The Hagerstown Suns have made it a priority this off-season to replace the infield at Municipal Stadium. After months of planning, the infield renovation project began Wednesday. The project includes complete stripping of the infield grass, leveling and laser-grading the entire infield as well as laying new sod and infield dirt.
The project was made possible through a partnership by the City of Hagerstown, Washington County, Hagerstown/Washington County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Washington Nationals and the Hagerstown Suns. Alpine Services Inc. of Gaithersburg , MD won the bid to perform the renovation. Alpine Services Inc. also resurfaced the entire playing surface of Harry Grove Stadium in Frederick, MD one year ago. Harry Grove Stadium is home to the Frederick Keys.
It is believed that this is the first resurfacing at Municipal Stadium since the Suns began playing in Hagerstown in 1981.
Updates of the progress can be viewed online by visiting www.hagerstownsuns.com and viewing the “Photo Gallery” selected from the menu on the left margin of the Suns’ homepage.
The following webpage links directly to the Infield Renovation Photo Gallery.
Scrub fan | 08-Nov-07 at 8:35 pm | Permalink
Is it possible that the Suns’ problems had anything to do with the field? How did the Mets’ farm club do there, or the O’s club bfore them?
Daniel | 09-Nov-07 at 11:02 am | Permalink
Brian- When are you going to post the Harrisburg and Colombus roundups?
roberto | 09-Nov-07 at 12:09 pm | Permalink
In 2005( Hagerstown Mets ) 97 errors between starter SS, 2B and 3B
In 2006 (Hagerstown Mets) 93 errors between starter 3B, 2B, and SS
in 2007 (Hagerstwon Nationals ) 92 errors between starter 3B, 2B, and SS
No comments!
Suns Fan | 10-Nov-07 at 12:31 pm | Permalink
The field had something to do with it, but still, there were dropped catches, botched throws, etc. Also, the visitors made fewer errors than the home team over the 67 games played at Municipal Stadium this year.
I believe this is the first time the field has been resurfaced since the stadium was built–all the way back in 1930. It’s long overdue, and I am glad it is happening. The next question is whether they’ll be able to resurface the outfield–which, while not as bad as the infield, needs to be resurfaced too.
Bob | 13-Nov-07 at 12:37 pm | Permalink
“Dropped catches,botched throws” are part of every game at EVERY level. However, when you play on a “bad” infield day in and day out, it is very easy to develop bad habits. These habits develop as one instinctively anticipates the bad hop to protect oneself - this comes from taking too many bad hops -the surface can get into your mind. Just watch how many High School infielders (on bad surfaces)won’t get down a a ball the way they should -the bad hops are so frequent that they become “trained” to NOT get down. These players (Minor leaguers)all have talent ,but the “mental” side of it all usually separates them. Its hard for me to believe that a professional team plays on an infield that has not been laser leveled in some 25 years! I have seen this infield surface at Hagerstown and will tell you that it reminds me of a bad High School surface. The stats for the Hagerstown teams over that 3 year span tell the story. Hooray for the City of Hagerstown for getting the field in professional condition.
Michael | 19-Nov-07 at 12:31 pm | Permalink
Now if they could do the same thing up here in Vermont. The outfield is a good 14″ (if not more) lower than the infield. and very uneven