On Nov. 18, Winslow residents, visitors and members of the Arizona Diamondbacks organization came together for the dedication of the Tom Harris Field. This field is the 25th anniversary field as part of the Mike Kennedy “Diamonds Back” Field Building Program, with this being the 44th field created in this program.
In the past, these fields have been named for a player who also donates their time and money to the field but this field was donated by the Diamondback front office along with the owners and the Diamondbacks Foundation. This was done to surprise and recognize one of their own, Winslow native and Diamondbacks Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Tom Harris, naming it the Tom Harris Field.
Diamondback organist Bobby Freeman played the Star-Spangled Banner to start the event, just as it is played before every game. Chris Garagiola, who is the broadcaster for the Diamondbacks and comes from a long line of baseball greats Joe Garagiola Jr. and Sr., emceed the event.
Winslow Mayor Roberta “Birdie” Cano addressed the crowd of 400-plus, saying how excited she was to have this field, and how many of the youth of this and the surrounding communities would have the enjoyment of playing on the field. Arizona Public Service President Ted Geisler stated there is nothing more American than standing on a ballfield with the flag behind it in small town America.
Diamondbacks Managing General Partner Ken Kedrick shared that having this field here in Winslow was special for him as he and Glen Frey of the Eagles had been great philanthropic friends and in the town that honors the Eagles’ hit song “Take it Easy,” he called for the scoreboard to be revealed.
Harris was joined by his wife Kathleen and three of his four children Sean, Sarah and Kelly. Tom recalled that one of his fondest memories was standing on the sideline of the Little League field in uniform and listening to a scratched record playing the Star-Spangled Banner, followed by the Little League Pledge which he then recited: “I trust in God. I love my country and will respect its laws. I will play fair and strive to win. But win or lose I will always do my best.”
The Harris family placed the bases on the field and Harris threw the first pitch to his son Sean on the field.
Also recognized for making this field a reality with their donations and hard work were Bryan Doolen and Danny Bowerman with Pimmex General Contracting, Brandon Powell with the architectural design firm Nelsen Partners, Tom Meeks civil engineering designer with Rick Engineering, Christopher McCombs and Catherine Cafagna with Accurate Concrete and Fence, which provided the fencing, John Abney and Tacy Hawk with Musco Sports Lighting, field improvements by John Hubbs and Mike Clark with Stabilizer Solutions, Brent Nitsche with Steiger Services, which provided wind screening, Gene Hancock from NAE General Contracting, John McCauley and McCauley Construction, Fred Sullenberger from Arizona Commercial Signs provided the scoreboard and Joe Tafficano with WestCoast Turf provided the sod.
Also, special shoutouts went to Sandra Greer Knight who as being submitting and campaigning for the field since 2015 and with her crew provided the crowd with snacks, and Debbie Martinez with the Winslow Theater provided the popcorn.
After the ceremony it was clear to see that this field was magical as Diamondback mascot Baxter played catch with several youth in the outfield and a small boy stood on the pitcher’s mound throwing an imaginary ball to an imaginary batter. This new addition to the City of Winslow will certainly be enjoyed for many years to come.
