MARSHFIELD – Mark Decker had no blueprint to follow last fall when he addressed the Wisconsin American Legion Baseball Board with a presentation to host the 2016 Class AAA state tournament.

The last time Marshfield Post 54 served as host to the state tournament was 1990. Whatever selling points used a quarter of a century ago had either been lost or rendered archaic.

Decker sought and received valuable input from the Citizens Visitors Bureau and the Marshfield Parks & Recreation Department.

Brochures extolling the qualities of the city and field were produced and handed out to state board members at the meeting in October. Decker also gave a brief presentation.

It turned out to be a winning team because the board announced at its winter meeting in January that Jack Hackman Field will be home to the 2016 state tournament in late July.

“I was pretty happy,” said Decker, president of the Marshfield Clinic Post 54 American Legion Baseball Association, “and I know our Legion board was pretty happy.

“I was kind of confident with our location and field,” Decker added. “Once the word came out that we were hosting the state tournament people were pretty excited throughout the community.”

The Blue Devils faced competition from La Crosse and Marinette.

In the end, the facilities at Jack Hackman Field, along with the abundance of hotels and motel space and convinced the state board Marshfield was a deserving of the AAA state tournament next summer.

Not only will Post 54 be the center of the Legion baseball world for the eight-team double-elimination tournament, but the event also offers a chance to showcase the city.

“I think it’s just really nice for the community,” Post 54 coach John Southworth said. “Hotel rooms get filled with six or seven teams staying overnight for an extended period of time.”

Hosting the state tournament is also great news for the Blue Devils on the baseball diamond.

The road to the Class AAA state tournament goes through seven regional sites throughout the state, with the regional champion earning a spot at state.

In addition, one state berth is reserved for the host program, meaning Post 54 is guaranteed to be part of the eight-team field next summer.

“Having the home crowd is an advantage because you’ll get more people out there to watch them play,” said Southworth, who’s unsure if he’ll return to coach the Blue Devils in 2016.

“Funding Legion baseball is not getting any easier, with transportation costs going up, so you’re looking for ways to raise money and hosting a regional or state tournament can help.”

For Decker and the rest of the Post 54 board planning for the tournament will begin in August or September.

He already has received a lot of input from throughout the community to help ensure the state tournament will be a special event for the participating teams and Marshfield.

There should be no shortage of help to pull it off.

“It’s going to take the whole city to make it happen,” Decker said. “I’ve already had people come up to me at the regional (in Stevens Point) last week with all sorts of positive comments. All of them are willing to step on board.”

—Scott A. Williams can be reached at 715-345-2282, or on email at ssswilliam@gannett.com. Find him on Twitter as @SPJScottWill