Baseball players in the Carman area are working on a project to upgrade their baseball diamonds, but the project will cost roughly $1 million.

Carman Minor Ball President Erin Lemky says they offer a number of affordable softball and baseball programs for all ages, and are excited to be receiving a $2,000 grant from Corteva Agriscience, the Agriculture Division of DowDuPont.

"Right now we are at just over $217,000. Our goal is to have $500,000 in place by the end of March. At that point we will move forward and break ground this spring, and start the construction of our 8-diamond ball facility," she says.

There are currently 23 minor sports teams based out of Carman, including ten slow pitch teams, a 55-plus team and the Carman Cardinals which play in the Border Baseball League.

Lemky says,"adding this facility, and replacing the old diamonds, will really give our community ten diamonds to play on, because we'll be keeping the two inside the track."

This will make scheduling significantly easier, it will allow teams to practice on diamonds that better compete with other community's facilities, and also boost the economics of the town. She adds, they hope having a facility with higher safety standards will help them host larger league tournaments.

"The main focus for us is our player safety. So right now we don't have dugouts with player enclosures or proper fencing around the diamonds, so that's a huge factor in why this project needs to move forward," Lemky adds.

Chris Unger, research operations lead with Corteva Agriscience says, "We appreciate and understand how facilities such as ball diamonds bring communities together . . . We are pleased to support Carman Minor Ball in providing local athletes and community members with a safe, modern and accommodating place to play."