Dec. 29—CARTHAGE, Mo. — With about two and a half months to go before the start of the 2025 Carthage High School baseball season, the new home for the Tigers — the McCune-Brooks Hospital Trust Baseball Complex — is nearing completion on the high school campus.The season kicks off with a jamboree March 17 at […]
Dec. 29—CARTHAGE, Mo. — With about two and a half months to go before the start of the 2025 Carthage High School baseball season, the new home for the Tigers — the McCune-Brooks Hospital Trust Baseball Complex — is nearing completion on the high school campus.The season kicks off with a jamboree March 17 at Joplin High School, with the first regular season baseball game at the Tigers’ new field at 4:30 p.m. March 20 against the East Newton Patriots.Fundraising for the project began with a .5 million kickoff donation from the Kent D. and Mary L. Steadley Memorial Trust announced shortly after voters rejected a bond issue in April 2023 that would have built a performing arts center and baseball stadium.Goodnight also said a piece of the old Carl Lewton Stadium was installed in the foundation of the press box at the new stadium.She also said locker rooms at the new stadium are much better than the locker rooms at the old stadium and they hold a surprise.”One really neat feature is that our construction classes at the Carthage Technical Center are building the lockers for the baseball team,” she said, “It’s been a near cross-collaboration between the tech center and the baseball field. I saw them the other day and they’re looking really good.”Goodnight also said. “We’re finishing the press box and some of the buildings are getting their finishing touches. They’re also building the stands and bleachers but it’s going to be ready for practice before March 11.”The district announced earlier in 2024 that it had raised about .1 million for the project and construction started about March 2024 while the Tigers played their final season at a revamped Carl Lewton Stadium in Municipal Park.The support buildings around the field itself are still under construction with plans for them to be done before a March 11 ribbon cutting.The McCune-Brooks Hospital Trust, which is funded by money the city earned from selling McCune-Brooks Hospital to Mercy in 2016, gave 0,000 for the naming rights to the stadium leading to the name, McCune-Brooks Hospital Trust Baseball Complex.David Haffner, retired president and chairman for Leggett & Platt, gave ,000; the Helen S. Boylan Foundation gave ,000; Mercy gave ,000 and many others donated to the cause.Carthage Assistant Superintendent for Business Holley Goodnight said the artificial turf field itself was completed in October and the Tigers have been able to practice on it a time or two.”It connects us to the history of Carthage baseball,” Goodnight said. “We’re very appreciative to the donors in our community that made this possible for our boys to be able to have a home field and to be right there on campus. We’re ready to see the Tigers in action for sure.”The field is being built entirely with donated money from Carthage residents as well as foundations and other gifts. It cost a little more than .1 million to build.
