Which Turf Should We Choose For Our New Facility? EP 4. 

In my opinion, it's going to look like turf either way. What does it matter if one looks a little bit less like turf if people will be able to tell? I would look most at reliability, durability, how it plays, and what is easier to maintain.

I have that exact ‘grassy’ turf in my facility. It still looks just as good over a year later since installation. I chose it over the others because of the softer feel of it. It isn’t as harsh on the knees when doing drills/workouts. We are in the process of building a new complex with a new 20,000 sq ft facility, and going with the same ‘grassy’ type turf.

I recommend the shorter turf because I know a facility in Georgia with the thick turf and it is a little flat and worn down. But the biggest problem is that it is very dark in there. The thicker turf tends to be very dark and the last thing you want is to hit in a dungeon. I would also recommend going with a lighter grey because all black will make the facility very dark.

We have the longer grass in a covered outdoor facility and the orange/dirt coloured mat with a plate made of the shorter turf. It works great. The shorter turf will tear up your knees and elbows very abrasive.

The shorter turf is better for hitting areas. If you are going to have a designated fielding area then I'd suggest a turf closer to what you'd find on an outdoor field.

You should take the whole facility and put in an infield. In WA, I work out at a facility with batting cages, pitching cages, two infields and an open turf area.

The one you like less, the more turfy one looks better in my opinion. Been in a lot of facilities that have had something like it and I like the way it feels and plays on ground balls and things like that.

I like the shorter one for a batting cage or a bullpen, but the more grassy one if you have a big open multi sport field house.

In my opinion you should go with the shorter one cus you would not have to replace it for a long time

I like the turf that was on the left (your right). Most of the cages here in North Texas have the turf on my right (your left). I would think the padding is what really matters. Good luck!

Color wise, if you have too much gray / black it will make your space feel closed and uninviting over time. White, light gray, sand, etc will help the space feel more open.

Light green one, the one on the left, or in your right hand. For netting, go see a commercial fisherman, get their old nets and ask him to show you how to to the repairs, they will last forever.

I understand nothing is set in stone as of yet and you’re being cautiously optimistic; however, your excitement is palpable, Coach Antonelli. 🔥

I like the shorter, "longer lasting visually pleasing" turf.

Definitely black/dark walls as much as possible for your hitters and catchers. My least favorite thing about most indoor baseball facilities is difficulty seeing the ball on industrial white and gray walls, especially when catching bullpens

Get the first type, I’ve trained in so many places and the firmer turf always performs better. Getting ground balls feel more true. Less ware and tear over time. And you might get more grip with turfs, the second kind seems as though it could get a little slippery, especially over time. But I’m sure whatever you choose will look cool, can’t wait to see the finished product!

I definitely think the one that wears better is the way to go Matt. I think the look is secondary to the actual wear and tear. Wanted to add this note. The way the turf plays is the number one priority but if that is similar than the wear and tears becomes the next most important part.

Hi Matt, Love the series! I want to bring up everyone's favourite topic.... insurance! What's the process for that?

There is a product which turf & pad are integrated. That one. It comes in 15x75ft rolls

The more grassy looks nicer but I feel like the other stuff is probably more cost effective

Hey Matt What an Exciting time for you and your future facility. I can feel your excitement! I like the deeper green turf. I would recommend which ever provides a thicker pad as well. Or consider adding one. A turf that won’t beat the heck out of your legs and lower back. I like the chain link fence. Nothing beats safety of the non participants. The walls behind the hitter and Batter’s Eye need to be black or green. You have to see the ball. The netting has to be strong. Nothing sucks more than having to repair holes in the hot spots. Usually they’re located along the corner edges and where the net hangs / connects with the wires. But most “Important” is the lighting. It can Never be bright enough. The thicker the netting the more the light gets diffused making it darker than you expected. Nothing’s worse than having a 1st Class Facility and player’s have difficulty picking up the ball, especially during live pitching. I wish you all the best!

I like the shorter turf best

The grass one for sure

Hi Matt! I have sourced turf for baseball equipment in the past, from Chinese factories, and there are basically two variables for turf: the density, and the length of the "grass". The higher the density, the better of course, as more dense turf will last longer. For length, my experience is that longer turf is more slippery. So I would advise to get a meter of both your turfs. make them a little wet and move on it. Sometimes the air humidity is enough to make turf slippery and cause injury on players.

Put skylights all over the roof and to allow for natural light. Roll up garage doors to let fresh air in on good days any go with real grass.

