Men’s Baseball makes new home at the Corner Ballpark
March 23, 2020
The Men’s Baseball team has a new field to call home in 2020.
The team will be playing at the Corner Ballpark, the home of the Detroit Police Athletic League (DPAL), and formerly the site of Tiger Stadium. Located at I-75 and Trumbull in Detroit, this new facility is an upgrade for program.
Having been on a five-year search for a better field, Director of Community Relations for Athletics and Alumni, Sid Fox, recognized the need for a new field that would provide a setting that would be the top in our conference.
“We actually played the first college game at the Corner Park a couple of years ago, and a few more games last year,” said Schoolcraft Baseball Head Coach Rob Fay. “The concept of formulating an agreement with [DPAL] to Glen Cerny our CEO and President Jeffress and they approved it.”
With this new agreement between the Ocelots and DPAL, not only is the field ours for the next 10 years for all home conference and regional seeding games, but also for practices which won’t be canceled due to poor playing conditions. The artificial turf surface versus the traditional grass of other fields will help in being able to play more.
The Ocelots also will have their name posted on the scoreboard for all to see. This will surely help in recruiting new players and attracting prospective students to Schoolcraft College itself. This came about from a $25k pledge toward the payment of the board itself.
“It’s a huge board that’ll display the Ocelots’ name on a permanent basis, complete with a
digital display and sound system,” said Fox.
Excitement is brewing among the ranks of the ballplayers.
“It’s super nice; [Corner Ballpark] is a very big upgrade,” said freshman third-baseman Brandon Brewer. “We’ll be glad to call it home. It’s such a good place that all the other players don’t mind the commute.”
Both sides will benefit from this cooperative agreement, though Fox says DPAL will benefit more so from having a college team like the Ocelots playing at the Corner Park.
“Having a college team playing at [DPAL’s] field really adds a lot of prestige, so it’s a feather in their cap,” stated Fay.
He expects “a great home venue” along with “an opportunity for our program to assist [DPAL] in bringing camps to the youth, in cooperation with DPAL’s many programs that focus on local youth events and outreach.
With all the perks and broadening the reach of the college, complete with a high-quality facility, it looks like the game of baseball will be a win-win for everyone involved.
Unfortunately, as of March 16, 2020 following the recent recommendations from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the NJCAA has made the difficult decision to cancel all upcoming spring competition, effective immediately. The Ocelots will have to wait until next season to suit up and play on their new home turf.
