Ozinga Field
Ozinga Field is a baseball field located in Crestwood, Illinois. The stadium was built in 1999 and holds 3,200 people. It is the home field of the 2007 and 2008 Frontier League champions, the Windy City ThunderBolts.[1]
| |
| Former names | Hawkinson Ford Field (1999-2006)
Hawk Ford Field (2007) Standard Bank Stadium (2008-2018) |
|---|---|
| Location | 14011 Kenton Avenue, Crestwood, IL 60445 |
| Owner | Village of Crestwood |
| Capacity | 3,200 |
| Field size | Left Field Foul Line: 330 feet
Left Field Gap: 375 feet Center Field: 390 feet Right Field Gap: 375 feet Right Field Foul Line: 330 feet |
| Surface | Synthetic Turf |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 1997 |
| Opened | 1999 |
| Architect | Devine deFlon Yaeger |
| Tenants | |
| Windy City ThunderBolts (FL) (1999-present) | |
Name
The park features one of the few minor league baseball stadium upper decks in the country. The park was built for the Cook County Cheetahs. However, new ownership changed the name of the team into the current Windy City ThunderBolts.
Renovations
The name change brought renovations to the ballpark between 2004 and 2006 including a new fan deck on the first base side, a beer garden, a new kids zone down the left field line, and a new ticket office also down the left field line. The ballpark was originally called Hawkinson Ford Field until the 2007 season when the park's name was modified to Hawk Ford Field. Another name change occurred during the 2007 season on August 13, when the naming rights were sold to Standard Bank. A new scoreboard/videoboard system was added toward the end of the 2014 season and in 2015 the old grass playing surface was removed and a new synthetic turf field with new drainage system was installed.[2] The renovations make the facility a multi-sport & concert arena available 10 months a year.
On February 20th, 2019, the ThunderBolts and the village of Crestwood issued a statement announcing the name change to Ozinga Field.
References
- "Windy City Thunderbolts". frontierleague.com. The Frontier League. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
- Milar, Steve. "Windy City ThunderBolts like new turf at Standard Bank Stadium". chicagotribune.com. The Chicago Tribune/Daily Southtown. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
External links
| Events and tenants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by T.R. Hughes Ballpark |
Host of the FL All-Star Game Hawkinson Ford Field 2001 |
Succeeded by Homer Stryker Field |