Cheney Stadium (Tacoma, WA)

Cheney Stadium is known as the “100-Day Wonder.” In 1960, it went from drawing board to a finished ballpark in approximately 100 days, just in time for the Tacoma Giants’ inaugural season in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). Since then, the ballpark has continuously hosted Tacoma’s Triple-A ballclubs, and is the oldest continually operated Triple-A stadium.1

The story of Cheney Stadium is entwined with its namesake: Benjamin Bradbury Cheney.

Ben Cheney was a timber baron, philanthropist, and sports enthusiast. Born in Montana in 1905, he grew up dirt-poor in South Bend, Washington. As a child, Cheney couldn’t afford baseball gear, but he got involved with a youth baseball program operated by Father Victor Couvorette, a Catholic priest in South Bend.2 Couvorette provided uniforms, equipment, and even streetcar fare so his players could get to games. Couvorette inspired Cheney’s love for baseball and other sports.3 The priest may have also planted the seeds that blossomed into the philanthropic activities Cheney pursued later in his life.

Cheney was considered a “good field, no-hit” shortstop while playing for Couvorette.4 “I only got to play because I could catch and throw and I always showed up,” said Cheney later in life. “Until I was almost 30, I kept trying to make contact with a breaking pitch. It wasn’t any use.”5  

Confounded by curveballs as a ballplayer, Cheney began directing his efforts elsewhere and found great success off the field. As a young man, he moved to Tacoma and attended business school. He went to work for lumber companies and learned about forestry and lumber production. In 1936, he founded the Cheney Lumber Company and opened his first mill. Cheney produced railroad ties and went on to revolutionize the lumber and construction industries by mass-producing two-by-fours that were 8 feet long. Prior to this innovation, two-by-fours were typically produced in 12-foot and 16-foot lengths. Carpenters would often cut the longer pieces of lumber to get the size they needed, wasting the leftover wood. Eight-foot two-by-fours were commonly known as “shorts.” Cheney called his new product “studs.”6 By successfully marketing the 8-foot studs, Cheney not only made huge profits, but he also helped eliminate lumber waste. He was so successful, 8-foot-high ceilings became the new standard for residential construction, which helped homeowners by reducing heating costs.7

Cheney opened mills in Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. Despite the time and effort required by his successful ventures, the businessman never lost his love of sports.8 He used his wealth to sponsor over 5,000 individuals in numerous sports, including baseball, football, basketball, soccer, and bowling.9 Like Father Couvorette, Cheney supplied uniforms, equipment, and other resources that enabled youngsters to play sports. He provided team sponsorships for communities in and around where his mills operated.

“Ben was the greatest friend of youth that Tacoma ever had,” said Doug McArthur, a parks and recreation official in Tacoma.10

Cheney also sponsored adult teams in the Pacific Northwest, such as his “Cheney Studs” amateur baseball clubs that featured future major leaguers including six-time All-Star Ron Cey and two-time Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum.11

George Grant, a Washington All-Stater in baseball and basketball, who played for Studs teams in the 1950s and 1960s, said this about Cheney: “Ben was a super guy. He was the best sponsor around by far and it was not hard to get ballplayers to play for him. He provided everything for us.”12  

As his wealth grew, Cheney secured an 11 percent interest in the San Francisco Giants. In 1959, the year after the club relocated to the West Coast, he was the second-largest shareholder behind Giants president Horace Stoneham. Cheney was also on the Giants’ board of directors.13 In the late 1950s, the Giants were looking to relocate their Triple-A team for the 1960 season. The team was playing in a rundown stadium in downtown Phoenix, Arizona. Cheney and other civic leaders14 wanted Tacoma to be the new home of the Giants affiliate. The problem was the city did not have a suitable Triple-A ballpark.15

Even so, Tacoma has a very rich history of professional baseball dating back to the Pacific Northwest League’s Tacoma Daisies in 1890. However, Washington’s third-largest city had not hosted Triple-A ball since 1905 and hadn’t had affiliated baseball at any level since 1951, when Tacoma ended a run of 12 seasons in the Class B Western International League.16  

The Giants committed to moving their Phoenix team to Tacoma, provided a Triple-A stadium was ready for play by the beginning of the 1960 season.

