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Major League Baseball today announced that Rickwood Field, the oldest professional ballpark in the United States and former home of the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues, will be the site of a special Regular Season contest between the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants on June 20, 2024. This experience, scheduled around Juneteenth next year, will include a variety of activities as a tribute to the Negro Leagues and its greatest living player – Hall of Famer, Giants Legend, Birmingham native and Birmingham Black Barons player Willie Mays. FOX will provide exclusive national coverage of the game between the Cardinals and Giants on Thursday, June 20, 2024, airing at 7:00 p.m. (ET)/6:00 p.m. (CT).
“We are proud to bring Major League Baseball to historic Rickwood Field in 2024,” said Commissioner of Baseball Robert D. Manfred, Jr. “This opportunity to pay tribute to the Negro Leagues as the Giants and Cardinals play a regular season game at this iconic location is a great honor. The legacy of the Negro Leagues and its greatest living player, Willie Mays, is one of excellence and perseverance. We look forward to sharing the stories of the Negro Leagues throughout this event next year.”
“I can’t believe it. I never thought I’d see in my lifetime a Major League Baseball game being played on the very field where I played baseball as a teenager. It has been 75 years since I played for the Birmingham Black Barons at Rickwood Field, and to learn that my Giants and the Cardinals will play a game there and honor the legacy of the Negro Leagues and all those who came before them is really emotional for me. We can’t forget what got us here and that was the Negro Leagues for so many of us,” said Willie Mays.
“Preserving the legacy of the Negro Leagues is vital to growing baseball’s diversity and popularity,” said MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark. “Willie Mays, like so many other Negro Leaguers, broke down barriers and paved the way for those of us who dreamt of playing baseball at the highest level. This event helps to link the past, present and future and helps further the cause of attracting a new generation of players to our game.’’
MLB will collaborate with the Friends of Rickwood and City of Birmingham to renovate Rickwood Field for 2024, transforming the National Historic Site in order to host a Major League game. Additionally, Rickwood Field will host a Minor League contest between the Birmingham Barons and the Montgomery Biscuits on June 18, 2024. The Barons called Rickwood Field home during three different time periods (1910-1961, 1964-1965, 1981-1987). Each year, the Barons play one game at Rickwood Field in tribute to the organization’s history there. Additional activities surrounding the games at Rickwood Field will be announced at a later date.
The Major League contest will be a home game for the Cardinals. On-field personnel for both teams will wear period uniforms highlighting the Negro Leagues histories of both St. Louis and San Francisco.
The history of Rickwood Field is unmatched, with some of the game’s greatest players stepping foot on its hallowed grounds. These players included Mays, Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Cool Papa Bell, Yogi Berra, Roy Campanella, Oscar Charleston, Roberto Clemente, Joe DiMaggio, Larry Doby, Rube Foster, Lou Gehrig, Josh Gibson, Monte Irvin, Reggie Jackson, Buck Leonard, Biz Mackey, Mickey Mantle, Connie Morgan, Stan Musial, Satchel Paige, Frank Robinson, Jackie Robinson, Babe Ruth, Duke Snider, Toni Stone, Cristobal Torriente, Honus Wagner, Willie Wells, and so much more. Rickwood Field is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues called Rickwood Field home from 1924 through 1960. As a teenager, Mays began his professional career with the Black Barons in 1948. He played with them before beginning his legendary MLB career as a member of the New York Giants in 1951. Rickwood Field was the site of the final Negro League World Series game in October 1948, which saw Mays’ Black Barons falling to the Homestead Grays in five games.
The Atlantic Trojan softball team picked up a nice win on Tuesday night over Kuemper Catholic 14-2 in 3 innings. Coach Terry Hinzmann liked the way they responded after dropping the second game of their doubleheader against Glenwood on Monday.
The Trojans had a number of players get involved in the offensive output.
Coach Hinzmann thought they probably should of closed out the shutout but a few errors cost them at the end.
Next up Atlantic will host Harlan on Thursday.
June 20th:
June 21st:
HAWKEYE TEN CONFERENCE
CORNER CONFERENCE
WESTERN IOWA CONFERENCE
PRIDE OF IOWA CONFERENCE
NON-CONFERENCE
HAWKEYE TEN CONFERENCE
WESTERN IOWA CONFERENCE
ROLLING VALLEY CONFERENCE
CORNER CONFERENCE
PRIDE OF IOWA CONFERENCE
NON-CONFERENCE
The John Deere Classic near the Quad Cities is adding a pair of concerts to next month’s PGA Tournament. George McNeilly reports.
Tournament Director Andrew Lehman says Darius Rucker will perform after the third round on Saturday, July 8th and Blake Shelton will perform after the final round on Sunday, July 9th. It is part of the first ever “Concert on the Course” series.
Lehman says it could be the start of a new tradition.
The John Deere Classic is July 6th through the 9th.
Iowa State basketball coach T.J. Otzelberger says summer sets the tone and workouts are underway in Ames as the Cyclones look to build on back-to-back trips to the NCAA Tournament. Otzelberger says summer workouts have been a big part of their success the past two years.
The Cyclones are known for defense and toughness and Otzelberger says this is when it starts. ISU will close the summer with a trip to the Bahamas.
Otzelberger says how they do things in the summer is more important than what they do.
A highly ranked recruiting class is part of a large group of incoming players.
Senior forward Tre King says workouts are always an adjustment for the freshmen.
King says it is a talented group of newcomers.
Ames native Tamin Lipsey started all 33 games last season at point guard and was named to the Big-12 All-Freshman team. He is now one of the veterans.
Lipsey says the newcomers are making an immediate impact.
