How MLB's Rickwood Field game will make huge statement in community — and baseball

Tim Anderson, as a member of the Birmingham Barons, played in the 20th Annual Rickwood Classic Game against the Jacksonville Suns in 2015. The shortstop, at the time touted as the Chicago White Sox' No. 2 prospect behind southpaw Carlos Rodon, remembers there wasn't much fanfare around the game. While he was looking forward to returning to his roots — Anderson grew up in Tuscaloosa, Alabama — there was a limited marketing initiative and next to no national publicity for the Rickwood Classic Game.

Nonetheless, this game mattered a great deal to Anderson. He could sense the historical significance of the field itself, America's oldest professional ballpark, built on Aug. 10, 1910. And he understood how important the Classic was to the city of Birmingham. 

"You could feel the history, just from the sounds of the speakers," Anderson recently told FOX Sports. "Just from the vibes and the atmosphere, even just being in the stadium, you could feel it and see what was really going on."

Anderson, 21 years old at the time and two years removed from being the White Sox' No. 1 draft pick, played that Rickwood Classic with emotion. Returning to Alabama, suited up in white and red throwback uniforms, matching the full regalia that Willie Mays' 1948 Black Barons wore all the way to the final Negro League World Series, how could he not? Competing in Satchel Paige's playground and more than 100 other Hall of Famers who stepped onto the city's gem, Anderson played in front of 7,046 spectators and fully embraced his opportunity to take a few at-bats and vacuum some grounders at the iconic Rickwood Field.

Nine years later, though Anderson won't be there Thursday as the San Francisco Giants take on the St. Louis Cardinals in MLB's first game