In November 1959, the Tacoma city council approved a measure that cleared the way for the new stadium.17 Tacoma and Pierce County came up with $900,000 to construct a stadium.18 Cheney committed to cover any cost overruns up to $100,000. The stadium had to be completed for the start of the PCL season in April 1960. Ballpark construction, overseen by Cheney, began in January 1960. Just 42 days later, the stadium was completed.19

From the November 1959 city approval to completion of the new ballpark took approximately 100 days, hence the nickname the “100-Day Wonder.” This was an amazing accomplishment considering the notoriously rainy Tacoma weather.20

Since Cheney was thrifty and did not like waste, wooden seats and distinctive light towers from the recently demolished Seals Stadium in San Francisco were sent by barge from California to Tacoma and installed at the new ballpark. After moving from New York, the San Francisco Giants used Seals Stadium for the 1958 and 1959 seasons until they began play at Candlestick Park in 1960.21

The new Tacoma ballpark was constructed using pre-stressed, prefabricated concrete sections. Over 1,500 concrete pieces with steel tensioning cables were utilized. Prefabrication saved time and money; a poured concrete stadium would have added six months to the construction schedule. A crew of 50 to 60 workers were on-site daily to meet the ambitious deadline. The concrete-shell grandstand offered a seating capacity of 5,000 with room for bleachers to be added on the left- and right-field sides. Concrete-block concessions buildings were built under the grandstand.22

Opening day was scheduled for April 14, 1960, but that date was rained out. The new ballpark was inaugurated with a day-night doubleheader against the Portland Beavers on April 16. Tacoma mayor Ben Hanson threw out the ceremonial first pitch in front of 6,612 fans. In the first game, Tacoma’s Matty Alou hit the park’s first home run in a game that was won by Portland 7-2. In the second game, the Giants won decisively, 11-0, with Tacoma’s Juan Marichal throwing the stadium’s first shutout.

A notable feature of the original park was the 29-foot-high batter’s eye23 in straightaway center. The “Great Wall of Cheney” still stands as of 2024 and resembles a minor league version of Boston’s Green Monster. The wall is 425 feet from home plate and has been cleared by home runs only three times during gameplay24 and once in batting practice by José Canseco.25 Cheney has always had a symmetrical field configuration. Current field dimensions are 325 feet to left field, 425 feet to center, and 325 feet to right.

Cheney Stadium has been considered a pitcher’s park since it opened in 1960.26 The tall center-field wall and larger-than-usual center-field area certainly benefit pitchers, as does the sea-level elevation and the humid maritime climate.

Here is a team affiliation history27 of Cheney Stadium:

