The All-Star Game is just 5 days but the impact is long lasting for the next generation. That’s because Major League Baseball and the Texas Rangers teamed up to build the All-Star Legacy Field for young players in west Dallas. Noelle Walker was there for the first pitch.
Major League Baseball's All-Star Week lasts 5 days, but the impact is long-lasting for the next generation. That's because youth players in West Dallas have a new Texas Rangers All-Star Legacy Field to play games.
The first game was timed to coincide with MLB All-Star Week.
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WATCH HERE"We are so excited to be here today to see the fruits of labor of a project like this," Texas Rangers Youth Academy Senior Director Juan Leonel Garciga said. "It was a grass/clay diamond that required a ton of maintenance, a lot of work, a ton of upkeep."
The Texas Rangers Baseball Foundation and MLB Together partnered to renovate the field. Before the improvements, games frequently had to be canceled because of poor drainage and field conditions. The new field is a serious upgrade. It's the exact same turf the 2023 World Series was played on, repurposed for the youth fields.
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SIGN UP "Wow, I have no words," Texas Rangers Youth Academy player Braylon Hubbard said. "That's crazy! We were stepping on the grass that major leaguers, not only Texas Rangers, but all other teams stepped on!"
The upgrades for the Texas Rangers All-Star Legacy Field also include new dugouts, a bullpen, and shade structures for the bleachers.
"We never want to just come in and have a game without using the power of our sport to invest in the community," MLB Senior Vice President of Social Responsibility April Brown said. "It's not just about the sport. The sport is the entrée to leadership skills, to development, to teamwork, being able to have that social environment with their peers with trusted adults. So we use our sport as that access to be able young people fulfill their dreams and their future lives."
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On Friday, former Rangers Mark McLemore and Darren Oliver caught the ceremonial 1st pitches to open the new field before the Texas Rangers and Washington Nationals Youth Academy teams played the first game.
"You deserve to play on the nicest field regardless of what your circumstances are at home, regardless of what your socio-economic background is," Garciga said.
The improved field will help players improve their game, but it goes deeper than that.
"Although baseball does teach us life lessons and skills, those lessons translate over to life," Texas Rangers Youth Academy Coach Dash Johnson said.
