Keegan Field is an amateur sports field located in

Yuma, Arizona Yuma is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. The city's population was 95,548 at the 2020 census, up from the 2010 census population of 93,064. Yuma is the principal city of the Yuma, Arizona, Metropolitan ...

, United States. The 4‐acre athletic facility contains a softball field with lights for night games and is part of the larger 32-acre Kennedy Park Athletic Complex. It was named in honor of Frances Keegan, a local supporter of amateur athletics. Keegan Field was the first spring training home of the San Diego Padres in 1969 prior to their move in 1970 to

Desert Sun Stadium Desert Sun Stadium is a converted soccer-specific stadium in Yuma, Arizona, originally built for baseball. It was the spring training home of the San Diego Padres from 1970 through 1993, the North American League's Yuma Scorpions minor league b ...

1969 San Diego Padres

The

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

had trained in Yuma and played spring training games at Yuma's Municipal Stadium in 1954 before returning to Florida in 1955. Yuma's Chamber of Commerce had sought a major league team since the Orioles' departure. San Diego was awarded a major league baseball franchise on May 27, 1968, and set about finding a spring training home. The Chamber's chair was newspaper publisher Don Soldwedel who was friendly with the Padres' president

Buzzie Bavasi Emil Joseph "Buzzie" Bavasi (; December 12, 1914 – May 1, 2008) was an American executive in Major League Baseball who played a major role in the operation of three California baseball franchises from the late 1940s through the mid-1980s, most ...

from Bavasi's time with the Dodgers. Yuma was a three-hour drive from San Diego and the local community was eager to welcome them. The Padres signed a five-year contract with Yuma and the city agreed to construct a multi-field baseball facility by spring 1970 which would be

. For spring training 1969, the City of Yuma renovated and improved Keegan Field, adding bleachers, fences, dugouts, locker rooms, batting cages, concession stands, a press box, and PA system. An ad hoc group Community Baseball Boosters assisted Caballeros de Yuma, a civic organization, with fundraising. The groups raised $3,000 from a raffle, $3,000 from a barbecue, and another $3,000 from bumper stickers. During Spring Training in 1969, the Padres’ clubhouse was behind the centerfield scoreboard with showers located outside at the nearby Kennedy Swimming Pool. Visiting team facilities were a mile away at Municipal Stadium. The Padres opened spring training on February 22, 1969, and played an inter-squad game on February 28, 1969, which it opened for free to the Yuma community. The Padres played their Yuma home opener on March 7, 1969, against the

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...

in front of 2,500 fans. The Padres drew 1,837 spectators on March 20, 1969, for their 8–5 loss to the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

with

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Willie Mays Willie Howard Mays Jr. (May 6, 1931 – June 18, 2024), nicknamed "the Say Hey Kid", was an American professional baseball center fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of ...

Willie McCovey Willie Lee McCovey (January 10, 1938 – October 31, 2018), nicknamed "Stretch" and "Willie Mac", was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman from 1959 to 1980, most notably as a member of ...

, and

Juan Marichal Juan Antonio Marichal Sánchez (born October 20, 1937), nicknamed "the Dominican Dandy", is a Dominican former right-handed pitcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1960 to 1975, mostly with the San Francisco Giants. Known ...

. The Padres played their final game at Keegan Field on April 3, 1969, when they defeated the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

in front of 1,120 spectators. The Padres moved to Dessert Sun Stadium in 1970 and Keegan Field returned to its use for amateur sports. The field on which the Padres played continues to be used as a community baseball field.

References

External links

* {{San Diego Padres High school baseball venues in the United States Cactus League venues San Diego Padres spring training venues Baseball venues in Arizona Buildings and structures in Yuma, Arizona Sports venues in Arizona