Okay, welcome to the latest episode of the Dan
Time Podcast. I'm your host, Dan McCardle. DanTimePod
at gmail .com is the email address at Dan TimePod
in the search bar of your favorite or current
social media site, whichever one you're bouncing
between. That's going to lead you to the page
for this podcast. I'm sometimes doing a flurry
of posts on those pages, sometimes not. depending
on the guest. Usually with songwriters, for instance,
I'm trying to draw attention to a body of work
or an album or various singles. So that's been
a lot of fun and of special interest to me, the
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enjoyed those guests. There will be more to come.
Photojournalist Andy Rice from Birmingham, Alabama
was my guest last week. Such Great catch -up
with Andy a guy that I've known but haven't spoken
to in almost 25 years starting to feel old Make
sure you play that episode if you missed it last
week This week we are keeping things in the Magic
City Birmingham Alabama now I don't talk a lot
about Birmingham on this show, but as you know
if you listen to the show I don't talk a lot
about me unless it's Deep in the conversation,
but Birmingham is where I spent most of my youth
from about eight years old forward, spent all
my twenties there. And I draw on so many memories
from the iron city, as it's also called Dan wine
rib. Remember that name, the very first Dan to
appear on this podcast. He suggested that I reach
out to his contact, Gerald Watkins. He said,
you've got to have this guy on the show. So special
thanks to Dan for the referral and much appreciation
to Gerald for taking, making time in his very
busy schedule to speak with me. When I say very
busy, you're about to find out why. Because of
Gerald Watkins and the Friends of Rickwood, folks,
there's going to be a major league baseball game
played this summer between the San Francisco
Giants. and the St. Louis Cardinals at historic
Rick Woodfield in Birmingham. Now, I won't go
into too much detail because we cover a lot of
it on this episode, but Rick Woodfield in Birmingham,
the oldest ballpark in the United States, will
host a tribute to the Negro Leagues game on June
20th of this year. The game honors Willie Mays,
an Alabama native, and at 92, widely considered
to be the greatest living ballplayer. The game
will be televised nationally on Fox. Gerald,
who serves as chairman and executive director
of Friends of Rickwood, dives into the history
of Rickwood Field, all sorts of fun facts, the
renovations that commenced last October and were
necessary to accommodate this MLB game, and so
much more. I had a great time talking with Gerald
and especially towards the end, reminiscing about
our favorite ballplayers, favorite movies, Take
a listen. I think you'll enjoy it just as much
as we did, and it brings you back in time. Speaking
of time, all right, you know what time it is.
Today, it is Gerald Watkins time. Gerald, thank
you so much for making time in your busy schedule
to talk to me on this podcast. How are you today?
Dan, I am great. And I appreciate you reaching
out to me. I really enjoy being able to share
the stories of Rick Woodfield. And I'm just happy
to be here, you might say. Thank you for having
me. And I appreciate my good friend Dan Weinrib
recommending that we get together. So hopefully
we'll have a good informative conversation and
you just fire away and we'll take it from here.
Well, first of all, Dan, and I'm sure you would
agree if someone was trying to find somebody
to say something bad about Dan Weinrib, they'd
probably need to stop. for lunch, and they'd
probably need to stop and catch their breath
if they're running all over town. You're not
going to find anybody who's got anything bad
to say about Dan. He's a special guy, and from
what I understand, I don't know if he's still
involved at the Rickwood Classic as a scoreboard
operator. Well, we have had to put the Rickwood
Classic on hold. And when we do reincorporate
the classic, I'm sure if Dan wants to go out
there and handle the manual scoreboard, it's
his job to lose. Well, Gerald, you guys, everyone
with Friends of Rickwood have just got to be
elated that over 30 years of this organization
being in place and being there to protect Rickwood
Field, to be hosting a major league baseball
game. This is the first of its kind in the state
of Alabama. June 20th, 2024, the San Francisco
Giants and St. Louis Cardinals will be playing
a ball game at Rickwood Field. And some of my
listeners may have been to the Rickwood Classic.
Some have not, but Gerald, just talk a little
bit about that and what it takes to just get
this this place MLB ready? Well, Dan, it is a
monumental task, no doubt. We started this process
in early 2021. I reached out to MLB on three
or four different occasions and never really
got any traction. And as luck would have it,
a member of the Mississippi Braves came to visit
Rick Woodfield in August of 21. And as we were
talking, he said, you ought to have a field of
dreams game here. And I said, well, I'd love
to. I've tried to get in touch with MLB, and
I haven't been successful. Do you have any ideas?
And he said, I know a lot of people. Let me make
some calls. So this gentleman worked for the
Atlanta Braves, and he was in town visiting the
Mississippi Braves. and his name was Doug Mancelino
and Doug was a huge baseball fan and a baseball
lifer as they called him. And he knew a lot of
people and he said, I think I could help you.
So he reached out to MLB and MLB in turn reached
out to me and they called and they came and visited
the ballpark in October of 21 with the idea of
doing some special event. At that point in time,
there was no name for it or real concept. It
was just, let's take a look at America's oldest
ballpark. Let's take a look at one of the last
places where the Negro leagues played as a home
field. And let's take a look at the place where
Willie Mays and Satchel Page and 180 other Hall
of Famers had played. And so the visits continued
from that point on. We had to get the city of
Birmingham involved because they actually own
the park. We have a lease and we run the park.
