Crews from Westfield Gas & Electric work to install a new state-of-the-art scoreboard at Bullens Field. (MARC ST.ONGE/THE WESTFIELD NEWS)
WESTFIELD – Score one for Bullens Field.
It’s out with the old and in with the new as Bullens Field will unveil a new scoreboard in the outfield this baseball season. Westfield Gas & Electric technicians recently began installing the state-of-the-art scoreboard, which features LED lighting, changeable home and visitor names, and trackable pitch counts for both teams, all wireless.
“It makes it more enjoyable for the fans,” Greater Westfield Babe Ruth League President Dan Welch said. “It kind of brings (the field) to the next level – more professional, brighter, more color. …It’s a great investment.”
The scoreboard, which costs somewhere in the ballpark of $34,000, has been fully funded by the Greater Westfield Babe Ruth League. Local Babe Ruth volunteers raised funds during the 2016 and 2019 Babe Ruth World Series campaigns and monies were donated from corporate sponsors for capital improvement projects.
The new scoreboard will benefit not only the local Babe Ruth league, but Westfield High School, Westfield Technical Academy, St. Mary’s, and the Starfires organization.
A new pavilion is erected just beyond foul territory out along the first base side at Bullens Field. (MARC ST.ONGE/THE WESTFIELD NEWS)
The previous scoreboard was made possible through Advance Manufacturing, but became outdated as lightbulbs were unable to be replaced on the 20-year-old board.
“We are certainly appreciative for what Advance did,” Welch said.
Welch said the installation of the new scoreboard is expected to be completed within the next few weeks. Westfield Gas & Electric has donated the poles and installation costs associated with the project.
Bullens Field continues to get a bit of a makeover this winter.
A 13-by-23-foot outdoor pavilion, courtesy of Skips Outdoor Accents is being erected just beyond the foul territory on the first base side. That project, as well as improvements to the bullpen, was made possible thanks to an earmark of $25,000 in the Fiscal Year 2019 state budget by state Rep. John Velis and then state Sen. Donald Humason, Jr., now the city’s current mayor.
“It’s a proud privilege to play at Bullens Field,” Welch said.
