Goodall Park is a

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

venue in

Sanford, Maine Sanford is a city in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 21,982 in the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, making it the seventh largest municipality in the state. Situated on the Mousam River, Sanford includes the village ...

, United States, which is home to the

Sanford Mainers The Sanford Mainers are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Sanford, Maine. The team, a member of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, plays their home games at Goodall Park. In late 2001, New England Collegiate Baseball League app ...

of the

New England Collegiate Baseball League The New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) is a 13-team collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league founded in 1993 and sanctioned by the NCAA and Major League Baseball. Each NECBL team plays an eight-week, 44-game schedule during June ...

. The park opened in 1915. It has a seating capacity of 950 spectators.

History

The park opened on May 29, 1915. Its first game was between the Sanford Professionals and the Lewiston Pilgrims (of

Lewiston, Maine Lewiston (; ) is the List of municipalities in Maine, second most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine, with the city's population at 37,121 as of the 2020 United States census. The city lies halfway between Augusta, Maine, Augusta, the sta ...

). The game was played in front of 1,300 fans. In 1919, the park hosted an exhibition game between the Sanford Professionals and 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) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

. The game was

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional Baseball in the United States, baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nickna ...

's last game in a Red Sox uniform. Ruth hit a three-run

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

to lead the Red Sox to a come-from-behind 4-3 victory. Ruth did not play in another game for the Red Sox before being traded to the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

by Red Sox owner

Harry Frazee Harry Herbert Frazee (June 29, 1880 – June 4, 1929) was an American theatrical agent, producer, and director, and owner of Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox from 1916 to 1923. He is well known for selling Babe Ruth to the New York Yanke ...

1997 fire and rebuilding

In 1997, an

arsonist Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, waterc ...

set fire to the park's grandstand and destroyed it. After debate in Sanford as to whether or not to rebuild the park, the grandstand was rebuilt in 1998 and rededicated on July 16, 1999. The grandstand was rebuilt at a cost of over $1 million.

Seating areas

Most of the park's 950-spectator capacity comes from the grandstand located directly behind home plate. The grandstand consists entirely of chairbacked seats. The park also has a section of metal bleacher seating located down the first base line.

Photo gallery

File:Goodall Park Scoreboard.JPG, The park's electronic scoreboard, located over the left center field fence. File:Goodall Park Bullpen.JPG, The visitors

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...

, located down the right field line. File:Goodall Park Press Box.JPG, The

press box The press box is a special section of a sports stadium or arena that is set up for the media to report about a given event. It is typically located in the section of the stadium holding the luxury box and can be either enclosed or open to the ...

, located above grandstand seating directly behind home plate. File:Goodall Park Plaque.JPG, A plaque, located within the grandstand, that commemorates the park's rebuilding after it was destroyed by an arsonist. File:Goodall Park Concessions.JPG, The park's main concession stand.

References

External links

NECBL website

Sanford Mainers website
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The Hero of Goodall Park: Inside a true-crime drama 50 years in the making
{{NECBL Ballparks Baseball venues in Maine New England Collegiate Baseball League ballparks Tourist attractions in York County, Maine Buildings and structures in Sanford, Maine 1915 establishments in Maine Sports venues completed in 1915 Sports in York County, Maine