We had to get the city involved because the requirements
that MLB would put upon us were much too great
for us to handle on our operating budget. So
we reached out to the city. We connected the
city officials, myself, some folks with the barons
were involved in MLB. And we started talking
seriously about what would have to happen at
the ballpark in order to have a big league game.
And also, it's real important to note that we
were put in the position of not being able to
host the Rickwood Classic because of some of
the deficiencies at the ballpark. And so MLB
agreed that if we were to get all these things
repaired and renovated, if you will, that we
could not only look at hosting the Rickwood Classic
again, but the potential to have an MLB game.
And so conversations continued for months on
end. And I can't really tell you the exact date
that anything was finalized, but conversations
were continuing to take place. And finally, Major
League Baseball said, here are the conditions
that you need to take care of on the field. And
if you can do that and get that done by a certain
date, we can have an MLB game. So we started
working on that. The great thing was the city
saw the not only the benefit to Rick Woodfield
and keeping open America's oldest ballpark, but
also the economic benefit of having a major league
baseball game in Birmingham. And so all the dominoes
fell and Here we are. We are almost six months
away. Construction started in October and it's
been amazing. It's hard to imagine what has happened
since October on the field. The entire playing
surface was dug up and removed. The irrigation
system and drainage system are being put in now.
The dugouts are being built. And there's a host
of other things going on. So it's just amazing
what has happened and what will continue to happen
until we get ready to play the game in June.
And Gerald, this is, like you said, the oldest
ballpark in the United States. And in 2020, it
was actually designated a Major League Baseball
ballpark. So you could really say it's the oldest
MLB facility. In the country built in 1910 or
first game opening day was in 1910 113 almost
114 years ago. It's got Fenway and Wrigley beat
by a couple years built of concrete and steel
It's just a classic early 20th century design.
You're never gonna see this again unless there's
some retro version of it, but there's just nothing
like this park and Ten years after opening day
1910 Negro League Baseball Began in 1920 and
I guess that was originally the the Birmingham
Stars. Is that right? That's right. And then
I guess another ten or so years later. They were
the Birmingham Black Barons and really considered
to be major league caliber competition Well,
that's true unfortunately The times being what
they were, African -American players and white
players were not allowed to play together. But
the talent was there on both sides. And there
were some tremendous ballplayers that played
in the Negro leagues that didn't get the publicity
and weren't nearly as well known as some of the
white counterparts. But they were very talented
ballplayers nonetheless. And sometimes I think
this gets glossed over where the Negro League
players of that part of the 20th century, you
know, number one, they've got the talent, but
they're having to do a lot of this stuff with,
you could say one hand tied behind their back.
They're, they don't, they may know where they're
sleeping, but they're not getting the same accommodations
on the road. They're not eating as well as their
white counterparts. They're having to go out
there and try to play ball and focus on catching
a pop fly or Throwing a ball from shortstop to
first and somebody's hurling insults at them.
So they're putting up these numbers and playing
at this high level with all of that noise and
all of that, uh, anxiety going on. Um, that I
think, I know it gets mentioned, but I wanted
to point it out in this show. These guys are
really legends, special legends of the game for
performing at that level with all of that raining
down on them. Well, that's very true the stories
of the long bus trips and the inability to eat
at restaurants and stay at nice hotels all those
things are horrid tales, but thank God they're
in their past and The best thing we can do now
is pay tribute to those players whenever we can
and and go forward I Had a chance. I used to
have a consecutive game streak with the Rickwood
Classic, I think going from 07 to maybe 12 and
then moved to Pensacola and I went to the 2019
Classic and it was there that I just happened
to sit next to James Cowboy Atterbury who has
since passed away. He was with the Philadelphia
Stars towards the end of the final years of the
Negro League. and was scouted by Buck O 'Neill,
drafted by the Cubs, played in the California
Angels organization, but that was something else.
My buddy, Jim and I, we just moved around during
the game and we just sat in another area of the
ballpark and just happened to be sitting next
to a legend of the Negro Leagues. You know, Dan,
a lot of those Negro Leaguers came to the classics
and there were tons of guys that came and were
here on a regular basis like Jake Sanders and
Henry Elmore and they all have their stories
and it's a good thing that they're being remembered
and it's a tremendous thing that Major League
Baseball is going to pay tribute to the Negro
Leagues and shine the light on those guys once
more. And the greatest living player of all time
Willie Maze the say hey kid at 17 years old 1948
played for the Birmingham Black Barons and led
them to the Negro World Series I Did some further
research and Willie actually is a young boy His
dad who worked in the steel mills of Fairfield
would take him to to ball games But they had
to sit and what was called the Negro bleachers
Which as you can imagine was not a desirable
location probably right in the hot sun Far away
from home plate, but he fell in love with the
game. His favorite player was Joe DiMaggio He
got to watch cool Papa Bell satchel page. I thought
that was so neat and for Willie to still be Around
and I think I saw a quote when they announced
this game was taking place in Birmingham at Rickwood
He said I can't believe it He was just ecstatic
and do you have any updates on if the say hey
kid himself will be at? this very special ball
game? I know that the powers that be at MLB are
working on that. A lot has to do with Willie's
health. I am very, very hopeful that he will
be able to make it. We'll just have to keep our
fingers crossed. And we're only six months away,
so let's hope that Willie is healthy and can
travel. And his attendance here will be just,
it'll be the crowning glory to have him back.
