Hammond Stadium is a

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

field located in the

CenturyLink Lumen Technologies, Inc. (formerly CenturyLink) is an American telecommunications company headquartered in Monroe, Louisiana, that offers communications, network services, security, cloud solutions, voice, and managed services. The company is ...

Sports Complex in South Fort Myers, Florida, United States. The stadium was built in 1991, and underwent major renovations in 2014 and 2015. The

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

home of the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

saw its seating capacity increased from 7,500 to 9,300 in the spring of 2015. Class A Advanced affiliate, the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (then the Fort Myers Miracle), of the

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A followi ...

finished out their 2014 season and FSL championship at

JetBlue Park JetBlue Park (also styled as jetBlue Park) is a baseball park in Fort Myers, Florida, part of the Fenway South training and development facility. Opened in March 2012, it is primarily the spring training home of the Boston Red Sox, replacing e ...

(Spring home of the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

, also in

Fort Myers Fort Myers (or Ft. Myers) is a city in southwestern Florida and the county seat and commercial center of Lee County, Florida, United States. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 92,245 in 20 ...

) in order to get the renovations done in time for

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the cat ...

s &

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or dr ...

s to report in 2015. The renovations will also increase the amount of walkable area, provide more shaded areas for sunny games and an expanded gift shop, among other amenities for fans and players. The Twins' Rookie League affiliate, the

Gulf Coast League Twins The Florida Complex League Twins are the Rookie-level affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays in Fort Myers, Florida, at the Lee County Sports Complex. Prior to 2021, th ...

also play in the CenturyLink Sports Complex, however, not usually at Hammond Stadium, but rather at the fields within the surrounding complex. The stadium is named in honor of retired Lee County Deputy Administrator William H. Hammond Jr., who was instrumental in getting the Lee County Sports Complex (the name it was given prior to its renovations) built to draw the Twins from their previous Spring home in

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

. Hammond Stadium's outer facade was designed with

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was p ...

in mind. The parking rows all feature streets signs named to honor former Twins greats—including

Bert Blyleven Bert Blyleven (born Rik Aalbert Blijleven, April 6, 1951) is a Dutch-American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1970 to 1992, primarily with the Minnesota Twins. Blyleven recorded 3,701 ...

Kirby Puckett Kirby Puckett (March 14, 1960 – March 6, 2006) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career as a center fielder for the Minnesota Twins (1984–1995). Puckett is the Twins' all-ti ...

, and

Kent Hrbek Kent Alan Hrbek (; born May 21, 1960), nicknamed "Herbie", is a former American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 14-year baseball career with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1994). Hrbek batted left-handed and threw right-hand ...

. There is also a waterfall fountain near the stadium's entrance. The Twins won the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...

following their first spring training in Hammond Stadium. Their agreement with Lee County for use of the complex originally ran through 2012; the Twins then signed a renewal for a 30-year period in 2014. The new lease agreement with Lee County permitted the Twins to sell the naming rights for the complex – which they did, but the contract stipulated that the stadium itself was to retain the name of Hammond Stadium. The Florida State League held the 48th annual Florida State League All-Star Game at Hammond Stadium in June 2009. The previous time the league held their mid-summer classic in Fort Myers was 2003. Hammond Stadium and JetBlue Park are two of four spring training facilities in Fort Myers. City of Palms Park and

Terry Park Ballfield The Terry Park Ballfield (also known as the Park T. Pigott Memorial Stadium) is a historic site in Fort Myers, Florida, United States. The park is named after the family who donated the land in the 1920s. For years the stadium hosted Major League ...

(also known as the Park T. Pigott Memorial Stadium) in East Fort Myers are currently not in use. City of Palms Park is the former spring training home of the Boston Red Sox, and Terry Park Ballfield is the former home of the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oakla ...

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

and

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

Field dimensions

Hammond Stadium's dimensions compared to

Target Field Target Field is a baseball stadium in the historic warehouse district of downtown Minneapolis. Since its opening in 2010, the stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins. The stadium hosted the 2014 Major Leagu ...

are: :

References

External links

Lee County Sports Complex - Hammond StadiumMinnesota Twins - Spring Training Ballpark

Fort Myers Miracle - Hammond Stadium Information
* ttp://www.ballparksandbrews.com/places-weve-been/the-deep-south/florida/fort-myers-fl-west-hammond-stadium-and-bury-me-brewing/ Hammond Stadium - Ballparks and Brews {{GCL Ballparks Minor league baseball venues Grapefruit League venues Sports venues in Fort Myers, Florida Spring training ballparks Sports venues completed in 1991 Minnesota Twins spring training venues Baseball venues in Florida 1991 establishments in Florida Florida Complex League ballparks Florida State League ballparks