Published: February 18, 2009 07:49 pm         

ISU to build new baseball stadium

CARBONDALE, ILL. — Indiana State starts its baseball season later this week. If all goes according to plan, this will be the last year ISU calls Sycamore Field home in its current incarnation.

ISU plans to tear down the current Sycamore Field and build a new baseball stadium on the same site. If everything is built as planned, the stadium will feature 1,500 chairback seats and bleacher seating that will raise capacity from 2,000 to 2,500 seats.

""When I came here [in 2005], our first priority was to get some of the personnel issues in shape. The second priority was facilities," ISU Director of Athletics Ron Prettyman said from courtside at SIU Arena in Carbondale, Ill., where he was attending the ISU-Southern Illinois men's basketball game. "We did the weight room, we did some things in Hulman Center, we resurfaced the track and the tennis courts, now it's time to look at our larger facilities."

The stadium will also have locker room facilities and the possibility of batting cages.

"We feel the time is right. The plans are in the process right now. We can't go into detail, but we are confident there's going to be a dramatic facelift to the facility," Prettyman said.

Prettyman also said the new stadium greatly increases the likelihood of a minor league baseball team moving or starting a franchise in Terre Haute. The Frontier League and the Central Illinois College League -- soon to be renamed the Prospects League -- have both shown in an interest in putting a franchise in Terre Haute.

Prettyman said the stadium could increase the visibility of Terre Haute as the facility could host collegiate baseball tournaments, high school playoffs, summer league tournaments, and possibly, the Missouri Valley Conference tournament, which Prettyman said he intends to bid on should the stadium be built.

"This facility is not only attractive to Indiana State University, but to Terre Haute too. We want our city to embrace this whole thing and see it as an opportunity for family entertainment and involvement," Prettyman said. "I'm really confident with the leadership we have in place and a facility coming in 2010, we're going to be a player in the Missouri Valley Conference and in the NCAA Tournament."

The new stadium will cost between $1.5 million and $2 million, depending on budgetary factors, according to Prettyman. The cost of the stadium will be funded via the ISU Foundation and private donations.

"The Foundation is very involved and they're working with us to identify donors. This is a priority for them. They see this is as an improvement to the campus and its facilities. They see it as a very valuable part of their objectives," Prettyman said.

The new stadium does not yet have a name. Prettyman said the university and ISU Foundation are exploring the possibility of seeking naming rights.

Prettyman also said that the women's soccer team will move its home games to Memorial Stadium. Prettyman said the baseball stadium should not affect other facility projects that are projected or planned.