How to Top Dress Baseball Fields

One of the entertaining parts of watching a professional baseball game is when the grounds crew comes out in the fifth inning to drag the infield. This process is necessary to keep the infield in top playing shape. The grounds crew works on the infield when the game is over, too. One of their chores is to top dress the skinned, or dirt, areas of the field, which includes the infield, base paths, home plate area, pitcher's mound and outfield warning track. Top dressing requires the use of conditioner, such as vitrified clay, to the dirt. This helps the dirt absorb water and stay in place.

Things You'll Need

  • Field nail drag
  • Metal rake
  • Infield conditioner
  • Wheelbarrow
  • Shovels
  • Top-dressing machine (optional)
  • Drag mat
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Instructions

    • 1

      Water all of the the skinned areas until the ground is moist (no standing water). Allow the water to soak into the ground and the surface to air dry.

    • 2

      Use a field nail drag (a piece of equipment that uses sharp spikes pointing downward to break up the upper surface of soil) on the infield, including baselines and the home plate area, as well as the warning track to aerate the surface area. Use a shallow metal rake to aerate the pitcher's mound.

    • 3

      Use a small amount of infield conditioner to all of the skinned surfaces. Apply about a 1/2-inch layer of conditioner using a wheelbarrow and shovels, by hand or with a top-dressing machine, depending on your budget.

    • 4

      Turn the field nail drag over and drag the infield with the flat side. Use rakes for the mound and any other parts of the skinned area you can't get to with the nail rake.

    • 5

      Use an field drag mat (a piece of equipment, often made of steel mesh) to smooth the skinned area surfaces, except for the pitcher's mound. Use the flat side of your rakes to even out the mound areas. Smooth the mound, if necessary, with your hands.