Phil Welch Stadium 2006
Phil Welch Stadium for Baseball
Field Details
Third Base Line (2006)
First Base Line (2006)
| Left | Center | Right |
|---|---|---|
| 320 | 420 | 320 |
Dugouts & Bullpens
- Blacksnake's den is on the third base side, visitors on the first
- Bullpens are in foul territory and in play
Fences & Field
- Fences are approx. 10' high around outfield
- Oufield fences are solid concrete with no padding
- Second row of oufield signage is "home run territory"
- Outfield corners expand at the end of the picnic areas
Flagpole and Outfield Light Poles
- Four outfield light poles and the flagpole are in the field of play
- All of these poles are on the warning track 6-8 feet from the outfield fence
- All the poles are padded and are marked in yellow for home runs
- Balls hitting above the yellow lines are home runs even if they do not clear the fence
- The flagpole is slightly left of dead center
Webmaster's game assessment
View from outfield (2006)
There are several aspects of the Phil that influence play and reflect the design of older ballparks that aren't as friendly as new facilityes. These clearly are an advantage for the home time outfielders who, in time can learn how to play this field.
The new brick of the dugout
The Wall
The first are the dimensions --they're are rather large. It's 320 feet down the lines and a deep 420 to dead center. Next is the ungiving, 10 foot, solid concrete wall. There is no padding on the wall --unless you consider the thin vinyl ads stretched on them will reduce injuries if you run into them. Fielders have to consider this when running out for a catch.
Base of the light poles in left field.
The flip side of the wall's unyielding nature is that the ball should always bounce hard and solidly off them and back to the field. Most bounces should be true but there are some "accordian" work in between the sections that could lead to an unusual carom.
The Poles
If the hard walls weren't enough, the flagpole and lighting poles on the warning track add yet another concern for the outfielder. The good news is that they're padded. The bad news is not only that they're an obstacle to avoid running into but they can be an obstacle for return throws if the ball ends up behind them. It also doesn't help that the electrical boxes on the light poles make them all the more uneven in shape.
What happened to these players' ankles?
They are in short left field, just beyond the infield.
They are in short left field, just beyond the infield.
Sunken Outfield?
Another, less obvious issue is an artifact of the age of the field itself. The bricks and concrete may be solid as about as "good as new" as one could ask for after nearly 70 years, but there's been some subtle erosion in the outfield. Clearly the infield has been fairly well maintained (and probably tarp covered) for most of the park's history.
The problem is that runoff seems to have removed a sizable amount of the outfield dirt that there's a significant drop off that doesn't seem to be part of the normal crown of the field. The photo at the right is unretouched and shows how quickly the field slopes away from the infield dirt. I haven't seen if water pools in these areas but it would not surprise me. In the future, if the Blacksnakes do well, they may work with the city to rebuild the field to get the surface as good as the surrounding historic masonry.
Right field corner, note how foul ground appears to expand.
Right Field Corner
One somewhat less significant quirk are how the right field corner expands. Instead of the running (roughly) parallel to the baseline (as it does along the third base line), it turns out just beyond the picnic area. This gives rightl fielders better chance to catch a deep foul ball tailing away from them by providing more space to catch them --or simply the space to slow down if they're running full tilt to where the wall shoud be.