Army West Point Athletics
Johnson Stadium
Long recognized as one of the finest baseball facilities on the East Coast, Doubleday Field serves as home to the Black Knights baseball team.
Namesake - Abner Doubleday and Major Stephen C. Reich
Abner Doubleday, an 1842 West Point graduate, is said to have devised the game of baseball while on leave from USMA in 1839, drawing out the diamond and the rules of the rules of the game. He called the game "Base Ball," but it was patterned after a game called rounders which was played by boys and girls in England. While the origin of baseball has been disputed, Doubleday is still given credit and the baseball field at the U.S. Military Academy was dedicated in his honor in May 1939, the centennial year of baseball.
In 2025, Army Baseball revealed an updated team, titled the Major Stephen C. Reich team room. Maj. Reich was a standout Army pitcher and proud member of the Class of '93. He was killed in action in Afghanistan during Operation Red Wings, a mission memorialized in the film Lone Survivor. To honor their classmate, the Class of '93 made a gift to the Baseball Team Endowment as part of their 25th year class reunion, leading to the team room being named in his memory.
History
"The Home of Army Baseball" since games were first on Doubleday Field in 1909, underwent a major renovation in 1996. The "new' Johnson Stadium at Doubleday Field was formally dedicated at a ceremony on Sept. 13, 1996. During the summer of 2011, the field recieved an enclosed multi-level press box behind home plate. In 2023, Doubleday Field recieved another facelift with the installation of FieldTurf. The field was constructed by Clark Companies in Delhi, N.Y. and completed in early January. The FieldTurf covers the entire playing surface, which includes the infield, batter's boxes, and the pitching mound.
