Virginia Tech Batter’s Eye at English Field

Thompson & Litton was commissioned by Virginia Tech to provide design and construction documents, and 3-D imagery for a fabric screen Batter’s Eye at English Field on the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg, Virginia.

The purpose of the design was to correct hampered viewpoints due to the recreational field lighting located beyond the outfield fencing at the intramural fields across Southgate Drive.  At both night games and practices, the difficulty was the ability to easily and quickly locate the baseball when it is in the pitcher’s hand and during the ball’s path of travel to the hitter. The remedy for this problem was to construct a screen outside of the playing field that is large enough to block the distractions that are in the immediate line of sight for the batter.  This screen is commonly referred to as a “Batter’s Eye.”
 
T&L services consisted of the following:

• Screen and fabric research to determine the best suited installation for English Field;
• Evaluation of provided Geotechnical Data; and
• The development of a three-dimensional Sketch-Up model that depicts the proposed Batter’s Eye in the proposed location.

Production of the 3-D model required topographic mapping and light pole sizes and locations of the baseball field and surrounding area including the intramural fields to be provided by VT.Structural design services included foundations and steel support system for an approximate 32’ x 100’ fabric screen. 
 
Additional services by T&L included bidding and Construction Phase Administrative services based on a 2-month construction period. The development of a 3-D computer model confirmed the size and location of the Batter’s Eye which effectively blocks the light fixtures in the background, improving the line of sight from the batter’s vantage point.  In addition, the 3-D model can also be utilized to illustrate the impact of the screen on the VT campus.

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