and be here to celebrate that game and also just
to bring new attention to his career. Willie
was tremendous and most people who are baseball
historians would rank Willie as number one two
or three greatest baseball players of all time
and it just depends on your your viewpoint or
your perception whether you like home runs or
stolen bases or fielding or whatever but Babe
Ruth Ty Cobb and Willie Mays are generally thought
to be the three greatest baseball players of
all time. And who you put it first in that list
is a personal choice, but Willie is right up
there. And Gerald, speaking of Ty Cobb, for those
of you listening across the country, around the
world, there were some movies filmed at Rickwood
Field over the years. Cobb was one of them, soul
of the game. The Jackie Robinson film, 42, and
then some other documentaries, I believe. Well,
that's true. The 42 movie was the last big movie
that was filmed here. And of course, that was
the story of Jackie Robinson and Chad Boseman
played Jackie. And unfortunately, Chad has passed
away. And prior to that, Soul of the Game, which
was an HBO flick that was never going to the
big screen, but TV only. And then Cobb and the
Cobb movie basically saved the ballpark from
from ruin. The ballpark had been empty for several
years and the friends of Rick would were formed
to try to save the ballpark and getting the friends
Rick would together with Ron Shelton and the
Hollywood folks basically put the ballpark back
in the condition that it could be utilized for
games and the friends of Rick would have marketed
it and kept it open and. made it a destination
point for baseball fans for many, many years.
And all those things probably wouldn't have happened
without the Cobb movie coming, because that brought
attention to the ballpark, it brought money to
the ballpark, and the rest, as they say, is history.
So here we are many, many years later on the
cusp of having what I consider the second biggest
event in the history of the ballpark. The MLB
game was second only to opening day when the
ballpark was first open for play in August of
1910. I remember going to the 2010 Rickwood Classic,
which was the centennial celebration, just a
really special event. And at each one of the
Rickwood Classics, which featured the Birmingham
Barons versus a Southern League opponent, you
pay tribute to a different era. that team whoever
the affiliate was sometimes it may be as far
back as the 1910s or 20s or is I think one game
pay tribute to a 1983 Barron's team and uniform
color scheme and you always have some pretty
high -profile guests I got to I didn't get his
autograph but I made eye contact with sweet Lou
Pennella I'm a Chicago Cubs fan, so that was
enough for me just to get a wave and a smile
from Lou. But you've had Dale Murphy there. Run
through some of the special guests that the Rickwood
Classic has played host to. Well, I'm a big Yankee
fan, so I have been fortunate enough to host
Bucky Dent, Darrell Strawberry, Dwight Gooden.
We have had Tommy John. We've had Gaylord Perry.
We've had a host of folks that have come to celebrate
the Rickwood Classic and just bring additional
attention to it and give something special to
the fans because each of those autograph guests
that you mentioned came and signed autographs
for free. It was just our way of giving back
to the fans and we're thankful that the Birmingham
Barons partnered with us for so many years to
make that happen. There are a lot of memories
from the Rickwood Classic both for on the field
activities and the things that happened behind
the scenes and a lot of Rickwood lore was developed
during those times that the Rickwood Classic
was ongoing and we hope to recapture that in
years to come. Now this year it's going to be
a busy week so the classic which is a lot of
times I think on a Wednesday is going to be on
Tuesday the 18th then I've heard some talk and
maybe you can confirm or it's not yet solidified
yet. There might be a celebrity softball game
in between on that Wednesday. Any news there?
Well, first of all, there will be a minor league
game between the Birmingham Barons and the Montgomery
Biscuits on Tuesday, June the 18th. Now, Major
League Baseball is running that. So it may have
a name, but as of now, we don't know that it
would be called the Rickwood Classic. So the
Major League Baseball will handle that and we'll
know about that in due time. But it will be six
o 'clock in the afternoon or evening. Then on
the next day, on Wednesday, there is talk about
a celebrity softball game. Details are not readily
available at this point. They're still in the
works, but we're told that if they do pull that
off, there'll be some really A -list talent here.
