Witter Field is a baseball

ballpark A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into the infield, an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined, and the outfield, where dimensions can vary widely from place to pla ...

located at 521 Lincoln Street in

Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin Wisconsin Rapids is a city in and the county seat of Wood County, Wisconsin. The population was 18,877 at the 2020 census. The city also forms one of the core areas of the United States Census Bureau's Marshfield-Wisconsin Rapids Micropolit ...

, United States. It was built in 1928. It served as the home park for multiple

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

teams: the Wisconsin Rapids White Sox,

Wisconsin Rapids Senators Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michi ...

and

Wisconsin Rapids Twins The Wisconsin Rapids Twins were a Class A (baseball), Class A Minor League Baseball team that existed from 1963 to 1983, playing in the Midwest League. Affiliated with the Washington Senators (1961–71), Washington Senators (1963) and the Minnesot ...

. Currently, it hosts the

Northwoods League The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not paid, so as to maintain their college el ...

Wisconsin Rapids Rafters The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters are a baseball team based in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. The Rafters play home games at historic Witter Field. History The Rafters name was a ...

and youth teams.

Witter Field History

The ballpark was home to the Wisconsin Rapids White Sox (1941–42; 1946–53) of the Class-D

Wisconsin State League The Wisconsin State League was a class D baseball league that began in 1905, changing its name to the Wisconsin–Illinois League in 1908 and operating through 1914. The league re–organized under that name in 1926. Another Wisconsin State League ...

. The League folded after the 1953 season, leaving Witter without professional baseball until a new team in the Class-A

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

started play. The

(1963) and

(1964-1983) would play for the next two decades. Following the 1983 season, the franchise moved to

Simmons Field Simmons Field is a baseball stadium in Kenosha, Wisconsin. It was the home field of the Kenosha Comets of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). History Simmons Field opened in Kenosha in 1920 as a field for the Simmo ...

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...

. In 2010, baseball returned, as the current tenant, the

of the summer collegiate

began play in June, 2010. The park was built in 1928 and dedicated in 1934. The site housed the Lincoln High School facility, beginning in 1902 and the field was called "Lincoln Athletic Field" until 1940 when it became "Witter Field" in honor of Isaac Witter.
The wooden grandstand bleachers were replaced in 1950. 227 seats from the demolished

Milwaukee County Stadium Milwaukee County Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Opened in 1953, it was primarily a baseball park for Major League Baseball's Milwaukee Braves and later the Milwaukee Brewers. It was also used for Green Bay Packers ...

were installed in 2010. From 2005-2008 Witter Field hosted the youth WIAC state baseball tournament. On July 18, 2011, Witter Field hosted the Northwoods League All-Star Game.

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

inductee

Paul Molitor Paul Leo Molitor (born August 22, 1956), nicknamed "Molly" and "the Ignitor", is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) player and former manager of the Minnesota Twins, who is in the Baseball Hall of Fame. During his 21-year baseball car ...

was present for All-Star festivities.

The site today

It is currently the home to local High School baseball, Legion Baseball and hosts the

. The site also contains the Wisconsin Rapids Recreation Complex featuring the Wisconsin Rapids Aquatic Center, tennis courts,

pickleball Pickleball is an indoor or outdoor racket/paddle sport where two players (singles), or four players (doubles), hit a perforated hollow polymer ball over a net using solid-faced paddles. Opponents on either side of the net hit the ball back and ...

courts, ice skating, a warming house, a football field and a skate park.

Notable players

The park has hosted numerous Major League Baseball, Major League alumni, some of note include: *

Ben Heller Benjamin Heller (born August 5, 1991) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees from 2016 to 2017, and 2019 to 2020. Career H ...

(2012) * Allan Anderson (1983)

List of Major League Baseball annual ERA leaders In baseball, earned run average (ERA) is a statistic used to evaluate pitchers, calculated as the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. A pitcher is assessed an earned run for each run scored by a baserunner who reach ...

; 1988 AL ERA Leader * Mark Davidson (1982–83) *

Mark Portugal Mark Steven Portugal (born October 30, 1962) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played in the major leagues from 1985 to 1999. Career Portugal attended Norwalk High School in Norwalk, California. He was signed by the Minnesota Twins ...

(1982) *

Rich Yett Richard Martin Yett (born October 6, 1962) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He played all or part of six seasons in Major League Baseball from 1985 to 1990. Yett was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in 1980, but Yett only played one game ...

(1981) *

Jim Eisenreich James Michael Eisenreich (; born April 18, 1959) is an American former Major League Baseball player with a 15-year career from 1982 to 1984 and 1987–1998. He played for the Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals of the American League, and the ...

(1980–81) 15 MLB Seasons; First Recipient of

Tony Conigliaro Award The Tony Conigliaro Award is a national recognition instituted in 1990 by the Boston Red Sox to honor the memory of Tony Conigliaro. It is given annually to a Major League Baseball (MLB) player who best "overcomes an obstacle and adversity throug ...

Gary Gaetti Gary Joseph Gaetti (, ; born August 19, 1958), is an American former third baseman in Major League Baseball for the Minnesota Twins (1981–1990), California Angels (1991–1993), Kansas City Royals (1993–1995), St. Louis Cardinals (1996–1998) ...

(1980) gg; 4 x GG; 2 x MLB AS; 1987 ALCS MVP *

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 ...

(1980) MLB AS *

Rick Stelmaszek Richard Francis Stelmaszek (October 8, 1948 – November 6, 2017) was an American Major League Baseball catcher, and bullpen coach for the Minnesota Twins. Stelmaszek spent 32 consecutive seasons (–) on the Twins' coaching staff and was the lon ...

