Building a baseball field

I agree with John Saunders, the Floyd Perry books are full of great ideas.

No matter what your budget is, start by making a design drawing of the field that you want to build. One thing you that will discover in the Perry books is every ball field is a little different from all the others. Other than obvious issues such as base and pitching distances, you will want to consider all the factors that will affect the way the game will be played on the field. For example, how far should home plate be from the back stop? How wide or narrow do you want the areas between the foul lines and the playing fence to be? Will the entire field be enclosed with fencing? Where will fence breaks be, and how many access points do you want to the field. Do you want a warning track? Does your league or team's insurance plan prohibit or allow an on-deck area for hitters? Must it be enclosed? How big are the dugouts, and what material will be used to construct them?

Once you have the field layout completed, then you're ready to consider other planning issues. One of these issues may be establishing and caring for the turf areas. Can a water hook up be located at the park, or will you only rely on rain fall? What about other utilities? Then there is the issue of emergency visits to a toilet.

On the construction side, perhaps the most critical issue, and in some cases the most expensive, is to grade the field. Getting a level playing surface for the entire field area will require planning and professional expertise. My advice, don't trust the naked eye. Get a transit and stake the field area to find out where all the high and low spots are. Professionals may be willing to help. These could include a local developer/building contractor, commercial landscape contractor, or an excavating company. Some excavators doing large jobs, e.g., a residential sewer and water project, are often looking for dump sites to haul the dirt that must be moved. You could be in a good negotiating position to make a trade. In return for allowing the excavator to use the meadow area as a dump site, the excavator agrees to grade the property. Also, if the meadow is a wide open area, think about constructing a large berm, or a series of berms around the perimeter areas. These are good for wind breaks. The excavator could help you here too, especially if he has a lot of earth to move.

It's never too early to develop a landscape plan for the field. Creating berms to shield the playing area from wind is part of the plan. Planting trees is also important. Rows of trees around the fence perimeter (also, in front of and atop any berms) will provide a natural wind break. You will also want to plant some shade trees for those really hot summer days. Beneath a shade tree is always a good place for a team meeting, or a place to relax before or after the game. With a landscape plan, you will be in a better position to organize the process of acquiring trees and planting them. True, trees are expensive. However, many nurseries will donate trees at the end of the fall growing season to organizations such as park districts, school districts, historical societies, etc. By making local nurseries aware of your need, you may be able to acquire a few nice trees to plant at your field each year.

Other construction issues include the type of infield mix that will be used. Most mixes are a combination of clay and sand, (60/40 or 70/30). Some infields are actually made of stone, crushed so fine that it feels and looks like clay. In general, the harder the mix (higher clay or stone %), the better the field will look, but the more maintenance will be required. You will also want to consider moisture conditioning the infield surface with a product like "Turface" or "Soilmaster." Estimate about $230 to cover every 400 square feet with one ton of material. It does make a huge difference, so you will want to give this some serious consideration as a budget item.

Pitching mound construction is a primary project. Do your pitchers a favor, and build them the best mound that you can afford. Stabilize the crest and landing areas of the mound with materials such as bricks, blue clay, or other additives. If your budget can stretch further, do the same around home plate. Remove about 3 inches of dirt in the batter's boxes and the catcher's box . Put in bricks or stabilizer clay, and then put a thin layer of top soil back over these areas. If you can't afford to do much, then do it in installments. After the pitcher's mound, start with the right hand batter's box first.

Plan to invest in tarps to cover the mound and another to cover the batter's and catcher's boxes. If you can afford another one for the first base area, that's great. Tarps really help to keep the dirt in the high maintenance areas packed, but moist. We place tarps on the high maintenance areas every night of the season no matter what the weather.

There are people you can ask for advice in your local area. Many of them will glad to pass on their best and most practical tips to you. These include the local high school (s). Usually, there is one guy on the maintenance staff who lovingly labors on the baseball field. The varsity baseball coach, if he's a veteran type of guy, has also probably been involved in several field projects. If there is a local park district, the supervisor of fields and facilities is a good person to contact. A local college or community college is another place to visit. Don't be surprised if you get a wide variety of opinions about what to do. When it comes to building ball fields, everyone has an unique opinion about what is best.

Another helpful source is Beacon Ballfields in Madison, Wisconsin. Visit their website (www.ballfields.com) and request a free catalog. They may also be willing to send you some samples of different types of materials that are used to construct mounds and stabilize the infield areas. Beacon's also sells the Perry books and is willing to rent or loan a video produced by the manufacturer of Turface. In the Chicago area, S.P.O.R.T.S. (Speciality Products of Related Turf Sports) in Mundelein, Illinois is another helpful source. For a catalog of their field products and sports turf services, fax them at 847-367-7852.