Phil Welch Stadium



PHIL WELCH STADIUM St. Joseph, Missouri

While minor league baseball in St. Joseph dates back to the 1800's, Phil Welch Stadium was built in 1939 for a new team which brought back pro ball after a six year absence. Various minor league teams played here in the ensuing years serving major league parent clubs Cubs, Browns, Cardinals and Yankees: St. Joseph Angels, Class C Western Association, 1939 St. Joseph Saints, Class C Western Association, 1940 St. Joseph Ponies, Class C Western Association, 1941 St. Joseph Cardinals, Class C Western Association, 1946-51 St. Joseph Cardinals, Class C Western Association, 1953 St. Joseph Saints, Class C Western Association, 1954 And, professional baseball returned to Phil Welch Stadium in 2006 when the newly-formed independent American Association introduced the St. Joseph Blacksnakes. This ballpark has very large field dimensions, 320 feet down the lines and 420 feet to straightaway center, which presents a larger outfield than the Kansas City Royals' Kauffmann Stadium located about an hour south of St. Joseph. After minor league baseball left St. Joseph in the 1950's, various amateur baseball leagues have used this beautiful ballpark. In the spring it is the home of the Griffons of Missouri Western State College, and from 1996 to 2005 the St. Joseph Saints of the collegiate Missouri-Kansas-Nebraska (MINK) League played wood-bat baseball here. All of my original photos on this page are approximately one-quarter size. Netscape users can right-click and view-image to see the full-size images. Use your browser's "back" button to return to "Minor League Ballparks of Yesteryear" or replace "shoeless1920/StJoe.html" with "shoeless_60067/yesteryear.html" in the URL location.

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	In between the backstop and the front row of box seats immediately behind home plate is a low brick wall which sections off a scout viewing area.


		Light towers obstructing the view of the fans. Interesting box seat decking design, sloped rather than stepped.



	Deep outfield has the light towers and the flagpole in the field of play in front of the unpadded concrete wall