CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Even though he can’t make it in person, watching it at home is just as impactful for Brandon Lunsford, the Director of Library Services at Johnson C. Smith University.
“I’ve always wanted to go there so bad," Lunsford said. "Being a huge Cubs fan, that field is even older than Wrigley Field. That is the field that signifies the Negro Leagues."
Thursday night, the historical Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama will host the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants.
The baseball park is 114 years old and was once the home of the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues. Rickwood Field was also the former home to baseball Hall-of-Famer Willie Mays.
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“It’s almost like Willie (Mays) planned it this way you know. He went out right when they were getting ready to play this game at the field that he started in,” Lunsford told WCNC Charlotte's Nick Sturdivant. "[It was] right after this historic moment where finally, after all these years, the Hall of Fame recognized those 10 hits that he had with the Birmingham Black Barons.”
The game will honor Mays and many others who played in the Negro Leagues as part of an ongoing effort by MLB to highlight black players.
“It is sad in a way that Willie (Mays) wouldn’t be able to see it, but I know his memory will live on there," Tommy Viola, Vice President of Communications with the Charlotte Knights, said. "As a fan, getting an opportunity to go there, I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like. Major League Baseball has done so many things to that facility. [It's] the oldest ballpark in the country.”
Meanwhile, Lunsford is also working to preserve the Negro leagues history at JCSU.
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“I wanted to bring the exhibit here to just raise awareness to our students that we did have teams and the importance of the Negro Leagues,” Lunsford stated.
Last year, JCSU opened its Negro Leagues Baseball exhibit featuring a collection of photos and artifacts.
Lunsford hopes the ongoing work to celebrate the Negro Leagues will make an impact and attract younger fans.
“Baseball was so important to black communities in general around that time in the 1900’s. Not just a sport, but a social event,” he said.
Contact Nick Sturdivant at nsturdiva1@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, X and Instagram.