I Don't Like Field Turf

My favorite field to watch a game in our town is a  turf field at a Catholic high school.  The sight lines are good, the dugouts are actually dug out, the stands are good, the turf is as good as turf gets, and the backstop has netting instead of chain link, which makes a world of difference to spectators. (BTW the signs say no cleats but everybody wears them)

 

Our own public school field is in a nice setting, and the field is immaculate in season, when football players and their blocking sleds aren't digging up the outfield, but the dugouts are crap and the stands suck.  But here's why I like that field best. Like I said, it's immaculate. The boys work on it for at least an hour after every game and practice.  Sometimes they don't even practice  -- they just work on the field. It's their responsibility, and the coaches make very sure that they take it seriously.  That turf field I mentioned?  The kids are in their cars 10 minutes after games. As private school kids they already have a reputation as being spoiled and having a sense if entitlement. Some deserve that rep; some don't. IMHO they'd all be better off playing on a field that required them to give a little something back to the game, instead of show up, play, and go home.   I think that the TLC our players give their field benefits them enormously.

I'm not arguing for turf over grass even though my son has played on plenty of turf. The benefits of turf are accurate.

 

1) Have you seen turf repeatedly slip or have you heard this? I've only heard it. I've never seen it on properly maintained turf. I've also seen grass slip on wet and/or poorly maintained fields.

 

2) Lazy players, not turf create lazy fielders.

 

3) There are a lot less bad hops on turf than grass. If the dirt portion is also turf there are even less bad hops as there are less edges. On turf a player better create their own hop as well. With less resistance the ball is typically moving faster than on grass. It's a matter of learning the speed of turf if not accustomed to it.

 

4) Your last example makes no sense to me so I can't respond. It appears to be nothing but poor play based on poor decision making. That's not the fault of the turf.

I'm old school prefer a beautifully maintained grass/dirt field. IMO I like to see dirty baseball uniforms after a game.

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RJM - I totally agree.  Especially  about the lazy infielders.   That is a coaching issue (IMHO) more than a player issue or surface issue.  If an IF isn't getting the job done correctly then go to the next guy on the depth chart.   The reality is that coaches don't like to substitute their "glove infield" but they will substitute a pitcher in a heart beat because some IF didn't charge a tailor-made ground ball for a double play.   Don't get me started on that one.  I've seen more than my fair share of the lazy infielder syndrome

 

Artificial turf fields are necessary in certain parts of the country, and I'm seeing more an more where my son played (Northeast) and where we live (Virginia).  I just heard the Univ of Richmond is replacing their grass field with artificial turf as I write this.  I don't think it is going away anytime soon especially when the season starts in February/March for college & high school games.  Sometimes college conference games have to be played in marginal weather because of academic schedules, and travel expenses.  My brother in law is a civil engineer in the northeast.  His firm has been busy the last 7+ years installing these artificial turf fields.   He swears to me it is a huge money saver for these schools.  So, based upon that info I don't see it going away any time soon in the Northeast or Mid-Atlantic areas.

 

 

Besides the large cost savings, the advantage of playing games in marginal weather will also keep these fields being built more and more. With the college season starting in February and home games being played in March they are absolutely required, to play in the Northeast.

 

Ever try plowing snow off a grass field? This past year my son's team played 2 weekend series on their home field in what was, basically a downpour, as well as a series after it had snowed 7 inches on Thursday. The only change to the plowed field was less foul ball territory and 10 foot piles of snow that took 3 weeks to fully go away.

 

As much as you might dislike these fields, they are here to stay. 

 

As a parent of an IF, I completely disagree about the "lazy player" idea that is being mentioned here.  If you're on turf...and aren't absolutely ready for every pitch, the hit will be past you before you ever move.  Sure, it makes routine ground balls easier...but it makes hard hit balls much, much tougher....the turf is faster, and doesn't slow a ball down like grass...making infielders react much more quickly than playing on grass.  Same thing with outfielders....a gapper on turf that is cut off for a double...or maybe even a single if the runner isn't fast....is now past the outfielders for a triple. 

I'm a grass fan, just as a purist I guess.  Still though, I can't deny the benefit of turf fields when you have weather issues.

 

In S. Florida our rainy season is basically May through October.  You can pretty much count on it raining every day sometime between 3 and 6.  Usually quick moving storms that dump a ton of water for 10-15 minutes, then disappear. Since it rains so frequently - it doesn't take much to saturate a field and make it unplayable for that evening.  It's frustrating because the sky will be clear, but the fields are like quicksand.

 

I know the chances of getting turf at the youth levels is pretty much zero, but it would certainly help the situation. 

Nothing is as beautiful as the perfect grass baseball field.  Until it rains!

 

I have heard about this great savings with artificial turf.  Don't buy into that story!  Before you get to the point of saving, you need to replace the turf.  Any savings will come from the time spent prepping or getting a wet field ready to play... Getting the games in!

 

I also like dirt and dirty uniforms.  But I also like clean seats and clean facility.

 

There have been World Series games played on turf.  We have used the Old Metrodome and Tropicana Field for our National Showcase. The ceiling presented more problems than the turf.

