Athletic Park (Wausau)

Last updated
Athletic Park
The newly renovated stadium May 31, 2014 2014-05-31 22-53.jpg
Athletic Park in 2014
Athletic Park (Wausau)
Location324 E. Wausau Ave. Wausau, WI 54403 [1]
Coordinates 44°58′28.74″N89°37′34.91″W / 44.9746500°N 89.6263639°W / 44.9746500; -89.6263639
Public transitAiga bus trans.svg Metro Ride
OwnerCity of Wausau
Capacity 2,500 (1946)
4,400 (1951)
2,500 (1987) [2]
7,000 (2013) [3]
Field sizeLeft Field: 316 ft (96 m)
Left-Center Field: 340 ft (100 m)
Center Field: 360 ft (110 m)
Right-Center Field: 340 ft (100 m)
Right Field: 316 ft (96 m) [1]
SurfaceGrass
Construction
Built1936
Opened1936
Expanded2013, 2015
Tenants
Wausau Woodchucks (1994–present)
Wausau Timbers (1979–1990)
Wausau Mets (1975–1978)
Wausau Lumberjacks (1956–57; 1946-1949; 1936–1942)
Wausau Timberjacks (1950–1953)

Athletic Park is a baseball stadium located in Wausau, Wisconsin. It is the home field of the Wausau Woodchucks baseball team of the summer collegiate Northwoods League. It hosted Wausau Minor League teams during 36 seasons between 1936-1990.

Contents

History

Athletic Park was built in 1936. It sits in a residential area, just north of downtown Wausau, with a stone wall around the perimeter. [4] The park was the home of the Wausau Timbers of the Class-A Midwest League until 1990. Additions during the era included a roof in 1950, concessions in 1977, and clubhouses in 1981. It held seating for 3,850 people.

After the 1990 season, the Wausau Timbers moved to Geneva, Illinois and became the Kane County Cougars. The ballpark has hosted the Wausau Woodchucks of the summer collegiate Northwoods League beginning in 1994. [5]

Athletic Park was the home of Wausau East, Wausau West, and Wausau Newman high school baseball teams during the 1990s.

Between the 2013 and 2014 seasons, the ballpark underwent major renovations. The grandstand was demolished and replaced with a handicapped accessible one, including an elevator to the three levels. The new stadium opened May 30, 2014 for the Woodchucks home opener, which they lost, 6-4. The renovations were estimated at $2.7 million. [6] More took place in Phase II of 2015-2016 construction, with further improvements totaling $6.5 million. [7]

Professional baseball

Professional baseball Wausau teams that have played at Athletic Park include: the Wausau Lumberjacks (1936-1942, 1946-1949, 1956–57), the Wausau Timberjacks (1950–1953), the Wausau Mets (1975-1978), and the Wausau Timbers (1979-1990). [2] The teams were affiliated with the following major league franchises: the Cleveland Indians (1936 1937, 1942), the Philadelphia Phillies (1940–1941), the St. Louis Browns (1947–1949), the Detroit Tigers (1951–1953), the Cincinnati Reds (1956–1957), the New York Mets (1975-1978), Co-op (1979-1980), the Seattle Mariners (1981-1989), and the Baltimore Orioles (1990). [8] [9]

The Wausau teams were members of the following professional Minor Leagues: the Northern League (1936-1942, 1956–1957), the Wisconsin State League (1946-1953), and the Midwest League (1975-1990). [8] [9]

1981 Midwest League Championship

The 1981 the Wausau Timbers finished 84-48 and defeated the Quad City Cubs for the Midwest League Championship at Athletic Park. The team was managed by Bill Plummer and had future MLB players Ivan Calderon, Darnell Coles, Edwin Nunez, Jim Presley, and Harold Reynolds on the roster. [8] [9]

Notable players

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midwest League</span> American Minor League baseball league

The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganization of the minor leagues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cedar Rapids Kernels</span> American Minor League baseball team

The Cedar Rapids Kernels are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and play their home games at Veterans Memorial Stadium. The Kernels are owned by Cedar Rapids Ball Club, Inc..

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quad Cities River Bandits</span> American Minor League baseball team

The Quad Cities River Bandits are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. Their home games are played at Modern Woodmen Park in Davenport, Iowa, one of the Quad Cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beloit Sky Carp</span> American Minor League baseball team

The Beloit Sky Carp are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Beloit, Wisconsin, and play their home games at ABC Supply Stadium. They previously played at Harry C. Pohlman Field from its opening in 1982 until moving into their current ballpark in August 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burlington Bees</span> American Minor League baseball team

The Burlington Bees are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Burlington, Iowa, and have played their home games at Community Field since 1947. Founded in 1889, the Bees played in Minor League Baseball's Midwest League from 1962 to 2020. With Major League Baseball's reorganization of the minor leagues after the 2020 season, Burlington was not selected to continue in affiliated baseball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clinton LumberKings</span> American Minor League baseball team

The Clinton LumberKings are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Clinton, Iowa, and play their home games at NelsonCorp Field. From 1956 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's Midwest League. With Major League Baseball's reorganization of the minor leagues after the 2020 season, Clinton was not selected to continue in affiliated baseball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kane County Cougars</span> American baseball team

The Kane County Cougars are a professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois, and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their home games at Northwestern Medicine Field. From 1991 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's Midwest League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wausau Woodchucks</span>

The Wausau Woodchucks are an American baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. They play their home games at Athletic Park in Wausau, Wisconsin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northwoods League</span> Collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league

The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not paid, so as to maintain their college eligibility. Graduated senior pitchers are also eligible to play in the Northwoods League. Each team may have four of these players at a time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium</span> Baseball stadium in Grand Chute, Wisconsin

Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium is a baseball park in Grand Chute, Wisconsin. It is primarily used for baseball, and is the home field of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, the Midwest League Minor League Baseball affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. The stadium also hosts a few music concerts each year. From 2000 until 2018, it hosted the NCAA Division III College World Series; the contract to host the event ran out in 2018 and the stadium chose to not renew the contract due to the expanded D-III playoffs schedule conflicting with the Timber Rattlers' schedule. The stadium was built in 1995, and holds 5,900 people. It is also the site of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association High School Spring Baseball Championship.

