Directions to Tony Gwynn Stadium
Stephen and Mary Birch Foundation Baseball Museum
Tony Gwynn Stadium became the new home of the San Diego State baseball program during the 1997 season. The facility is already being hailed as one of the top college baseball stadiums in the country. Baseball America has ranked Tony Gwynn Stadium as the fifth-best collegiate facility in the nation and the second-best park in the western half of the nation.
Groundbreaking for this project took place on August 21, 1996. The $4 million facility has been made possible through the generosity of San Diego Padres owner John Moores and his wife, Becky, who donated the funds to make Coach Jim Dietz's dream of a state-of-the-art stadium at SDSU a reality.
The structure is named in honor of the former Aztec and current Padre all-star. The playing field remains Charlie Smith Field in honor of the long-time former San Diego State head coach. It retains its former dimensions of 340 feet down the left field line, 340 feet down the right field line, and 412 to dead center field. Distance to the power alleys is 365 feet.
The playing field is enclosed by a 10-foot high green wall made of a modern material designed to be resilient upon contact. The outfield wall features advertising signage as well as the names and numbers of past players who have been honored with number retirement.
Seating capacity of the stadium is 3,000, and that number could reach as high as 4,000 in the future. Of the 2,200 permanent seats installed during the initial phase of construction, 800 are armchair-style around the stadium at the field level and up through the plaza level behind the home plate area. The other 1,800 are comprised of bleacher benches down both base lines. Additional bleacher seating will be available down the outfield lines as well as behind the right field fence.
Among the amenities contained within the stadium itself are the following:
Two concession stands and two sets of restrooms located behind the seating area on the plaza level. There is also a novelty/souvenir shop located on the outer concourse, featuring SDSU merchandise.
A players meeting/recreation room located at the west end of the first base stands to be used for team functions as well as a lounge for SDSU athletes.
Home and visiting team locker rooms with shower facilities. There is also an umpires dressing room for officials to use before and after games.
A training room with a Jacuzzi and dry sauna.
An equipment room with storage space for uniforms, baseballs, bats and other items.
A modern press box with booths for radio and television. A state-of-the-art public address system is operated from the press box as well as the stadium scoreboard. A hydraulic elevator is available to take media and VIPs from ground level to the press box.
Four sky boxes adjacent to the press box for visiting dignitaries and groups to view games.
