Foster Field

Home-plate entrance to Foster Field, Aug-2005.

The sun sets beyond the third-base line.

The action as seen from in front of the press box.

Chronological Tour: Stop 302

• Location: Knickerbocker Road west of Bryant Boulevard, San Angelo, Texas
• Opened: 2000
• Home team: San Angelo Colts, Central League (2000-2005), United League (2006-10, 2013-14), North American League (2011-12); Angelo State University Rams, Lone Star Conference
• Capacity: 4,044

Rating: 2 baseballs

The park is a simple concrete structure with very little shelter from the elements, which thankfully don’t make their presence felt too often in west Texas. There are no luxury boxes, but there are two roped-off areas for private parties, one on each side of the press box. Otherwise, the top seating is bucket-style, rather than stadium seating. There are simple aluminum bleachers going down each baseline all the way to the foul poles; the bullpens are just beyond these in the outfield.

The park is dedicated to the late Walton Foster, whose company owns two radio stations in town under the name Foster Communications.

One unusual tradition at Colts games was that whenever a ball left the playing field in foul territory, the announcer plugged a sponsor, “That’s another (fill in the name of the auto glass company) ...” and the crowd finishes it off, “Foul ball!” I have since heard a similar routine replicated at other parks, but this was the first time I had encountered it.