Joe Wolfe Field
Encyclopedia
Joe Wolfe Field is a baseball
field in North Adams
, Massachusetts
, USA. The field is home to the North Adams SteepleCats
of the New England Collegiate Baseball League
, a collegiate summer baseball league based in New England
. The park was built in 1986, with the SteepleCats first utilizing the facility at their inception in the 2002 NECBL season
. It has a seated capacity of 1,800 spectators, with additional seating and standing areas located down either foul line.
The dimensions of the field are 325 ft. down the lines, 358 ft. in the gaps, and 385 ft. in dead center field. The park faces south in the Noel Field Athletic Complex. The field is lighted for night play with 8 light poles. The facility is also used by the baseball teams of Drury High School
and Charles H. McCann Technical High School
. Joe Wolfe Field also hosts other youth sports leagues.
Then-mayor of North Adams John Barrett III and local sports figure Joe Wolfe were key to fundraising for and building the park. When Wolfe died in November 1986, shortly after the field's construction, Barrett and others involved in the development decided to name the field after Joe Wolfe. In addition to his involvement in the field's construction, Wolfe played semi-professional baseball, coached youth teams, and worked in local sports organizations.
In 2005, the field was renovated. An electronic scoreboard and concession stand were added, and the backstop was improved.
6,714 fans attended a July 4, 2006, game against the Holyoke Giants, won by Holyoke 3-2. The attendance mark is an NECBL record for regular season, postseason, and All-Star games.
The field hosted the 2007 NECBL All-Star Game
. The game, attended by 4,210 fans, was won by the visiting South Division All-Stars 8-0.
.
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
field in North Adams
North Adams, Massachusetts
North Adams is a city in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 13,708 as of the 2010 census, making it the least populous city in the state...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, USA. The field is home to the North Adams SteepleCats
North Adams SteepleCats
The North Adams SteepleCats are a collegiate summer baseball team based in North Adams, Massachusetts, United States. The team, a member of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, plays its home games at Joe Wolfe Field in North Adams....
of the New England Collegiate Baseball League
New England Collegiate Baseball League
The New England Collegiate Baseball League is a 12-team collegiate summer baseball league founded in 1993 and sanctioned by the NCAA and Major League Baseball. Each NECBL team plays an eight-week, 42-game schedule during June and July, with a playoff in early August...
, a collegiate summer baseball league based in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
. The park was built in 1986, with the SteepleCats first utilizing the facility at their inception in the 2002 NECBL season
2002 NECBL season
The 2002 NECBL season was the ninth season in the history of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. The league expanded to twelve franchises with the addition of the North Adams SteepleCats of North Adams, Massachusetts and the Sanford Mainers of Sanford, Maine, the league's first franchise...
. It has a seated capacity of 1,800 spectators, with additional seating and standing areas located down either foul line.
The dimensions of the field are 325 ft. down the lines, 358 ft. in the gaps, and 385 ft. in dead center field. The park faces south in the Noel Field Athletic Complex. The field is lighted for night play with 8 light poles. The facility is also used by the baseball teams of Drury High School
Drury High School
Drury High SchoolDrury High School is a school located in North Adams, Massachusetts. It serves the towns of North Adams, Florida, Clarksburg, Monroe, Readsboro, Vermont, and Stamford, Vermont.-History:...
and Charles H. McCann Technical High School
Charles H. McCann Technical High School
Charles H. McCann Technical High School is a technical school located in North Adams, Massachusetts that serves grades 9-12. It serves the Northern Berkshire Vocational Regional School District made up of the City of North Adams, and the towns of Adams, Williamstown, Clarksburg, Florida, Savoy, and...
. Joe Wolfe Field also hosts other youth sports leagues.
