Louisville Slugger Field
| Slugger Field, LSF | |
 |
|
| Location | 401 East Main Street Louisville, KY 40202 |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. |
| Owner | The Metro Development Authority Louisville Baseball Club, Inc. |
| Operator | Louisville Baseball Club, Inc. |
| Capacity | Baseball:13,131 Soccer:8,000[1] |
| Field size | Left Field: 325 feet Center Field: 405 feet Right Field: 340 feet |
| Surface | Kentucky Bluegrass |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | November 13, 1998[2] |
| Opened | April 12, 2000 |
| Construction cost | $40 million ($55 million in 2024 dollars[3]) |
| Architect | HNTB K. Norman Berry Associates[4] |
| Structural engineer | Rangaswamy & Associates[4] |
| Services engineer | CMTA Consulting Engineers[5] |
| General contractor | Turner/Barton Malow[6] |
| Tenants | |
| Louisville Bats (IL) (2000–present) Louisville City FC (USL) (2015–present) |
|
Louisville Slugger Field is a baseball stadium in Louisville, Kentucky. The baseball-specific stadium opened in 2000 with a seating capacity of 13,131. It is currently home to the Louisville Bats, AAA affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, and Louisville City FC of the United Soccer League. Seating capacity for soccer games is approximately 8,000, due to restricted sight lines.
The unique design of Louisville Slugger Field includes a former train shed on the site which was incorporated into the stadium. The Ohio River and state of Indiana are visible from the park, as well as views of downtown Louisville. Naming rights for the stadium were purchased by Hillerich & Bradsby, makers of the famous Louisville Slugger baseball bat, and the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory is located several blocks further down Main Street. The stadium is accessible from I-64, I-65, and I-71.
History
The Louisville Bats and the City of Louisville broke ground on Louisville Slugger Field on November 13, 1998. In front of an estimated crowd of 1,000, Mayor Jerry Abramson and Governor Paul E. Patton cut out the first home plate before they broke the ground with Bats President Gary Ulmer and other officials.[2]
On April 14, 2006, a stadium record crowd of 14,123 watched the Bats lose their 2006 season home opener to the Ottawa Lynx 6–4.[7]
The stadium hosted the 2008 Triple-A All-Star Game, in which the Pacific Coast League All-Stars defeated the International League All-Stars 6–3 in front of a sellout crowd.[8]
On July 8, 2009, John Mellencamp, Bob Dylan, and Willie Nelson held a concert at the ballpark.[9][10]
In March 2015 Louisville City FC, a USL soccer team in the third division of U.S. professional soccer, played its first home game in franchise history at the stadium.
Features
The design of Louisville Slugger Field is a joint effort of HNTB Architects of Kansas City, Mo and K. Norman Berry Associates of Louisville. The field was financed through a partnership between the city, the Bats, Hillerich & Bradsby, the Brown Foundation, Humana Inc. and the Humana Foundation.[2]
The stadium includes 11,522 fixed seats with room for 1,609 additional spectators in the picnic areas and berm sections.[11] The ballpark also includes 32 private suites, 850 second-level club seats, a continuous concourse around the field, an outfield seating berm, extensive press facilities, concessions and restrooms, a children's play area, team and administrative offices and numerous retail amenities.[2] Spectators enter the stadium through the restored "train shed" building, which was formerly the Brinly-Hardy Co. warehouse.[2]
The Main Street side of the building includes exterior access to a microbrewery and restaurant located within the facility, as well as a statue of Louisville native and Baseball Hall of Famer Pee Wee Reese. The Witherspoon Street entrance, diagonally situated from Waterfront Park includes a statue of football Hall of Famer, Paul Hornung.
See also
References
- ↑ http://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/soccer/louisville-city-fc/2015/03/27/louisville-city-fc-supporters-ready-clubs-opener-vs-saint-louis-fc/70555952/
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- ↑ 1634 to 1699: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. 1700-1799: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. 1800–present: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to [[commons:Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 506: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).|Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 506: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).]]. |
| Events and tenants | ||
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| Preceded by | Home of the Louisville Bats 2000 – present |
Succeeded by current |