I'm on the west coast. I set up a cage in a warehouse 2 years ago. I can let you know what we used. We used the first one that we showed. It also cleans up better. Challenger Turf in Dalton Georgia had the best price

I used to run the scoreboard for a facility in my area. We had it set up where we could also have 2 small soccer fields going at the same time. We also used it for adult softball. If you do any of these, you might want to invest in 1 or 2 multipurpose scoreboards!

I get that you like the look of the grassy one, but in reality you will hate it once it starts looking trashy. Just get the stuff that is durable and move on.

More grassy looking one. Yeah it wears easier but it’s more aesthetically pleasing and slicker

you should make the building like the arizona dome. so you can roll in and out of the building a real grass field

Extra inning just did turf over this year and it's nice but legends in Peabody has a nice turf that they put a basketball court over it

For the painting you should put in some of your more well known quotes from RU-vid on the walls around the building in the gold if you can. Or even some of your favorite RU-vid comments. All the way from inspirational to self deprecating. And definitely in the entrance the first thing you see is “Hey fellas, Matt Antonelli here” Congrats on the building! Looking forward to watching your brand and coaching grow even more!

We have the grassy turf on my local high schools football field, and the shorter turf in our batting cages and bullpen. The grassy turf always felt a lot better on my body whereas the short turf seemed to hurt my knees catching and walking on.

Whichever one doesn't make the kids smell like they've worked an 8 hour shift in a tire factory after practice.

If you could put your logo in the turf maybe in the center they would look cool. I know some facilities I’ve been to have had thier logos like embedded in the turf and designed out

Good idea for the fencing. Many places do not have that. Regarding turf, does your area have an indoor facility where they host girls' softball tournaments, boys' baseball tournaments, and high school practices? If so, you might want to discuss turf options with those who run the facility. Just a thought.

Do a grey on the walls and you can add a gold logo on the wall, it would look really cool

Have the two turf options been installed anywhere a reasonable distance from your home so you could see how it looks installed and how it wears over time?

I would think you'd want what most closely replicates most upper scale fields. The darker looks more like football turf which might be a bit too thick. The lighter looks like the old Astroturf, painted concrete! From what I've read, polyethylene turf is a mid-priced turf that looks natural. You just have to brush it once in a while. You must have a tractor or riding mower to pull a brush apparatus around the field once a week, right?

As a player and someone who would train at your facility, I would appreciate the grassy turf as it's easier on the body. But I'm not the one paying the big bucks buying and maintaining your turf! I would try to find out how long would the grassy turf hold up considering your traffic. When would you need to re-turf vs the more durable one. If I could justify the potential cost of re-turfing more often, I'd go with the grassy.

short blade in the infield, and long in the outfield, sliding area around the bases and sidelines. Sliding on that long looks nice.

The facility that my son’s team uses has the more natural looking turf throughout but they have smaller mats of the tighter (more durable) turf in high use areas, batters boxes, catchers boxes, etc.

The grassy one looks like it would be better to land on if players are diving and falling hard!

Turf: Go with the one that will be closest to what your players will see in the field. If you're worried about high wear areas, like batters boxes or pitching areas, get extra pieces large enough to cover those spots when you're running batting/pitching practice.

you should visit fields that have these grasses and check it out-- samples can be deceptive

As a ball player, I would much rather take ground balls and feel the grassier one under my feet. It is much more realistic and a lot easier to translate to the field.

I like the more grassy option. Is it possible to put those small rubber pieces in the turf to keep it standing up? Our HS uses the rubber pieces and we just use a push broom after practice and games to redistribute the rubber evenly across the turf, especially near home plate, pitchers mound and 1B.

You want to make sure the facility is light and people can see and has an outdoor bright feel. You can still wear your colors and highlight the trademark but don't paint the place solid black with a few gold flakes here and there. Most of the walls should be lighter. Would be good to have ceiling bright white. Have an accent wall with full regalia/logo inspiration!

I like the grassy turf. I think it will give the facility more of a baseball feel.

Can you do the high use areas like the batter's boxes in the more durable turf and the infield in the more grassy turf?

I would go with the longer since your guys are going to be playing on a similar surface when they play a turf field. I also felt like the ground balls off the shorter turf are a lot less reaslistic and more like they’re bouncing on concrete

Black gray or black and white would look clean

Matt, get the shorter bladed turf. It will look the best over the long term. If you plan on replacing it on a regular basis then that's a non issue. Also, the long blade will wear down and cause paths and grooves. This could be more prone to injuries and ankle rolls as well.

