Improvements to Vanderbilt University’s baseball facilities that could begin as early as summer 2016 will enhance the “family culture” for which the program under head baseball coach Tim Corbin has become nationally known.
The Vanderbilt University Board of Trust has approved a $10 million project to provide enhanced space in Memorial Gym for instruction, team building, coaching and settings that can foster interactions with returning professional players.
“[rquote]We have placed the emphasis of this project where it should be – on the student-athletes[/rquote],” said David Williams, athletics director and vice chancellor for athletics and university affairs. “The new additions are designed to benefit them the most.”
Williams noted that the project aligns with the baseball team’s focuses. “First, we recruit elite high school baseball prospects who often are choosing between us and professional baseball,” he said. “It is important that our facilities help them develop to their full potential. It is also imperative that we identify young men with strong academic interests because we all know our program develops more than just baseball skills.
“In addition, we want to have a welcoming and quality home for those former Commodores who are now professionals and return to the campus to train during the off season or perhaps finish academic requirements,” he said.
Corbin said the new facilities “will add to the developmental and cultural side of our program. These young men have a small window of time while going through the Vanderbilt experience. We want to make that experience count on many levels.
“[lquote]These improvements are not frivolous but quite necessary and are centered around the athletes’ mental, emotional and physical development[/lquote],” he said.
The project, which will expand Memorial Gym to just beyond the left field wall, calls for the relocation of batting cages to an existing below-ground level of Memorial Gym that will be retrofitted for that purpose. In addition, the ground level and top floor of Memorial will be renovated and expanded to house a state-of-the-art classroom, cardio room, expanded weight room, recruiting area as well as coaches’ and staff offices. The weight room, which will be nearly twice the size the current one used by the baseball team, will also be used by the women’s and men’s basketball teams. There will also be a larger professional locker room to serve the many former Commodore players who return to train and mentor current players.
Under Corbin, the Commodores baseball program has experienced unprecedented success on the field – playing as the defending national champions at the 2015 College World Series. Major league teams currently include seven former Commodore players with nine Commodores being drafted by major league teams this past summer, including three first- round picks.
Williams emphasized the need to continue raising the funds to bring the project to fruition and allow the continued success of the program. “With Board of Trust approval and some friends already on board with generous gifts, it might appear that this project is all but completed, but there is work to be done,” he said. We need to identify others interested in investing in excellence. With a premier program led by the nation’s premier college coach, we are confident that many others will want to be a part of making this a reality.”