Major League Baseball game at Rickwood Field
The Major League Baseball game at Rickwood Field is an upcoming professional baseball game to be played between the National League (NL) West's San Francisco Giants and the NL Central's St. Louis Cardinals on June 20, 2024. The game is set to be played at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, the former home of the Negro leagues' Birmingham Black Barons, just one day after Juneteenth. This will be the first regular-season Major League Baseball (MLB) game played in the state of Alabama.
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| Date | June 20, 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Rickwood Field | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| City | Birmingham, Alabama | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 10,800 (expected) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Television | Fox | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Background
On June 13, 2023, initial reports revealed that the Giants would play in a Field of Dreams style game, celebrating Willie Mays in Alabama.[1] Due to construction at the MLB at Field of Dreams site, games in 2023 and 2024 were unable to happen. However, MLB decided to shift their marketing into a game to honor Willie Mays, the Negro Leagues, and Juneteenth.[2]
Preparatory renovations of the park are scheduled to begin in October 2023. Jerry Brewer of The Washington Post wrote, "MLB is tasked with performing tasteful cosmetic surgery on a ballpark known for its old and minimalist charm."[3]
Game
The game will be the first MLB game in the state of Alabama.[4] It will be played on a Thursday and will be the first game of a three-game series followed by an off-day and two games at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Saturday and Sunday.[5]
References
- Martin, Angela (June 13, 2023). "MLB announces Giants-Cardinals to clash in historic game at Rickwood Field". NBC Sports Bay Area. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Adler, David (June 20, 2023). "Cardinals, Giants to play at oldest professional ballpark in '24". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
- Brewer, Jerry (August 27, 2023). "Birmingham's Rickwood Field is the best kind of monument: A real one". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
- Andres, Patrick (June 20, 2023). "MLB to Honor Willie Mays With Special 2024 Juneteenth Game at Historic Ballpark". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
- Axisa, Mike (June 20, 2023). "Giants and Cardinals to play 2024 game at Alabama's Rickwood Field, MLB will include Willie Mays tribute". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 15, 2023.