• 1960–1965 Tacoma Giants (San Francisco Giants): The Giants won the PCL championship in 1961, their second year in Tacoma. Hall of Famers Marichal, Willie McCovey, and Gaylord Perry played for Tacoma during this era.
• 1966–1971 Tacoma Cubs (Chicago Cubs): Whitey Lockman, who was on base when Bobby Thomson hit the “Shot Heard Round the World” in 1951,28 managed the club from 1966 through 1969. He was Tacoma’s winningest manager until Dave Myers broke his mark in 2000. Lockman also managed the parent Chicago Cubs from 1972 through 1974. In 1969, Tacoma earned their second PCL title. During the final year of the Cubs affiliation, Tacoma lost its baseball champion when Ben Cheney died on May 18, 1971.
• 1972–1977 Tacoma Twins (Minnesota Twins): There were no PCL championships during this period, but there were plenty of highlights, including Randy Bass hitting four homers during a single game in Phoenix on June 9, 1977. Bass had a .321 batting average, 25 home runs and 117 RBIs that season.
• 1978 Tacoma Yankees (New York Yankees): This geographic mismatch only lasted one season. It made little sense for the Yankees to have a Triple-A affiliate on the other side of the country. However, it was a good year for Tacoma: with a team batting average of .290 and a record of 80-57, they were named co-champions alongside Albuquerque. There was not a sole PCL champion that year because the entire championship series was cancelled due to rain.
• 1979 Tacoma Tugs and 1980 Tacoma Tigers (Cleveland Indians): Tacoma’s team management decided to give the team a name that did not match the major league club. The Tugs got their name from the local maritime industry. Tigers had been used by many Tacoma teams prior to 1960, regardless of major-league affiliation. Tacoma played .500 baseball during its two years affiliated with Cleveland.
• 1981–1994 Tacoma Tigers (Oakland A’s): The 14 seasons with the A’s brought players to Tacoma that would later become well-known big leaguers, including Mark McGwire, Walt Weiss, Jason Giambi, Scott Brosius, and Jose Rijo. Tacoma made the playoffs five times during this period but did not secure a PCL championship.
• 1995–present Tacoma Rainiers (Seattle Mariners): Becoming the Mariners’ Triple-A affiliate was a smart move for both teams. Seattle’s T-Mobile Park is only about 36 miles away from Cheney Stadium, enabling easy, same-day movement of players. Much of the Mariners’ homegrown talent, including Ken Griffey Jr.,29 Álex Rodríguez, Jay Buhner, Félix Hernández, and many others, has played at Cheney Stadium. On July 7, 2001, John Halama pitched the first nine-inning perfect game in PCL history against Calgary at Cheney Stadium.30 Under three-time PCL Manager of the Year award winner, Dan Rohn, the team was declared 2001 PCL co-champions with New Orleans when the series was cancelled after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The Rainiers also clinched PCL titles in 2010 and 2021.

The Tacoma Rainiers adopted the longtime nickname of the Seattle Rainiers, a PCL team that represented Seattle during the pre-Mariners era. The name comes from Mount Rainier, one of the highest peaks in the United States. On clear days, the team’s namesake mountain looms large in the Tacoma area and can be seen from Cheney Stadium seats on the third-base side.31

Other well-known players who have played at Cheney Stadium include Jesus Alou,32 Dave Henderson, Kyle Seager, Tim Belcher, and Cliff Lee.33

Willie Mays and the San Francisco Giants played exhibition games at Cheney Stadium in June of each season from 1960 through 1964. This was during an era when major-league teams played occasional exhibition games on off-days during the regular season. In these exhibition games, Mays would typically lead off and take one or two at-bats prior to being replaced in the lineup. Mays tripled in his first Cheney Stadium plate appearance in 1960; he hit his first Cheney home run in 1962.34

The Rainiers did a major rebrand of the team in 2015 that included a new cursive “R” logo.35 Since then, the team often refers to Cheney Stadium as “R House,” Tacoma as “R City,” and so on.

In 2017, the stadium hosted the 30th Triple-A All-Star Game and Home Run Derby.36

Numerous non-baseball events have occurred at Cheney over the years.

On September 27, 1963, with Mount Rainier behind him, President John F. Kennedy gave a speech about the environment and public recreation areas to 25,000 people. The only place the Secret Service did not allow the public to frequent was “Tightwad Hill,” an area outside the ballpark named for people who watched games from there without a ticket.37

In 1990, the Seattle-Tacoma area hosted the Goodwill Games. This Olympic-style sports festival was the brainchild of businessman Ted Turner. The games occurred six times between 1986 and 2001. The 1990 iteration was the only one to feature baseball, which was played at Cheney. Cuba won the gold medal, Japan took silver, and the United States defeated Canada for bronze. The US team consisted of collegiate players that included future major leaguers Aaron Sele and Paul Byrd.

On August 24, 2003, an estimated 754 guitarists played together at an event that rocked the stadium. They performed nearly 10-minute rendition of “Louie Louie,” a rock anthem that gained early fame in a rendition by the Tacoma-based Wailers. The song was a national hit when the Kingsmen re-recorded it in 1963. It was also a hit for Paul Revere and the Raiders. All three bands participated, as did members of Heart, Jr. Cadillac, and Moby Grape, along with hundreds of amateur guitarists. Each participant paid $20 and proceeds went to Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound.38

