Joe Nathan Field


Joe Nathan Field is a baseball field on the campus of Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, New York, United States. The field is home to the team of the NCAA Division I America East Conference. It is located at the northern end of the school's athletics complex. The field opened on May 20, 2011, replacing Stony Brook's old baseball field, which was known as University Field from 2002 to 2011. The old facility was known as Seawolves Field through the 2002 season, when its name was changed to University Field.
The stadium is named after then–Minnesota Twins pitcher and Stony Brook alumnus Joe Nathan, after Nathan's $500,000 gift made extensive renovations possible. The stadium's construction cost was $1.3 million.

History

In August 2008, the Joe Nathan Charitable Foundation donated $500,000 to the Stony Brook athletic department for the construction of a new baseball facility. Construction on the field took place from 2010 to 2011. Compared to the previous University Field, the dimensions of left and right field expanded from 320 to 330 feet, while center field was reduced from 410 to 390 feet, and the grass surface was replaced with FieldTurf.
The field opened on May 20, 2011 for a doubleheader against Albany. In the first game played on the field, Stony Brook defeated Albany 6–2. Nick Tropeano was the first player to pitch on Joe Nathan Field.
The 2011 America East Conference Baseball Tournament, won by Maine, was played at Joe Nathan Field. The 2012 America East Conference Baseball Tournament was also hosted by Stony Brook, who won the tournament.

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