Joker Marchant Stadium
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| Location | 2301 Lakeland Hills Boulevard Lakeland, Florida 33805 |
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| Coordinates | 28°4′29″N 81°57′3″W / 28.07472°N 81.95083°W |
| Owner | City of Lakeland |
| Operator | City of Lakeland |
| Capacity | 8,500 |
| Field size | Left - 340ft. Center - 420ft. Right - 340ft. |
| Surface | Grass |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | September 1965[1] |
| Opened | March 12, 1966[1] |
| Renovated | 2003 |
| Expanded | 1988 |
| Construction cost | $360,000 ($3.38 million in 2024 dollars[2]) |
| Architect | Lakeland Engineering Associates |
| General contractor | Frank C. Decker Construction Co. |
| Tenants | |
| Lakeland Flying Tigers (FSL) (1967-2001, 2003-present) Detroit Tigers (MLB) (spring training) (1966-present) GCL Tigers (GCL) | |
Joker Marchant Stadium is a baseball field located in Lakeland, Florida. The stadium, opened in 1966, was renovated in 2003, holds 8,500 people, and was named after local resident and former Lakeland Parks and Recreation Director Marcus "Joker" Marchant. It is the spring training home of the Detroit Tigers, as well as the regular season home for the minor league affiliates Lakeland Flying Tigers and Gulf Coast Tigers. On March 15, 2011, the largest crowd in the stadium's history (10,307 people) watched a spring training game between the Tigers and the Boston Red Sox.[3]
Expansions
The stadium's capacity was originally 4,900 in 1966 when it opened. In 1988, a bleacher section was added down the left field line, increasing seating capacity to 7,027. Fifteen years later, a stadium version of Extreme Makeover occurred when a modern Joker Marchant Stadium was unveiled following 10 months and $10 million worth of work on it after a nationally renowned architectural firm (HKS) designed and a locally based contractor (Rodda Construction) built what four entities paid for. The State of Florida's $4.5 million grant was the biggest financing chuck, while the Polk County Tourist Development Council chipped in $2 million. The remainder of the renovation's cost was paid for by the Tigers and City of Lakeland, increasing capacity to its present figure of 8,500.[1]
Gallery
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Intersection of Kaline and Horton Way -
Detroit Tigers spring training game 2009 -
View from behind home plate
References
- ^ a b c Knight, Graham (May 29, 2010). "Joker Marchant Stadium". Baseball Pilgrimages. Retrieved September 28, 2011.
- ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
- ^ Zebold, Tom (April 18, 2011). "Spring Attendance Was 2nd All Time for Detroit Tigers". The Ledger. Lakeland. Retrieved March 5, 2014.