Not necessarily baseball talent, but just star
power to come in and make it just a continuous
week of baseball. And then the big event, of
course, is June the 20th, and that will be the
Giants versus the Cardinals. And we're hoping
both of those teams make some good moves in the
off season and come in really strong and put
on a really good show for the fans in Birmingham
and across the world because Fox will be broadcasting
that game to 55 countries. Although the crowd
will not be nearly as big as most of the baseball
games the major leagues played, we will have
a sellout, I'm sure, and it'll be somewhere between
8 ,000 and 9 ,000 people. And by the way, just
in case anyone's curious, we, the Friends of
Rickwood, will not be selling or giving away
tickets at any level. So reach out to Major League
Baseball, the Cardinals, or the Giants for any
ticket requests you have. I'm glad you mentioned
that because I'm sure as we get to March and
April and certainly May, Some phones will be
lighting up and somebody having to man those
phones saying no Let me you need to reach out
over here because it's gonna be a hot ticket
and Everybody listening if you're a huge baseball
fan like I am You'd obviously love to go to this
game. There's a good chance. You just may not
be able to get into the game It's just that big
of an occasion but the city of Birmingham and
just being around the ballpark or taking in some
of what Birmingham has to offer in the way of
museums, restaurants, other attractions, I guess
speak a little bit to, I grew up there. I've
been gone for about 10 years, but what's happening
that might be fun for folks or maybe they could,
you know, if there is that softball game or the
Barrens and Biscuits contest might be possible,
but What are some things around town that might
make a trip to Birmingham worthwhile? Well, if
you're a baseball fan, I would point out the
Negro Southern League Museum. I would point out
the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame. And of course,
Birmingham is a foodie town. There are great
restaurants here. If somebody is coming to town
and has time and wants to take in some of the
natural sights, then there's always Oak Mountain
and Ruffer Mountain parks that they can go to.
Birmingham has a lot to offer, and one of the
best things about this Major League game is that
people are going to see a new Birmingham. What
they hear over the airwaves and what they see
is going to be totally different than maybe their
perception. And we have guests here, Dan, all
the time. Just yesterday, we had a couple that
were here from San Francisco, and they were just
wanting to see what the ballpark would look like.
They don't anticipate they'll be able to get
back for the game, but they just came to Birmingham
for the sole purpose of seeing this ballpark
and seeing where their beloved Giants are going
to be playing in six months. And they'll take
back some really nice stories about Birmingham.
They love the tour that we were able to give
them, although it was very limited. I know they
had some food at some of our great restaurants
and there's a lot to offer here that people are
not really aware of and hopefully. this ball
game will shine a new light on the Birmingham
area. Not only from the baseball fans perspective,
but for the general tourist and and folks that
just want to come and experience something something
else. And we look forward to having we as a community.
Birmingham is known for being just a great place
for tourists and people love being here. They
always talk about how nice everyone is and so
We have a lot to show off, and this ball game
is going to give us a chance to do that. Yeah,
it's a real family -friendly town. Whether you
visit downtown, there's other nature activities,
great restaurants all across downtown. Now, if
folks want to land in Birmingham that week, is
there an opportunity on Friday or the following
Monday or Tuesday to tour the facility? Are there
some closed off dates where there's not going
to be? It will not be accessible. Well, once
the ballgame is over, the MLB folks and all the
associated vendors and the TV production area,
all that stuff will begin to be taken down and
moved off. So I can't really say how available
the ballpark will be two or three or four days
after the game. But if they can check our website
and they can call. We can give them some information
that would be more relevant at that time, but
at this point at this point I can't say this
production of having a major league game is huge
and there will be probably three to five hundred
people that will be part of just putting the
game on and That's the Fox TVs folks. That's
the concessionaires That's everybody that will
play a part in putting on a big league game and
so there's gonna be a lot of activities and a
lot of people will be here and I just can't say
how quickly all of that will be broken down and
moved away. But once it is, then Rick Wood will
return to hosting travel ball games. We have
a home run derby. We have a fantasy camp. All
those things that we've had in the past will
continue. We just put everything on hold until
after the big league game. So I'm anticipating
probably about July 1st, the ballpark will be
open for visitors for sure. And then we'll go
on about our regular business. And Gerald, also
putting on or getting the field MLB ready and
everything that's been taking place since late
October, all the construction going on. I'm sure
that you're looking ahead to 2025, 2026. This
is not planned to be a one and done. I'm sure
everyone with friends Rickwood and other interests
would love to make this an ongoing. tradition,
maybe. Well, Dan, we hope to have a second game.
When MLB did the field of dreams game in Iowa,
they did two years. So we're hoping they'll do
the same here. And I think what what needs to
happen is Birmingham as a city needs to rise
up and show its hospitality. We need to handle
the traffic, the security. All those things need
to be done first class and I'm sure they will
because as I said before Birmingham has a way
of showing its hospitality and rising to the
occasion. The city has been great at every level
and I'm sure they'll continue to do that. They'll
do their part. The Friends of Rickwood will do
ours and everybody that has a chance to be a
part of it will do everything they can to make
it a success and if it is very successful then
we certainly hope MLB will come back. One of
the other conditions is that once MLB leaves,
we have to keep the field up at major league
quality. So we'll have to be very careful about
how many games we continue to play on the field.
And we'll have to make, again, every effort to
keep the ballpark in the same shape going forward
as it will be by the time the MLB game comes.
And we have people that are MLB. associates and
affiliates that are going to give us some consultation
and advice on what to do and how to handle that.
And so our very, very best hope is that we will
have that game a second year. However, we're
working on some other things. We have been speaking
with folks connected to Japanese baseball about
having an exhibition game of Japanese teams to
come in. We have been talking to the SWAC conference
about having a SWAC championship game. There
are other things that we're going to have. And
MLB has told us, and I'm sure they've told other
people as well, they are looking at ways to expand
their reach and do things to grow the game. And
so once they have our facility to their liking,
they're going to give us an opportunity to host
other things. And so this is just the beginning
of a new era in Rickwood's history. And the MLB
game is going to be special. And then there are
going to be some very, very special events that
happen after that. And not to be lost in this
is our local teams. We are the home team for
Miles College. Miles College plays about 20 games
a year here. And once 25 gets here and they start
putting their schedule into play, they're going
to have a field that will be the envy of college
baseball all over the world. And that's going
to be a great recruiting tool for Miles. It's
going to bring a lot of new eyes to the ballpark.