From 2018 through 2021, Cheney Stadium hosted professional soccer teams: the Seattle Sounders’ United Soccer League affiliate beginning in 201839 and Seattle Reign FC of the National Women’s Soccer League the following year.40 The groundskeeping challenges of hosting both baseball and soccer were enormous, especially since the pitching mound was removed and replaced with every transition between the two sports.41

Cheney has also hosted high school baseball and soccer playoffs, commencements, outdoor movie nights, celebrity softball games, and numerous concerts.42

After decades of use, the stadium began to show its age in the 1990s. It lacked modern stadium features such as proper dugouts, clubhouses, workout facilities, and batting cages.43 Additionally, there were few contemporary features for the fans. As Tacoma News-Tribune reporter John McGrath wrote in 2011: “Rainiers Gold Club members [use] a tent, with access to a private bar that [has] the ambiance of a tool shed.”44 There were also safety and accessibility issues. In 1999, the Rainiers declared they would leave town when their lease expired unless stadium upgrades were made in coming years.45 At the time, Cheney Stadium was the oldest PCL stadium and the third-oldest of 30 Triple-A stadiums nationwide.46

PCL President Branch B. Rickey said, “If Tacoma isn’t willing to provide a modern baseball facility, there are other cities that will.”47

In 2009, the Tacoma city council approved a public-private partnership for the renovation in which the city committed $28 million and private sources provided $2 million.48

The $30 million renovation of Cheney Stadium was completed in one offseason. It took just 210 days from the Rainiers’ final home game in September 2010 to completion in April 2011. The concrete-shell grandstand stayed in place and was augmented with 16 luxury suites, a 4,000-square-foot club space with a restaurant, new administrative offices, and a souvenir store. The design featured Douglas fir beams and wood siding to update the park in a Pacific Northwest architectural style, quite a contrast to the original concrete stadium. Perhaps as a nod to Ben Cheney, lumber and other materials were locally sourced. The project won the Renovation of the Year Award from Ballpark Digest and the National Design-Build Award for Renovation from the Design-Build Institute of America, both in 2011.49

The wooden seats from Seals Stadium were replaced with more modern seats, except in part of Section K, where some were retained to help preserve history.50 All of the light towers from Seals Stadium remain in service at Cheney.

Spacious party decks were added to left field in foul territory and behind the outfield fence.

On the right-field side, the emphasis is on family-friendly spaces. The renovation added a grass berm seating area and a large kids’ play area including a wiffleball field.51

The 2011 renovation also moved the backstop 15 feet closer to home plate and created the “Dugout Club.” This added three rows of premium seats between the home and visitor dugouts that provide fans a better view of the home plate area than from the dugouts.52

Seating capacity is 6,500. With the party decks, seating berm and other common areas, well over 6,500 fans can attend a game at Cheney.53

The “Summit Club” is on the uppermost stadium level and features a restaurant and views of Mount Rainier through windows on the back side. As of 2024, the club has a flexible, shared-use arrangement. For example, a group of 25 could rent it for one game while sharing it with other groups and individuals, or an individual could buy Summit Club tickets for 25 different games.54 The “1882 Club” is located right below the Summit Club and is rented to groups only (40 – 150 guests). It is used for birthday parties, employee appreciation and other congregate events.55

The “USO Heroes Suite” at Cheney Stadium provides a free, family-friendly luxury suite for use by local military organizations, such as those affiliated with Joint Base Lewis-McChord, a major military facility just north of Tacoma. Complimentary ballpark food and non-alcoholic beverages are provided. During each game, the suite guests are honored on the ballpark’s video board.

The stadium shares some parking with neighboring Foss High School.56 The high school opened in 1973 and is visible past right-center field. The 71-acre Tacoma Nature Center and Snake Lake also are adjacent to Cheney Stadium.57

On a typical gameday, about 330 people are employed at the stadium. This includes parking attendants, ushers, security personnel, party deck attendants, food service workers,58 cleaners, grounds crews, mascots,59 and many others.60

Like Wrigley Field and Fenway Park, Cheney Stadium has retained the same name over many decades. In the early 2000s, there was discussion about selling naming rights, possibly worth seven figures.61 However, the idea was nixed, and the latest stadium lease prohibits changing the ballpark’s name out of respect to Ben Cheney and his descendants.