The Decatur Commodores were a professional minor league baseball team based in Decatur, Illinois that played for 64 seasons. The Commodores are the primary ancestor of today's Kane County Cougars. They played, with sporadic interruptions, from 1900 to 1974 in a variety of minor leagues, but spent the majority of their existence in the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League, later joining the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League (1952–1955) and the Midwest League (1956–1974). While they spent most of their years as an independent without formal major league baseball team affiliation, their primary affiliations were with the St. Louis Cardinals and later the San Francisco Giants, with isolated affiliations with the Detroit Tigers, Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies.

The Columbus Foxes were a minor league baseball team that played in Columbus, Georgia. USA.

The Wisconsin Rapids Twins were a Class A Minor League Baseball team that existed from 1963 to 1983, playing in the Midwest League. Affiliated with the Washington Senators (1963) and the Minnesota Twins (1964-1983), they were located in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, United States. They played their home games at Witter Field. The franchise evolved from the Wisconsin Rapids White Sox of the Wisconsin State League. For the 1984 season, the franchise became the Kenosha Twins, moving to Kenosha, Wisconsin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wausau Timbers</span> Minor league baseball team

The Wausau Timbers were a minor league baseball team, located in Wausau, Wisconsin. The Timbers were members of the Class A Midwest League from 1975 to 1990. The franchise was sold in 1991 and moved to Geneva, Illinois, where it became the Kane County Cougars.

Witter Field is a baseball ballpark located at 521 Lincoln Street in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, United States. It was built in 1928. It served as the home park for multiple minor league teams: the Wisconsin Rapids White Sox, Wisconsin Rapids Senators and Wisconsin Rapids Twins. Currently, it hosts the Northwoods League's Wisconsin Rapids Rafters and youth teams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wausau Lumberjacks</span> Minor league baseball team

The Wausau Lumberjacks were a minor league baseball team based in Wausau, Wisconsin that existed on-and-off from 1905 to 1957. The Wausau franchise then became the Wausau Timbers before relocating to become today's Kane County Cougars. The Lumberjacks played in the Wisconsin State League, Wisconsin–Illinois League, Minnesota–Wisconsin League (1909–1911) and Northern League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dubuque, Iowa minor league baseball</span> Minor league baseball team

Minor league baseball teams have operated in the city of Dubuque, Iowa under a variety of names in various leagues, playing in 52 seasons between 1879 and 1976. Dubuque teams were an affiliate of the Houston Astros (1975–1976), Kansas City Royals (1968), Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians (1961–1966), Pittsburgh Pirates (1959–1960) and Chicago White Sox (1954–1958).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenosha Kingfish</span>

The Kenosha Kingfish are a baseball team that plays in the collegiate summer Northwoods League. Based in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the Kingfish play their home games at Simmons Field.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Croix River Hounds</span> Collegiate summer baseball team in the Northwoods League

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Hudson Ballpark</span>

New Hudson Ballpark is the temporary name for a proposed ballpark to be built in Hudson, Wisconsin. It is planned to be the home of the St. Croix River Hounds, a collegiate summer baseball team that will play in the Northwoods League. The new stadium will be part of a multi-use campus planned for the old 130-acre St. Croix Meadows dog track, a facility which was in business from 1991 to 2001, and which was unused afterwards. It was reported in July 2017 that construction could start the next month, with ticket sales starting that September and the stadium opening in May 2018. The St. Croix Meadows dog track was demolished in January 2018 to make room for the new Hudson Gateway development. In October 2019, baseball stadium construction was set to begin in the spring of 2020. In May 2020, construction was to begin "this summer". As of April 29, 2021, ballpark construction had not begun, but the team still had "the intention to begin the build this year." In July 2022, a revised development plan was presented that would call for a 1,400 seat facility that could open as soon as June 2023. The River Hounds were still not listed in the Northwoods League schedule for 2023.

References

  1. 1 2 "Ballpark - Wausau Woodchucks : Wausau Woodchucks". Northwoodsleague.com. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  2. 1 2 "Athletic Park Minor League History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  3. ↑ "Stadium Renovation - Wisconsin Woodchucks : Wisconsin Woodchucks". Northwoodsleague.com. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  4. ↑ Brian Gardner / gardnerphotos.com (2014-08-01). "Athletic Park, Home of the Wisconsin Woodchucks #2". Mn Artists. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  5. ↑ "Wisconsin Woodchucks - Get Ready for the Show! : Wisconsin Woodchucks". Northwoodsleague.com. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  6. ↑ "$2.7M Athletic Park renovation plan announced Tuesday - News - WSAU News/Talk 550AM 99.9FM". Wsau.com. 2013-04-16. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  7. ↑ "Second Phase Of Athletic Park Renovations Set". Ballpark Digest. 2015-04-16. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  8. 1 2 3 "1981 Midwest League". Baseball-reference.com. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  9. 1 2 3 "1981 Wausau Timbers - Midwest League". Thebaseballcube.com. Archived from the original on 2016-02-25. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
The old color Oldathleticpark1.jpg
The old color
The new color Newathleticpark1.jpg
The new color

44°58′28″N89°37′36″W / 44.974475°N 89.626585°W / 44.974475; -89.626585

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.