Photo by Eric Hasman, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 3.00
Oil City Stadium 1700 119th St Whiting, IN 46394
Year Opened: 2011 Capacity: 1,100
Oil City Stadium: Home of the Northwest Indiana Oilmen
Oil City Stadium, built on land donated by Standard Oil Refinery, celebrates Whiting's history as a refinery town for the past 120 years. It was built on the site of a former water filtration plant and Little League fields. Completed in 2011, the $8.5 million structure is home to the Northwest Indiana Oilmen (Midwest Collegiate League, now known as the Northern League), Whiting Oilers and Calumet College baseball teams. The stadium holds 1,100 fans.
The exterior of the stadium is a red brick. The left field wall is 300 feet from home plate and is approximately 25’ tall with a 30-foot scoreboard. The other dimensions are 373’ to the power alleys, 403’ to center field and 330’ to right field.
The League changed its name in 2022 from the Midwest Collegiate League to the Northern League. It is a college summer collegiate baseball league. The Oilmen won the Midwest Collegiate League Championship three times: 2012, 2016 and 2018 and lost in the Championship in 2013, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. In 2023, the Oilmen won the Northern League Championship. In addition, the Oilmen have had 12 consecutive winning seasons and eight straight postseason appearances.
Tickets are $6 for lawn seating, $8 for preferred seating (aluminum bench seating) and $10 for box seats.
Food & Beverage 3
The menu is traditional baseball fare with the walking taco, soft pretzels, pizza, hot dogs, grilled chicken, cheeseburger, bratwurst, nachos / loaded nachos and Sloppy Joe with costs ranging from $4 to $6. They also have chips, popcorn, sunflower seeds and candy for $2 to $3. The concession prices here are great. A bonus is that the hamburgers, brats and chicken are cooked fresh on a grill.
They have fountain soda for $3 and Gatorade in bottles for $3. There is coffee and hot chocolate for $3.
Beer is $5/can and includes Miller / Coors products. The Oilmen also sell a local draft beer from Bulldog Brewery and Hard Seltzer for $5.
Atmosphere 3
One of the first things you will notice is that there is no big video board, simply an older digital scoreboard in left field.
The stadium interior features three rows of box seating, nine rows of aluminum bench seating and raised lawn seating. Down the left field line is a medium-sized grass berm area, which is an area where you can stand, lay down or even sit on a lawn chair that you can bring in and watch the game without a net being in your way. Lastly, a small press box is located behind home plate.
The Oilmen have two (2) mascots: “Stan the Oilman” who is readily available for most of the game and “Lucky” the Unicorn. Not sure why Lucky is there but I like it.
There is no kids area but on the third base side, behind the stands, there is a grass area where kids can play catch.
The “gift shop” consists of a tent with a table with some t-shirts and hats with a surprisingly good selection.
If you need to be constantly entertained by on-field between-inning entertainment or you need big giveaways this is not the place for you because there are very few between-inning promotions.
Neighborhood 3
Oil City Stadium is located within a residential neighborhood.
There are plenty of independent restaurants and bakeries in the area. Several restaurants and a micro brewery are about two to four blocks west of the stadium. Dos Sabores is a good Mexican restaurant, but it is only open from 8am to 4pm. Bulldog Brewery has lots of different in house beers and some reasonably priced good food. The Center Lounge offers up some good food (my favorites are the Lake Perch or Corned beef) at reasonable prices. Also, the Winey Beach Café (Caribbean and American food) has good seafood and drinks. Lastly, right across the street from the ballpark is the Whihala Ice Cream shop.
The closest hotels (mostly chains) are about two miles southwest from the stadium.
Wolf Lake and the Wolf Lake Pavilion are located approximately 10 minutes from the ballpark. Wolf Lake has walking / bike trails and boating, kayaking, fishing, windsurfing and a full host of outdoor recreational activities. The lake is a great place to see a variety of birds. The Wolf Lake Pavilion stages free concerts on Saturdays during the summer. In addition, there are festivals there too.
Fans 2
The fans who show up have a good time watching the game. The Oilmen actually led the Northern League in attendance every year since the stadium opened with an average reported attendance of approximately 800. There rarely are 800 people in the stands. Buying tickets in advance is not necessary.
At this stadium, you will find lots of parents of the players and host families. There are some locals but not a lot of kids at the games. Unfortunately, there just aren't enough fans in attendance to create much of an electric atmosphere.
Access 2
Oil City Stadium is located on 119th Street in Whiting, Indiana about one mile north of the intersection of Route 41 and 119th St. Getting to the park is, at times, tedious. The stadium is located approximately 9 miles north of Route 41 (Calumet Ave.) and Interstate 94. The stadium is approximately 3 miles south of intersection of intersection of Interstate 90 and Route 41.
Public transportation is not an option. Free parking is available on the adjacent streets but there isn't a lot of it.
Of course, I would not suggest parking on the street outside the stadium due to foul balls hitting cars. Go a bit down the block or in the grass parking lot.
Return on Investment 4
The price of the tickets, concessions, free parking and people make this place worth visiting and a great deal.
Extras 4
About one block away is the home of the Mascot Hall of Fame which opened in December 2018 and is basically a children’s museum. Regularly, the HOF will have guest mascots from throughout the country. Unfortunately, there is talk of the Hall of Fame closing in December (2024).
In addition, at night games when the sun goes down, the oil refinery lights go on and the center field view looks like a bustling downtown area. It’s kinda cool.
Approximately 1.5 miles north of the stadium is the Horseshoe Casino. Of course, it is open 24 hours a day. If gambling is your thing, a trip to the casino is in order.
If you sit in the third base side - the last row, when a foul ball is hit out of the park, stand up and see if it hits a car.
Lastly, one of the coolest features (and attention to detail) is that the doors at the stadium have baseball bat handles.
Final Thoughts
You can’t go wrong with the prices or the people at Oil City Stadium. While the league is small and the play on the field is ok (play has been improving each year), I would definitely put this stadium on the must-see list. Oil City Stadium is a great little stadium.