In 2002, Mike Lonergan, a Tacoma city councilman, said, “The Cheney family has long since paid for naming rights.”62

Just as Cheney’s ballpark lives on, so does his philanthropic work. The Ben B. Cheney Foundation, created by Cheney in 1955, provides grants for basic needs, such as food, healthcare, and shelter. Other grants help to enrich communities through athletics, the arts, and historical programs. The foundation focuses on the counties where Cheney’s lumber company operated: 10 counties in Washington, two in Oregon, and seven in Northern California. Through 2022, the foundation had gifted more than 6,000 grants to more than 1,500 organizations for a total distribution of over $113,864,700.63

Cheney’s daughter Piper recalled her father as “a very happy man who loved kids, loved sports, and reached out to everyone who touched his life.”64

In 1995, a statue of Cheney was installed in the stadium to recognize the man who was the driving force behind the creation of the ballpark. The bronze statue is seated in Section K, Row 1, behind home plate.65 The statue is holding a bag of peanuts. At his feet are bronze peanut shells and a program from the 1960 stadium dedication day. Cheney’s statue is grinning, his eyes are lit up, and why wouldn’t he be happy? He’s sitting in his preferred seat in the ballpark he built, while enjoying his favorite sport of baseball and all it has to offer.

  

Author’s Note

I’ve attended a few games at Cheney, all prior to the 2011 renovation. My most memorable event there was the game that opened the 1990 Goodwill Games baseball tournament. It was a historic matchup between the Soviet Union and the United States. Baseball was very new for the Soviets, and considering their players were converted javelin throwers, wrestlers, and the like, they played respectable ball, hitting four singles and turning a double play. However, they were shellacked by Team USA, 17-0. A mercy rule resulted in the game being called after six and a half innings because of the lopsided score. Ted Turner was to throw out the ceremonial first pitch, but he was a bit late due to traffic, so he threw out a ceremonial 58th pitch after the first inning. In the first three innings, the Americans sent 29 batters to the plate. I’m not sure, but it may have been the longest six and a half innings I’ve ever seen.

 

Acknowledgments

The author thanks Kurt Blumenau for his editing, advice and assistance. This article was fact-checked by Ray Danner and copy-edited by Abigail Miskowiec.

 

Sources and Photo Credits

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com.

The color photos of Cheney Stadium were taken by the author on July 12, 2024.

The black-and-white photo from June 9, 1960 is provided courtesy of the Tacoma Public Library’s Northwest Room, ID No. D126962-22, Richards Studio Photographic Slides (Collection 2.1.1). 

 

Notes

1 As of 2024, Sahlen Field in Buffalo, New York, which opened in 1988, is the second oldest continuously operated Triple-A stadium. Tacoma Rainiers media guide, 2024.

2 David Eskenazi, “Wayback Machine: The Cheney Studs Turn 60,” SportspressNW.com, January 14, 2016. Accessed July 3, 2024, https://www.sportspressnw.com/2150865/2013/wayback-machine-the-cheney-studs-turn-60. When he was 8 years old, Cheney and his sister, Lulu, moved to South Bend, Washington, after their mother died and their father remarried. They were raised by their paternal grandparents.

3 Steve Rudman, “Ben Cheney: The Icon Behind Tacoma’s Ballpark,” SportspressNW.com, May 24, 2021. Accessed June 25, 2024, https://www.sportspressnw.com/2233938/2017/ben-cheney-the-icon-behind-tacomas-ballpark.

4 Med Nicholson, “The Ben Cheney Story,” The Sou’wester 35, no. 3 (Fall 2000): 3–15. https://www.benbcheneyfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Souwester-article.pdf

5 Rudman, “Ben Cheney: The Icon Behind Tacoma’s Ballpark.”

6 Erik Lacitis, “Forever in Row 1, Section K – Memories Fade, but Ben Cheney Lives on Through Stadium,” Seattle Times, April 19, 2005: B1. 

7 Prior to this time, American homes typically had ceilings taller than 8 feet. Rudman, “Ben Cheney: The Icon Behind Tacoma’s Ballpark.”

