Edinburgh to get first dedicated baseball field as Rays Baseball Club launches fundraiser to complete home ground
Edinburgh Rays Baseball Club is hoping to raise £3,000 to complete its home ground at Morgan Playing Fields in Peffermill, with grants expected to cover more than half the cost of a permanent backstop.
An Edinburgh baseball club is hoping to raise £3,000 to complete what it hopes will become the city’s first dedicated baseball field.
Edinburgh Rays Baseball Club has launched a GoFundMe campaign to fund a permanent backstop at Morgan Playing Fields in Peffermill, the final touch needed to complete its home ground.
The club says the backstop will cost around £7,000, with grants expected to cover more than half the cost. The fundraising campaign is seeking to cover the remaining £3,000, with £430 raised so far.
Luke Rajczuk, 47, head coach of Rays Baseball Club, has been involved with Baseball Scotland for around 20 years and helped establish the Rays in 2022.
The club has since grown from playing friendly matches to competing in leagues, winning the North East Baseball League in 2025 before joining the wider Baseball Scotland scene.
Luke said the club's community spirit is just as important as what happens on the field.
He said: “We’ve managed to build more of a community, family type of thing where people make friends through baseball.”
The Rays attract players of different ages and backgrounds, with Luke saying the club keeps its fees low and waive them for those unable to pay so long as they help out in other ways contributing to the clubs happiness and community.
The club's home at Morgan Playing Fields has been developed with support from Edinburgh council, with the players and wider community also putting in hours of volunteer work.
Luke said the field has already become a place where families and friends can come together, particularly during the club’s Edinburgh Baseball Tournament earlier this year.
The tournament brought together 16 teams from Scotland, Manchester, Newcastle, alongside barbecues, activities and baseball drills for newcomers.
However, without a permanent backstop, the club currently has to spend hours constructing a temporary netting system before games and training.
Luke emphasised the importance of the permanent backstop as it would allow the club to “mainly focus on basically working with people and training baseball” rather than preparing the field.
He added that it would also allow the Rays to host international tournaments and visiting teams.
The club hopes the completed field will help introduce more people to a sport which Luke believes is growing in Scotland.
The Rays are also exploring opportunities to introduce baseball to primary schools through taster sessions, with discussions taking place with Sports Scotland and Active Schools.
Luke said the club wants its field to be open to everyone, adding: “We’re not trying to build something just for this season. We’re trying to build something that lasts.”
The GoFundMe campaign, launched on September 8, has so far received 14 donations.
Luke said: “It would mean the world to us. It would be the final stage of building the field, a field ready to host anyone who wants to play baseball.”
To donate to Rays Baseball Club, you can visit their GoFundMe here.