Bailey–Brayton Field

Bailey-Brayton Field
Former names Buck Bailey Field
(1980–1999)
Location Washington State University
Pullman, Washington, U.S.
Coordinates 46°44′06″N 117°09′18″W / 46.735°N 117.155°W / 46.735; -117.155Coordinates: 46°44′06″N 117°09′18″W / 46.735°N 117.155°W / 46.735; -117.155
Owner Washington State University
Operator Washington State University
Capacity 3,500
Field size Left Field: 330 ft (101 m)
L. Center: 375 ft (114 m)
Center: 400 ft (122 m) [1]
R. Center: 385 ft (117 m)
Right Field: 335 ft (102 m)
Surface FieldTurf - (2004–present)
Natural grass - (1980–2003)
Opened 1980 (1980)
Tenants
Washington State Cougars - (NCAA)
1980 – present
Pullman
Location in the United States
Pullman
Location in Washington

Bailey–Brayton Field is a college baseball stadium in the northwest United States, on the campus of Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. It is the home field of the Washington State Cougars of the Pac-12 Conference, and is located on the east side of the WSU campus, just southeast of the Beasley Coliseum. The approximate elevation of the playing field is 2,550 feet (780 m) above sea level.

The stadium's seating capacity is 3,500 and opened for baseball 36 years ago in 1980 as Buck Bailey Field, in honor of the head coach at WSU for 32 seasons, from 1927 to 1961 (except during World War II), and the name was carried over from the previous venue, named for him in 1950.[2] Born and raised in central Texas, Bailey retired after the 1961 season at age 65. Three years later, he and his wife Frances were killed in an automobile collision in New Mexico in October 1964.[3][4]

Lights were added in 1984,[5][6] as it became the first NCAA ballpark in the Northwest to install them.[7] The field was renamed in January 2000 to also honor longtime Cougar baseball head coach Chuck "Bobo" Brayton, who led the Cougars from 1962 to 1994, and continuously improved the venue.[8]

In the fall of 2003,[9] the natural grass surface was removed and replaced with FieldTurf, and WSU became the first Division I program to install FieldTurf in its home ballpark.[10][11] The only portion of the field that remained dirt was the pitcher's mound and home plate area.[12][13] The basepaths and the "skin" portion of the infield are FieldTurf, colored reddish brown, while the outfield is green FieldTurf.[14] The home plate area was converted to FieldTurf in 2007, leaving only the pitcher's mound with dirt.[1] In fall 2013, the dirt pitcher's mound was replaced with a FieldTurf mound and the infield FieldTurf was replaced.[15]

The previous WSU baseball field, also named for Bailey,[16] was located at the site of the Mooberry Track,[17] the current venue for track & field. Home plate was in the northwest corner and the field was oriented southeast.[18] When Martin Stadium was renovated following the 1978 football season, its running track was removed to add seating nearer the lowered playing field. The new track was originally planned for the site of the present-day baseball stadium, but inadequate settling of the excavated dirt from Martin Stadium caused a change in plans.[19] The new track was built over the more stable ground of the old Bailey baseball field, and baseball was relocated to the former proposed track site.[20]

When Sick's Stadium in Seattle was demolished in 1979, its bleachers, fencing, and foul poles were moved to Pullman to construct the new Buck Bailey Field.[21][22] The bleachers didn't fit and were later sold.[8] Most of the other items from Sick's were bought for $60,000 in 1978 by Harry Ornest, the owner of the new Vancouver Canadians for use at Nat Bailey Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia.[23]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Baseball media guide" (PDF). Washington State Cougars Athletics. 2010. p. 4.
  2. ↑ Missildine, Harry (April 17, 1981). "Buck Bailey - great man, coach, tradition". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. 23.
  3. ↑ "Buck Bailey, wife die in smash". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. October 28, 1964. p. 1.
  4. ↑ Missildine, Harry (October 29, 1964). "Buck died, at 68, a 'young' man". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. 12.
  5. ↑ Devlin, Vince (May 12, 1984). "Doubleheader sweep brightens Cougars' night". Spokane Chronicle. Washington. p. 13.
  6. ↑ Meehan, Jim (March 23, 1989). "Preserving Cougar baseball history". Idahonian. Moscow. p. 1C.
  7. ↑ Blanchette, John (May 9, 1984). "The last man out please turn off the lights". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. 21.
  8. 1 2 Blanchette, John (January 23, 2000). "All the right tools". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. C1.
  9. ↑ "WSU installs new turf on baseball field". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. October 28, 2003. p. C7.
  10. ↑ "Cougars plan new baseball turf". Lewiston Tribune. Idaho. October 28, 2003. p. 2B.
  11. ↑ Krump, Jason (October 27, 2003). "Bailey-Brayton Stadium FieldTurf Installation Underway". Washington State University Athletics. Archived from the original on December 10, 2008. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Washington State Cougars & FieldTurf". Spokane, WA: You Tube. KXLY-TV. April 19, 2004. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Northwest Colleges: WSU rallies to bury Huskies". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. March 19, 2004. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
  14. ↑ Fox, Tom (March 18, 2004). "Cougars, Huskies baseball teams to play three games". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Idaho-Washington. p. 3B.
  15. ↑ "Bailey-Brayton Field has a new look". Washington State University Athletics. October 1, 2013. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Top crowds seen for Cougar Day". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. April 24, 1969. p. 27.
  17. ↑ "Dedication scheduled Saturday". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. May 5, 1981. p. 17.
  18. ↑ "Pullman, Washington: aerial photograph". Washington State University Libraries. Digital Collections. 1957. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  19. ↑ "WSU stadium costs disputed". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. July 9, 1979. p. 11.
  20. ↑ Van Sickel, Charlie (January 8, 1980). "Track standouts may desert Washington State". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. p. 15.
  21. ↑ Lowry, Philip (2006). Green Cathedrals. Walker & Company. p. 217. ISBN 978-0-8027-1608-8.
  22. ↑ Goodwin, Dale (April 22, 1979). "Bobo: From 'hitcher' to legend". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. C6.
  23. ↑ "Good ol' Sicks' for sale – works". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. May 23, 1978. p. 18.

External links

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