Vince Genna Stadium
Originally known as "Municipal Ball Park", it was renamed 52 years ago in June 1972 for Vince Genna (1921–2007), the director of the city's parks & recreation department and former American Legion coach. When minor league baseball returned in 1978 with the Timber Hawks, Genna was an honorary first base coach in their debut game.
The stadium was the longtime home of Bend's minor league teams in the Class A-Short Season Northwest League, and later the Bend Bandits of the Western Baseball League. It is currently the home of the Bend Elks in the collegiate summer West Coast League and has a seating capacity of approximately 3,500.
In the south end of the city, the elevation of the natural grass playing field is approximately 3,700 feet (1,130 m) above sea level and is unconventionally oriented northwest; the recommended alignment of a baseball diamond (home plate to center field) is east-northeast. In 1978, the Timber Hawks had intermissions called "sun breaks" near sundown when the glare was excessive. The Angels cited the need for adequate sun screens in left field (west) as one of the reasons for breaking their affiliation with the Bend Bucks after the 1989 season.
The stadium has hosted affiliates of four major-league teams (Angels, A's, Phillies, and Rockies), four players who made the majors (Brian Barden, Julio Franco, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Eric Sogard), and one future movie star (Kurt Russell played for the Bend Rainbows in 1971).
In 1979, the Central Oregon Phillies paid the Bend Metro Park and Recreation District $9,500 for use of the ballpark for the season. In 1980, the team paid $9,700. In 2008, the Bend Elks led the WCL in league and overall attendance, averaging 1,430 fans at Genna Stadium over 21 league home games. In 2010 Genna Stadium continued to lead the WCL in total and league attendance, along with average game attendance; its record-setting season attendance exceeded 50,000.
In November of 2022, the baseball field underwent a $300,000 renovation which made the infield completely turf.
The field is commonly used for the YouTube Channel “The Baseball Bat Bros” who test out baseball bats for High School and College athletes to see how new baseball bats compare to each other
Northwest League records
| Year | Team | MLB team | Record | Finish | Manager | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Rainbows | none ^ (2 yrs.) |
39–41 | 3rd (t) | Charlie Silvera | |
| 1971 | 42–36 | 3rd | Ed Cecil | |||
| No teams: 1972–1977 (six seasons) | ||||||
| 1978 | Timber Hawks | Athletics | 35–37 | 5th | Ed Nottle | |
| 1979 | Central Oregon Phillies |
Phillies (8 yrs.) |
43–28 | 1st | Tom Harmon | League Champions |
| 1980 | 31–39 | 7th | P. J. Carey | |||
| 1981 | Phillies | 31–39 | 5th | P. J. Carey | ||
| 1982 | 30–40 | 5th | Roly de Armas | |||
| 1983 | 32–37 | 6th | Jay Wild | |||
| 1984 | 38–36 | 4th | Ramón Avilés | |||
| 1985 | 39–35 | 3rd (t) | P. J. Carey | |||
| 1986 | 21–53 | 8th | Ed Pebley | |||
| 1987 | Bucks | Co-op | 33–42 | 5th | Mel Roberts | |
| 1988 | Angels (2 yrs.) |
38–38 | 5th (t) | Don Long | ||
| 1989 | 33–42 | 6th | Don Long | |||
| 1990 | Co-op (2 yrs.) |
29–47 | 8th | Mike Bubalo | ||
| 1991 | 30–46 | 7th | Bill Stein | |||
| 1992 | Rockies | Rockies (3 yrs.) |
43–33 | 1st (t) | Gene Glynn | League finals |
| 1993 | 35–41 | 6th (t) | Howie Bedell | |||
| 1994 | 29–47 | 8th | Rudy Jaramillo | |||
^ The Rainbows were an affiliate of the Hawaii Islanders of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League;
the Islanders' parent clubs were the California Angels (1970), and the San Diego Padres (1971)
Former players
- Bend Bandits players (1995–1998)
- Bend Rockies players (1992–1994)
- Bend Bucks players (1987–1991)
- Bend Phillies players (1981–1986)
- Central Oregon Phillies players (1979–1980)
- Bend Timber Hawks players (1978)
- Bend Rainbows players (1970–1971)