Location within Michigan | |
Former names |
|
---|---|
Location | 333 Stadium Drive Traverse City, Michigan, United States |
Coordinates | 44°40′54″N85°39′38″W / 44.68173°N 85.660615°W |
Owner | Traverse City Baseball, LLC |
Capacity | 3,518; expandable to 4,200 |
Field size | Left field: 320 ft (97.5 m) Left-center: 390 ft (118.9 m) Center field: 400 ft (121.9 m) Right-center: 390 ft (118.9 m) Right field: 320 ft (97.5 m) |
Construction | |
Broke ground | 2004 |
Opened | May 24, 2006 |
Construction cost | $6 million |
Architect | William C. Fuller |
Tenants | |
Traverse City Beach Bums (FL) 2006–2018 Traverse City Pit Spitters (NWL) 2019–present |
Turtle Creek Stadium (formerly Pit Spitters Park and Wuerfel Park) is a 4,660-seat multi-use entertainment facility in Blair Township, Michigan, in the United States. It hosted its first regular season baseball game on May 24, 2006 as the tenants of the facility, the Traverse City Beach Bums, [1] took on the Kalamazoo Kings. It was built as a new home for the Beach Bums baseball team, the first in Traverse City in 93 years. In 2018, the Beach Bums' owners retired and the park sold. In 2019, Wuerfel Park became home to Traverse City's new baseball team, the Traverse City Pit Spitters of the summer collegiate Northwoods League. [2] [3]
The ballpark is located on a 26-acre (11 ha) site adjacent to the Chums Village commerce park, three miles (4.8 km) south of Traverse City near the intersection of US 31 and M-37. The groundbreaking for Wuerfel Park took place in late 2004 and was completed in time for the Beach Bums' inaugural 2006 season. The ballpark's façade resembles that of a resort hotel, a feature unique to baseball stadium architecture. John and Leslye Wuerfel, the original namesakes of the stadium and the owners of Wuerfel Resorts and the Beach Bums, designed Wuerfel Park to reference the region's resort industry and to their own type of business. [4] [5]
In 2018, the Traverse City Beach Bums and Weurfel Park were sold to a new ownership group led by the CEO of the West Michigan Whitecaps in Grand Rapids, Michigan. A new team, the Traverse City Pit Spitters, began playing at the park beginning in 2019, with the name changed to Pit Spitters Park with the sale. [6] [7]
In 2019, nearby Turtle Creek Casino purchased the naming rights for the park, changing the name to "Turtle Creek Stadium" for the 2020 season. [8]
The Frontier League is a professional baseball league based in the East North Central and Mid-Atlantic United States, and Central Canada. It operates as one of four Major League Baseball (MLB) Partner Leagues in the American independent baseball league system. Founded in 1993, the Frontier League is the oldest extant independent baseball league in North America to have never organized under the Minor League Baseball system.
The Richmond Roosters were a professional baseball team based in Richmond, Indiana from 1995 to 2005. The Roosters played in the independent Frontier League, which at that time had no affiliation with Major League Baseball.
The West Michigan Whitecaps are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Comstock Park, Michigan, a suburb of Grand Rapids, and play their home games at LMCU Ballpark.
Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium, originally simply Riverfront Stadium, was a 6,200-seat baseball park in Newark, New Jersey built in 1999. It was the home field of the Newark Bears, who played in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent minor baseball league. The Bears played in the stadium from 1999 until 2013 when they announced a move to the Canadian-American Association of Professional Baseball, but the team was folded shortly thereafter.
The Madison Mallards are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Madison, Wisconsin that plays in the Northwoods League. Warner Park on Madison's Northside is the team's home field.
LMCU Ballpark is a ballpark located in Comstock Park, Michigan, just north of Grand Rapids. Established as Old Kent Park in 1994, the stadium hosts a minor league baseball team, the West Michigan Whitecaps, and other sporting events. The ballpark's Fifth Third Burger was featured on an episode of Man v. Food. A fire damaged some of the first base side of the stadium on January 3, 2014, but the stadium re-opened in time to host the Whitecaps for the 2014 season.
The Traverse City Beach Bums were a professional baseball team based in the Traverse City, Michigan suburb of Blair Township from 2006-2018. The Beach Bums played in the independent Frontier League.
