| "........One of greater Boston's best sporting Venues." |
| - Maureen Mullen |
 |
You’re Part of History!
Welcome to Fraser Field, home of the North Shore Navigators. This season marks the 70th year of exciting baseball at this historic field in Lynn. In that time this stadium has seen professional, semi-professional, high school, and now collegiate league baseball. Fraser has also played host to the game's legends and Hall of Famers, and welcomed fans of all ages.
Fraser Field was built in 1940 by the Works Progress Administration as part of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal. The field saw history early in its existence when, in 1946, the Nashua Dodgers came to town as the first racially integrated team in the United States to face the Lynn Red Sox, Tom Yawkey’s Class A franchise and the park's first residents. The Dodgers brought with them future Hall of Famer Roy Campanella, whose first professional home run was also the first in this stadium. Ted Williams and Johnny Pesky also made appearances here at Fraser, playing with the Boston Red Sox in exhibition games.
For a year, the Lynn Tigers played at Fraser Field, the minor league version of their Detroit counterparts. The Tigers only lasted one season, and when they left in 1949, so did minor league baseball in Lynn for the next 31 years.
It wasn't until 1980, when Mike Agganis, nephew of local legend Harry Agganis, purchased the Lynn Sailors, that minor league baseball returned to Fraser Field. The farm team affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, in just two seasons the team sent sixteen players to the Major Leagues, including Spike Owen, who went to the World Series with the Red Sox in 1986, two-time All-Star Harold Reynolds, and Bud Black, who spent 15 years in the game and now is manager of the San Diego Padres.
In 1983, the Pittsburgh Pirates acquired the franchise and the team became the Lynn Pirates. The final Pirates game was a playoff loss to the New Britain Red Sox, where they were shut out on three hits and struck out ten times by a pitcher named Roger Clemens. It was the last minor league appearance for the Rocket before he was called up to Boston.
Following the Pirates' departure after one season, Fraser Field saw another hiatus from professional baseball until George "Boomer" Scott managed the Massachusetts Mad Dogs in 1996. The Mad Dogs were not affiliated with a major league team, and the organization actually played in a different league in each of its three years of existence.
Through it all, the park has been home to countless games involving the various Lynn high schools. One of those was the only perfect game in Fraser Field history, pitched by Mike Pazik in June of 1968. Lynn English beat Haverhill 8-0, with Pazik striking out 18 of the 21 batters he faced. Fraser Field has also seen seven high school no-hitters and has been the site of several state titles for Lynn teams, most recently consecutive victories by St. Mary's in 1986 and 1987.
In 2003, the stadium got a facelift in preparation for its newest tenants – the North Shore Spirit of the Can-Am League. Over $2 million dollars went into renovating the facility, including new field box seats and an artificial turf infield. While the stadium became more modern, the old-time feel of the park was kept intact, including the bare-back bleachers and the cantilevered roof that overhangs the upper sections of seating.
The Spirit played five successful and entertaining years here in Lynn, but moved on in 2007, a year before the Navigators came to town, bringing some of the best college players along with them in the New England Collegiate Baseball League.
We encourage you to walk around the park and enjoy its modern amenities, as well as its nostalgic charm. As they begin the 70th season of baseball here at Fraser Field, the North Shore Navigators will add another chapter to the storied history of this ballpark. Thanks for being a part of it.
Location: 375 Western Avenue - Lynn, MA 01904
Broke Ground: 1940
Opened: June 18, 1940
Renovated: 2003
Owner: City of Lynn, Massachusetts
Surface: (Infield) Synthetic Pro Grass, (Outfield) Natural Grass
Construction Cost: $210,000.00
Capacity: 3,804
Field Dimensions: LF - 330/ CF - 400/ RF - 335