(1978-80 MGR) *

Bud Bulling Terry Charles "Bud" Bulling (December 15, 1952 – March 8, 2014) was a Major League Baseball catcher for the Minnesota Twins () and Seattle Mariners (–). In 1974, while playing for the Wisconsin Rapids Twins, Bulling was accidentally shot in t ...

(1975–76) *

John Castino John Anthony Castino (born October 23, 1954) is a former Major League Baseball player. Castino played as an infielder, primarily at third base and second base, with the Minnesota Twins from 1979 through 1984. Professional career Castino graduat ...

(1976) 1979 AL Rookie of the Year *

Rick Sofield Richard Michael Sofield (born December 16, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. He was the Pittsburgh Pirates third base coach from 2013 to 2016 and was the manager of their Class-A South Atlantic League team the West Virginia Po ...

(1976) MLB Player, Coach *

Jerry Garvin Theodore Jared Garvin (born October 21, 1955) is an American former professional baseball player who pitched a total of six seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Toronto Blue Jays from 1977 to 1982. He was named by Topps as their left- ...

(1974) * Gary Ward (1974) 2 x MLB AS *

Alvis Woods Alvis "Al" Woods (born August 8, 1953) is a former professional baseball player. He played all or part of seven seasons in Major League Baseball between 1977 and 1986, primarily as a left fielder. He batted and threw left-handed. Career Woods was ...

(1974) *

Randy Bass Randy William Bass (born March 13, 1954) is an American politician and former baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), and served in the Oklahoma Senate. Bass made his MLB debut in 1977, a ...

(1973) * Tom Johnson (1972) *

Glenn Borgmann Glenn Dennis Borgmann (born May 25, 1950) is an American former professional baseball player. He played nine seasons in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1972 until 1980 and was South Alabama's first All-American. He played the majority of ...

(1971) * Bill Campbell (1971) MLB AS; 1977 AL Saves Leader * Jim Hughes (1971) * Dave McKay (1971) MLB Player/Coach *

Johnny Goryl John Albert Goryl (born October 21, 1933) is an American former infielder, manager and coach in Major League Baseball. A right-handed batter and thrower who stood tall and weighed , Goryl apprenticed in the farm systems of the Boston / Milwauke ...

(1970, 1973–75, MGR) MLB MGR *

Steve Barber Stephen David Barber (February 22, 1938 – February 4, 2007) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) left-handed pitcher. He pitched for the Baltimore Orioles and six other teams between 1960–74. Barber compiled 121 wins, 1,309 str ...

(1969) 2 x MLB AS *

Rick Dempsey John Rikard Dempsey (born September 13, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player.Bill Zepp William Clinton Zepp (born July 22, 1946), is an American former professional baseball player. A right-handed pitcher, he attended the University of Michigan and later played professional baseball for four years from 1968 to 1971, including stints ...

(1968) * Steve Braun (1967) *

Tom Hall Tom Hall is an American game designer best known for his work with id Software on titles such as ''Doom'' and ''Commander Keen''. Career Hall attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he earned a B.S. in Computer Science. In 1987, ...

(1967) * Charlie Manual (1967, MGR 1983) MLB MGR: 1000 wins; MGR: 2008 World Series Champion - Philadelphia Phillies *

Graig Nettles Graig Nettles (born August 20, 1944), nicknamed "Puff", is an American former Major League Baseball third baseman. During a 22-year baseball career, he played for the Minnesota Twins (1967–1969), Cleveland Indians (1970–1972), New York Yankee ...

(1966) 2 x GG; 6 x MLB AS 1976 AL Home Run Leader;1981 ALCS MVP *

George Mitterwald George Eugene Mitterwald (born June 7, 1945) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and manager. He played in 887 Major League Baseball games for the Minnesota Twins and Chicago Cubs, primarily as a catcher, over 11 seasons (19 ...

(1965, 1968) * Pat Kelly (1964) MLB AS * Jim French (1963) *

Wayne Terwilliger Willard Wayne Terwilliger (June 27, 1925 – February 3, 2021), nicknamed "Twig", was an American professional baseball second baseman. He played nine seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1949 and 1960 for the Chicago Cubs, Brooklyn ...

(1963, MGR) * Johnny Schaive (1953) *

Jim Landis James Henry Landis (March 9, 1934 – October 7, 2017) was an American professional baseball player. Landis played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a center fielder on six teams from 1957 through 1967. While playing eight seasons for the Chica ...

(1952) 5 x GG in CF; 2 x MLB AS *

Glen Stewart Glen Weldon Stewart (September 29, 1912 – February 11, 1997) was a Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of ...

(1949) * Bill Fischer (1942) *

Cy Buker Cyril Owen Buker (February 5, 1918 – October 11, 2011) was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1945. The 26-year-old rookie right-hander stood and weighed . Buker is one of many ballplayers who only appe ...

(1942) *

Max Patkin Max Patkin (January 10, 1920 – October 30, 1999) was an American baseball player and clown, best known as the Clown Prince of Baseball (a play on "Crown Prince"). Patkin was the third "officially" crowned Clown Prince of Baseball, after Al Scha ...

(1941) Long Time baseball entertainer, featured in ''Bull Durham''; 1988

King of Baseball King of Baseball was a ceremonial title awarded annually from 1951 to 2019 by Minor League Baseball to recognize an individual for their longtime dedication and service to professional baseball. It was awarded during baseball's Winter Meetings a ...

References

{{NWL ballparks Buildings and structures in Wood County, Wisconsin Baseball venues in Wisconsin Tourist attractions in Wood County, Wisconsin 1928 establishments in Wisconsin Sports in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin Sports venues completed in 1928 Defunct Midwest League ballparks