I mean it's gonna be great and then we'll still
continue to have some high school games and we'll
have a ton of travel ball games and again people
from all over the country have been coming to
Rickwood for travel ball anyway but when they
get a chance to come and play on the oldest baseball
park in America but with the newest grounds the
newest baseball grass and infield dirt and all
that they're gonna find it a spectacular place
and we're just gonna have We're going to have
a stream of interest in the ballpark that we
never could have imagined without this MLB game.
Well, you've just got to be so satisfied with
what the organization, Friends of Rickwood, has
been able to accomplish since 1992. It was 87
when the Birmingham Barons moved to the Hoover
Metropolitan Stadium. At that time, a wonderful
complex still is, multi -purpose facility, but
There was those period of dormant years, like
you referred to early in the episode, where if
you all had not stepped in, it's really sad to
imagine what might have happened to this baseball
cathedral. I'm just, I feel gratified for you
to be nearing this event and seeing this transformation.
And I know I meant to make a plug here for Steve
today's podcast, Leadership Lessons from the
Negro Leagues. Folks, make sure you listen to
that episode that Gerald Watkins appeared on.
He talked about the irrigation upgrades, the
turf upgrades, but also you had to kind of, as
you said, grin and bear it with the old dugouts
coming off the field and new dugouts being installed
that can accommodate Major League Baseball standards.
I guess all in all, though, the totality of what's
taking place there. How thrilled are you? Well,
I can't imagine what it would be like if we hadn't
done what has happened over the years. If the
Friends of Rickwood were not formed to keep this
park available and open, I can't imagine where
we would be now. But I will say this, for the
longest time, Birmingham had a tradition of just
doing away with old historic buildings. And we
had a wonderful terminal building. I remember
going to that when I was a kid and we let that
get away. And I'm glad that the people with the
friends of Rick Wood, the founders got together
when they did and said, we're not gonna let that
happen to Rick Woodfield. And so their efforts
have been followed up by a lot of different people
who have joined our group over the years. And
here we are and we're on the cusp of something
really, really special and people like Dan Weinrib
and a lot of other folks. have been out here
painting and cleaning toilets and picking up
trash, giving up many, many weekends for many,
many years so that someday we would be able to
host something very special. And I don't think
it was really ever imagined that it would get
to the point where it is. I think everybody thought,
oh, that would be cool. But until they did the
Field of Dreams game, nobody really thought about
it. about doing something like that here or if
they did think about it they didn't think about
it seriously because why why would they why would
mlb come here but we gave them uh all the education
we could on the history of the ballpark and the
legendary guys who played here both in the negro
leagues and in the minor leagues and in the tons
and tons and tons of exhibition games that have
been played here 182 hall of famers have played
or coached on this field and that's babe ruth
and say catch up paid and Jackie Robinson and
Willie Mays and probably a stream ski and all
those guys. I mean, there are tons of people
that played here. And I forgot to say Hank Aaron,
Hank Aaron, those guys played here and being
able to tell their stories and keep this park
open and then get to the point where we are now
again, less than six months away from having
a big league game here. It's an incredible story.
And The Friends of Rickwood, the founders of
the group that Dan and I are part of, really,
the community should take their hats off to the
Friends of Rickwood, because without the efforts
of all those guys over the years, we wouldn't
be where we are today. And we are looking forward
to a great future. And the things that have been
done to the ballpark have changed the character
a little bit. Yes, the dugouts are going to be
different. But the dugouts have been changed
three or four times over the course of 114 years.
And so it's not new to make changes. It's just
people have grown accustomed to what we had.
And when they see some of the new things, some
people are going to wish that it hadn't happened.
But for the most part, it's just like a lot of
things. You have to accept change. And without
change, we were struggling. The city of Birmingham
has really been so huge in everything they've
done. And then the corporate community, Alabama
Power, Regions Bank, Blue Cross, Protective Life,
Encompass, Assepco. All those companies have
chipped in and have made this possible. So without
all those folks, we wouldn't be where we are
today. And I just I can't wait for June to get
here and just see it all unfold before our very
eyes. Birmingham is going to be the the focal
point for baseball fans across the world for
a week and And we'll see what happens after that
well, it is just a wonderful culmination of events
and People in the early 90s. I'm sure must have
been asking some of you guys. Why are you doing
this? Why is it worth it? Are you sure you want
to take this on? There must have been some naysayers,
but really an old ballpark like this, especially
in Birmingham, well, historical sites preserve
history. And if they're still standing and you
can still look at it and walk through it, then
you're in touch with the past. And the civil
rights history in Birmingham needs to be preserved.
