California State University, Bakersfield’s baseball field recently received a major upgrade thanks to donor support.
Last week, Hardt Field was outfitted with new blue padding as part of facility upgrades for the Athletics Department, which is being funded through a $100,000 gift from the Bynum family.
The gift is part of a $1.25 million total commitment from the family to support meaningful enhancements to both academics and athletics at CSUB.
“The Bynum family has been making a difference for the university and the Athletics Department for many years. I would like to thank them for their continued generosity. We would not be where we are today if it were not for them,” said Athletics Director Kenneth “Ziggy” Siegfried. “We are still in the early years of our baseball program, and it is critical that we continue to upgrade our facilities to build our program. The generous commitment by the Bynum family is allowing us to continue to show progress at Hardt Field with premier blue padding for both aesthetics and safety.”
The gift from the Bynum family supports the university’s first-ever comprehensive fundraising campaign, which was publicly announced in 2021. The goal of the campaign is to raise $55 million by July 2024 to transform the university.
Greg Bynum said he and his wife Mary — both CSUB alumni and owners of the local real estate company Bynum, Inc. — are excited to be able to give back to the university and provide support to the Athletics Department.
“The padding will help with the important function of improving player safety when they make plays at the wall,” Bynum said. “Without the padding, the players have to worry about potentially running into a fence post while trying to catch a fly ball.”