Finch trades glove for hard-hat at Bandits stadium groundbreaking

Jennie Finch prefers to say that she chose to hang up her cleats last summer retiring at age 29 just doesn't sound right.

But that doesn't mean fastpitch softball's most recognizable player is ending her relationship with the Chicago Bandits, especially now that her former team is gearing up to play in its very own stadium.

Finch traded in her bat and glove for a hard-hat and gold shovel in Rosemont Friday where she joined Mayor Brad Stephens, village trustees, project leaders and adoring fans to help break ground on the team's new ballpark.

“This stadium will give us the platform to showcase what a great game this is,” said Finch, one of the game's all-time most dominant pitchers. “It's exciting to finally have stable roots and a true home.”

Rosemont officials and the Bandits, 2008 champions of the four-team National Pro Fastpitch league, are confident easy access to the stadium near Bryn Mawr Avenue and Pearl Street will help boost attendance.

Finch said it was difficult for the team to leave its fan base after three years at Benedictine University in Lisle for Judson University in Elgin, which she called a beautiful place but off the beaten path.

Elgin backed out of its pledge to build a new stadium due to declining attendance and budget woes, prompting Bandits owner Bill Sokolis to consider other options. The team's average attendance fell from 1,500 in Lisle to about 600 a game the past three years in Elgin.

Plus, Sokolis said, Judson is a dry campus and the allure of a cold beer on a hot summer night at the new stadium will add to the fan experience.

Rosemont is spending about $6 million to build the facility, expected to be completed in spring 2011. Future expansion plans call for several adjacent fields and a youth academy.

Married for five years to professional baseball player Casey Daigle, who pitched in 12 games last season for the Houston Astros, Finch said she's ready for their 4-year-old son, Ace, to have a baby brother or sister.

The Olympic gold medalist expects to play in the occasional exhibition game and is in talks to become part-owner of the Bandits. She's hopeful young women will watch the Bandits and become inspired to play sports, which she says improve self-esteem and teach teamwork, leadership, discipline and sacrifice.

“These women are not only the best players in the world, they're role models,” Finch said. “Come out and I guarantee you'll want to dream big and aspire to be something.”