Greenwood Sports Park to open this weekend

The unmistakable sound of bat meeting ball is mere hours away.

What is anticipated to be years — preferably decades — of extra-base hits, tense moments and countless cherished memories officially begin Saturday at the new Greenwood Sports Park.

Located at 1500 Ray Crowe Way, the 40-acre complex just west of I-65 features eight hybrid turf fields constructed to be able to host softball and baseball games alike.

The competition about to play out represents an exciting new era in the city’s history. Greenwood Sports Park celebrates its grand opening at 10 a.m. on Friday.

“For me, it is to be able to see that we don’t have a facility like this, a baseball park, on the southside,” Greenwood mayor Mark Myers said. “We need that not only for our residents, but the residents around this area that can use it. And also for the travel teams. We’re going to be bringing in a lot of people on the weekends, and we want them to come see Greenwood and see what Greenwood’s about.”

The park’s baseball and softball diamonds are in two quads, each surrounding a two-story pagoda complete with restrooms and a concession stand.

The four diamonds on the north end measure 225 feet from home plate to the outfield fence. At the south end, the four diamonds are 300 feet plate-to-fence. This allows for scheduling versatility based on the ages of the teams playing.

Additional park features include a state-of-the-art playground, splash pad, interconnected trail network, multi-use field with a cricket pitch, batting cages and an area with picnic tables near the aforementioned pagodas.

Something, it would seem, for everyone.

The park is managed by Greenwood Parks and Recreation. The diamonds are not for public use, though renting is an option through the parks department.

In time, the park could emerge as a most desired destination for non-local baseball and softball tournaments, potentially bringing in teams and spectators from out of state.

“The fields are pretty much catered towards 8-to-13 youth,” Greenwood Parks and Recreation director Rob Taggart said. “The whole facility is both catered towards baseball and softball. We have portable mounds we can bring in specifically for baseball.

“This fall, we won’t have any opportunities for rental. We’re a new facility. We’ve got to let this place germinate, get established. We will establish those kind of rental opportunities this coming spring.”

Being next to thousands of passing vehicles daily makes the park impossible to miss. Thus, it will promote itself through the sight of games taking place, children occupying the playground, people walking the trails and more.

“As we talked to local businesses, they’re always looking for more amenities for their families,” Myers said. “This will just draw more business to the community. I mean, you’re sitting right on I-65.

“Northbound or southbound, you’re going to be able to see it. You’re going to know it’s here, and it’s just going to help bring more people to the park.”

The park’s summer hours, effective through Oct. 31, are daily from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Winter hours (Nov. 1 through April 30) are 8 a.m. to dusk.