You want to see Foresters baseball, right? You’ve been waiting for months! Well, we’ve got the 2024 times and we’ve got the place . . . but with a twist. Opening Day will be Sunday, June 9 at 2 pm against the Ventura Pirates. Make your plans to join us, but instead of Pershing Park, we’ll be at Santa Barbara High School’s historic Eddie Mathews Field on Canon Perdido Street. Pershing remains the Foresters’ permanent home, but all twenty of our 2024 home games will be played at SBHS. It’s a one-season change, but we know our loyal fans will follow us across town this summer.
The Foresters look forward to returning to Pershing Park in 2025. In the meantime, we play at the home of the Dons. The 2024 schedule includes 10 Saturday or Sunday games, plus some new teams that have never played here before, including the San Diego SunRays and San Diego Bombers. (PS: Don’t worry, we still get a chance to beat the Oaks and the Blues!) Non-Sunday games will begin at 4:30 pm, while Sundays will be the traditional 2 pm start. We’ve also got the traditional July 4 game vs the Blues at 4:30 pm.
“We love playing at Pershing Park and are grateful to the City of Santa Barbara and the Parks and Recreation department for working with us to play at Pershing every summer since 2017,” said manager Bill Pintard. “But because of the late rains this Spring, we will not have enough time to renovate the field in time for our upcoming season. We have been able to accomplish this in past, but the additional rainfall, combined with the fact that the California Collegiate League is starting its season a week early, there just isn’t time.”
Eddie Mathews Field, on Canon Perdido Street between Salsipuedes and Olive, is home to the Santa Barbara High Dons. It was named for a famous alumnus who became a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1978 after slugging 511 homers in 17 Major League seasons (1952–68). At Mathews Field this summer, Foresters fans will find comfortable seating, a concession stand, and the team’s great taco truck from El Camino Catering. Season tickets will be available as usual, with single-game tickets purchased at the gate. All games will be on local radio and streaming online, and fans from near and far can once again follow play-by-play action on Pointstreak. Details on those links will be posted soon. Information about parking options will also be posted here and on social media.
“We consider ‘the Perzh’ to be our home field, and it is our desired place to play,” added Pintard, who has won more than 1,100 games as the team’s manager since 1995. “Our fans enjoy riding their bikes down to the magnificent waterfront to catch our games. And we are certainly very grateful to the City of Santa Barbara, especially the Parks and Recreation department and to Santa Barbara City College for providing us a home at Pershing. For 2024, we thank Santa Barbara High School for helping us out and providing us a great place to play.
“No matter where we play,” added Pintard, “we’ll be doing all we can to make Santa Barbara and all of our tremendous fans, sponsors, and supporters proud.”
The Foresters’ full 2024 schedule, along with season and game-ticket information, can be found HERE.
