St. Cloud State University

How Do the SCSU Coaches Feel About Playing on Field Turf?

Listed below are a collection of testimonials from St. Cloud State University coaches about the importance of creating a Field Turf baseball facility in Central Minnesota.

Being a baseball purest, I was skeptical on the Field Turf issue. That all changed rather quickly after looking outside my hotel window to see pouring rain coming down and we were about to embark on an elimination game against Mankato State last season in the NCC Tourney in Omaha. Not only did the field hold up, but it got great reviews from players and fans alike. A quick note, the field in Omaha was entirely covered with Field Turf and I'm now a proponent of this happening in the St. Cloud area.  On March 29, 2009, we were able to get a doubleheader in against the University of Wisconsin Superior at Minnetonka Veterans Field. What a treat the 100+ fans had, to not only see great baseball action, but great weather to boot! Literally, the 48-degree weather felt actually warm playing on this surface which is a godsend when we normally only see this type of weather in May. From a playing standpoint and a cost standpoint, Field Turf is a real win-win situation for all.  If everyone is rowing the boat in the same direction, these initial costs will pay dividends in a very short period of time, so let’s keep the momentum going on this cause and get it done!

-Pete Pratt (Pitching Coach and former athlete at St. Cloud State University)

Here is my opinion on field turf, coming from a coach, umpire, and fan. It was a tremendous experience to be able to watch a doubleheader on Sunday on the Field Turf at Minnetonka HS in Minnesota on March 29th. Most people don't realize the advantages for players, coaches, schools, and fans when they know that they have a chance of playing baseball games in late March and early April. You do not have to worry about field maintenance, frost in the ground, rainy weather, and many other obstacles that regular fields would have to postpone or cancel games. You can have the advantages of being able to play many games over a field sitting idle because it is NOT READYTO BE PLAYED ON with a grass infield and outfield. If there are concerns about field turf, you should attend a game that is played on field turf and you would see why players, coaches, and fans enjoy it. Right now when the weather is so unpredictable, fields that have field turf would be providing a place to play and practice when other fields are not even close to playability this time of year. It is a no-brainer to have field turf if you want to have College, High School, and Amateur baseball games played in late March and early April. You can rent outfield turf fields to outside schools to help pay for the original cost of installing field turf. You can play many games at any time. Field Turf can last a long time and you have hardly any maintenance during its use.

-Dean Jaacks (Hall of Fame Windom High School Coach, Umpire, Fan)

As a current St. Cloud State University Assistant Coach and a former University of Minnesota Gopher baseball player I firmly believe field turf in St. Cloud is a necessity for the advancement and progression of baseball in central Minnesota. Installing field turf in St. Cloud has advantages for all high school, college, and amateur baseball programs in Central Minnesota.  For the past two years central Minnesota high school teams have had to wait until the first week of April before the city fields are ready to use.  At the same time, Minnetonka has been able to host over 30 games on their field turf surface.  As one of the SCSU baseball recruiting coordinators I have spoken with many central MN coaches that would greatly enjoy the benefits of a field turf field similar to Minnetonka’s.  Minnesota is notorious for unpredictable spring weather, which leads to the cancellation of many practices and games.  Rain, snow, frost, and other forms of spring weather rarely prevent practice or games on a field turf field.  Field turf requires minimal maintenance, both in the offseason and on game days.  Field turf is a long term financial investment.  The up front cost of field turf is substantial.  However, much revenue can be brought in by renting the field turf facility to high school, college, and amateur baseball teams throughout Minnesota.  It is evident that a field turf field would be a tremendous asset to baseball in central Minnesota.

-Luke MacLean (Asstistant Coach St. Cloud State University

As a former player of the Northern Sun and Northwoods league, I have experienced many situations where field turf would have had a positive impact on the game of baseball.  Upper Midwest baseball has always been hit or miss with cold weather being the predominate culprit in preventing baseball games from occurring. However, field turf presents a fairly marketable solution to this issue by allowing games to occur without the wear and tear effects of overuse in poor conditions.  Even now as I pursue a career in the game as an independent professional player, I get to witness the benefits of field turf almost every day as many teams in my league play on a field turf product.  It is mandated that all new expansion teams must have field turf in order to be granted access into the league. Field turf not only allows for an optimal fielding surface, but it also eliminates most natural delays such as rain and snow with minimal upkeep.  As the tactics of the game changes, so must it surroundings. These changes include field turf because the positives far outweigh the negatives. 

-Adam Kampsen (Asstistant Coach St. Cloud State University, Current Independent Professional Baseball Player)

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