The Cyclones finished 19-14 last season and lost to Pitt in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Former Hawkeyes Jordan Amelon (women’s golf) and Kaevon Merriweather (football) have been selected as Iowa’s 2023 Big Ten Outstanding Sportsmanship Award winners. The duo were chosen from Iowa’s list of 2022-23 Big Ten Sportsmanship Award winners, which had a representative from each varsity sport.
Amelon, an Iowa City, Iowa native, posted a 78.46 scoring average over 32.5 rounds during her senior season. Amelon played in 11 tournaments in 2022-23, which included a career-best 34th place showing at the Fresno Golf Classic. She also tied for 35th at the National Golf Invitational, helping the Hawkeyes to a team runner-up finish. During the fall, Amelon shot a career low round of 70 (-2) at the Ron Moore Intercollegiate in Colorado.
Merriweather, a native of Belleville, Michigan, was named first-team All-America by Pro Football Focus, second-team All-America by Sporting News and Associated Press, and third-team All-America by Phil Steele. Merriweather was named first-team All-Big Ten by Phil Steele, second-team All-Big Ten by Associated Press and honorable mention All-Big Ten by league coaches and media. He was named a Permanent Team Captain, defense, and earned the Coaches Appreciation Award, defense. He was also recognized with the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. His career statistics include 118 tackles, with four interceptions for 33 yards and one fumble return for a 30-yard touchdown. Merriweather was named Big Ten co-Defensive Player of the Week following Iowa’s win at Rutgers in 2022, as he had a fumble return touchdown and a pass interception. As a senior, Merriweather was named one of 20 semifinalists for the Jason Whitten Collegiate Man of the Year Award, while he was recognized by Iowa media with the Duke Slater Golden Gavel Award as a junior. That award is presented to the Iowa football player who not only is most cooperative with local media, but exhibits themselves with professional integrity in all interactions. He was a member of the Player Council as a junior and senior. Merriweather participated in the 2023 Senior Bowl and signed a free agent contract with Tampa Bay.
The Big Ten first awarded the Outstanding Sportsmanship honor in 2003. The student-athletes chosen were individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior, were in good academic standing and demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
Following is a list of Iowa’s past Big Ten Outstanding Sportsmanship Award Winners:
Year Men’s Award Winner Women’s Award Winner
2003 Stuart Waters, Men’s Tennis Kristin Johnson, Softball
2004 Nate Kaeding, Football Laura Chipman, Softball
2005 Joe Johnston, Wrestling Jennifer Skolaski, Swimming & Diving
2006 Adam Haluska, Men’s Basketball Liz Grajewski, Women’s Gymnastics
2007 Adam Haluska, Men’s Basketball Kara Zappone, Field Hockey
2008 Bart van Monsjou, Men’s Tennis Brittany Keyes, Rowing
2009 Christian Bierich, Men’s Tennis Wendy Ausdemore, Women’s Basketball
2010 A.J. Edds, Football Laura Cilek, Women’s Golf
2011 Chris Brant, Men’s Golf Kelsey Cermak, Women’s Basketball
2012 Matt Gatens, Men’s Basketball Betsy Flood, Women’s Track & Field
2013 Eric May, Men’s Basketball Mareike Schrulle, Women’s Cross Country
2014 James Morris, Football Theairra Taylor, Women’s Basketball
2015 Mark Weisman, Football Melissa Dixon, Women’s Basketball
2016 Drew Ott, Football Amy Ihm, Women’s Golf
2017 Nicholas Baer, Men’s Basketball Sophie Plasteras, Field Hockey
2018 Spencer Lee, Wrestling Hannah Stewart, Women’s Basketball
2019 Alex Marinelli, Wrestling Hannah Stewart, Women’s Basketball
2020 Connor McCaffery, Men’s Basketball Makenzie Meyer, Women’s Basketball
2021 Mehki Sargent, Football Kate Martin, Women’s Basketball
2022 Patrick McCaffery, Men’s Basketball Bailey Ortega, Volleyball
2023 Kaevon Merriweather, Football Jordan Amelon, Women’s Golf
IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa men’s basketball team will conclude its summer with a three-game tour of Paris and Spain in August, the program announced on Tuesday.
Head coach Fran McCaffery’s squad will make its way across the Atlantic Ocean on Aug. 5 before returning home Aug. 16. The Hawkeyes’ trip will take them to the Paris, Valencia and Barcelona with three games against opponents to be determined at a later date.
The Hawkeyes will spend four days in Paris (Aug. 6-9), three days in Valencia (Aug. 10-12) and three days in Barcelona (Aug. 13-15).
“We are grateful to have the resources available to provide this opportunity for our student-athletes,” McCaffery said. “Not only will our players experience different cultures and create lifelong memories with their teammates, but we get 10 extra team practices leading up to the trip. With us adding six new players, I believe this is a perfect time for this opportunity.”
The trip will be the first for Iowa since the program visited Germany, Switzerland and Italy in the summer of 2017.
“I could not be more excited for the opportunity our team has to go overseas this summer,” said Sandfort. “The extra practices will greatly benefit our new guys and our overall team by developing our on-court bond. The opportunity to see new cultures that few of us have experienced will be a special experience while allowing our team to become closer off the floor as well. This experience will benefit our team tremendously.”
Trojan softball legend Missy Goergen will be inducted into the Trojan softball hall of fame prior to the game with Harlan on Thursday night.
Below is the resume of Missy Goergen:
Played from the summers of 1986-1990
4 year letter winner – 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990
4 year starter (3 years – third base and senior year – outfield)
Outfield accolades
Third base accolades
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