8 Lacitis, “Forever in Row 1, Section K – Memories Fade, but Ben Cheney Lives on Through Stadium.”

9 The conservative estimate of 5,000 individuals included boys, girls, men and women over a 20-year span.

10 Nicholson, “The Ben Cheney Story.”

11 Rudman, “Ben Cheney: The Icon Behind Tacoma’s Ballpark.”

12 230 teams under various names (e.g., Cheney Studs, Seattle Studs, Seattle Cheney Studs, Medford (Oregon) Cheney Studs) played sports ranging from Pee Wee to elite adult amateur with sponsorships from Cheney. Collectively, they secured 42 league titles, nine state and regional championships, and one national American Amateur Baseball Congress (AABC) title in 1960. Eskenazi, “Wayback Machine: The Cheney Studs Turn 60.”

13 “Ben B. Cheney Lived Life Fully and Richly, Devoting Himself to His Work, His Family and His Community,” Ben B. Cheney Foundation. Accessed July 3, 2024, https://www.benbcheneyfoundation.org/about/ben-b-cheney/.

14 One of the civic leaders, Clay Huntington, was an original member of the Tacoma Athletic Commission. Huntington owned radio stations and did play-by-play broadcasts of Tacoma baseball games in the 1940s. Along with Cheney, he was credited as key person that brought Triple-A ball back to Tacoma. After Huntington died in 2011, a celebration of his life was held at Cheney Stadium.

16 Tyler Maun, “Explore Tacoma’s Cheney Stadium,” MLB.com, February 25, 2022. Accessed June 25, 2024, https://www.mlb.com/news/featured/explore-cheney-stadium-home-of-the-tacoma-rainiers.

17 “Cheney Stadium,” MiLB.com. Accessed July 5, 2024, https://www.milb.com/tacoma/ballpark/cheney-stadium. The stadium is located at 2502 S. Tyler Street in south-central Tacoma. Prior to construction of the ballpark, the land was undeveloped.

18 Lacitis, “Forever in Row 1, Section K – Memories Fade, but Ben Cheney Lives on Through Stadium.”

19 The city of Tacoma faced an extremely tight deadline to build a stadium, so they turned to Ben Cheney. He was named the general contractor because of his unblemished record as an ethical businessman. The architect was E.L. Mills and Associates. The construction effort was led by the Earley Construction Company and consulting engineers from the Concrete Technology Corporation. The entire project was carried out under Cheney’s guidance. Rudman, “Ben Cheney: The Icon Behind Tacoma’s Ballpark.”

20 In recognition of the stadium construction and Ben Cheney’s other civic and financial contributions, the new ballpark was formally named Cheney Stadium at a dedication ceremony on June 9, 1960.

21 “The 100-Day Wonder” sign at Cheney Stadium. Accessed July 12, 2024.

22 Dick Stansfield, “New Ballpark Rose from Onetime Swamp,” Tacoma News Tribune, April 12, 1960: 34.

23 For those not familiar with the term “batter’s eye,” this is a wall or screen in center field that provides a monochromatic backdrop to allow batters to clearly see a pitched ball without background distractions.

24 As per written correspondence sent to the author by the Tacoma Rainiers: The original wall was 32 feet high. (The wall height was reduced to 29 feet during the 2011 renovation.) The three players who have cleared the wall with home runs during games were all Tacoma Rainiers: A.J. Zapp on September 1, 2004, Shin-Soo Choo a month into the 2005 season, and Jake Slaughter on July 1, 2024.

25 Bud Withers, “A Whole ‘Nother Ballgame – Baseball Fans Can Find Strike Relief with Minor League Clubs,” Seattle Post-Intelligencer, August 11, 1994: D1.

26 Danny Summers, “Iowa Stadium is Latest to Sign Naming-Rights Deal,” The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colorado), August 8, 2004: Sports 17.

27 “Tacoma Affiliation History.” Accessed June 25, 2024, https://www.milb.com/tacoma/history/affiliation-history.

