A one-of-a-kind, mirrored-image softball/baseball complex will usher BYU athletics into the new millennium.
Announced in January, the new complex will feature back-to-back softball and baseball stadiums built on the site of the existing baseball field, across the street from the Marriott Center. The baseball diamond will remain in its current location facing east, with the softball field facing northwest. Both stadiums will have lights for night-time play.
“This is a great opportunity for our women athletes,” said Elaine Michaelis, BYU’s women’s athletic director. “Participants will have a chance to compete in one of the premier facilities in college athletics.”
When all phases are complete, the facility will seat 2,000 fans in permanent seating for baseball and another 2,000 fans in permanent seeting for softball. A press box will overlook both fields, and there will be locker rooms, coaches’ offices, and other team rooms beneath the grandstands. The structure will have a tensile roof—teflon fabric pulled taut by cables—similar to the roof of the Denver International Airport.
“By allowing us to host tournaments and attract blue-chip recruits, this facility will greatly enhance our chances of winning championships,” said newly appointed baseball coach Vance Law.
The project is estimated to cost approximately $7 million. The baseball diamond will be called Larry H. Miller Field, and the softball facility will be Gail Miller Field, in honor of Larry H. and Gail Miller, Salt Lake City entrepreneurs who made a significant financial contribution toward the complex.
Additional fund-raising efforts are now under way. Groundbreaking will begin at the end of the baseball season, with completion expected by the start of play in 2001.