It's the Birmingham Black Barons history needs
to be preserved. You can go online and read about
things. But it's no substitute for actually being
able to walk into and experience something like
Rickwood Field. It truly is. You know, I've been
to Wrigley Field and Fenway Park. It's a very
moving experience when you walk into an old ballpark
like that. But Rickwood Field, it's just something
magical. Would you agree though that the, when
people ask, why would you do this going way back
30 years? And the answer is... I think is to
protect history and to remind people that these
teams existed, these players existed. And actually,
like you said, with Miles College and the ballplayers
who play there, the players who will sign with
Miles versus another school, this is changing
lives. Well, it can be. It certainly can be.
And one thing I like to share whenever I can,
Dan, is the people. The people that I meet, and
not only me, but the other members of the Friends
of Rickwood, the people that we meet throughout
the year who come here, and they walk in, and
they're just amazed that they can get that close,
that they can walk out on that field. And we're
very... very open about the ballpark. We let
people come out and borrow old gloves from the
1930s and 40s and play catch on our field, and
those kind of things, those make memories just
like the memories that I had and many of the
Friends of Rickwood members had when they were
coming here as kids. I mean, we saw Reggie Jackson
play. We saw, gosh, Gene Tennyson, Bobby Brooks,
and we saw Jose Kinseko and Mark McGuire play
here. We saw we saw all those people and that's
a part of our childhood that we don't want to
give away and so we're able to revisit that anytime
we come on the field and there's just so much
history as you said and when you walk out there
and you can stand in the batter's box and have
your picture made or you can walk out by the
big scoreboard and you can imagine that you're
standing on the same on the same field as all
those greats and it's just a an experience that
you can't get anywhere else i mean yankee stadium
is great Dodger Stadium is great. But how many
how many fans can actually go out on the mound
and say they they got to pitch where Satchel
Paige did or something like that. It's just it's
a great experience. I am blessed to be a part
of it. And the people that I have met and the
people that are part of our group here, the Friends
of Rick would have made this such a rewarding
experience. And gosh, I may have mentioned earlier,
we've had guests from 28 states. and eight or
nine foreign countries this year, including New
Zealand and Japan. This place is like a magnet.
It draws you in and once you're here, you just,
you become a part of the history. And it's just
something we know we're gonna be able to continue
for a long time to come since the city of Birmingham
has stepped up so big along with our corporate
partners to make the field readily available
for continual play and visitors for the next
many, many years. Now I know we're running out
of time here, but a couple things I want to cover
make sure that I plug here We mentioned Rick
wood comm the website Anybody can become a member
and there's different membership levels So if
you can contribute 25 bucks, you still get a
certificate and a sticker you can contribute
on up 50 hundred five hundred dollars There's
various levels, but make sure to visit Rick wood
comm very easy site to navigate tab over to donate
or membership levels Now just speaking about
Your interest in the game growing up as a little
kid. I know that you you and your brother I read
about Your experience with Charlie Finley's AIDS
and he got it's a remarkable story. I think your
little brother Charlie actually picked him up
and carried him into the dugout and Talk about
that for just a second. Then I also want to ask
you about the the Yankees legends game Well,
it was actually an exhibition game and it was
the Baltimore Orioles. And so I brought my brother
here, my younger brother, who was 10 years old.
And we had seats right next to the dugout. I
said, Charlie Finley, I think I misspoke. That's
OK. So it was the Orioles and there was an exhibition
game and I left my little brother in the seat
to go get a hot dog and coke and what have you.
When I came back he was gone and I freaked out.
Some people sitting around said look he's on
the field and Earl Weaver the manager of the
Orioles at the time had picked up my little brother
lifted him over the fence and he was on the field
in the dugouts with gosh Brooks Robinson. I can't
even remember all the players but he was in there
getting autographs and just. I had no idea what
he was doing. Weaver saw me and got my little
brother and put him back in the seed and just
a memory I'll never forget. And it's just one
of the many memories that I share with people
and people share their stories with me about
Rickwood Field and it just makes it so special.
And I was a baseball fan from the moment I crawled
out of the crib, I guess. I don't ever remember
not being a fan. I played Little League ball,
I collected cards, played Sandlock ball, probably
a lot more Sandlock ball than I ever did, just
Little League ball. But I always loved the game.
I watched it on TV, I read everything I could
read about it, and probably did every book report
on baseball players that I could back in grade
school. And just continued to be a fan over the
years. I've been very fortunate to have a lot
of experiences that I could share. I don't have
time for all of that. But in about 2015, my wife
and I went to a charity fundraiser that was put
on by Chris Hammond, former big league ball player.
And Chris has become a friend over the years
and I think the world of him. But one of the
prizes in the auction was a chance to go and
play in an exhibition game with members of the
New York Yankees. retired members, of course.
And my wife did and won the opportunity for me
to go to that game. And so I went to Scranton,
Pennsylvania. I took my son with me. And on Father's
Day of 2015, I got to suit up and actually play
in a game on their minor league field there in
Scranton. And the Yankee legends were there.
Reggie Jackson was there. Don Larson, who pitched
the perfect game in 1956. Bucky Dent, Chris Chambliss,
Joe Pepitone, Bobby Richardson, John Monofisco,
and I mean, there were 30 or 35 former Yankees
and then there were four civilians, myself and
three others. We each got to play in the game,
played the entire six innings before 9 ,000 people.
