Jerry Marsh Field renos on schedule.
Renovations on schedule for New Waterford’s 109-year-old Jerry Marsh Ball Field
NEW WATERFORD — Freshly cut green grass in the infield may not be a common site right now at the Jerry Marsh Ball Field, but it will be sooner rather than later.
The Cape Breton Regional Municipality says renovations at the historic 109-year-old New Waterford ballfield are on schedule, weather permitting.
The renovations began following the 2019 baseball season to improve the facility’s infield and warning track prior to the 2020 Baseball Canada Senior National Championship, which was scheduled for August in Sydney and New Waterford, before it was cancelled due to COVID-19.
The iconic grass infield is expected to remain as part of the renovations. With the nationals cancelled, the timeline for completion of the field could not be confirmed. The cost of the renovations was also not available at press time.
“I think the Jerry Marsh Ball Field will be an excellent venue,” said Sydney Sooners bench boss Jim (Rico) McEachern in an interview with the Cape Breton Post last November.
“We’ve been to nationals four of the last six years and we’ve seen the fields and not to take away from them, but the Marsh is excellent.”
The Sooners were awarded the 2020 national championship in November 2018 and in submitting the bid had full intention to use the Marsh field for the event. Sydney will now host the national tournament in 2022.
“We wouldn’t have even gotten the national tournament if we didn’t offer a second quality field like the Marsh,” said McEachern in the interview. “Any major event that comes here, there is some upgrading that does end up happening to certain facilities which leaves legacies for the future.”
In the late 1930s, although not named the Jerry Marsh Ball Field at that time, the field was the home of the New Waterford Dodgers who played in the Cape Breton Colliery League. That league featured local baseball players as well as imports. One of those import players was Jack Barry of New York, who reportedly played Major League Baseball.
The 1959 New Waterford Giants, who were the first senior club from Cape Breton to win a Maritime championship, also called the field home.
In July 1992, the field was renamed the Jerry Marsh Ball Field in honour of Jerry Marsh, a former mayor of the then town of New Waterford.
The field underwent extensive renovations, which included new dugouts, fencing and drainage system upgrades, prior to the 2011 Canadian Big League Baseball Championship, which was hosted by the Cape Breton McNally Dodgers.
Since then, the field has hosted various provincial and minor baseball tournaments and is used on a regular basis by the New Waterford Minor Baseball Association.
Despite the approach of summer, workers will have plenty of time to renovate the field.
The New Waterford Minor Baseball Association announced last Friday suspension of all baseball-related activities for the 2020 season due to COVID-19, although Baseball Nova Scotia has announced a return-to-play protocol.
In a statement posted on their Facebook page, New Waterford Minor Baseball says it fully supports the public health measures put in place by the province and the work Baseball Nova Scotia has done.
“Although we fully support the safety measures in place to protect the youth and broader community, we are unable to comply with the measures in a safe manner,” the statement reads. “The added responsibility and required changes to volunteers at this time are extremely complex.”
The statement also reads “If at some point in the future, the public health measures are modified by the province and supported by Baseball Nova Scotia, the situation will be re-evaluated.”
In total, New Waterford has four operating baseball fields including the Marsh, Tucker Ball Field, Ray (Bozo) Steele Memorial Ballpark and Burns Field.
Along with minor baseball, the New Waterford Co-ed Slo-Pitch League also uses the local fields. Like many leagues, no announcement has been made regarding the start of the slo-pitch season.