Marinelli Field
Rockford, IL
Review by Mike
Marinelli Field has been the home of several minor league teams since it opened in 1988. Midwest League teams called it home thru the 1998 season and the independent Rockford RiverHawks played at Marinelli from 2002 thru 2006. There was some summer college league ball played here, but the opening of Rivets Stadium in nearby Loves Park marked the end of that level of play here in Rockford.
Marinelli just missed the minor league ballpark boom of the 1990s, style-wise, when fixed-seat grandstands with an upper suite level and shaded concourses with a view of the field became all the rage. Instead, this is a pretty basic structure, with a single, concrete and brick grandstand around the infield. Fixed seating near the field gives way to aluminum benches beyond the walkway that bisects the stand.
There is a small roof that extends out from the press box at the top of the stands behind home plate. There appear to be few amenities, but the setting is quite nice, nestled in the corner of a public park with some pleasant trees and a nice hill rising behind the first base line.
I was not able to gain entry to Marinelli Field when I drove by in June of 2023, but the ballpark appears to be maintained in a perfectly servicable condition, the field is mowed and the infield dirt is free of weeds. The stadium is owned by the town and used for various tournaments and other events. If you are in Rockford, you should swing by the nearby site where the Rockford Peaches of the All-American Girls Baseball League played to see a few artifacts preserved for posterity. It’s just a mile away.
