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Baseball in PeoriaPeoria BallparksO'Brien FieldO'Brien Field, home of the Peoria Chiefs, opened on May 24, 2002. O'Brien Field hosted the Midwest League All-Star Game in 2005. Source of Name: Paid sponsorship. O'Brien Automotive is a Peoria business. This sponsorship has expired and the Chiefs are seeking a replacement. |
![]() New 15nov02 Changed 31aug10 Major Change 13dec09 ![]() Peoria, Illinois Overview Roster Details Highlights Tidbits History Ballparks |
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Or follow these directions on the Chiefs' website. Ballpark CharacteristicsLeft Center Right Seating 310 400 310 7,500 (2002) Park EffectsNo information. Attendance RecordYear Attendance 2002 254,407 (includes Vonachen Stadium attendance) 2003 246,370 2004 211,598 2005 256,612 2006 235,031 2007 259,784 2008 275,673* 2009 219,168 Pete Vonachen Stadium at Meinen Fieldoriginally Meinen FieldVonachen Stadium hosted the Peoria franchise of the MWL from 1983 through early 2002. The stadium was near the campus of Bradley University and also hosted their baseball team. It was reconstructed--and renamed--after the 1991 season. The university has converted the ballpark to a soccer facility which is now known as Shea Stadium. The ballpark was new in 1968; it had major reconstructions in 1982 and 1992 (the 1992 rebuild could be reasonably called a replacement as the entire grandstand was reconstructed and the Vonachen Stadium name was added). Vonachen Stadium hosted the Midwest League All-Star Game in 1992. Sources of Names: The stadium name honored Pete Vonachen, twice the owner of the Chiefs. John (Dutch) Meinen was Athletic Director and baseball coach at Bradley University. Ballpark CharacteristicsLeft Center Right Seating 335 383 335 5,000 (1983) 335 383 335 5,700 (1990) 335 383 335 5,750 (1991) 335 383 335 5,200 (1992) 335 370 335 5,200 (1997) 335 383 335 5,200 (1998) Park EffectsThe STATS 1998 Minor League Handbook indicates that Vonachen Stadium was fairly neutral about pitchers and hitters. This was easily the league's best park for hitting triples; homers were fairly difficult. (4 years' data.) Attendance RecordYear Attendance 1983 84,765 1984 116,473 1985 165,053 1986 179,183 1987 195,832 1988 207,294 1989 225,757* 1990 195,671 1991 212,159 1992 172,560 1993 100,811 1994 176,703 1995 195,056 1996 187,283 1997 148,585 1998 154,910 1999 150,254 2000 150,479 2001 144,772 2002 (partial season) |
MWL Cities MWL Ballparks O'Brien Field Photos Chiefs Bradley University River City Construction Reviews none, yet Vonachen Stadium Photos Gary Jarvis Charlie O'Reilly Brian Merzbach Sean & Aya TerraServer Reviews Charlie O'Reilly Brian Merzbach Gary Jarvis Sean & Aya Baseball-Reference ![]() |
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The Midwest League plays Single-A, professional baseball in America's agricultural and industrial heartland. 16 teams play a 140 game schedule which begins in early April and ends Labor Day weekend.
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