Ex-White Sox Pitcher Donn Pall Impressed With New EPCHS Fields

EVERGREEN PARK, IL – Donn Pall, a former World Series-winning pitcher who played for the Chicago White Sox and graduated from Evergreen Park Community High School, was back on the campus of his alma mater on Tuesday to see the school’s new state-of-the-art baseball and softball fields.

Pall, a 1980 EPCHS alum, was “amazed” by the new fields that unofficially debuted in the spring and were unveiled to the Evergreen Park community nearly a month ago, EPCHS Superintendent Tom O’Malley said.

“We invited him out, and it was great to see him back on campus,” O’Malley said.

After excelling at EPCHS and in college baseball at the University of Illinois, Pall spent 11 seasons in Major League Baseball, pitching for the White Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs and Florida Marlins. He was a member of the 1997 World Series championship Marlins team.

The new EPCHS athletic fields, products of Midwest Sport and Turf Systems, were made with a particular focus on the safety of EPCHS student athletes. A shock pad was installed under the field, and a wood infill manufactured by Brock USA was also installed to maximize safety and performance.

The Brock infill turf is a natural product, southern yellow pine, that absorbs moisture. The infilled turf over a quality shock pad can reach player safety ranges often only found in natural grass.

This infill also allows for greater natural ball bounce and playability, and provides a cooler playing surface than rubber infills by up to 40 degrees.

EPCHS baseball and softball teams will play their first full seasons on the new surface this upcoming spring.