McCulloch Park is the largest community

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

located in

Muncie, Indiana Muncie ( ) is a city in Delaware County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It is located in East Central Indiana about northeast of Indianapolis. At the 2020 census, the city's population was 65,195, down from 70,085 in the 2010 c ...

. The park is named after for local newspaper industrialist, George F. McCulloch, who gave the 118 acres of land to the city for a park in 1892. The park later consisted of a baseball field that hosted two professional teams; the

Muncie Fruit Jars The Muncie Fruit Jars were a professional minor league baseball team based in Muncie, Indiana. The club was first formed in 1906 as a team in the class-C Interstate Association. The Fruit Jars' name was inspired by Muncie's local economy, which wa ...

and the

Muncie Reds The Muncie Reds were an Ohio State League (1947) and Ohio–Indiana League (1948–1950) baseball team based in Muncie, Indiana, USA. They were affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team ...

. The park also served as the

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

home of the

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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

from 1943–1945.

Baseball

In , Muncie fielded its first professional baseball team, the Muncie Fruit Jars, who played in the

Interstate Association The Interstate Association was a minor league baseball league that played briefly in the 1906 season. The eight–team, Class C (baseball), Class C level Interstate Association consisted of franchises based in Indiana, Ohio and Michigan. The Inte ...

. The team played again in season in the

Ohio–Indiana League The Ohio–Indiana League was a Class D level minor league baseball league that operated from 1948 to 1951. The league was composed of six teams from Ohio and two teams from Indiana. The Marion Red Sox won three consecutive league championship ...

which folded that season, on June 8, with the team in last place. Over the next two decades, McCulloch Park was home to several local semi-pro clubs. In 1931 a permanent wooden grandstand was built by the city. During the 1930s, several major league teams visited the ballpark. On one notable occasion, the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they ...

lost a game to one of Muncie's local teams. In , the Pittsburgh Pirates traveled to Muncie for the club's spring training session. During this time, the United States was fighting in World War II. The Pirates' selection of Muncie was part of an effort by Major League Baseball to reduce team travel expenses, due to the lower revenues brought about by the war. The 1943 Pirates were managed

Frank Frisch Frank Francis Frisch (September 9, 1897—March 12, 1973), nicknamed "the Fordham Flash" or "the Old Flash", was an American professional baseball second baseman and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Giants (1919� ...

and

Honus Wagner Johannes Peter "Honus" Wagner ( ; February 24, 1874 – December 6, 1955) was an American baseball shortstop who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1897 to 1917, mostly with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Nicknamed "the Flying Dutc ...

, both men were

Hall of Famers A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...

. Their presence helped the team establish a fanbase in Muncie. During the Pirates' stay, other major league teams traveled to McCulloch Park to play them.

Rudy York Preston Rudolph York (August 17, 1913 – February 5, 1970) was an American professional baseball player, coach, scout, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher and a first baseman between and , most notably as a member of t ...

, of the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

, is credited for hitting the longest

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 ( ...

out of the Park. Once the war ended, the Pirates ended their spring training relationship with Muncie. However, the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

established a

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 Nort ...

affiliate in the city, called the Muncie Reds. The Reds played at McCulloch Park from to . Future Cincinnati Reds standouts,

Joe Nuxhall Joseph Henry Nuxhall (; July 30, 1928 – November 15, 2007) was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball, primarily for the Cincinnati Reds. Immediately after retiring as a player, he became a radio broadcaster for the Reds f ...

and Wally Post, played for Muncie in 1947 and they were among six Muncie Reds players who would later play in the majors. The Reds disbanded in 1950 and the field was once again used only by amateur and semi-pro clubs.

Today

On Friday, June 13, 1952, a fire completely destroyed the Park's grandstand. The grandstand was never replaced, however the field was refurbished and has been maintained since. The park is still in operation today. It is accessible to the community and includes playgrounds, a disc golf course, a soap box derby track, basketball courts, baseball fields, picnic areas, a park lodge rental facility, restrooms, and fishing/boating areas.

External links

City of Muncie: McCulloch Park
{{Pittsburgh Pirates Defunct minor league baseball venues Pittsburgh Pirates spring training venues Parks in Indiana 1892 establishments in Indiana 1952 disestablishments in Indiana Sports in Muncie, Indiana

Baseball

Today

See also

External links