The Southwestern Athletic Conference is following the Southern League and Miles College to Rickwood Field in the 2025 baseball season.
The SWAC has announced it will play its annual baseball championship tournament at the Birmingham ballpark on May 21-25.
In addition to Alabama A&M and Alabama State, Alcorn State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Bethune-Cookman, Florida A&M, Grambling State, Jackson State, Mississippi Valley State, Prairie View A&M, Southern and Texas Southern will be vying this spring to earn a spot in the eight-team conference tournament.
“We’re extremely excited to bring the SWAC Baseball Tournament back to the City of Birmingham,” said Dr. Charles McClelland, the SWAC’s commissioner, in a release from the conference. “Many of the all-time legends of the game of baseball played at historic Rickwood Field including Satchel Paige, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ty Cobb, Mickey Mantle, Reggie Jackson, Jackie Robinson and countless others.
“The City of Birmingham in conjunction with Major League Baseball has made significant upgrades and enhancements to the venue creating a unique opportunity for us to provide our fans, supporters and student-athletes with a first-class, one-of-a-kind experience at this truly historic venue.”
The St. Louis Cardinals defeated the San Francisco Giants 6-5 on June 20 at Rickwood Field, after MLB and Birmingham poured millions into preparing the nation’s oldest professional ballpark for the nationally televised National League game.
The MLB contest was the crowning event of a week of activities under the banner “MLB at Rickwood: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues” that highlighted the significance of the black-baseball organizations in baseball’s history
“The Friends of Rickwood are very excited to host the Southwestern Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament at Rickwood Field,” said Gerald Watkins, the organization’s chairman and executive director, in the SWAC release. “This will be a tremendous opportunity for student-athletes from the SWAC member schools and their fans to enjoy baseball at America’s oldest baseball park.”
On Tuesday, Miles College announced it would hold the Willie Mays Open on Feb. 7-9 at Rickwood Field. Joining Miles in the field for the event will be the baseball teams from five other Historically Black Colleges and Universities – Stillman, Claflin, Dillard, Harris-Stowe State and Southern. The Willie Mays Open will feature three games daily and mark the return of the Golden Bears to their historic home for the first time since the 2023 season.
“MLB at Rickwood: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues” also included a Southern League game, and the Double-A league will be back at Rickwood on June 4, when the Birmingham Barons and Rocket City Trash Pandas square off.
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.
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