KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Around a year ago, construction crews broke ground on a new stadium in downtown Knoxville.
The field will be used for the Double-A baseball team, the Tennessee Smokies, and the One Knoxville Soccer Club. In April, Kim Bumpas along with representatives for One Knoxville Soccer Club and Boyd Sports took a trip to the ONEOK field in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
ONEOK is one of the few stadiums in the country that has a retractable pitcher’s mound. It's something Knoxville’s new downtown stadium will have.
Bumpas said the new technology will allow the new multimillion-dollar field to be used in multiple ways, beyond baseball and soccer.
“Having the retractable mound was the step we needed to get in place because it's bigger than just soccer to baseball and baseball to soccer," said Bumpas.
The field will also have devices to track, measure and record data on player performance. The Chicago Cubs, the team's major league affiliate, has already been to Knoxville to check out preparation for the devices.
The club wants to use the statistics to follow players' performance and development on measures like velocity and spin rates. Bumpas also said the versatility of the field will hopefully attract even more events to Knoxville.
“The sky is the limit,” said Bumpas. “It will be a game changer in how we recruit conventions, having their opening night receptions at the stadium, or doing special activities at the stadium.”
The stadium is on track to open in the spring of 2025, just in time for baseball season.