History
Joe Wolfe Field was built in 1986 on the site of Noel Field. Noel had served as North Adams' main baseball venue for decades, but its grandstand and playing surface had become outdated. In building Joe Wolfe, a new grandstand and lighting structures were added, and the field itself was renovated.Then-mayor of North Adams John Barrett III and local sports figure Joe Wolfe were key to fundraising for and building the park. When Wolfe died in November 1986, shortly after the field's construction, Barrett and others involved in the development decided to name the field after Joe Wolfe. In addition to his involvement in the field's construction, Wolfe played semi-professional baseball, coached youth teams, and worked in local sports organizations.
In 2005, the field was renovated. An electronic scoreboard and concession stand were added, and the backstop was improved.
6,714 fans attended a July 4, 2006, game against the Holyoke Giants, won by Holyoke 3-2. The attendance mark is an NECBL record for regular season, postseason, and All-Star games.
The field hosted the 2007 NECBL All-Star Game
2007 NECBL All-Star Game
The 2007 NECBL All-Star Game was the 14th exhibition game between all-stars from the NECBL's Northern and the Southern Divisions. The Southern All-Stars held off the Northern All-Stars 8-0...
. The game, attended by 4,210 fans, was won by the visiting South Division All-Stars 8-0.
SteepleCats Attendance
The following is a list of North Adams SteepleCats attendance figures at Joe Wolfe Field dating back to the team's inception in the 2002 season2002 NECBL season
The 2002 NECBL season was the ninth season in the history of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. The league expanded to twelve franchises with the addition of the North Adams SteepleCats of North Adams, Massachusetts and the Sanford Mainers of Sanford, Maine, the league's first franchise...
.
| Season | Game Avg. | Season Total | Lge. Rk. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 2002 NECBL season The 2002 NECBL season was the ninth season in the history of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. The league expanded to twelve franchises with the addition of the North Adams SteepleCats of North Adams, Massachusetts and the Sanford Mainers of Sanford, Maine, the league's first franchise... |
908 | 19,087 | 4th |
| 2003 2003 NECBL season The 2003 NECBL season marked the tenth season of the existence of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. The league expanded to thirteen teams with the addition of the Vermont Mountaineers of Montpelier, Vermont. The franchise was the league's first in the New England state of Vermont... |
874 | 17,496 | 5th |
| 2004 2004 NECBL season The 2004 NECBL season was the 11th season in the history of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. The league's Middletown, Connecticut franchise, the Middletown Giants, moved to Holyoke, Massachusetts and became the Holyoke Giants... |
1,355 | 28,457 | 4th |
| 2005 2005 NECBL season The 2005 NECBL season was the twelfth season of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. The league reduced its membership from thirteen teams to twelve teams with the league's West Warwick, Rhode Island franchise, the Riverpoint Royals, dropping out of the league... |
1,249 | 26,230 | 5th |
| 2006 2006 NECBL season The 2006 NECBL season was the thirteenth season of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. The league's Lowell, Massachusetts franchise, the Mill City All-Americans, was renamed and became the Lowell All-Americans.... |
1,095 | 22,995 | 6th |
| 2007 2007 NECBL season The 2007 NECBL season was the fourteenth season of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, a wood bat collegiate summer baseball league operating in the northeastern United States region of New England.... |
1,096 | 23,031 | 5th |
| 2008 2008 NECBL season The 2008 NECBL season was the fifteenth season of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, a wood bat collegiate summer baseball league. The league's Holyoke, Massachusetts franchise, the Holyoke Giants moved to Lynn, Massachusetts and became the North Shore Navigators... |
1,124 | 26,624 | 4th |
| 2009 2009 NECBL season The 2009 NECBL season is the sixteenth season of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, a wood bat collegiate summer baseball league. The league's Torrington, Connecticut franchise, the Torrington Twisters, moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts and became the New Bedford Bay Sox... |
1,025 | 20,511 | 6th |
| 2010 2010 NECBL season The 2010 NECBL season was the seventeenth season of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, a wood bat collegiate summer baseball league. Changes for 2010 included the league's Manchester, Connecticut franchise, the Manchester Silkworms, moving to Laconia, New Hampshire to become the Laconia... |
688 | 14,441 | 6th |