What would you put in your dream hitting facility?

coach

a few questions.
indoors?
outdoors?
how much room is available?

Congratulations Coach:

I will have to think on this one, you might want to go check out www.hittingisaguess.com and see what he has in his facility. I suggest you send Perry Husband an email and ask him and I am sure he will have some worthwhile suggestions.

You will be surprised however how fast you can burn through $$ particularly when you start to get into any sizable buildings. My guess is that an simple frame with overhead coverage for weather protection, lighting, concrete floor with outdoor carpet will burn up much of what it sounds like you will be getting.

Besides a turf floor, a roof for year round useage, good netting, a couple of very good multi functional pitching machines.

http://www.sportstutorinc.com/baseball-softball/

If you can build an indoor facility:

--Dirt, carpet or FieldTurf would be the best bet for a floor. Obviously the FieldTurf is going to be the most expensive unless you know somebody with some leftover. Eastern Illinois had some in their outdoor cages that was left over from the football stadium getting the FieldTurf a few years back. The carpet wouldn't be exactly cheap, but it would be less expensive than the Turf and it gives you a solid but soft surface. The dirt would be OK because that is what you're going to play on! I wouldn't go with concrete as the only layer of the floor-- it will destroy the baseballs.

--Two cages with nets that can be split into two cages at the middle to make four smaller cages. If possible, I'd make the main cages at least 70 feet long so you can also do pitching and/or live hitting in there. So I would also build some sort of mound whether it's dirt or a portable mound.

Things to consider about building an indoor facility:
--Usage... If you have an indoor facility, players are not going to be able to readily access the cages I wouldn't think so they could hit on their own.
--Like I said with the floor, be careful with a hard floor because it will ruin the baseballs. We have a bucket of baseballs at my high school used strictly for hitting in the gym. No other baseballs for indoors because the baseballs become mush after awhile.

20Dad-
It will be at our baseball field...and I'm guessing it will be outdoor (though we may put a roof over it, as suggested here). We have room for 3-4 cages and a couple of mounds. Not sure the exact square footage.

**Thanks for the info, guys. KEEP IT COMING! Since this will be a memorial donation for a man who was very loved in our program, I feel a strong obligation to do it right so I'll need all the help I can get. Thanks - Coach Knight

Here's my plan...

First, erect something of a pole barn with roof covering a 50ft wide. x 70 ft long. of ground space. 4 rows of 6 support polls would run the 70ft. length being roughly 12ft. apart. Each row would be 15ft. apart effectively creating 3 cages...with an overhang on one side for tee stations.

2. Around the bottom I pour a concrete pad, probably 55ft. x 75ft. I would cover the whole pad with some mid-grade astro turf. Good enough to last, cheap enough to fit the budget.

3. In the open ceiling space above 14ft. Mount and wire 3 halogen lighting units per cage length wise.

4. Running around the interior of each set of poles making the 3 cages mount small steel turnbuckles and run small guage steel cable at 14ft. off of the gorund. Likewise run steel cable across each cage in the middle. ** This is to hang cage netting, the middle cables is so that netting can be curtained back and forth across to split one cage into two, if need be.

5. On the far end of two cages, I would keep two portable mounds, or truck in clay and have two mounds, 1 in each of two cages...this would be your bullpen.

6. In the end of the third cage, I would gate off the last 10ft. so the gate could could be swung open and closed and locked. Behind that gate I would keep a pitching machine, probably an "Iron Mike" if I had the money.

7. I would use the pre-made and painted astro-turf homeplate and batters boxes at each end of the cage for a professional look and to reinforce the turf put on the concrete paid.

The way I've designed the above cages, you effectively get 3 full size cages, 6 half cages, 2 bullpens and 4 or 5 tee stations on the outside of the cage.

A Jamba Juice Stand and a Starbucks.

....well,..you did say " WISH LIST ",..right?
( tee- hee)

Sounds like a very nice memorial gift coach. I know you'll do good things with it!

quote:

If you could put in your ultimate hitting facility, what would you include? What examples have you seen at other places (links or pictures would be helpful)? What are the "MUSTS" and what would be on your "WISH LIST"?

I will try to include a link to photos of the batting cage our HS baseball boosters built a couple years ago. I don't have all the dimensions, but it holds 2-3 batting cages, a bull pen w/ 2-3 rubbers, and a bunting station in one corner. It has thick turf (with the small rubber pellets) layed over a concrete pad to keep balls from getting too abused.

There are a couple things we have added or will add after the fact. First, lighting; you can not have too much lighting. Add as many "skylight" panels as you can in the roof to allow sunshine in. Yuo'll also need elec. lighting. Second, include the mechanisms to make the netting easily retractable. If it's a covered facility, there are many things it can be used for when the nets are pulled back out of the way.

Cage Photos

Coach Knight, congrats on the donation, they don't come around near often enough.

When we re-did our HS cages, We sank 4 4x4 posts about 8' apart separate from the new cages. We then put fence top-rail across the top of the posts and hung old/leftover cage net over the tops and zip strapped them to the posts, leaving plenty of slack.
We then had 3 tee/soft toss stations that could be used separate from the cages.
Room needed is minimal and they are used constantly while live hitting is going on in cages.

DadRinTX, any idea what the price tag was on that facility? Looks pretty nice!

ShortstopMom- Awesome...made me smile today. I was thinking more soda fountain (to feed my caffeine addiction), but your idea is better!!

Thanks, guys.....keep it coming.

DadRinTx- Wow...that place is SWEET! If you CAN find out on a rough estimate for the whole thing price-wise, I'd appreciate any help you could give me.

