By Raya Torres
When the average baseball fan walks into the stadium for a game, they first notice the field. They admire the view for about 10 seconds and possibly take a scenic photo.
For groundskeepers like Rene Garcia, that brief moment of appreciation is everything.
Behind every pristine field is the tireless grounds crew who spent hours at the field before the first player arrived for batting practice.
Rene Garcia drives a small tractor with a nail drag on the infield dirt before the Long Beach State Dirtbags game against the Cal State Northridge Matadors on April 16, 2023. Photo credit: Raya Torres
Garcia, the former field manager of Blair Field, the home stadium of the Long Beach State Dirtbags baseball team, knows about the struggle of being underappreciated despite maintaining a professional-looking field.
For 22 years, the 50-year-old made lasting impacts on countless fields, ranging from rebuilding the mounds of high school fields to working at major league ballparks.
In 2016, Garcia started working at Blair Field while simultaneously working at Dodger Stadium and the MLB Youth Academy in Compton. For seven years, Garcia invested his heart and soul into making Blair Field one of the best collegiate baseball fields.
“Working at the pro level and coming down to college, I know what it takes to have a great field,” Garcia said. “I thought, well if we do this at the pro level, let’s do it at the college level and treat the student-athletes the same way.”
At the start of 2023, the MLB Youth Academy did not renew Garcia’s contract. Despite Garcia’s desire to stay in Long Beach, working solely for the Dodgers and at Blair Field was not enough to financially support his family.
He eventually accepted the position of athletics field director at California State University Northridge (CSUN), where he supervises the maintenance of five fields – baseball, softball, football, soccer and track and field. The position provides him with better pay, feasible work hours and a shorter commute between work and his West Covina home.
Leaving Long Beach was heartbreaking, but it was ultimately the best decision.
“There were a lot of local Long Beach residents that messaged me on Instagram and asked, ‘Hey, why are you leaving?’” Garcia said. “I explained that I got a family to provide for and bills to pay, and I couldn’t do that with just the pay here. Some replied with, ‘Please stay!’”
Dirtbags head coach, Eric Valenzuela, misses Garcia’s presence at Blair, but he understands the importance of making sacrifices for family.
“It’s definitely a change,” Valenzuela said. “It’s sad because we liked him, and we felt that the field was obviously in tip-top shape all the time. We miss him, but we understand that he had to move forward.”
Ever since Valenzuela joined the baseball program in June 2019, Garcia sat in Valenzuela’s office every morning and discussed the agenda for the day. Garcia scheduled field maintenance around the team’s practices.
Head coach Eric Valenzuela (L) of the Long Beach State Dirtbags talks to Rene Garcia (R) before the game between the Long Dirtbags and Cal State Northridge Matadors on April 16, 2023. Photo credit: Raya Torres
Garcia often asked coaches and players if they were comfortable on the field. He consulted whether the clay on the mound or behind home plate was too hard or soft, or if the grass was cut the right length so the ball rolled at the right speed.
“I know he put a lot of pride and a lot of effort into this field and this program,” Valenzuela said. “I’m sure that was pretty difficult for him to leave, and the guys really like him. They know that he put in a lot of hours and hard work into their facility.”
Dirtbags catcher, Connor Burns, described Garcia’s departure as bittersweet.
“Knowing that he has other opportunities elsewhere and how good he is at what he does, it sucks to see him leave,” Burns said. “He does a hell of a job. I mean, the field is, in my opinion, probably one of the best in the country collegiate-wise. It might even be compared to some professional stadiums too.”
The junior says that after practice, the team does field maintenance such as dragging the infield, doing slight mound repairs, sweeping dirt off the clay in the catcher’s box, and getting clumps of clay and dirt off the grass.
These small tasks save valuable time for the grounds crew, who continue working after players leave.
“Rene was always [at the field] all the time, so if we could take any little bit of time away, he didn’t have to spend another hour trying to do that by himself,” Burns said.
Fellow Dodgers groundskeeper, Kris Castaneda, inherited the field manager position at Blair Field upon Garcia’s departure. The 36-year-old is grateful that Garcia connected Castaneda with the Dodgers field manager during a fateful Dodgers game 15 years ago.
The following season, Castaneda began his career at Dodger Stadium.
“I always tell Rene that I’m thankful and appreciative of him because he’s the one that started me in this career,” Castaneda said. “To see his dedication, his grittiness and his hard work really encouraged me to make my work ethic that way.”
Rene Garcia (R) talks with Kris Castaneda (L) while Castaneda waters the infield dirt before the Long Beach State Dirtbags game against the Cal State Northridge Matadors on April 16, 2023. Photo credit: Raya Torres
Field maintenance requires much more than watering a large patch of grass.
Like scientists, groundskeepers must understand chemical compositions, photosynthesis and soil science to ensure that athletes of any age or skill set can safely play high-impact sports on every inch of the field.
Many groundskeepers work full-time, but the low pay requires them to take several jobs to make a decent living.
Mike Tarantino, a Sports Turf Managers Association representative, says that groundskeepers are often overlooked, even by people within the sports industry.
“All they think of us is that we’re grass cutters,” Tarantino said. “They have no idea of what’s entailed in making that grass look like it’s a freshly rolled out piece of carpet that you put in your living room.”
Garcia regards himself as a ‘glorified gardener’ and uses this as his Instagram handle. Hoping to bring awareness to his work, he proudly posts pictures of his fields.
Though Garcia has yet to upload more photos of the CSUN fields he oversees, Jeremy Hassel, the Director of Operations for the CSUN Matadors baseball team, says Garcia has changed their baseball field dramatically.
“The work that Rene’s been putting in over these past two months has made it so we have a more consistent surface,” Hassel said. “Our guys are able to get a better read on everything and so are the other teams that come in. It’s a better game. A more consistent game.”
Rene Garcia (L) is greeted by Jeremy Hassel (R), the baseball director of operations of the Cal State Northridge Matadors before their game against the Long Beach State Dirtbags on April 16, 2023. Photo credit: Raya Torres
Hassel says CSUN’s athletics culture is changing, and Garcia’s addition will help elevate the quality of the school’s facilities.
“We’re starting to embody more of a winning culture, and there’s no better way to do it than to keep hiring people whose standard is up there also,” Hassel said. “We all know that Rene’s done a great job at Long Beach with their field, and we want our playing surfaces to be up to par with the rest of the conference.”
On April 16, 2023, the Dirtbags and Matadors wrapped up their three-game series at Blair Field. Garcia arrived four hours early to help Castaneda with pregame field preparations and reconnect with the coaches, players and fans who knew him.
Before heading to Long Beach, Garcia debated on whether he should wear CSUN or Long Beach cap.
Garcia chose a blue Dodgers cap to stay impartial.
Before the game between the Long Beach State Dirtbags and Cal State Northridge Matadors, Rene Garcia debated on what cap he should wear to the field. He chose a neutral blue Dodgers cap. Photo credit: Raya Torres
Garcia is still adjusting to his closet filling up with black and red attire that sports the CSUN logo. But, in the corner of his garage sits two black bags filled to the brim with black and yellow Long Beach State clothes.
His son asks if he can borrow or give some of the caps, t-shirts, hoodies or sweatshirts to friends who want to attend Long Beach State.
Garcia refuses.
He won’t let go of the black and yellow clothes just yet. Because despite everything, he wonders if he will use them again.
