Alex Box Stadium

The grass berms beyond the outfield hold 8,000 bodies on Friday nights in spring, and the noise they make has no relationship to their number. LSU has won six College World Series titles — more than any program in the modern era of college baseball — and the people who pack this stadium between February and June understand what that means. Friday night SEC series games sell out. If you want in, you plan ahead. The current stadium opened in 2009, replacing a beloved original that stood since 1938. Both carry the name of Simeon Alex Box, an LSU letterman killed in North Africa during World War II in 1943. The field itself is named for Skip Bertman, the coach who won five of those six national titles. The original Alex Box cost $50,000 to build. The New York Giants held spring training there in 1938 and 1939. On March 12, 1938, the Giants played the first game at the park, defeating the Philadelphia Phillies 6–5. Between 1984 and 2008, the old stadium hosted 18 NCAA Regional Tournaments and 4 Super Regional Series. The final game was played June 9, 2008 — LSU beat UC Irvine 21–7 in Game 3 of the Super Regional. Tyler Hoechlin grounded to pitcher Anthony Ranaudo, who threw to first baseman Buzzy Haydel for the last out. After the stadium was dismantled, its remnants were sold to fans. The new stadium sits 200 yards south of where the original stood, near Skip Bertman Drive on the south side of campus. If you're here in spring and it's a Friday night, you'll know why people kept the bones of the old place.