In a moving tribute to the history of baseball, Major League Baseball staged a regular season game between the San Francisco Giants and the St. Louis Cardinals at Birmingham’s historic Rickwood Field.
This game, a celebration of the Negro Leagues and the legendary Willie Mays, brought a special significance to the baseball community.
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Negro Leagues players honored before first pitch
Before the first pitch, original players from the Negro Leagues were honored in a heartfelt ceremony.
The crowd cheered as Bill Greason, Eugene Scruggs, and Pedro Sierra, among others, took the field and celebrated their contributions to the sport.
The atmosphere was electric as Jon Baptist led a band of musicians and dancers in a lively performance near home plate.
Rickwood Field, the oldest professional baseball venue in the United States, holds a deep historical connection to the Negro Leagues.
It is one of only two remaining Negro League parks and has hosted 181 of the 351 Hall of Famers, including baseball greats like Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, and Satchel Paige.
However, no one is more closely linked to Rickwood Field than Willie Mays.
Mays, who passed away on Tuesday, began his professional career at this very field with the Birmingham Black Barons in 1948.
Willie Mays’ legacy at the center of the celebrations
The event, dubbed “A Tribute to the Negro Leagues,” was planned as part of a week-long series of activities honoring Mays and other Black baseball pioneers.
A mural of Willie Mays was unveiled in downtown Birmingham, marking the start of the commemorations.
Although Mays’ death cast a somber tone over the festivities, it also deepened the community’s resolve to celebrate his life and legacy.
Mays’ legacy was featured throughout the venue, with displays of his memorabilia, including bobbleheads, a signed glove, and his jerseys from the Black Barons and the Giants.
This event also highlighted MLB’s ongoing efforts to recognize the Negro Leagues’ contributions to baseball.
In 2020, MLB officially acknowledged the Negro Leagues as having Major League status, and earlier this year, Negro League statistics were integrated into MLB’s official records.
These changes have reshaped the historical landscape of the sport, with players like Josh Gibson now recognized as all-time leaders in various batting categories.
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