University of Florida AD Scott Stricklin joins Jesse Goldberg-Strassler, publisher Kevin Reichard and Populous's Jason Michael Ford to discuss Ballpark Digest's 2021 College Ballpark of the Year: Florida Ballpark at Alfred A. McKethan Field.
The $65-million facility, replacing Alfred A. McKethan Field on the UF campus and designed by Populous, was created to please fans with game-day amenities like plenty of shade and a 360-degree concourse, and please players with expanded workout facilities, including a private nutrition area, video and team meeting rooms, indoor pitching and batting cages, and enhanced training and rehabilitation areas. Our Jarah Wright previewed the facility last September, and in this episode Stricklin discusses how the new ballpark was conceived, what was important in creating a top-tier college facility, and how the new ballpark fits into a competitive college-baseball landscape.
Jesse Goldberg-Strassler is Voice of the Lansing Lugnuts and author of The Baseball Thesaurus and the upcoming second edition of The Football Thesaurus, both from August Publications. Kevin Reichard is editor of Ballpark Digest and founder/publisher at August Publications.