Kentucky Proud Park is a baseball stadium in Lexington, Kentucky. It is the home field of the University of Kentucky Wildcats college baseball team. The stadium opened in 2018, with the Wildcats playing their first season there in 2019. It has 2,500 fixed seats, with grass berm seating adding an additional 1,500-plus to the total capacity. Temporary seating can also be added to bring the capacity to 7,000 for NCAA tournament games.
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  Kentucky Proud Park Location in Kentucky  Kentucky Proud Park Location in the United States | |
| Address | 510 Wildcat Court |
|---|---|
| Location | Lexington, Kentucky 40506 |
| Owner | University of Kentucky |
| Operator | University of Kentucky |
| Type | Stadium |
| Genre(s) | Baseball |
| Capacity | 5,000 |
| Record attendance | 7,558 (vs. Oregon State; June 10, 2024) |
| Field size | LF: 335 ft (102.1 m) LC: 375 ft (114.3 m) CF: 400 ft (121.9 m) RC: 365 ft (111.3 m) RF: 320 ft (97.5 m)[1] |
| Surface | Artificial turf; AstroTurf Rootzone Diamond Blend |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | March 2, 2017 |
| Built | 2018 |
| Opened | February 26, 2019 |
| Construction cost | $49 million |
| Architect | HNTB RossTarrant Architects BallparkDesignAssociates, LLC |
| Tenants | |
| Kentucky Wildcats (NCAA) (2019–present) | |
| Website | |
| https://ukathletics.com/facilities/kentucky-proud-park/62 | |
The replacement for Cliff Hagan Stadium, the park received its name in a deal between JMI Sports, which holds the multimedia rights for UK sports and also markets the naming rights to all Wildcats venues, and the Kentucky Farm Bureau, an organization promoting the interests of Kentucky farmers which is best known by the non-farming public for its insurance business. The Farm Bureau chose to donate its naming rights to the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, which uses "Kentucky Proud" as the brand for its marketing program for agricultural products made in the state.[2]
Kentucky opened up Kentucky Proud Park on February 26, 2019, with a 7–3 win over Eastern Kentucky in front of 4,074 fans.[3]
Kentucky Proud Park in Detail
editThe Kentucky Proud Park features a large entrance right being home plate and a left field entrance directly connected to the parking lot. There is also an interactive screen at the entrance that allows fans to touch to see the history of the team, the information about the stadium, the players who played in the major leagues, and design their own uniform with the Kentucky colors. The large concourse wraps around the entire field and is spacious with dealerships, bathrooms and other signs. Club and lounge areas are also available to fans. A small grass area in left field is accessible for kids to get entertained during the game. The Kentucky Proud Park include a big video board. Measured at 48 feet wide and 30 feet tall, the video board is the eight largest video board in all College Baseball.[4]
First Reaction
editA couple days before the 2019 opening season, Nick Mingione, head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats Baseball team, was interviewed concerning the new Kentucky Proud Park. “It really is just a special place,” was his original reaction. “I’m excited for the Big Blue Nation to experience it. I think they’re really going to fall in love with it,” Head Coach Mingione said. “The team has really fit in here,” “They’re comfortable here. T.J. Collett already hit the first Big Blue Bomb here. We won the first one... this is our true home. We’re excited to stay and finish the season strong here,” Mingione said on February 26, 2019, after a 7-3 win.[5]
2016-2017 season
editThe last time the Wildcats made a postseason run was in 2016. They ended up hosting a regional tournament in Lexington. The Cliff Hagan Stadium saw its first postseason action since 2006.[6] Nick Mingione led his troops to this postseason run in his first year. After beating Ohio University, Indiana University and North Carolina State University twice in Lexington during the regionals, the Wildcats moved on to the Super Regionals. They faced the Louisville Cardinals. The Wildcats saw their season end after two consecutive lost to Louisville who advanced to the College World Series.[7]
Kentucky Wildcats' Record in Kentucky Proud Park in (since 2019)
edit
Yearedit |
Gamesedit |
Overall W-Ledit |
Overall Win Pctedit |
SEC W-Ledit |
SEC Win Pctedit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 31 | 16-15 | .516 | 2-13 | .133 |
| 2020 | 14 | 11-3 | .786 | NA | NA |
| 2021 | 35 | 22-13 | .629 | 6-9 | .400 |
| 2022 | 34 | 22-12 | .647 | 7-8 | .563 |
| 2023 | 36 | 29-7 | .806 | 11-4 | .733 |
| 2024 | 32 | 25–7 | .781 | 10-5 | .667 |
| Locker Room | Entertainment and Nutrition area | Cages |
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See also
edit- List of NCAA Division I baseball venues
- Climate Pledge Arena, an indoor arena in Seattle that received its current name via a similar donation of naming rights
- Friends Arena, a stadium in Stockholm that received its current name via a similar donation of naming rights
References
edit- ^ Roberts, Ben (October 24, 2016). "Barnhart says new stadium marks 'a really cool day for Kentucky baseball'". Lexington Herald-Leader. Archived from the original on February 23, 2017. Retrieved December 27, 2018.
- ^ Smith, Jennifer (October 19, 2018). "New UK baseball stadium now has a name. Here's who bought the rights". Lexington Herald-Leader. Archived from the original on November 6, 2018. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
- ^ "Wildcats Open Kentucky Proud Park With Feel-Good Win". 26 February 2019. Archived from the original on 16 April 2020. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ Viquez, Marc (2019-04-04). "Kentucky Proud Park – Kentucky Wildcats". Stadium Journey. Retrieved 2021-11-28.
- ^ Peters, Hailey (1 April 2019). "Kentucky Proud Park becoming a 'true home' for Wildcat baseball". Kentucky Kernel. ProQuest 2202232099.
- ^ "Kentucky Baseball: Cliff Hagan Stadium to host first NCAA regional since 2006". Wildcat Blue Nation. 2017-05-30. Retrieved 2021-11-28.
- ^ "Page 2017". D1Baseball. Retrieved 2021-11-28.
- ^ "Page 2021". D1Baseball. Retrieved 2021-11-29.
External links
edit- Kentucky Proud Park at UKAthletics.com
- Kentucky Proud Park at StadiumJourney.com
- BASE: New Stadium Facilities Tour at Youtube.com
- University of Kentucky Proud Park Construction Time-Lapse at Youtube.com
- BASE: Kentucky Proud Park Opening Day Recap at Youtube.com