28 The Shot Heard ‘Round the World was a famous walk-off home run hit by Thomson of the New York Giants on October 3, 1951. The homer resulted in the Giants winning the 1951 National League pennant over the Brooklyn Dodgers in the deciding third game of a playoff series. This was the culmination of an improbable, and miraculous, late-season surge by the Giants. The Giants went on to lose the World Series to the New York Yankees.

29 Griffey had a two-year minor-league career in Single A and Double A. He skipped Triple A and went straight to the majors in 1989. His only Triple-A appearance was a game in 1995 on a rehab assignment from the Seattle Mariners. 

30 “Celebrating Tacoma’s Baseball History,” TacomaSportsMuseum.com, March 25, 2023. Accessed July 21, 2024, https://www.tacomasportsmuseum.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Tacoma-Baseball-History-event-3-25-23.pdf.

31 Perpetually snow-capped with glaciers, Mount Rainier (elevation 14,409 feet) is the tallest peak in the Cascade Range which stretches from Northern California to British Columbia. Like nearby Mount St. Helens, Rainer is an active volcano.

32 Jesus, Matty and their brother Felipe Alou became the first “all-brother” outfield in the major leagues when they played together as San Francisco Giants on September 15, 1963.

33 The players listed in this paragraph, and mentioned in the sections above it, only include Tacoma players. Players who played for other PCL teams who may have come to Cheney on visiting teams are not included. Lloyd Brown, “Cheney Stadium – Tacoma Rainiers,” Stadium Journey, July 16, 2016. Accessed July 13, 2024, https://www.stadiumjourney.com/stadiums/cheney-stadium-s341.

34 Mike Curto, “Willie Mays, Who Passed Yesterday, Was an Annual Visitor to Cheney Stadium,” We R Tacoma, June 19, 2024. Accessed July 13, 2024, https://www.wertacoma.com/willie-mays-who-passed-yesterday-was-an-annual-visitor-to-cheney-stadium/.

35 The logo is similar to the Rainier Beer logo. As per the Tacoma Rainiers’ Colin Connelly, this is coincidental, and there is no formal tie between the baseball club and the brewing company.

36 On July 12, 2017, the Triple-A All-Star Game was attended by 7,024 fans. The PCL broke a four-year losing streak and defeated the International League, 6-4. The PCL MVP was third-baseman Renato Núñez (Nashville) and the IL MVP was outfielder Richie Schaffer (Columbus). The Home Run Derby was won by the IL’s Bryce Brentz of the Pawtucket Red Sox.

37 Kennedy was on a five-day conservation tour from Pennsylvania to California that included visiting parks and public lands in 11 states. Less than two months after his Cheney Stadium speech, Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. Alan J. Stein, “President Kennedy speaks to a capacity crowd at Tacoma’s Cheney Stadium on September 27, 1963,” HistoryLink.org, October 21, 2013. Accessed July 1, 2024, https://www.historylink.org/File/10643.

38 This was an unsuccessful attempt to break a Guinness world record for the largest guitar ensemble playing a single song. The record they were trying to beat was set in 1992 by 1,342 guitarists playing Bachman-Turner Overdrive’s “Takin’ Care of Business.” Micheal Ko, “754 guitars rock into the record book with ‘Louie Louie,’” The Seattle Times, August 25, 2003. Accessed July 13, 2024, https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=20030825&slug=louie25m.

39 In 2019, the Sounders’ USL club, Sounders FC-2, was rebranded as the Tacoma Defiance.

40 “Cheney Stadium,” MiLB.com.

41 Transforming a baseball diamond to a soccer pitch (and vice versa) in under 24 hours is a monumental exercise involving moving tons of material each time the pitcher’s mound is removed or reinstalled. Head groundskeeper Michael Huie and his crew of 12 did this routinely during the years the stadium hosted both sports. ”Transforming Cheney Stadium Into a Field of Dreams,” We R Tacoma, April 16, 2019. Accessed August 2, 2024, https://www.wertacoma.com/transforming-cheney-stadium-field-conversion-grass/.

42 Music acts have included Clint Black, Jo Dee Messina, Smash Mouth, Nelly Furtado, Shaggy, Big and Rich, The Cover Girls, Lighter Shade of Brown, Train, The Presidents of the United States of America, The Posies, Uncle Kracker, and many others.

