Magic City Diamond Classic to be held at Rickwood Field

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- The passionate rivalry between Alabama State University and Alabama A&M University now moves to the baseball diamond as the Inaugural Magic City Diamond Classic will be held this weekend at Birmingham's Historic Rickwood Field.

The Hornets (27-12 overall, 15-3 SWAC) and Bulldogs (22-23, 14-7) will play a single game Friday at 5 p.m. and a doubleheader Saturday beginning at 3 p.m. Tickets are just $5 each day, with a family four-pack available for just $15, covering both days of the event.

Rickwood Field is the oldest surviving professional baseball park in the United States. It was built to serve as the home park for the Birmingham Barons and the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues. Rather than an empty ballpark crying for attention, Rickwood Field is home to almost 200 baseball games each year. Birmingham-area high schools, Miles College, wooden-bat tournaments and myriad other organizations are still able to play on hallowed ground.

More than 100 professional baseball Hall Of Famers have played at the historic park, a virtual who's who in the annals of baseball – Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Larry Doby, Josh Gibson, Reggie Jackson, Ernie Banks, Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson and Satchel Paige are just a sampling of the legends who have played at Rickwood Field.

Now the Hornets and Bulldogs get to write their chapter in the history of this legendary venue in a Southwestern Athletic Conference Eastern Division showdown between the in-state rivals.



COURTESY ALABAMA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION