Nostalgic matchup between the Cardinals and the Giants, two days after Willie Mays’s death, caps a week of celebration of what was and what could be.
Players pause to honor Willie Mays before the start of a baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the San Francisco Giants at Rickwood Field on Thursday in Birmingham, Ala. BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The St. Louis Cardinals were taking batting practice Thursday when “Rock With You” by Michael Jackson blared over the speakers at Rickwood Field. Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn swayed to the music, interrupting his rhythm only to field groundballs.
Here in Birmingham, nestled between 12th Street West and Second Avenue West, is one of the prized relics of Black baseball history — and baseball as a whole, for that matter. Rickwood Field, established in 1910, was home to the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues, then the Birmingham Barons, a Class AA minor league team. This week, it was home to a celebration of Black baseball.
“I never even thought there’d be an opportunity to be in this position and play at this field,” said Hicks, who threw on the field before the game. “The fact that it’s finally here, I think it should continue. I think it should be a tradition. A lot of history here. I’m just happy to be a part of it.”First baseman Lamonte Wade Jr., a former University of Maryland standout and the Giants’ only Black position player, is on the injured list.
Brown was born and raised in Birmingham. He remembers his first time at Rickwood Field as a 10-year old watching Vida Blue as a minor leaguer. His first job was selling pizza there as a ninth-grader. He watched his son play on the field in 2020. Seeing the renovated version of the field left him speechless.
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