With a restoration on tap before next summer’s MLB game, the legendary stadium delivers history unvarnished.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — From the second you enter Rickwood Field, it feels as though a sepia filter has taken control of your eyes. A cellphone camera does not sufficiently portray America’s oldest professional baseball park, probably because such technology is far too modish to capture the imperishable wonder.You must be here. You must stay present. You must see all the antique sights and feel all the time-machine feels.
MLB is tasked with performing tasteful cosmetic surgery on a ballpark known for its old and minimalist charm. Rickwood isn’t a retro creation. It is a largely untouched original. It necessitates a meticulous makeover. Every little detail is significant in a sanctum that still features a scoreboard pocked with baseball dents and the original outfield fences that measured 478 feet to deep center.Baseball cannot look at the assignment as getting the stadium up to par.
“Here we are, 113 years later, on the cusp of what is going to be the second-greatest event in the history of the ballpark,” said Gerald Watkins, the chairman of the Friends of Rickwood board. “The first being the birth of the ballpark and the opening.” “When we literally throw this back in time, this is going to be a watershed moment for Negro Leagues history,” Kendrick said.
“Rickwood is forever a part of my life,” Blue said. “I’m 90 years old. I was at Rickwood right after school back in the day. I was a full-time employee, got to hang out with the players, and then I became a player. For a lot of us, that was the only thing we had hope for — baseball. Whether it was playing or doing other jobs around the park, we felt it was our key to Blacks’ lives being well off. I see nothing but good in Rickwood.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Minors: Padres center-field pipeline looking strong; Adam Mazur quality in San Antonio lossThe Padres moved center fielders Jakob Marsee, Samuel Zavala and Dillon Head up a level this weekend
Read more »
The Paths Forward for the GOP Presidential FieldThe question looming over the entire 2024 election cycle right now is that pertaining to Trump's legal woes.
Read more »
DeSantis Pressed on Appearing at Field of Dreams as Trump ArrestedDeSantis was pressed over his appearance at Iowa’s Field of Dreams as Donald Trump was being arrested by Fulton County, Georgia, officials.
Read more »
Lower Dauphin, Palmyra and Hershey all make cut in national field hockey top 25 rankingsIt's shaping up to be another big season for the Mid-Penn's field hockey teams.
Read more »
The GOP field is already shrinkingTHE GOP FIELD IS ALREADY SHRINKING. It has often been remarked that the first debate of the 2024 Republican presidential primary race, held Wednesday in Milwaukee, marks a new stage in the GOP campaign. One important part of that new stage is that the debate begins the process of cutting down the…
Read more »
Field Hockey Preview, 2023: Returning statewide stat leaders back for moreA look at the players who filled the stat sheets in 2022 that are back for more in 2023.
Read more »