Lonzo- Sounds like a great idea. I want it to be MORE than just cages...to include hitting stations, plyometric areas, storage, etc. Great idea.
Thanks for all the input. I want to do right by a wonderful man that will be missed. Coach Knight

How about Video, for both Batters, and Pitcher's.
And able to view and analyze it right away.

EH

What about putting the nets on lines to move back and forth to open the area up for groundballs too?

Don't skimp on the lighting... you can buy more or different nets as the years come and go but get your lighting the best you can from the outset.
Congrats on this for your kids...

How about some of the 'youngsters' who hold
the Round Card up and walk around the ring?

quote:

any idea what the price tag was on that facility?

I don't have any cost info handy right now, but if memory serves me, (BIG if) it cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $100K. Heaven only knows how many hours of parents, players, and coaches volunteer labor it also took to complete.

One thing to consider, if you are going to put a roof on the cages or have a indoor facility, consider green/dark colored wind screen back drops so the batters can see the ball when hitting BP.

Stanford has a very nice covered batting, bullpen, fielding facility (could not find pictures on their site). It is covered but yet not fully enclosed. It has several hitting stations with movable netting as well as open area for bull pens and ground balls.

Thanks to all of you - great info here that will undoubtedly help. I like the idea of nets on lines for grounders - I'd think flexibility in a facility would be great.

For a dream facility, one thing I would suggest - build a shed that goes across the end of all of the cages with doors/openings from the shed into the cages.

Hopefully this will display correctly for you - tough to draw using a keyboard


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The S are the walls of the shed, the --- and x mark the walls of the cages, m marks the pitching mound.

That way your pitching machines can be permanently installed in a solid building so you don't have damage from moving around (and they are somewhat protected from vandals and the weather), you can mount video cameras in there attached to VCRs, you have a place to store baseballs etc. You might also put a video tape storage bookcase and a video review space in the shed.

Put in two home plates - one at either end - with a pitching mound throwing back at the shed. If you always want to hit going the same way, put a pitching mound next to the shed and put two home plates at the far end, separated by the appropriate distance.

I also would install hitting nets curtains along the sides, allowing each cage to be converted into smaller cages at will.

My McDreamy....Cole Hamels

Do we need to start a new forum? Hittin On... ?

Knowing my son, he would request his own personal "hittin on" instructor

08 Dad-
Love that idea! Have you seen someone do this before? I never have - but it makes a lot of sense. We probably will have about $40-$50 grand it looks like, so we won't have a blank check but should be able to definitely make an incredible upgrade.

***IF ANY OF YOU HAVE FACILITIES YOU KNOW OF THAT I CAN SEE IN PICTURES, please send me a name, website, etc. Thanks again for all your input. Coach Knight

What would you put in your dream hitting facility?

Steve Hayward

Coach Knight-
Maybe this website would be helpful.

http://www.ondecksports.com/index.php?fuseaction=products.turf_portfolio

Coach:

What I described was actually a combination of a bunch of different places I have seen over the years... Wish I could be more help.

08

When laying turf down on the concrete base floor, do you put anything inbetween like rubber or glue?

A friend opened up a new facility in the Madison area last week. While the site is lacking pictures, it is first rate, great equipment, field turf throughout, and HUGE.
Hitters Sports

Obviously not everyone can put unlimited resources into a facility. I think what is most important is that the site remain flexible and able to transform as new techniques and equipment become available. There's nothing worse than painting yourself into a corner and unable to expand your "dream" hitting facility.

Coach - Didn't know if you have already completed your facility or not. If you are still looking for ideas you can check out my son's high school team website, http://www.owassobaseball.com. Click on the facilities link on the right hand side. There is a picture of the outdoor cages. That arrangement allows for the cages to be supported without a lot of poles. Makes it easier to re-arrange things if needed in the future. Safer too, nothing to deflect balls off of.

OK2Go, All I am going to say is that is a nice place. Looks like a great place to learn to play the game of baseball. Good luck to your son and I wish my high school had that type of baseball facilities.

RZ1, my son spent all evening Friday there as well as Saturday afternoon. What a great place ! Can't wait to watch the level of baseball grow in our area. I know it about how much you put into it but now these local kids have a place to go and help with that commitment

OK2Go, wow! Those are probably the nicest baseball facilities I've seen high school or college! Wow!

OK2GO:

Who paid for the facilities at Owasso, were they developed through volunteer fundraising, or the gift of a single major donor (i.e. Garth Brooks?)??

Overhead and side video cameras linked to a computer station for immediate video feedback

Thanks Philly and Bulldog our school and kids are definitely blessed. Estone28 - we have a great booster club and there have been a few larger contributors over the years too, not sure Garth was in the mix... Good idea though!

We have had the opportunity to test out different arrangements with our cages though and our current set-up seems to be working out the best. At least thats the feedback I have been hearing from our players. LAball's idea about the cameras and PC sounds like a great idea for an indoor facility though.

We used a s****r dome that held 2 s****r fields. It had field turf and even had bleachers. Hitting tunnels were used that folded up and stored away. The lower part of the dome was dark blue and the upper part was white with clear sky lights. You could hold scrimages and long toss. Pretty much do what you did out doors. There were 3 portable mounds.
These facilities were cheap to rent and were shared with other sports like archery, football and tennis. It was a good use of resourses.

Thanks guys - I truly appreciate all the help. The Owasso facility is ridiculous - can't even imagine the millions it would cost to build it, but man am I jealous! Again - thanks for the help. I'll post pictures when we get it finished. Coach Knight

Good luck with your project Coach. I'm sure it will turn out great! Look forward to seeing the pic's when your done.