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Main > ParkRec > ParkRec Facilities
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Established 1965
Click here for a arial view of Joker Marchant Stadium
In September 1965, ground was broken for what would become the Tigers new Spring Training home. The new stadium situated on 17 acres of land adjacent to Tigertown, and cost nearly $500,000 to build.The clubhouse alone was a $50,000 project, housed in a just off of right field. The Tigers had room for 63 players; the visitors 40. |
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It held 5,000 spectators, with 3,700 grandstand seats, 450 box seats and 850
I"! bleacher seats. The field measured 340
feet to each outfield comer and 420 feet to
center field. Three broadcast booths, a press box, camera decks, and a dark room nearly completed the new stadium project. It lacked one final element a name.
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The Tigers didn't have to look far tor a name that would personify the team's longtime relationship with the city of Lakeland. The person perhaps most instrumental in the Tigers decision to invest in the Tigertown project and keep the club in the city of years to come was a real Joker - literally.
"Joker" Marchant was the popular director of Lakeland's Park and Recreational Department. Starting as a city employee in 1939 with a job at a local swimming pool, Marchant was named Parks and Rec. director in 1946. He worked with Tigers management to establish the Tigertown complex at the former Lodwick Airport, and later worked with the team and the city to maximize the bond between the two with shared facilities and a commitment to keeping the stadium's field one of the best-kept in the majors.
The personable, unassuming Marchant was thrilled by the honor, and so on March 12,1966 before a capacity crowd, the new stadium was officially dedicated as Joker Marchant Stadium. Taking pride in the appearance of "his" stadium with his usual humor Marchant told the crowd," Y'all put the peanut shells in your pockets and don't be messing up my new stadium!"
The plaque in his honor featured his trademark white cowboy hat. Marchant's dedication to Lakeland stemmed back to 1925 when he arrived to attend Florida i Southern College as a football player. He put down roots in the cits' and never looked back. In all, Marchant served the city of Lakeland for over 30 years, exemplifying the teamwork that has now existed between the Tigers and Lakeland for 66 years.
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Bright Lights, Big(ger) City...
On March 31,1972, the Tigers hosted the Boston Red Sox for a memorable game at Joker Marchant Stadium. The contest marked Marchant Stadium's nighttime debut beneath the glow of a $ 160,000 set of lights. The city of Lakeland paid for the lights, and in return received 20 cents on every ticket sold. The game came 80 years after Lakeland became just the third town in the state (after Jacksonville and Tampa) to have electric lights when the Lakeland
Light and Power Company flipped the switch for the first time in 1891.
By the mid-1970's, Lakeland was no longer a small town often overlooked as a tourist destination. The city's population had grown to 43,000 with 96,000 residents comprising the surrounding area.
Hall of Fame sportswriter Joe Falls noted in 1972: "Little Old Lakeland has become such a bustling community that you have to stand in line to get into the waffle houses...They now have such things as Ladies Night at the local pubs - where the gals can drink free for as long as they want, or as long as they remain upright, or both!"
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"cool" and "state-of-the-art" are new features.
More seats. The capacity of the stadium, 7,040 last year, has increased to 8,500. Orange box seats and the old blue bench seats are out, replaced by 5,000 new dark green seats against an easy-on-the-eyes tan background. If someone punts your drink now, it's your fault -- each seat has a cup holder.
Wider aisles. City Parks and Recreation Director Bill Tinsley said the easier-tonavigate aisles with hand rails down the middle were installed with senior citizens in mind.
New restrooms. Nine restrooms were added bringing the total to 13. Seven of the 13 are for women.
Seats closer to the action. The first three rows of seats between the dugouts are 15 feet closer to home plate. Fans in those seats will be closer to the game than the players in the dugouts.
New seating. The old Tigers bullpen was replaced by 265 new seats behind first base. The seats are so close to the game that a screen will protect fans from balls thrown over the first baseman's head. The Tiger bullpen and the visitors' pen down the left field line were moved to right-center field, visible to fans from any seat.
The Berm. A grassy, 45-foot slope beyond the fence in left field has been installed for sun worshippers, picnickers and bargain seekers. At $7 each, tickets to sit on the grass are the stadium's least expensive.
The Tigers don't have a name for the slope yet, but so far it is being referred to as The Berm. Don Miers, the director of Lakeland operations for the Tigers, likes "Horton's Hill," for Willie Horton, a Tiger slugger in the 1960s and '70s who played left field and a big part in the team's 1968 World Championship. The slope could end up naming itself, Miers said.
Seating capacity on The Berm is listed at 400, but Tinsley said it could probably hold 500, bringing the stadium's capacity to 9,000.
Twin towers. Two towers, one with a walkway and one with an elevator, will serve the upper grandstand area. A wide walkway behind the grandstand will hold plenty of portable concession stands.
New concession courtyard. This is beyond and behind first base.
Seating for the handicapped. There are now five such areas, including plenty of shaded spots. Wheelchair-bound fans were formerly stuck in an aisle behind home plate.
More chance to catch a foul ball. The new behind-the-plate screen doesn't have a top covering the stands. Until this year, foul balls rolled down the top of the screen and back onto the field's warning track. Now, they'll land in the stands. The new screen "doesn't steal balls from kids," Tinsley said.
Clearer PA. A new public address system will allow fans to hear the announcer as he speaks, not a few seconds later.
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Map to Joker Marchant Stadium
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