New Playing Surface Added at Oriole Park at Camden Yards

For the first time in 20 years, there is a new playing surface at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The team completely removed five inches of the previous surface which included sand and Kentucky Blue Grass and replaced it with new sand and Blue Grass from Tuckahoe Turf Farms in New Jersey.

Orioles Senior Director of Field Operations Nicole Sherry showed the media the new surface last week. The replacement project took place in December so the grass had a chance to grow before Opening Day. Sherry noted 1,500 tons of sand was removed from the ballpark.

Sherry said she is happy with the way the project turned out and called it “the best surface in baseball.”

Major League Baseball also increased the base size this year from 15 inches to 18 inches. This required installing new concrete anchors so that the new bases are in line with the foul lines.

First base is now thee inches closer to home plate. This change was tested out two seasons ago in Minor League Baseball. It was done to “increase action on the basepaths, create more balls in play, improve the pace and length of games, and reduce player injuries,” according to Major League Baseball.

About the Author: Kevin Lynch

Founder and Publisher of SouthBmore.com, longtime resident of South Baltimore, and a graduate of Towson University. Diehard Ravens and O's fan, father of three, amateur pizza chef, skateboarder, and "bar food" foodie. Email me at Kevin@InceptMM.com and follow me on Twitter at @SoBoKevin.