C.O. Brown Stadium is a baseball stadium in the United States located in Battle Creek, Michigan. The current stadium structure was built in 1990 and is a part of Bailey Park, a longtime home of amateur baseball and softball. Prior to the 1990 reconstruction, Bailey Park had been home to amateur, high school and college play since the 1930s, in a single-level grandstand built primarily of wood. C.O. Brown Stadium is the former home of the Michigan Battle Cats, Battle Creek Yankees and the Southwest Michigan Devil Rays of the Class A Midwest League. The stadium has a seating capacity of 2,193. C.O. Brown Stadium is the current home of the Northwoods League's Battle Creek Battle Jacks.
The Green Bay Rockers are a baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. The team joined the league as the Bullfrogs as an expansion franchise for the 2007 season along with the Battle Creek Bombers. Before the 2019 season, the Bullfrogs were renamed the Booyah, moved from their original stadium of Joannes Stadium to Capital Credit Union Park, and switched divisions from the Northwoods League South Division to the Great Lakes West Division.
The Battle Creek Battle Jacks are a baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. All players on the team must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. Their home games are played at the C.O. Brown Stadium in Battle Creek, Michigan. Their name refers variously to a previous Battle Creek baseball team, the Michigan Battle Cats, to Apple Jacks manufactured by Battle Creek-based Kellogg's, and to a "Jack of All Trades" as someone with multiple skills. Also, a "jack" is another term for a home run, and Cracker Jacks are often eaten by baseball fans during the game.
The Oakland County Cruisers were a professional baseball team based in Waterford Township, Michigan, in the United States. They were a member of the East Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. The team became the London Rippers in 2012.
The Prospect League is a collegiate summer baseball league comprising teams of college players from North America and beyond. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. So as to maintain their college eligibility, players are not paid. Beginning in 2012, the league added four games to the season, making a total of 60 games per team.
The Kalamazoo Growlers are a baseball team based in Kalamazoo, Michigan, that plays in the Northwoods League, a summer collegiate baseball league. The Growlers were founded in 2013 and played their first game on May 28, 2014, losing to the then defending league champion Madison Mallards 6-2. The Growlers played their first home game on May 30, 2014, beating the Battle Creek Bombers 13-3. The team plays its home games at Homer Stryker Field.
Capital Credit Union Park is a multi-purpose stadium in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, a suburb of Green Bay. The stadium is home to the Green Bay Rockers collegiate summer baseball team of the Northwoods League; the Green Bay Glory women's soccer team of the USL W League (USLW); and a variety of community athletic and social events. The Green Bay Voyageurs FC men's soccer team of the USL League Two played at the stadium in 2019 and 2021.
Baker Field at Bill Taunton Stadium is a baseball stadium in Willmar, Minnesota that is home to the Willmar Stingers of the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. Bill Taunton Stadium is also home to Willmar High School baseball, Ridgewater College baseball, two local VFW teams, and an American Legion team. The stadium annually hosts a kickball game between the Willmar Stingers and teachers at nearby Roosevelt Elementary on the last day of school. In 2010, the stadium hosted the Minnesota State Amateur Baseball Tournament.
Riverfront Stadium is a baseball park in downtown Wichita, Kansas, United States. It serves as the home ballpark of the Wichita Wind Surge of the Texas League. The team relocated from the New Orleans suburb of Metairie, Louisiana, after the 2019 season.
The Traverse City Pit Spitters are a baseball team in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league, and began play in the 2019 season. Based out of Traverse City, Michigan, the Pit Spitters play their home games at Turtle Creek Stadium in nearby Blair Township. The team began play at Turtle Creek Stadium in 2019 after the park's former tenant, the Traverse City Beach Bums of the Frontier League, ceased operations at the end of the 2018 season.
Spencer Drew Schwellenbach is an American professional baseball pitcher and shortstop in the Atlanta Braves organization.
The Traverse City Resorters were a professional minor league baseball team located in Traverse City, Michigan, United States, playing in the Class D Michigan State League and the precursor West Michigan League from 1910 to 1914. The Resorters played at the Bowers Harbor Ball Park on Old Mission Peninsula.
Events and tenants | ||
---|---|---|
Preceded by | Host of the FL All-Star Game Wuerfel Park 2008 | Succeeded by |