Tinker Field
Location287 South Tampa Ave, Orlando, Florida
Coordinates28°32′19″N 81°24′17.2″W / 28.53861°N 81.404778°W / 28.53861; -81.404778
OwnerCity of Orlando
OperatorCity of Orlando
Capacity5,014 (1965–2015)
4,000 (1933–1964)
1,500 (1923–1932)
Field sizeLeft Field - 340 ft (104 m)[1]
Center Field - 412 ft (126 m)[2][3][4]
Right Field - 320 ft (98 m)
SurfaceGrass
Construction
Broke ground1914
Built1914
Opened1923
DemolishedJune 2015
Tenants
Cincinnati Reds (MLB) (spring training) 1923–1933
Brooklyn Dodgers (MLB) (spring training) 1934–1935
Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins (MLB) (spring training) 1936–1990
Orlando Rays (SAL/SL) 1963–1999
Orlando Suns (FCSL) 2008
Tinker Field
Tinker Field is located in Florida
Tinker Field
Location in Florida
Tinker Field is located in the United States
Tinker Field
Location in United States
Location1610 W. Church St., Orlando, Florida
Area7 acres (2.8 ha)
Built1922 (1922)
NRHP reference No.04000456[5]
Added to NRHPMay 14, 2004

Tinker Field was an outdoor baseball stadium in Orlando, Florida, United States. Named after Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Joe Tinker, it was located in the West Lakes neighborhoods of Downtown Orlando. In April 2015, the City of Orlando tore down the grandstands and removed all other extant buildings, due to its proximity to renovation work on the Orlando Citrus Bowl football stadium (later renamed as Camping World Stadium). The ballpark is now memorialized by Tinker Field History Plaza.[6]

Constructed in 1914, Tinker Field was the spring training home of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds, Washington Senators, and Minnesota Twins. It was also the home park of the Orlando Rays minor league baseball team before they moved to Cracker Jack Stadium in 2000. It was located directly adjacent to the western side of the aforementioned football stadium and boasted a capacity of 5,100 before the grandstands were removed in 2015.

History

The field first saw use for baseball in 1914; the first known stadium built on the site was in 1923. It was all-wood construction and seated 1,500. For the next 10 years, the Cincinnati Reds called Tinker Field their spring training home until 1933. The Brooklyn Dodgers trained there in 1934 and 1935. In 1936, Clark Griffith moved spring training of the Washington Senators to Orlando, where the Senators (who later relocated as the Minnesota Twins) trained until after the 1990 season. The stadium was rebuilt again in 1963, and when Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C., was demolished, nearly 1,000 of the stadium's seats were moved to Tinker Field. The remaining seats were sold by the City of Orlando in 2015.[7] The old press box next to the home side dugout was the original press box and can be seen in photographs as early as the 1920s.

Some college football games were played at the stadium, one example being the 1937 edition of the Orange Blossom Classic.[8]

Tinker Field was added to the United States National Register of Historic Places in 2004.[9] One of the most historical non-baseball events to take place at Tinker Field was a visit from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on March 6, 1964. He spoke before thousands of people from the pitcher's mound in his only public speech in the city.[10]

On January 28, 2014, during the groundbreaking of the Orlando Citrus Bowl stadium reconstruction, it was announced that the grandstands and all other extant buildings surrounding Tinker Field would be torn down. The reasons cited were that the expansion of the Orlando Citrus Bowl stadium would shorten right field of Tinker Field so much that it would make it unusable even if it the entire building complex was renovated. On March 9, 2015, Orlando City Council approved an ordinance to demolish the grandstands and buildings, and allocated money to re-create the area surrounding the field.[11]

In September, 2015, the City of Orlando held a public input meeting and unveiled preliminary plans to memorialize Tinker Field.[12] Tinker Field History Plaza opened in May 2018, memorializing civil rights and baseball in Orlando.[13]

Present

Each November, Tinker Field hosts the Electric Daisy Carnival—a three-day festival that features electronic dance music with celebrity DJs, visual effects, rides, and art.[14]

On September 6, 2015, Tinker Field was the site of West Lakes Family Fun Day—an event held by members of the neighborhoods surrounding the field prior to the MEAC/SWAC Challenge.

Each June or July, Tinker Field hosted the Orlando Vans Warped Tour—a one-day festival that features rock music with popular bands from around the world.

References

  1. ↑ "Tinker Field - Ballpark History". springtrainingonline.com. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Pitchers Look Good As CBs Work Out". The Orlando Sentinel. April 1, 1954. p. 16. "Charlie [Big Dike] Wilson[...] showed decided promise. [...] He connected for two doubles, one of them hitting the fence in dead centerfield on one bounce, 412 feet from home plate. Yesterday's workout was the first at Tinker's Field for the CBs." Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  3. ↑ Sokolove, Michael (March 9, 1987). "Reds' 8-7 loss not beautiful, but young players raise value". The Cincinnati Post. p. 22. "It's hard to imagine what's more quickly forgotten than a March 8 game at Tinker's Field against the anonymous Twins. [...] Utility candidate Lloyd McClendon had a strange day. He hit a double to the base of the 412-foot centerfield wall, and walked in all three of his other at-bats." Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  4. ↑ Greenberg, Steve (1990). The Minor League Road Trip. New York: Viking Penguin. p. 52. ISBN 0828907714.
  5. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Tinker Field History Plaza". orlando.gov. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  7. ↑ Weiner, Jeff (September 16, 2015). "Orlando to sell Tinker Field seats at Citrus Bowl this month". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Hampton Loses To A.&M. 25-20". The Sunday Sentinel-Star. December 5, 1937. p. 7 – via newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Tinker Field". National Park Service. April 6, 2004. Retrieved April 19, 2020. With accompanying pictures
  10. ↑ Dickinson, Joy Wallace (January 20, 2019). "King offered vision of hope at Tinker Field speech in 1964". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Orlando City Council votes to demolish Tinker Field grandstands". WFTV. March 9, 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
  12. ↑ Weiner, Jeff (September 1, 2015). "Tinker Field memorial plans draw scrutiny at Parramore community meeting". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
  13. ↑ Gillespie, Ryan (May 2, 2018). "Tinker Field History Plaza memorializes civil rights and baseball in Orlando". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
  14. ↑ "HOMEPAGE". EDC Orlando 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2015.

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