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Phillies unveil Urban Youth Academy field

Dick Allen, the former Phillie and seven-time all-star, looked at the plush baseball field at FDR Park with pride and a little envy.

The Phillies' Chase Utley (left) and Demetrius Jennings in 2010, unveiling a sign for the academy. (DAVID MAIALETTI / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
The Phillies' Chase Utley (left) and Demetrius Jennings in 2010, unveiling a sign for the academy. (DAVID MAIALETTI / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)Read more

Dick Allen, the former Phillie and seven-time all-star, looked at the plush baseball field at FDR Park with pride and a little envy.

"It means a lot to see this," Allen said, speaking at the new field near the sports complex. "When I was young, I would have loved to have had a chance like this, but more importantly I am really pleased for the youth and our city."

The Phillies MLB Urban Youth Academy, a project that had been years in the making, officially opened Thursday. The new field is an addition to the existing Ashburn Baseball Field and two girls' softball fields.

Also, a 7,500-square-foot indoor facility will be added to the Marian Anderson Recreation Center at 740 South 17th St. to create a new baseball and softball training center. Ground will be broken later in the summer and the project is expected to be completed by November.

The projects are supported by Major League Baseball, the Phillies, the Baseball Tomorrow Fund, the city, and the state.

According to Michael DiBerardinis, the deputy mayor for environmental and community resources, the new outdoor field cost $1.8 million and the indoor facility is expected to cost $2.5 million.

At the Urban Youth Academy, free, year-round instruction will be provided to players in the Phillies' Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities program. Educational programs such as SAT preparation and tutoring also will be provided.

Philadelphia is the fifth city to open an Urban Youth Academy. The others are in Compton Calif., Cincinnati, Houston, and New Orleans.

Among the other baseball dignitaries attending the ceremony were Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard and his wife, Krystle, Phillies chairman David Montgomery, Phillies president Pat Gillick, general manager Ruben Amaro Jr., former player Gary Matthews, and Mahlon Duckett, the last surviving member of the Philadelphia Stars of the Negro leagues.

"This is a great thing that is happening," said Duckett, 92. "Kids need a place to play and it's great for them, and they get to enjoy playing on such a nice field."

How nice?

"I can't remember a minor-league field like this," Matthews said. "This will provide incentive to kids, to get to play on plush fields like this."