Suplizio Field

Given that lineage, it's no surprise this ballpark isn't the most modern looking of places, nor that it's a lot bigger than a normal rookie-level league venue. Capable of seating about 7,000 folks in a nearly foul pole to foul pole grandstand that's split into three distinct sections, Suplizio Field underwent a multi-million dollar renovation that made it pro ready for 2012, when it lured the Ghosts away from Casper's Mike Lansing Field to a ballpark that's not so much adjacent to as it's conjoined with the local football stadium.

Such a setup is responsible for the dominant feature of both stadiums, as they share a massive two-sided structure that contains observation deck seating, a press box and huge hospitality area, with the multi-use building rising above the first base grandstand, which is the only one containing stadium-style seats. Towering to the heights of nearly the light towers, its name of Lincoln Park Tower seems appropriate and it helps to block the sun that is blinding in the third base stands near the standard evening game time.

Looming in the distance from all seats is a sight you don't want blocked, as mountains frame everything within what's known as the Grand Valley. The mountainous backdrop makes the ballpark feel quaint in comparison, but it can actually hold in excess of 10K during the JUCO World Series, when a large expanse of bleachers in left field that aren't open for Rockies games are utilized.

Regardless, this park has plenty of the cheap style of seats available during the minor league season, and the bleachers that start at home plate and taper down to the left field foul pole are an odd combination of metal seats with and without backs. No two consecutive rows are the same, so every other is backless and vice versa with backs. From a distance, it gives the biggest of Suplizio's three stands a "speckled" look. Meanwhile, the bleachers down the right field line are simply uniformly backless.

Taken as a whole, this is a beautifully set quirky place and Grand Junction is, thanks to the JUCO World Series no doubt, a great baseball town worth a visit...during either of its two baseball seasons.

Location

Parking

While the ballpark has a North Avenue address, its public parking lot is accessed from 12th Street.

Notable Ballpark Features

Casey at the Bat statue
A 7-foot tall Casey at the Bat-inspired sculpture stands atop a pedestal near the main entrance for the ballpark, which is far down the right field line. The bronze "Casey" statue is in front of the box office there and was placed in its present location following the 2012-finished renovation of Suplizio Field. Made by Mark Lundeen, a Loveland, Colorado-based sculptor, the statue arrived at the ballpark in 1989 and stood close to the first base side stands before the Lincoln Park Tower was erected and forced a relocation of Grand Junction's Casey, which is actually one of 15 such-sized statues Lundeen produced. The artist also made a small number of 14-foot versions of the statue, one of which is outside Space Coast Stadium in Viera, FL. Another of the "Monumental"-sized Casey's is on display in South Williamsport, PA up the hill from the left field fence at Lamade Stadium, the famed site of the Little League World Series.

The concrete base beneath the 7-foot statue at Suplizio Field has two plaques on it. The upper one is titled "Casey" and then is inscribed with the following words: "Dedicated to the coaches, players, and thousands of fans whose support has made the JUCO World Series one of America's finest amateur sporting events, and the City of Grand Junction our nation's number one baseball community." The bottom plaque is entitled "The Mighty Casey" then states "as envisioned by sculptor Mark Lundeen." That's followed by a stanza from the poem that was written in 1888 by Ernest Lawrence Thayer.

Lincoln Park Tower
Rising above the first base stands is the signature feature of the ballpark and the adjacent football stadium, as the 80-foot tall Lincoln Park Tower looks out upon the fields of both. The eight-story structure features a mezzanine level topped by an enclosed press box and hospitality suite. Built by FCI Constructors of Grand Junction and designed by Sink Combs Dethlefs of Denver, the multi-use tower was dedicated in May 2012 as the main improvement of an $8.3 million renovation to the sports complex at Lincoln Park. Notably, the uppermost level of the tower contains a year-round rentable event space that can accommodate up to about 150 people.

Officially, the tower has four levels and the exact designations for them are:
Level 1: Concourse
Level 2: Spectator Platform
Level 3: Reford C. Theobold Press Box Level
Level 4: Hospitality

The spectator platform is an elevated and open-air area that's ideal for accessible seating needs when it's not rented out by groups. Cover for the overlook comes from the press box above it.

The media's working space has been named for Reford Theobold since 2003, when the old press box, which lacked an elevator, was dubbed so in honor of a man who by then had spent a few decades covering games from it, and was still serving as a public address announcer when the new edition Theobold press level debuted in 2012.

The upscale indoor area for groups, known generally as the hospitality suite, is on the highest level of the tower's special access spaces, all of which look out upon the Book Cliffs and Grand Mesa, with the mountainous topography easily spotted east of the ballpark.

Casey at the gate: the 7-foot tall statue stands near the main entrance of Suplizio Field, which is overlooked by the 80-foot high Lincoln Park Tower.