 

Less bad hops, but not all turf fields are the same when it comes to the speed the ball bounces.  That is determined by the type of turf and the amount of fill that is used. I have seen natural grass fields play faster at times.

 

Still the natural beauty of a place like Petco Park or the playing surface at Dodger Stadium will never be replaced by artificial turf. To me nothing is more beautiful than a great baseball park.

That's not saying much. I hated the Metrodome. If I did a series there, my knees were hurting for a week after. The place was like playing in a warehouse. The locker rooms were not much better than your average HS. I should stop now...

To an earlier point made about grass versus turf the first thing that comes to my mind is that the phrase "Get Dirty!" will certainly become a thing of the past. Maybe replaced with "Eat some turf!"..??

 

YGD

One thing to consider is the amount of field use. I know of a multi-entity arrangement that is planning to turf their infield. During the spring, the local high school and junior college plays on the field.

 

During the summer, this same field is used by two summer collegiate teams.Four teams using the same field alternating home and away all spring and summer. I'm pretty sure the legion teams play there some as well during the summer.

 

Interested in how many "purists" recommending grass fields actually have the responsibility (sometimes headache) of maintaining one?

 

A turf field allows you to spend more time coaching (planning, preparing, evaluating) than dealing with field maintenance. As a coach, give me turf any day.

 

 

None of our umpires or players complained about playing in the Metrodome. It was the Twins home field for many years and the NFL Vikings home field until just recently. 

 

And now they are spending close to a $Billion building a new facility with guess what... Artificial turf.

My son doesn't like turf because his knees always hurt after playing a few games. He feels it is like concrete. 

 

 

The new turf doesn't feel like concrete. The turf at our high school has been there for twenty years and been resurfaced. It feels like walking on a putting green.

It was notorious. The AstroTurf was horrible. The FieldTurf was slightly better. The UBU turf they had last was workable. Still felt like a giant warehouse, though, and once the new stadium deal was passed, the maintenance suffered.

Let me ask a practical question about what to expect: My HS MIF son has played only on grass his whole life. Now he is going to a showcase at a turf field (Baseball Heaven on Long Island). He is going to play in his turf shoes (New Balance T4040). (He doesn't own any molded cleats). What should he expect the turf to play like in comparison to grass and dirt? Should he play back? Thanks.

He should position himself in a manner it will appear he understands the game. But he does need to understand the ball will be on him faster. There's less resistance to slow down the ball with turf. Most importantly he needs to play his game. He can't let unfamiliarity with playing on turf get in his head.

 

When sliding, slide a little sooner and grab the base to be sure. The first time my son slid on turf he and the shortstop ended up in left field. I had to convince the umpire it was unintentional so he wouldn't be tossed from the game. Also, wear gloves on the bases unless proficient at not letting hands skim the turf. Turf can burn.

Does he have access to a field where he can get used to it? Doesn't even have to be a a baseball field.

 

i may have heard that BBH was being renovated, but I'm not 100% sure on that. The ball moves super fast on the older turf, so he should play back some. Like RJM said, he needs to start sliding earlier than normal. The good thing is he can stay down on a ground ball and not worry about bad hops. 

 

I agree with Matt In that you should try to find some turf to check out beforehand.

College son played at Baseball Heaven (Long Island) early this Spring because CT college opponent's grass field was unplayable.  More to the point of this thread is that artificial turf in the Northeast will become standard for situations like this.   In these games, position players wore their usual cleats and pitchers wore turf shoes which I had never seen.  The mound was artificial (no dirt).  In my experience with artificial turf fields, usually the pitcher's mound and sometimes home plate are dirt.  In this case, there was no dirt anywhere on the field.  It was a different experience.

 

I would call or email the showcase folks to find out what they require or recommend at Baseball Heaven.   It was a nice facility, however there was limited seating on our field.    Good luck. 

I like grass, but turf gets games in.

 

When your kid is an engineering major, playing a road series in Oregon or Washington during the spring and field turf gets him home in time for his Monday morning classes after missing Thursday and Friday, you like it.

 

Last summer he played ball in Fairbanks, AK. They flat out don't play baseball up there until June 15 without turf. They start playing rec ball in April with it.

 

i love grass and dirt if somebody else has to take care of it....turf in the NE is here to stay. We played at the Diamond Nation world series last week if not for the turf the week would have been a disaster, no grass field could have held that amount of water that came down 2 days in a row and been playable the next day.

My son's HS infield is turf and they get on the field faster than anywhere in NY.  A little advice on footwear for what its worth - wear metal if they let you, but they can get stuck at odd angles.  Molded cleats are the worst - if there is any moisture you will slip and slide all over.  What my son found to be very effective on fields where metal is forbidden is rubber football turfs.  They have more bite than the baseball ones and he was able to find a cheap pair that almost look baseball-like.

Kid's played several games at this summer at a new-ish public park field that has turf IF, grass OF, and real dirt where the dirt should be. I've never seen this configuration.  It looks very good and seems to play real well, and shockingly, the dirt doesn't seem to be migrating into the turf much.   The field is used every day and seems to be standing up very well.  I have no idea how it does when the rains arrive.

My son's home field in college (Northeast) was turf, and most of the league games were also. Never was anyone required to wear any cleat but metal. In all cases at least the mound was dirt.