C.O. Brown Stadium is a baseball stadium in the United States located in Battle Creek, Michigan. The stadium was erected in 1990 and is a part of Bailey Park, a longtime home of amateur baseball. C.O. Brown Stadium is the former home of the Southwest Michigan Devil Rays professional minor league baseball team, and former Class A Midwest League affiliate of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. C.O. Brown Stadium has a seating capacity of 4,701. C.O. Brown Stadium is the current home of the Northwoods League's Battle Creek Bombers.
 The field at C. O. Brown Stadium before a Southwest Michigan Devil Rays game | |
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| Coordinates | 42°20′31″N 85°9′2″W / 42.34194°N 85.15056°W |
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Name origin
The stadium was named for Cooper Othniel Brown, a baseball entrepreneur who helped make Battle Creek a hub for amateur tournament baseball in the 1930s and served as the first president of the American Amateur Baseball Congress.[1][2]
Other events
On August 31, 2008, shortly after accepting the democratic nomination, Barack Obama and Joe Biden held a rally at C.O. Brown Stadium drawing an estimated 15,000 people.[3]
It has also hosted postseason baseball tournaments. Until 2013, the MHSAA used the stadium to host the Michigan Baseball State Championships for all four divisions where they have been moved to Drayton McLane Baseball Stadium at John H. Kobs Field in 2014.[4][5] The stadium also hosted the 1993 and 1994 Big Ten Conference Baseball Tournaments.[6]
Awards
In November 2007, Bailey Park and C.O. Brown Stadium was awarded the 2007 USSSA United States Specialty Sports Association Complex of the Year Award presented at the USSSA National Meeting in Daytona Beach, Florida.
Presented annually to one facility in the country, there are a number of requirements that a complex must meet to qualify. Requirements for the award include: full participation with USSSA, a proven history of hosting and running quality events, a high number of participating teams, outstanding facilities, and top notch ground crews.
References
- ^ "C.O. Brown Stadium in Bailey Park", MWLguide.com
- ^ "C.O. Brown Stadium", Ball Parks of the Minor Leagues
- ^ "Barack Obama draws a crowd of 15,000 in Battle Creek", by Jane C. Parikh, Kalamazoo Gazette, August 31, 2008
- ^ http://www.mhsaa.com/DesktopModules/MHSAA-Tournaments-Brackets/PrintableBrackets/2010-BA-M-1.pdf
- ^ http://www.freep.com/article/20131211/HSS/312110138/Baseball-softball-finals-moving-Michigan-State
- ^ "2012 Big Ten Baseball Record Book". p. 107. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-06-27. Retrieved 27 June 2012.