The Barons of Birmingham

Regions Field evokes Birmingham's industrial past.

I got an early look at Regions Field today, where the Birmingham Barons (AA White Sox) are halfway through their six-game home stand against the Tennessee Smokies (AA Cubs). Ooh, a Windy City brawl. I needed a bite to eat, and I wanted to find an easy route to the ballpark and parking for tonight’s game. The Barons’ home ballpark is in an urban area and I’m glad I took a test drive to get my bearings. The highway access ramps and various one-way streets create a real tangle for a first-time visitor. 

The ticket office was open, so I got an old-fashioned printed version that will make a nice souvenir. The ticket seller assured me there would be plenty of options for parking once I get to the ballpark. I showed up early anyway and found a free spot across from a $10 lot that got me right back onto the highway after the game. 

Birmingham skyline, looking from right field.

Regions Field is an industrial-strength winner. It looks like they took an old factory apart and put the pieces back together in the shape of a baseball park. There are plenty of heavy metal structural components, exposed and painted a cool, dark gray. Lots of brick too. The seats in the stands are the color of the dark green forests that cover the hills around Birmingham. 

Watch the players up close as they warm up in the batting practice cage.

The stadium is located in a neighborhood a few blocks from the city's downtown center where multiple interstate highways converge and then branch out in all directions. You can see the skyline as you look back from right field. During the seventh inning stretch, fans light up their phones and wave to the kids in the tall children's hospital beyond center field as everyone sings "Take Me Out to the Ballgame."

                                                                                                                                                           Entrance to the Negro Southern League Museum 

The ballpark is surrounded by new apartment buildings, coffee shops, a huge brew pub and Railroad Park, a green space with a babbling brook that is known as "Birmingham's living room." If I had planned my time better, I would have visited the Negro Southern League Museum, which actually backs into the open space behind left field. It's only open until about 4 p.m. though, and it's only accessible on a street entrance outside the ballpark.

A peaceful spot in Railroad Park across the street from Regions Field.

Inside the stadium there are a number of tributes to the players who have been important in the history of baseball in Birmingham. A statue of Willie Mays, who played with the Birmingham Black Barons greets fans at the entrance near right field. A way larger than life portrait of Michael Jordan, wearing his Barons uniform when he gave baseball a try, hangs below a lofty ceiling in one of the food service alcoves.

Statue of Willie Mays outside the stadium.
Michael Jordan in a lofty portrait from his days with the Barons.

Tonight’s promotion was Pride Night and the Magic City Disco Krewe danced everyone through the entry gates to the musical sounds of the 70s. Magic City is Birmingham’s nickname, probably because of the city’s rapid growth after the Civil War and its success as an industrial center. Sometimes the Barons wear special jerseys to honor the Magic City. 

The Barons found a number of ways to get runners on base, and then bring them home to score. The Smokies were kept at bay by the Birmingham pitchers. Final: Birmingham Barons 6, Tennessee Smokies 1.

Were we ever this young?