The baseball field at Founders Park will have a new name when the 2025 season begins, according to the University of South Carolina (USC).
The university announced Friday they would be giving the Gamecock baseball field at Founders Park a new name: “Ray Tanner Field.”
The decision was made possible after a group of Gamecock Athletics donors gave a combined $2.5 million for the naming to take place. It is the first USC athletics competition surface to be named after a former coach or student athlete.
Tanner, who served as head baseball coach from 1996 to 2012, led the Gamecocks’ baseball team for 16 seasons. The team appeared in the College World Series six times under Tanner’s leadership, winning NCAA championships in 2010 and 2011 and finishing as national runners-up in 2002 and 2012.
Under Tanner, the USC baseball program set records for both consecutive NCAA Tournament wins and CWS wins, claiming 22 and 12 wins between 2010 and 2012 respectively.
“The accomplishments that I have been a part of at the University of South Carolina is due to the wonderful support of our University administration, Gamecock student-athletes, coaches, staff and fans,” said Tanner. “This is a tremendous gesture from my friends and donors. I am grateful for their commitment to this project. Our baseball program is one of the best in the nation and will continue to compete for championships as we begin the Paul Mainieri era at USC.”
In 2012, Tanner became Athletics Director for the university. Under his leadership, the athletics department won four national championships: the women‘s equestrian team in 2015, and the women’s basketball team in 2017, 2022, and 2024.
In September, USC announced Tanner would be moving from his role as Athletics Director to become Athletics Director Emeritus and Senior Advisor to President Michael Amiridis.
A ceremony dedicating the field to Tanner is scheduled to take place Feb. 14-16, 2025 during the opening weekend of the 2025 baseball season.
“Founders Federal Credit Union is thrilled to learn that Coach Ray Tanner will be honored with the Ray Tanner Field at Founders Park,” said Bruce Brumfield, President and CEO of Founders Federal Credit Union. “It is a privilege for Founders Park to be associated in any way with Coach Tanner and his legacy. Coach Tanner has served the University of South Carolina with integrity and devotion, and no one deserves this honor more.”
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