I was blessed to get a hit, also grounded into
a double play, caught two flies in the outfield.
War No. 44 in Lockard and sat next to Rach Jackson.
It was almost something that could have happened
only on Fantasy Island, but it happened to me,
and thanks to my wife, I got to do something
that was so special that I'll never forget it.
And it's funny that in the years after that,
Bucky Dent came to the Rickwood Classic, and
I reminded Bucky that we had played together.
He said he remembered and I took him in his word.
So it was a great experience. One of many great
experiences I've had being a part of the game
of baseball and it's a game that you can play
no matter how old you are or how big you are
or how fast you are, how strong you are. You
can play baseball at some level and I continue
to throw the ball around every chance I get and
just encourage everybody else to So just enjoy
the game. Don't worry about the time clock. Don't
worry about the way the game has changed. Just
enjoy the game, because it's still played between
the white lines. It's still throwing and hitting
and catching. And it's just the most wonderful
game in the world. Well, I concur wholeheartedly.
Even the 2019 classic, me and my buddy Jim, like
you said, you can go down on the field after
the game. Was running the bases like I was 10
years old I actually got Jim to take a video
of me and we got some guy that we didn't even
know To pretend like he was the third base coach
waving me home and we got that in the video It
was pretty comical but just like you said play
and catch You never get tired of just putting
that glove on and if if you've still got a little
bit of arm strength Throwing the ball around
especially with someone that's special to you,
whether it's your dad a brother, a sister, you
just never get tired of that. In that Legends
game, I imagine you're getting to swing a wooden
bat and crack the ball. Is that right? Oh, yeah.
I wouldn't have had it any other way. Everything
was just in full uniform. Absolutely. And when
I had number 44 and when the game was over, I
got Reggie Jackson to sign my jersey and it hangs
proudly, uh, in my man cave at home. Now, Gerald,
just a couple of quick baseball questions. Is
there a movie? I know we talked about the ones
filmed at Rickwood, but do you have a baseball
movie that is so special to you and you might
actually well up a little bit watching certain
moments of the movie? I've got an answer, but
what's your favorite baseball film of all time?
I really love the natural, but For some reason,
a baseball movie that really struck a chord with
me was For the Love of the Game. And that's Kevin
Costner. And I always appreciated Kevin Costner
doing baseball movies because he for a Hollywood
guy, he could play and he looked real. And so
those two. And then, of course, gosh, Feel the
Dreams is wonderful. But You put them in a hat
and pick one out and turn it on and I'll watch
whatever shows up. I think for the love of the
game, because it really does resonate with how
much the game can get inside of you and how much
it means on so many levels. And maybe one day
they'll make another good baseball movie. We'll
see. I need to go back and watch some of those
older ones. I really, when I was a little kid,
my dad wouldn't let me watch Bull Durham. I think
he saw it in the theaters. It's not that racy,
but maybe a little more adult themed. But I do
like Bull Durham now and the rookie with Dennis
Quaid. Just a really unique story there. And
since you brought it up, the 61, the story of
Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle's historic year
was wonderful. And the Bronx is Burning, which
mixes in culture and current events along with
the tumultuous period of Reggie Jackson's era
in New York. So there's a lot of good good movies
out there. Some are not so good. But I think
if they if they portray baseball action in a
believable way, that really helps. And obviously,
there are lots of good stories surrounding baseball.
And it's just a matter of who tells it and how
they tell it to make it appealing. And did you
I'm sure you probably did collect baseball cards
as a kid. And if so, Do you have some of your
original cards still in your collection? I have
them all, Dan. All right. For some reason or
another, I never wanted to let them go or get
rid of them. And the ones I collected as a kid,
I still have. And they are very dear to my heart.
When you were a kid and you opened the baseball
card pack with the gum, did you chew the gum?
Did you like it or did you discard it? That's
something that kids these days, they don't have
the... super hard stick of pink gum anymore,
but Well, I absolutely chewed it Yeah, I put
the cards in the shoe box and Thank goodness.
I didn't put rubber bands around them. So the
ones I have from that era are still in pretty
good shape Okay, and then finally favorite Yankee
of all time. You probably you probably mentioned
it but All -time favorite Yankee and maybe a
current Yankee that you like watching Well, like
a lot of people who are my age, born in the 50s,
Mickey Mantle is my favorite Yankee of all time.
And really, no one is close. I tend to pick a
different period and have a different Yankee
from each period. Obviously, Babe Ruth, Mickey
Mantle, after Mickey, Reggie Jackson was my favorite
Yankee, and then Derek Jeter. Now, I guess it
would be Aaron Judge and Derek Cole. So it's
just whatever the era is, there's going to be
different players with different skills. You're
going to know different things about them. But
Mickey Mantle was the idol for so many kids growing
up in the 60s. And just like Derek Jeter is the
idol of so many kids that grew up in the late
90s and the 2000s. And so it's just a matter
of the era. And I don't really dwell on on one,
uh, beyond Mickey Mantle, but Mickey was the
first huge, huge TV baseball star, I guess. And,
uh, you know, the name sounded so cool and the
prodigious long home runs and, and, uh, stories
that was playing with pain and all that, all
those things just, uh, combined to make Mickey
almost a mythical figure for myself and millions
of other boys. And so it's hard to top Mickey,
so. I agree. What about, who was your favorite?