43 Angelo Bruscas, “Sale of Rainiers Could Lead to Tacoma Losing Class AAA Baseball,” Seattle Post-Intelligencer, August 14, 2000: C7.

44 John McGrath, “The New Cheney Stadium Will Feature Sweeping Views, Vastly Improved Concessions, Seats on the Grass, a Big Restaurant, Oh, and Baseball,” Tacoma News Tribune, January 25, 2011: B1.

45 The Associated Press, “Upgrade Stadium or We Leave, Rainiers Say,” Seattle Post-Intelligencer, December 13, 1999: D3.

46 Don Ruiz, “Fix Cheney or Goodbye Baseball,” Tacoma News Tribune, December 12, 1999: A1.

47 Rickey is the grandson of Branch Rickey who is best known for breaking baseball’s color barrier by signing Jackie Robinson to a Brooklyn Dodgers contract and for creating the framework for the modern minor league farm system. The Associated Press, “Upgrade Stadium or We Leave, Rainiers Say.”

48 The deal included a new lease for the Rainiers through 2041. The city of Tacoma owns the stadium and the underlying land. The Rainiers make lease payments to use the stadium. Populous Architects was selected for the renovation design, and the renovation contract was awarded to Mortenson Construction. “Cheney Stadium (2011 Renovations),” Baseballparks.com. Accessed July 3, 2024, https://baseballparks.com/indepth/tacoma/.

49 “Cheney Stadium Renovation,” Mortenson Construction. Accessed July 13, 2024, https://www.mortenson.com/projects/cheney-stadium-renovation.

50 Kevin Reichard, “Cheney Stadium / Tacoma Rainiers,” Ballpark Digest, November 29, 2008. Accessed June 25, 2024, https://ballparkdigest.com/200811291018/minor-league-baseball/visits/cheney-stadium-tacoma-rainiers.

51 The Rainiers have a strong commitment to offering a family-friendly environment. For example, at the start of the 2024 season, a nursing station was added next to the kids’ play area for nursing moms.

52 Home plate stayed in the same location and the original field dimensions, e.g., 425 feet to center, were maintained. Maun, “Explore Tacoma’s Cheney Stadium.”

53A number of sources, including Baseball-Reference, state the “practical capacity” is about 7,500, even though some other references list the overall capacity at 9,600.

54 Colin Connolly, Director of Media Relations and Baseball Information, Tacoma Rainiers, in-person interview, July 12, 2024.

55 Colin Connolly interview, July 12, 2024.

56 Colin Connolly interview, July 12, 2024.

57 “Cheney Stadium,” BaseballPilgrimages.com. Accessed June 25, 2024, https://www.baseballpilgrimages.com/minors/tacoma.html.

58 About half of the gameday employees are involved with food service. Cheney offers a wide variety of food options including fare from longtime Northwest casual-dining establishments such as Ivar’s (seafood) and Kidd Valley (burgers).

59 Rhubarb the Reindeer is the primary mascot and is rumored to be related to the Seattle Mariners’ Moose. Another fan-favorite is the Epic Sax Gorilla who plays “air saxophone” to music broadcast over the PA system between innings.

60 Colin Connolly interview, July 12, 2024.

61 Rochelle Williams, “Washington: Rename Cheney?,” The Bond Buyer, March 1, 2002: 47.

62 Williams, “Washington: Rename Cheney?”

63 “Ben B. Cheney Lived Life Fully and Richly, Devoting Himself to His Work, His Family and His Community.” Each year, the foundation provides thirty-three annual scholarships of $3,000 for student-athletes in Pierce County, Washington and South Bend, Washington, to further their education at vocational-technical schools, or 2- and 4-year colleges.

64 Med Nicholson, “The Ben Cheney Story.”

65 Erik Lacitis, “Forever in Row 1, Section K – Memories Fade, but Ben Cheney Lives on Through Stadium.” Artist Paul Michaels of Gig Harbor, Washington, molded the statue in clay, then made it into a hollow bronze figure at a foundry. The whole statue weighs over 500 pounds.