Major League Baseball (MLB) has held a tribute game to commemorate the black league in its oldest professional stadium. The MLB Secretariat held a 2024 regular season game between the San Francisco Giants and the St. Louis Cardinals at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, on the 21st (Korea time). Rickwood Field boasts a long history. It opened in 1910. It is older than Wrigley Field, the oldest Fenway Park in MLB. 동행복권파워볼
However, the stadium was not for MLB players at the time. The players who used Rickwood Field at the time were Birmingham Black Barriers who belonged to the Nigro League. Before Jackie Robinson broke the racial barrier, black players could only play in the Nigro League. Robinson himself played in the Nigro League first before debuting with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Black Legend players such as Hank Aaron and Ernie Banks made their debut in the Nigro League and followed Robinson’s lead in the MLB stage.
MLB has recently continued its record integration business with the Nigro League. As of May 30, all Nigro League records were recognized as MLB records and integrated. This means that the record will be added after the Nigro League was accepted as a league equivalent to MLB in December 2020. This shed new light on players who played in the Nigro League, including Josh Gibson and Satchel Page.
There is something that adds meaning to Rickwood Field. It was the first home ground for Willie Mays, who passed away on the 19th. Mays made his MLB debut with the New York Giants (San Francisco Giants) and played the league’s best center fielder, but he also went through the Nigro League. Debuted with the Birmingham Black Barons in 1948, he made his MLB debut with the Giants in 1951.
It is the day when his former team San Francisco Giants visits his first home stadium. Mays was not able to join the commemorative event. Mays, who passed away at 93, said three days ago that he could not participate in the game due to his old age, and finally passed away a day later.
Although there was no Mays, MLB honored black players who have contributed greatly to the history of American baseball through this event. The recent increase in the number of Latin American players has reduced the proportion of MLB players, but they did not forget those who became the opportunity to open up the league.
At the match, all five black judges including those in the waiting room were composed of black players. This is the first time in MLB history that all black referees are in the group. There were only 11 black referees in the big league. There are only five active players, all of whom gathered at Rickwood Field. They organized the tribute game wearing a patch commemorating Emmett Ashford, the first black referee in the big league.
The secretariat’s “detail” shone as well. In this game, even the official record holder was black. Black stars who represented the MLB also gathered. Derek Jeter, who represented an era as the “captain” of the New York Yankees, conveyed the meaning of this game on Fox Sports nationwide before the game.
Barry Bonds, Mace’s godson, Ken Griffey Jr., Mace’s black center fielder, and Mace’s son came to the field together to announce the start of the game. Players from both teams who lined up in front of the dugout before the game showed great respect to players who played in the black leagues.