My favorite well growing up a Cubs fan. I kind
of alternated now This would have been the late
80s early 90s. So I love Ryan Sandberg Mark Grace
Andre Dawson and then into the 90s. I mean Sosa
Sammy Sosa, of course, you know You're starting
to get into the steroid era there then but I
do still like Sammy Sosa Greg Maddox played of
course with Atlanta and Chicago Carrie wood It's
hard for me to pin it down. Mark Grace, I really
enjoyed watching him play. He was one of the
few modern players that I don't think he ever
wore batting gloves. I'm not really sure why,
but if you go back and watch highlights of Mark
Grace, I loved his stance, even though I was
a righty and he's a lefty. I remember being a
kid, and I'm sure you do too. Did you try to
emulate the stance of your favorite player when
you were playing? I'd try to do it with Dawson
also because he would kick the left leg out.
I've never really did that. Mickey Mantle, of
course, he had a very classic stance. There was
nothing tricky or new or weird about it. So I
never really tried to copy him. I just, when
I played ball, I just kind of developed my own
and there was nothing special about it. But there
was nothing special about Mickey's. Mickey was
Very traditional, very, very fundamentally sound
in every way. And so, um, nothing like, uh, some
of the guys, Stan Musial had a very uncharacteristic
stance or a few others, but, uh, for that part,
I didn't really do anything different. Yeah.
And I also like Bob Gibson. If just going back
to players who played well before my time, so
dominant wish I could have seen Satchel Paige
throw. I mean, he. from everything I read, he
just made people look silly and just had his
way with hitters. And well into his 40s. Folks
listening, do some light reading on Satchel Page.
I don't even think he reached the big leagues
until his late 40s or something like that. It's
just amazing what he accomplished. And Babe Ruth,
like you said, doing book reports. If you had
a chance to do it on the ballplayer, you did.
I was so fascinated with Babe Ruth and still
am. That's what makes being a baseball fan so
much fun. Like we've talked about on this episode,
the history of baseball. It's so compelling.
It's, you know, it's not like the NFL's history
is not compelling or the NBA or NHL, but there's
something about baseball that it just, you dive
into it more often. You want to check into it.
You're nostalgic. all the time with baseball.
It's just a wonderful sport, hobby, fascination,
whatever you want to call it. I could talk baseball
for half the day, but we can't do a four hour
episode. But Gerald, I have so enjoyed this conversation.
I hope you have too. I have Dan. And just like
you said, I love talking baseball and I would
be talking about it all day long and into the
night if I could. You know, that's one of the
best things about being here at Rickwood Field
is I get to do that every day. Well, I look forward
to seeing you and whether it's this summer or
2025, I believe there's great things to come
at Rickwood Field and folks listening just circle
Birmingham, Alabama on your map or put a note
in. It's a city you need to visit and this is
an event that you won't want to miss even if
you just see it on TV. I'm so thrilled. that
this is happening in the city that I grew up
in? It's going to be special. And once the ball
game is over, if you don't get a chance to see
the park during one of those three days, come
out. We'll make you feel very welcome. And you'll
enjoy the visit, I promise. And there's no cost
to it. It's one of the few things you can do
and enjoy as much as possible. And it's totally
free. Well Gerald is there anything else that
you'd like to promote or plug that we haven't
covered Well, I'll just say this we have a website
and we have a web store. We have some really
cool merchandise We have a very limited edition
shirt right now and it reads MLB is coming to
BHM. So we have a limited number of those and
when they're gone, they're gone So if anyone
is interested they can reach out by email, text
or telephone, or they can drop by during the
week from 10 till 4 and check us out. And anything
that anybody does, spending money at Rickwood
Field, buying merchandise or anything else, all
of those things are in support of the 501C3 friends
of Rickwood Field. So we appreciate any kind
of help and more than anything else, tell people
about us and enjoy your time at the ballpark.
All right. Well, that's it for this episode of
Dan time with a very special guest Gerald Watkins
the chairman and executive director of the Friends
of Rickwood organization rickwood .com r -i -c
-k -w -o -o -d check it out and remember You're
never too old to put a glove on your non throwing
hand Put a bat in your hands sometimes Mobility
becomes a problem. Sometimes the arm strength
just isn't there but if you can still do it if
you can still do it find someone to go play catch
with and Make sure if whether it's this year
or a future year you visit Birmingham Alabama
Rickwood field check it out and I hope you guys
have a wonderful week make sure To make a difference
in somebody's life this week and into the new
year. I forgot to tell you, Gerald, happy new
year. Happy 2024. What an exciting year for your
organization. Well, thank you. Happy new year
to you too. And to all the folks out there listening,
I hope to see you at the ballpark. All right.
Thank you, Gerald. I hope that in the future
we can reconnect and do another baseball themed
episode. Dan, anytime, anytime. And it's good
to connect with you and let's stay in touch.
Okay. Alright. If you love that episode, if you're
enjoying the Dan Time podcast, be sure to download
and subscribe so you never miss an episode. I
appreciate you as a listener. Hope you have a
great week. I'll see you next Sunday.