I like the look of a two toned batters box brown and green turf.

I like the real look of the darker green turf

You need to put banners up including any championships that Video Game Matt wins, along with his retired jerseys.

The longer one looks way better

maybe the question is, if it wears which is easier to replace a portion (assuming it can be)

You should go with a light gold color for the walls. Black would just make it took dark

I think you should use the first kind of turf

We have the grassy one at my school and on a hot day it gets HOT!

i say the shorter blade turf. not only is it more durable, i figure it will have fewer bad hops in infield training as it wears compared to the longer blade turf as it starts to wear unevenly. i say maybe paint it a richer color of green as you don't like the green color it has from the factory.

I would go with the shorter turf. Besides holding up better it will also brighten up the place a little if you go with the darker walls. Wear and tear should be the deciding factor in my opinion and you know that there are spots that will get more abuse that others and would need to be replaced sooner with the "greener" turf. Just my 2 cents.

A year from now, you’re not going to care which one you picked. But if one wears worse than the other, that might be an issue compared to the other one. One thing I didn’t hear you mention was how they play. Does the longer turf slow the ball down more or create bad hops? If you want kids to get the same feel as grass that could be important.

get the more durable turf. the shorter nap one

I would pick the turf looking one if it was me since it will stay looking the way it does for longer

Matt, I like the grassier looking one.

Any High Schools near you have the field turf on their football field? IF so see if the AD will let you walk on it to see how it feels.

If the facility is big enough and it's not a burden money wise, maybe design it where you can have whiffle ball games inside. I keep seeing Studio 42 on the MLB Network and imagine a whiffle ball game going on there.

as a player/observer, I'd prefer the grassy one, as the owner, I'd go the more durable

Sometimes you just have to go with the one that feels right I like the grassy one.

A HOF Wall of all the players that played with Your travel team that ended getting scholarships, drafted, etc beyond high school level wound be cool for younger kids practicing and playing for your organization.

I am probably the only person that sets an OVER/UNDER on how many time Matt touches his hat in a video. I think it's about 2 times per minute of video.

Id go with the shorter one bc of the durability and consistent look. Unless theres some way to maintain the shaggier one.

I like the short one better it will still look like turf either way.

As far as the products used to outfit the facility, use what last and wear the best. It will all look good he day you open but what about a year or two. You won't be happy if you have to spend money you don't have for crapy product replacement. As to the colors, what works better for the athlete's playing vision. Think concept of the batter's eye in a stadium. what's best for teaching, not your ego. Good luck

Facility looks like a awesome project. Ps.. I add this to any comment or tweet. When will that hoodie be available

Is the Grassy turf going to wear down before the lease is up?

I like turf with less bounce. Infield drills are more realistic imo. The loose grass looking one would probably be better for that.

I'd go with the turf that lasts longer the shorter one.

Matt think about how the ball will come off the turf, over time I think the taller turf will skip differently.

Go with the tighter, lighter colored turf. 100%

Do either of the turf surfaces require maintenance? If so, how often and how much time? Which turf plays more like real grass for infield practice? Like most companies, consider all of these factors...then buy the cheapest one! 🤣 Best of luck with this endeavor!

Nit sure if I missed it, but how long are you signing the lease for? If it's not long-term, I wouldn't spend a ton on turf.

Definitely the more “grassy one” other one hurts way more on the skin when u slid gives way more gives more turf burns etc

How does the ball play on it? Faster on one than the other?

Matt, are you watching the Caribbean series?

We're building a new field as well and trying to decide what's best for our wiffle league.

Dark colors for the walls so everyone can see the balls easily.

Are you guys gonna put in a weight room?

I mean, it's tuff. It's gonna look like turf. I'd go with the more durable stuff.

I'd go with the turf that is least likely for players to get their turfs hung up on reducing chances of rolled ankles

You definitely need to get a larger piece (maybe 5' x 5') that you can do a little training on to see how they both *feel* Buy the one that feels better to train on.

The shorter one is the one you should go for. The other one will wear and you won't like it in the long term

Matt, Turf is very expensive. Get the best one you can you won’t regret it.

How is the ball going to react? Some of the turf's cause the ball to bounce way too much. You don't want a turf that causes baseballs to give huge hops all the time.

please go with the one that lasts longer. You will regret it if you don't once you see it wearing out. That's just my opinion.

Use the more durable turf Matt. Forget the aesthetics.

No turf, grass and dirt is the best

why don't you go look at the two installation examples with a little age on them? Serious money here; you want to like it in three years too.