BEREA, Ohio -- Baldwin Wallace University will celebrate its newly improved baseball facility and dedicate it as Fisher Field this Saturday, April 23 at 12:00 noon and prior to its Ohio Athletic Conference doubleheader versus Capital University at 1 p.m.
The field is being named after longtime professor and coach Robert "Bob" Fisher. All alumni, parents, friends and fans are invited to take part. The event will feature the unveiling of a plaque indicating the naming of Fisher Field as well as the name appearing just behind home plate.
The dedication ceremony lineup includes: Paul Carleton '70, Chairman of the BW Board of Trustees; Baldwin Wallace University President Robert C. Helmer; Faculty Athletics Representative Dr. Alan Kolp; Director of Athletics Kris Diaz '78; current Head Baseball Coach Brian Harrison; former football and baseball standout, Alumni Athletic Association hall-of-famer and alumnus Pat George '81; and legendary Head Coach Dr. Bob Fisher.
The ceremony is expected to not take more than 40-to-45 minutes in length with a reception of baseball-related food of hot dogs, potato salad and popcorn along with non-alcoholic beverages of water, lemonade and soda pop to follow. Then the Yellow Jackets will host Capital in a key OAC twinbill
Work began this winter and was completed this spring on the new Pro Grass turf infield that extends from the backstop to the beginning of the outfield area of Fisher Field.
The Fisher Field baseball facility fundraising project began in January of 2016 and is on-going. In total the facility improvement project will give the Yellow Jacket baseball program a distinct playing and recruiting advantage. It gives the program the ability to play games when other schools cannot due to the weather restrictions in Ohio (BW will be the only OAC school with a turf infield). It also will give the BW baseball student-athlete a safer facility (the turf's life is estimated between 10-to-16 years).
CLICK HERE to make a donation to help make the next phase of the "Coach Robert Fisher Baseball Field Project" a success.
Bob Fisher retired in 2010 after 42 seasons as head coach of the Baldwin-Wallace College baseball program. Coach Fisher was the winningest head coach in the history of the College for any sport with an amazing 700 career wins (700-641-14 overall). For 42 years, Fisher built the Yellow Jacket program into one of the best in the Ohio Athletic Conference, Mideast Region of Division III and all of NCAA Division III. In addition to being one of the top baseball coaches in Division III, Coach Fisher was a longtime assistant coach and the defensive coordinator for B-W's highly successful football program.
Fisher had many outstanding moments on the diamond at B-W and on the road. On May 4, 2010 in Berea, Fisher won his 700th career game when the Yellow Jackets defeated Muskingum University, 7-0, in game one of a doubleheader at Heritage Field. He was selected by his fellow OAC coaches as the OAC Coach of the Year four times. Fourteen of his teams won 20 or more contests. Both his 1991 and 2002 teams set and then tied the school-record for wins in a season with 25. B-W advanced to the NCAA Division III Regional Tournament four times and the OAC Playoffs 16 times.
The highlight of Fisher's career came in the spring of 1985, and also was the biggest day in BW baseball history. His top-seeded and host Yellow Jackets, faced elimination in the OAC Tournament. Due to weather complications and an impending NCAA Division III Tournament decision by the selection committee, Fisher's team had to pull off the impossible -- win a tripleheader on a Sunday, including two straight wins versus OAC arch-rival Marietta College -- to win the OAC Tournament title and earn a berth, its first of three in four years, to the NCAA tourney.
In the classroom, Fisher developed a reputation as an outstanding instructor and spent a number of years as the faculty chair of the Division of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. Fisher received his master's degree from Kent State University in 1968 and his doctorate in health education from The Ohio State University in 1988. He was a professor of health education and an Academic Program Coordinator for the health promotion and education major. Fisher also was a member of numerous professional associations in health promotion and education.
