Palm Springs Stadium

Palm Springs Stadium
Former names	Angel Stadium
Coordinates	33°49′6″N 116°31′33″W
Opened	1949
Surface	Grass
Field dimensions	Left - 347 ft. Center - 377 ft. Right - 345 ft.

Palm Springs Stadium is a stadium in Palm Springs, California. It is primarily used for baseball. It was formerly named Angels Stadium and was the home field of the Palm Springs Suns of the Western Baseball League in 1995 and 1996. Palm Springs Stadium is currently the home of the Palm Springs Power, of the collegiate summer Southern California Collegiate Baseball Association. The stadium had a capacity of 5,185.

History

Formerly a polo ground, the present-day stands opened in 1949 and was expanded 4 times in the 1950s. They hosted exhibition games for several Pacific Coast League teams throughout the 1950s and 1960s. From 1961 to 1992, it hosted spring training for the California Angels under team owner Gene Autry, also a part-time resident. Their class-A minor league affiliate, the Palm Springs Angels of the California League played good "in the heat" from 1986 to their last season, 1993.

Three other teams played in the stadium, the Palm Springs Promise of the California Collegiate League folded quickly in 1994. The Cal League's Modesto A's played 20 home games that year, and the Riverside Pilots done the same in 1995 (the Pilots are now the Lancaster Jethawks). The Phoenix Firebirds of the AAA-level Pacific Coast League played 20 "home" games at the stadium in 1997 before they became the Fresno Grizzlies.

For a while, the only bond with the major leagues was softball. But the Pepsi All-Star softball game went to nearby Cathedral City in 1998 at the Field of Dreams complex. The Palm Springs Heat of the Western States Football League had lackluster games in the 1993 season with a 4-10 record before they folded operations.

The status of Palm Springs Stadium was unclear in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The city council had refused to pay for renovation in the past, when Sonny Bono, then-mayor of Palm Springs, shown little interest. As a result, baseball was lost, teams left, and locals debated whether baseball could survive in an area known for summer heat and more local interest in golf and tennis.

It is a possible site of interest for the independent Golden Baseball League. However, the current tenant, the Palm Springs Power, draw in more fans and local media than previous baseball teams.^{[citation needed]}

Present

The status of Palm Springs Stadium has largely been resolved. The City of Palm Springs repainted the entire stadium in May 2007, right before the start of Power Baseball's 2007 season. In addition the Power have made additional capital improvements to the stadium and the field.

The stadium hosts all the games of the four team California Winter League in the 2010 season.^{[citation needed]} The founding team, the Palm Springs Chill is formerly of the Arizona Winter League began play in 2007/08.^{[citation needed]}

In addition to being the home stadium of Power and Chill baseball (who also have year round offices in the stadium), Palm Springs Stadium hosts an amateur football team, the Desert Valley Spartans, who are members of the LaBelle Community Football League (LCFL) and LCFL-West, from August to October, a springtime USABF Amateur Baseball tournament, pop-warner football, numerous local festivals, and softball tournaments throughout the year.

Palm Springs Stadium chronology

• January 1950: World Class Rodeo inaugurates Polo Grounds Arena, build on an earlier recreation site used by locals
• 1950-1955: Pacific Coast League’s Seattle Rainiers played at Polo Grounds, which had a ball diamond
• 1951 Chicago White Sox spend Spring Training at stadium, later the Cincinnati Reds in 1954-55 and Pittsburgh Pirates in 1958-59 shared with Riverside
• 1957-1959: Other Pacific Coast League and class D/AAA American Association teams use facilities
• 1960: Seattle Rainiers return to Palm Springs
• 1961: California Angels, owned by Gene Autry and Robert Reynolds, makes Palm Springs their spring training home
• April 1969: 250 law officers face 1,500 youths during Pop Music Festival riot
• May 1975: Professional women's football all-star game is held there, the diamond is used for American football play
• July 1976: America 200th bicentennial celebration held in stadium with fireworks display
• 1978-79: The California Sunshine soccer team based in Orange held exhibition games
• March 1983: Tommy John takes on Sutton at Angels Game
• July 1983: Stadium Gets Lights Due to Funds Donated By Gene Autry
• 1984-91: California Angels hold an annual exhibition game series every April, an acknowledged thanks to the city and local fans
• October 1985: Stadium Site of the Big Circus and Halloween Carnival, a predecessor to the 1990-91 Annual Children's festival
• November 1985: Vintage Grand Prix Held at Stadium, later was the Palm Springs Grand Prix of the late 1980s/early 1990s
• January 1991: Darryl Strawberry and other Dodgers play in celebrity softball game held at stadium, sponsored by MTV
• June 1991: Power Jam Loads Stadium with Top-40 Bands for the Palm Springs Music Festival
• December 1991: Senior Olympics return for their fifth year, and a youth olympics event held in March 1992
• March 1992: Angels transfer to Tempe, Arizona after spring training ends
• August 1992: Kansas City Royals tryouts set in Palm Springs
• April 1993: PS Angels start play, their 7th (and last) season
• September 1993: PS Angels move to Lake Elsinore to play in 1994
• June 1994: PS Promise opening game. They were a collegiate level team that lasted one season
• July 1994: Cincinnati Reds held a tryout camp for a 3-day weekend
• April 1995: Modesto A's hold 10 "home games" in stadium
• May 1995: PS Suns Start Play at Stadium, lasted two seasons before relocation to Oxnard, California (folded in 1999)
• April 1996: Riverside Pilots of the California League hold 10 "home games" in the stadium
• June 1996: Angels Stadium renamed PS Stadium at request of PS Suns (also known for a clothing-optional fan attendance)
• July 1997: Phoenix Firebirds of the Pacific Coast League played 20 "home" games at the stadium
• January 1998: First Major League Baseball Exhibition game between the Colorado Rockies and Seattle Mariners
• June 2004: New hometown team, Palm Springs Power, opens
• June 2005: PS Power starts second season -- total season fan attendance over 100,000
• June 2006: PS Power starts third season -- fan attendance climbs above 150,000
• June 2007: PS Power starts fourth season -- fan attendance surpasses 200,000
• May 2008: PS Power's fifth season has total seasonal attendance of over 250,000 fans. The team is now a member of the Southern California Collegiate Baseball Association
• 2009: PS Power plays sixth season in 2009, with about 300,000 fans in attendance
• December 2008: The Arizona Winter League grants a team in Palm Springs, the Palm Springs Chill
• January 2009: The Chill ends their first season with total fan attendance all season at above 100,000
• February 2009: Second Major League Baseball Exhibition game of the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
• January 2010: The California Winter League premieres its first season, all their games representing four teams played in the stadium. The CWL championship was held on Feb. 25, 2010
• February 2010: Another exhibition game for the Angels versus the San Diego Padres
• January 2011: Third exhibition game of the Angels vs. the San Francisco Giants
• 2011: The North American League may field a team in the stadium
• 2012: Host of the Southwest Cup amateur soccer tournament representing Native American tribes of the American Southwest.^{[citation needed]}

External links

California Winter League