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A. U. Williams Field

A. U. Williams Field was a baseball park in Arkadelphia, AR and was home field of the Ouachita Baptist Tigers and the spring training site of the Kansas City Blue from 1916-1917.

History

The field was located on the campus of Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, AR. It was named after Arthur Upton Williams, a physician from Hot Springs, AR who made a large donation towards the purchase of the park's land.

In preparation for the arrival of the Kansas City Blues in 1916, a new grandstand was built at A. U. Williams Field and the diamond was put into shape. Kansas City arrived in mid March, practicing in front good sized crowds as well as playing multiple exhibition games against the Ouachita Baptist Tigers baseball team,

While the Kansas City Blues were practicing in Arkadelphia, the Pittsburgh Pirates were training just 50 miles away in Hot Springs, AR. So on March 27th, the two teams met at A. U. Williams Field for an exhibition game. The game was publicized in Arkadelphia with posters of Honus Wagner, the Pirates’ famous shortstop, and Hank O’Day, a well-known big league umpire.

After 9 innings of play, the Pirates came out on top, shutting out the Blues by a score of 4-0. Kansas City managed only 3 hits off Pittsburgh pitchers, 5 fewer than the Pirates. Among those who participated in the game included Honus Wagner and Max Carey, both future Hall of Famers.

Kansas City left Arkadelphia on April 3rd. The team went on to go 86-81 on the season, 5th in the 8-team league.

In 1917, Kansas City returned. On March 22nd, the Cincinnati Reds played the Blues at A.U. William Field. Kansas City won, 2-1.

A.U. Williams Field continued to be used by Ouachita Baptist baseball teams for many years, and in 1960, a new A. U. Williams Field was built on campus and the university’s football team still plays there.

Exhibitions

DateHomeVisitorsResult
3/22/1916Ouachita BaptistKansas City Blues4-5
3/27/1916Kansas City BluesPittsburgh Pirates0-4
3/22/1917Kansas City BluesCincinnati Reds2-1


Sources

1) Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3/22/1916

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