PHOENIX — For nearly 20 years, Brandon Isbell has been one of the groundskeepers for the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field.
“I've been with the Diamondbacks for 19 seasons. A job entails prepping the field for the team on a daily basis, getting the field ready, make sure it's playable. The ball hops very well. It's aesthetically pleasing to the fans. That's my day-to-day operation,” said Isbell to ABC15 in an interview.
With pride, dedication, and passion, Isbell fulfills his childhood dream on this Valley baseball field, taking over last season as the head groundskeeper.
“My favorite thing working on the field is how to maintain it for the players, make sure the ball plays true every day. It's also the fan experience; it takes me back to when I was a kid and I walked into a baseball stadium- I got to see the field. It was just part of the experience for me growing up,” shared Isbell.
For Isbell, maintaining the field for top playing conditions is his main responsibility.
“I grew to love the job, taking care of the field, maintaining the field, being a little bit of a part of a team. Anything I can do to help the team is my priority,” said Isbell. “This is my dream job, yeah, I've been doing it for 19 seasons here.”
Over the years, Chase Field has become much more than a ballpark- it has strived to become a world-class music venue as well. The ballpark has hosted some of the biggest names in the business and transformed itself even more to bring in college bowl games.
For Isbell, continuing to maintain the field for top playing conditions is very important.
“So, if we have extra events out here with flooring, you have to make sure that the field is prepped and ready for that, and then when that is done, we have to take care of the field. We have to come back and make sure the dirt has moisture and is playable for our players,” explained Isbell. “It's a lot of meticulous work with the dirt, making sure everything is nice and smooth out here and the ball is playing true every time it hops on the field."
TRUTH BEHIND THE TURF
In 2019 Chase Field installed synthetic grass. Although the maintenance may appear easier, there’s still a lot of work to be done.
“The surface that we play on is a synthetic playing surface. It has an organic infill. It's just coconut and cork sand, and we have to water it. We do run sprinklers on it to kind of knock the dust down and clean the fibers on it. It also affects the playability of the ball when we put water on it, so we try to keep it clean with sprinklers. So one thing people may not know is we actually have sprinklers in our synthetic surface,” explained Isbell, who says fans could also be surprised to learn how dirty the field can get and how much work it takes to keep it looking great.
“ We have three different types of dirt on the playing surface. So, where the pitchers throw on the mound and home plate is a clay, where the infielders play is a different kind of dirt than the warning track, the warning track also a different kind of dirt. And how moisture interacts with [those] dirt surfaces is different, so you have to kind of maintain them all a little bit differently,” Isbell explained.
![“It takes a team […] we've got a great staff that puts in a ton of effort and a ton of time. We're always adjusting our schedules to take care of the team, not only the home team, visiting team, whatever's going on out here if it's an extra event. So, I got a great staff that's very dedicated to the meticulous work that we have to do to make sure that this field plays great every day, looks great every day. So, I give all the credit to them. They put in a lot of effort and put in the time,” said Isbell to ABC15.](https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1c1c927/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3402x1792+0+0/resize/1280x674!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fewscripps-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F97%2F79%2F30e9846c45e18bebe66c4db6f78b%2Fscreenshot-2025-03-26-at-4-50-02-pm.png)
There’s also a lot of dirt measuring.
“When we build the pitcher’s mound, the mound has to be set 10 inches high, and for every foot you go in front of the pitching rubber, it drops one inch. The league maintains that standard throughout the year, so we have to constantly measure the slope on the pitching mound to make sure that it's correct,” said Isbell.
FIELD OF MEMORIES
For nearly 20 years, Isbell has worked on the Arizona Diamondbacks’ field, inevitably becoming a part of fans’ Opening Day tradition and memories.
“It's pretty special if you think about it. There's a lot of memories that get made at baseball fields. There's a lot of memories for me here [at Chase Field]. I met my wife here. This place is very special to me, and it always will be. So, I feel like the moments that you have when you're at the games you always remember [… and] that's what makes coming to the ballpark so special,” shared Isbell.
Isbell says the team’s 2023 playoff run had some of the most unforgettable games he witnessed and played a small part in.
“When we were in the World Series, all those games were very memorable, just the energy in the air and how much it meant every game. Being in the playoffs is always special, and those are moments that you'll never forget,” shared Isbell.
If you're heading to the 2025 Diamondbacks opening weekend at Chase Field to create your own memories, we have created a full guide for you.
