding sightlines and comfort for fans, as well as meet the needs of the country's finest college baseball players. Four entrances into the main grandstand, plus an additional ramp for disabled fans, lead to 3,200 chairback seats, including 650 field level seats in 42 separate boxes. Approximately 70 percent of the stadium seating is covered by an awning for protection from the sun or rain. More than 1,500 seats have been purchased with the seat owner's name inscribed on the seat. In 2003, Baylor Ballpark saw the addition of a 13-by-16 foot video board, added next to the existing scoreboard. The Daktronics videoboard has the capabilities for instant replay, video highlights and more. The two-level Jack Loftis Press Box is fully air conditioned and carpeted, with radio booths for both home and visiting teams, as well as a television booth. A VIP box with theatre-style seating for 12, two restrooms and a concession area also are part of the press box structure. Specially designed accordian-style windows allow a completely unobstructed view when open. The Steve Macko Locker Room, like the press box, is also fully air conditioned and carpeted. The 1,200-plus square feet contain 40 custom-built ash lockers. The locker room is also furnished with cabinetry to house a 60-inch television and additional electronic equipment. Located under the main grandstand, the locker room has direct access to the third base dugout. The training room is located across the hall from the locker room, and is equipped with an ice machine, taping tables, and whirlpool areas. The equipment room is furnished with storage cabinets for uniforms and equipment and equipped with a washer/dryer area for on-site laundry. Baylor Ballpark also houses the coaches' offices inside the stadium. Located on the third base side with windows facing the concourse, it houses the head coach's office, two offices for assistant coaches, a reception area, conference room and restroom. The novelty store is located adjacent to the office suite with public entrance from the concourse. A beautiful glass entrance leads into the store, which carries authentic Baylor Baseball apparel and other items. The Mickey Sullivan Room is a 1,200-square-foot room on the first-base side of the stadium used as a team meeting area and for post-game press conferences. It is equipped with a restroom of its own, as well as a countertop and sink area for food preparation. The room also serves as a trophy room, pre- and postgame meal area and as the Heart of the Order meeting room. The indoor hitting cages are housed underneath the first-base grandstand. The large area (2,800 square feet) is completely surfaced, heated, and cooled. Two full-length cages are available for players' use. The cages are lighted both artificially and naturally through glass brick walls, and a tunnel leads to both the team room and the visitors dugout. Additional facilities within Baylor Ballpark include locker room facilities for both coaches and umpires, additional seating for 1,000 down the left field line and a beautiful elevated terrace down the right field line. The main concession areas and restroom facilities are located on the concourse just inside the main gate. Additional concessions are located on the third base concourse. Despite being in just its first season and still under construction, Baylor Ballpark played host to an NCAA Regional and then an NCAA Super Regional in 1999. The Bears took full advantage of playing at home, sweeping through the regional with wins over Eastern Illinois and Minnesota in their first two games. When the Golden Gophers fought through the losers bracket to face Baylor again in the championship game, the Bears' bats came alive with one of the top performances in team history, scoring 22 runs to beat Minnesota and advance to the Super Regional. Big 12 rival Oklahoma State came to Waco for that match-up. The underdog Cowboys took the first game in a slugfest, 18-11, but Baylor bounced back to claim the second game 17-7. The Bears then carried a lead late into game three before faltering and falling 6-2. Baylor Ballpark again served as the site for an NCAA Regional in 2000. Nine of Baylor Ballpark's top 25 crowds have come during NCAA postseason play. In 2004, Baylor Ballpark saw a record crowd of 5,602 for a Friday night game against top-ranked Texas. In 2005, a facility-record 109,621 fans attended the Bears' 36 home games. Last season, the facility established a school record for regular-season attendance at 101,791; Baylor Ballpark also saw its third-largest, single-game crowd and its largest two-date series attendance. Baylor Ballpark has ranked 21st nationally or better in each of its first nine seasons. In the long history of varsity baseball at Baylor, the Bears have called only four fields home for any extended period of time. Carroll Field was the baseball team's first home. Located on the Baylor campus approximately where the Student Union Building sits today, Carroll Field was home to both the baseball and football teams. In later years, the Bears played their home games at a pair of city fields in Katy Park and Dutton Street Park. The Bears moved back and forth between the two fields, at times playing whole seasons at one field and at other years playing in both parks during the same season. Beginning in 1960, Baylor played exclusively at Dutton Street Park. That field remained Baylor's home until 1977, when Baylor returned to campus with the opening of Ferrell Field. A 1,700-seat facility, Ferrell Field served as home for the Bears through the 1998 season. Construction on Baylor Ballpark began following the 1998 season. The new structure was built around the existing field. As work ran behind schedule, however, it became apparent that the ballpark would not be completed in time for the start of the 1999 season. The Bears played their first four home games that season at McLennan Community College in Waco before moving into Baylor Ballpark for good. For the rest of the year, players and fans battled construction as the park continued to be worked upon. The park was completed in time for the 2000 season and was dedicated in 2001. |
