Full of Surprises

A tribute to Stanley Coveleski, the Hall of Fame pitcher who retired in South Bend.

Where to begin with this one? I try to do a little background research before going to a stadium. Other blogs, the team websites and maps give me an idea of what to expect, but I’m often pleasantly surprised. Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium, home of the High-A South Bend Cubs, knocked my socks off. 

It’s not a new stadium, by average standards, but it looks like it could have been built yesterday instead of almost 35 years ago. It’s not quite as wide open as the stadiums that are being built today, but it has wide concourses that open out with views of the field once you get past about first and third base. The 5,000 seats are spread out around home base and along the baselines in a way that puts everyone close to the action on the field.

Splash pad in the outfield. Great for the kids on a hot day.

Apparently it was one of the first stadiums to “open up” the walkways behind the seating arena and served as a model for other ballparks that followed. There’s a walkway completely around the field that provides good views except for a small area behind the batter’s eye and some structures in center field. There are play areas for kids, a lively and popular splash fountain that even has changing rooms for the youngsters that get soaked.

A few years ago, there was a major renovation effort around the stadium and now the outfield is surrounded by apartment buildings that provide views for residents and rooftop seats for others, just like at the big ballpark in Chicago’s north side. Of course, the name and the team logos are a dead giveaway that South Bend is an affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.

Seating on the rooftop, party decks down below.

There are other references to the big home team. There are signs above the various concession stands that say things like “Clark Street” and “Waveland Avenue” to help you remember where you saw the ice cream cones or the chicken fingers for sale.

One of the best nods to Chicago is the alternate identify the South Bend Cubs have adopted for the Copa de la Diversíon series: Los Cabritos Maldichos, or the little cursed goats. I found out about them in the team store, which I had a little difficulty finding, because it was in an unusual place beyond the outfield. The store is inside what might be the only synagogue building attached to a ballpark.

The South Bend Cubs team store is located in the historic Sons of Israel synagogue. 

The Sons of Israel synagogue was built in 1901, but had outlived its usefulness as a house of worship. It was sold several times over the years as people tried to figure out what to do with the historic landmark until it was taken over by the Cubs. The building has been restored inside and out, except that now it’s full of South Bend Cubs merchandise.

Double header fare. Fried curds for starters, Philly steak nachos in the nightcapper.

The food at Four Winds is top notch. I started with an order of fried cheese curds, a treat that I am happy to say has migrated from its homeland in Wisconsin, and I was going to have something small later in the game. Then people started showing up with a dish that looked and smelled delicious. It turned out to be a Philly cheese steak, not in a roll, but piled over a basket of tortilla chips. There were many other tempting options, too many for even a double header, and too many to list them all. But you can look at the menus here.

I had another surprise when I arrived in South Bend early and went straight to my hotel west of town to check in rather than exploring downtown. It’s a good thing, because when I double-checked the game time, I found out there was a double header of sorts, a continuation of the game that had been suspended the night before. The game would resume at 5:05 with the regular game starting about a half hour after the end of the first game.

Early arrivals for the double header at Four Winds Field.

I didn’t even unload the car because it was almost 4 o’clock and I figured the gates would be open by the time I got there. It would give me time to settle in, visit the shop, grab a bite to eat, etc. There were a few people waiting outside when I got to the stadium but the gates weren’t open. I bought my ticket and asked when the ballpark would open.

“5 o’clock.”

I don’t know. I guess it was going to take time to get the stadium staff organized and the concession stands up and running, but five minutes didn’t seem like a lot of time to get us through the gates and into our seats. Well, I thought, they finished two innings the night before and there was no score, so it would be kind of like watching a 7-inning game from the start.

To my surprise, I looked out on to the field and saw the bases were loaded with two outs in the top of the third inning. That was the situation at the time the game was suspended when a big storm rolled through town. It didn’t take long for the game to get exciting. On a 1-2 count, Michael Massey hit one over the right center field fence, and just like that, the Quad Cities River Bandits were up 4-0 over the Cubs.

South Bend got back into the game with the score 5-3 at the end of the 6th, but the River Bandits batted around in the 7th and added two more runs in the 9th for a 12-4 lead. The Cubs fought back in the bottom half scoring 4 runs and loading the bases with two out for Bryce Windham, who represented the tying run. It was his second at bat of the inning, and for the second time he flied out to end the game. Final, game 1: Quad Cities River Bandits 12, South Cubs 8.

The moon came up for a view over the first base stands.

In the second game, the Cubs came back to tie things up 4-4 in the sixth, but the River Bandits scored two in the extra 8th inning and the Cubs could manage just one more run. Final, game 2: Quad Cities 6, South Bend Cubs 5.

One more thing: I believe this is my first baseball game where one of the umpires was a woman. Jen Pawol, one of two women currently working in the minor leagues and the seventh woman to umpire in men’s professional baseball, was behind the plate for the first game and in the field for the second game. You can read more about her here. She has an interesting story.

Jen Pawol makes the call at third base.