It’s been a busy offseason for National Sports Services, first winning a bid in Lafayette (IN) for a rebuilt Loeb Stadium lease and now purchasing a Prospect League expansion team for Sargent’s Stadium at the Point in Johnstown, PA.
Sargent’s Stadium at the Point, of course, is the former Point Stadium, which opened in 1926 and has hosted various MiLB, independent-baseball and amateur teams throughout the years. Alas, there’s no much remaining of that original Point Stadium: most of the original ballpark was demolished in 2005 and $11 million in renovations led to the opening of the current Sargent’s Stadium at the Point for the 2006 All-American Amateur Baseball Association (AAABA) tournament. It features some unique dimensions, to be sure: 290 feet down the left-field line, 290 feet down the line in right field, 409 feet in center field and 395 feet in right-center field. In left field you’ll find a 60-foot-high wall and screen.
The Johnstown Franchise will be owned and operated by Johnstown Family Entertainment, with the principals being National Sports Services, which also owns the Gastonia Grizzlies and the Wilmington Sharks of the summer-collegiate Coastal Plain League as well as the aforementioned Lafayette Aviators. NSS’s Matt Perry is also serving as president of the Kansas City T-Bones (independent; American Association).
“We look forward to bringing an exceptional family experience to the Greater Johnstown Region,” said Bill Davidson, President of Johnstown Family Entertainment. “Our goal is to put on such a good show that folks may almost forget they are watching some of the best college players in the country on the field.”
“The City of Johnstown is excited to welcome the Prospect League to the City,” John Dubansky, City of Johnstown Community and Economic Development Director, proudly added. “Johnstown’s rich baseball history, combined with the Prospect League’s rich baseball history, experience and national recognition, will be a great partnership in our community. We look forward to a bright future with the Prospect League.”
The addition of a Johnstown team as well as an Alton (IL) team for the 2021 season puts the Prospect League lineup at 14 teams.
Photo courtesy Johnstown/Cambria County Convention & Visitors Bureau.