Olsen Field
Encyclopedia
Olsen Field is a baseball stadium in College Station, Texas
, that is home to the Texas A&M
baseball program. The stadium
was dedicated on March 21, 1978, and is named in honor of Pat Olsen, a 1923 graduate of Texas A&M University
and a former baseball
player in the New York Yankees
farm system. Olsen Field has served as an NCAA
regional site five times and had its 1999 regional attendance ranked second with 53,287. The first NCAA Regional Tournament held at Olsen Field was in 1989.
In 2004 Sports Illustrated on Campus ranked Olsen Field "the best college baseball venue". Aggie baseball fans called RAggies have a reputation of fiercely "ragging" opponents.
Olsen Field, with a name change to Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park (following a $7 million donation from Blue Bell Creameries
), is currently undergoing a major renovation that began on June 7, 2011. Some new features of the stadium include an expanded concourse and concessions area, luxury suites, a new press box, club seating, two grass berms, expanded locker rooms and coaches offices, a student athletic center, and extended seating closer to the field. However, the seating capacity will be decreased from 7,000 to 5,400 to accommodate the changes (although with standing room only will still hold over 7,000). The project is estimated to cost $24 million. Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park is scheduled to open in late February 2012.
In 2011, the Aggies ranked 11th in Division I college baseball
in attendance, averaging 3,994 per home game.
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, that is home to the Texas A&M
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
baseball program. The stadium
Stadium
A modern stadium is a place or venue for outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit and view the event.)Pausanias noted that for about half a century the only event...
was dedicated on March 21, 1978, and is named in honor of Pat Olsen, a 1923 graduate of Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
and a former baseball
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...
player in the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
farm system. Olsen Field has served as an NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
regional site five times and had its 1999 regional attendance ranked second with 53,287. The first NCAA Regional Tournament held at Olsen Field was in 1989.
In 2004 Sports Illustrated on Campus ranked Olsen Field "the best college baseball venue". Aggie baseball fans called RAggies have a reputation of fiercely "ragging" opponents.
Olsen Field, with a name change to Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park (following a $7 million donation from Blue Bell Creameries
Blue Bell Creameries
Blue Bell Creameries, founded in 1907, is the manufacturer of Blue Bell brand ice cream.Blue Bell sells its ice cream directly in only 20 states, mostly in the Southern United States, although Blue Bell ice cream has also been eaten aboard the International Space Station and at Camp David...
), is currently undergoing a major renovation that began on June 7, 2011. Some new features of the stadium include an expanded concourse and concessions area, luxury suites, a new press box, club seating, two grass berms, expanded locker rooms and coaches offices, a student athletic center, and extended seating closer to the field. However, the seating capacity will be decreased from 7,000 to 5,400 to accommodate the changes (although with standing room only will still hold over 7,000). The project is estimated to cost $24 million. Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park is scheduled to open in late February 2012.
In 2011, the Aggies ranked 11th in Division I college baseball
College baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. Compared to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a less significant contribution to cultivating professional players, as the minor leagues primarily...
in attendance, averaging 3,994 per home game.