This Minor League ballpark is full of personality -- even during a rainout

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The following ballpark road trip recap is presented by Wyndham, proud sponsor of *Minor League Ballpark Guides*. Start planning your 2025 road trips today!

Of all the cities I visited this season, I spent the most amount of time in Lansing, Mich. Of all the ballparks I visited this season, I spent the least amount of time in -- you guessed it -- the one in Lansing, Mich. I was in town for the Aug. 27 game at Jackson Field, with the Lansing Lugnuts -- High-A affiliate of the Athletics -- hosting the Fort Wayne TinCaps. The heavens did not cooperate, however. This Midwest League matchup was rained out.

The rainout came towards the end of my time in Lansing, as I drove on to South Bend the next morning. I had arrived in Michigan’s capital city two days prior, driving there directly after a Sunday game in Toledo. This was the view from my downtown Lansing hotel, located a short walk from the ballpark.

My first full day in town was a Monday, so there wasn’t a Minor League game in Lansing, or anywhere. The skies were clear all day and remained that way well into the next. Rain wasn’t on my mind when I arrived at Jackson Field at approximately 4 p.m. on Tuesday and, you know what? It shouldn’t be on yours either. I still have plenty to write about, so let’s get to it.

The Lugnuts were established in 1996 following a relocation from another capital city, Springfield, Ill. (I hereby challenge you, the reader, to get in touch with me about any other capital-to-capital sports team relocations you are aware of). Jackson Field, originally known as Oldsmobile Park, opened in 1996. It stands on East Michigan Avenue, the centerpiece of a downtown neighborhood now known as the Stadium District.

The Stadium District used to be more of a red-light district, and vestiges of that remain in the form of a gentleman’s club and a couple dive bars, but the ballpark is now surrounded by two apartment complexes, The Capital City Market, The Shuffle (a food hall and “social club” with shuffleboard courts) and various businesses and restaurants.

Lugnuts general manager Zac Clark told me that Jackson Field is part of a “larger story of development” and that “We [the Lugnuts] are the focal point of Lansing.”

Speaking of focal points: The Michigan State Capitol building is located just to the west of the ballpark, across the Grand River. Really, you can’t miss it.

The Lugnuts' name is a tribute to the automobile industry. Ransom E. Olds -- the man who put the R.E.O. in R.E.O. Speedwagon -- founded the Olds Motor Vehicle Company in Lansing, and the Lansing Car Assembly factory (which closed in 2006) served as Oldsmobile’s home factory for decades. One of Lansing’s neighborhoods, south of downtown, is named REO Town.

The factory is gone, but Lansing is now home to “The World’s Largest Lug Nut.” It was installed atop a smokestack across the street from the ballpark, in conjunction with the team’s arrival.

Of course, I will forever be obligated to point out that the lug nut depicted in the Lugnuts logo is, in fact, a bolt.

Jackson Field has quirky dimensions, the result of being shoehorned into a relatively tight downtown location. It’s only 305 feet down the lines, but this short distance is offset by 23-foot-high walls (which, in right field, give way to a delightful smattering of Wrigley Field ivy). All manner of asymmetrical zigging and zagging takes place in between the lines, with the furthest point away being 412 feet (just to the right of dead-center).

Odd dimensions are not the first thing one notices when gazing upon this field, as attention is invariably drawn to the Outfield Lofts apartments. This 84-unit complex opened in 2016, precipitating the creation of ballpark group areas situated under the building.

Remember: I was in Lansing for a rainout. It was sudden and intense, this rain, complemented by thunder, lightning and wind. It didn’t last long, however, and it never occurred to me that the game wouldn’t be played. There was just some work to do first.

Grace Hoppel, an MLB LCC (live content creator) arrived at the ballpark during the storm. She was assigned to work with me this evening, taking pictures and shooting video (the higher-quality photos in this article are hers).

We were assisted in our endeavors by Lugnuts broadcaster Jesse Goldberg-Strassler.

I’ve been around Minor League Baseball for a long time now, and so has Jesse. He is one of the most well-liked and well-known people in the industry, venerated by his broadcast peers. Jesse is friendly, funny, knowledgeable, helpful and committed to creating the best media credentials in the Minor Leagues:

The nice things I just wrote about Jesse? They also apply to his counterpart in the visitor’s radio booth: John Nolan, voice of the Padres-affiliated Fort Wayne TinCaps since 2013. It was an honor to join him for a pregame interview (hey, at that point we still thought there would be a game).

From the press box to the clubhouse, where I spoke to a pair of its denizens. The 2024 season was Craig Conklin’s second as the Lugnuts manager.

Conklin’s career path has been non-traditional, to say the least. He had a difficult childhood, never played professionally, worked a series of odd jobs, lived out of his car and eventually broke into baseball via pure persistence (starting as a scout). He spoke openly and in-depth about his career path, myriad non-baseball passions (surfing chief among them) and carrying on in the wake of personal tragedy.

One of Conklin’s charges this season was pitcher Mitch Myers, a University of Pittsburgh product drafted by the A’s in the 12th round of the 2021 Draft.

I spoke with Myers about baseball, his Alabama roots and our shared alma mater. The primary reason I spoke with him, however, is because he’s a world-ranked Super Monkey Ball player. Though it sounds like a turbo-charged version of Billy Beane’s front office philosophies, Super Monkey Ball is a video game. Per Wikipedia, it “involves moving one of several monkey characters in a ball through an obstacle to a goal in a time limit.”

A metaphor for life in other words, and I could relate. I, the monkey in a ball, was dealing with a meteorological obstacle and time was up. An announcement crackled over the PA: Tonight’s game has been postponed.

Never mind that the weather was now beautiful -- transcendent, even. Persistent wet patches rendered the field, which is being replaced this offseason, unplayable.

I wasn’t done yet -- to the concourse! The Lugnuts had been scheduled to play as the Locos -- their Copa de la Diversión identity -- and mascot Big Lug was decked out for the occasion.

Are you familiar with the concept of a phantom player? It’s a guy who gets called up to the big leagues, but never appears in a game. Similarly, Brook Thompson is now a phantom Designated Eater. She and her husband -- I’m sorry, can’t find his name in my notes -- are partial Lugnuts season ticket holders.

Next time, Brook. Next time.

Finally, I spoke with Pedro Jaramillo. He’s at nearly every game, standing behind “his” concourse table.

“I can’t move it,” said Clark, of Jaramillo’s table. “If Pedro’s not happy, nobody’s happy.”

Pedro, a native of Mexico, has bonded with innumerable Latin American Lugnuts players over the years. He’s hosted them in his house, provided meals and, in general, served as a cultural lifeline.

My conversation with Pedro capped my night in Lansing. I’d remained adjustable, fitted in all I could, and now it was time to head for the exits.

Thus concludes my penultimate road trip ballpark recap of the 2024 season. Thank you, as always, for reading. Good night from Lansing.