What Will Become of the Hank Aaron Stadium?

With the Mobile BayBears relocating to Madison, Alabama the future of the historical Hank Aaron stadium is up on the air. The BayBears edged out a narrow win in their last game before going away to a newly instructed ballpark in Madison where they are going to appear as Rocket City Trash Pandas.

But many are wondering what will happen to the stadium. There are all kinds of rumors and the hard-core fans are scared to see something bad happening to it.

The stadium was built when the BayBaears franchise relocated to Mobile and it was named after the Mobile native. Hank Aaron was the all-time leader in home runs and is a Hall of Famer and an absolute longed of the sport.

After the BayBears played their final game, Mobile City Council Member John Williams explained that the land the stadium is on is being leased by the city. Thus the future of the stadium is going to be decided between the city and the owner of the grounds.

However, if Mobile does not have an AA affiliate anymore or something similar, there will be no need for leasing the land anymore. Unless a new team is found to come to mobile, even a team playing a different sport, the land will have to be returned as it was found. This prompts talks of the stadium being torn apart eventually.

However, a certain group that was connected with the BayBears, including former executive Ari Rosenbaum, has stated that there are interests of taking over management of the ballpark. The potential idea is to use the area for high school and college baseball games. Also, it might serve well for various other events additionally.

But the best idea comes from Tim Bennett of Overtime Spots. Bennett is the owner of the Biloxi Shuckers, an AA team that plays in the Southern League. The idea that Bennett proposed includes plans of upgrading and renovating the stadium to contemporary standards.

This would be an important task to make as one of the reasons for the team moving was that Hank Aaron Stadium was not on par with some of the rivaling ones from the area. Upgrading it the facilities and the entire ballpark is a great idea as it will also attract more visitors for future endeavors.

However, Bennett did not specify the reason for upgrading the stadium. He simply wants to invest so the city is not going to have to pay a dime in the stadium’s renovations. There are talks that Bennett is planning to bring a new team to Mobile and some are even speculating of Bennett’s Shuckers might move there. But something that is much more apparent that an entirely new team will be brought to play at the newly renovated Hank Aaron Stadium.

Bennett also stated that all the work needed for the stadium to be upgraded will most likely be finished by 2021, meaning that it could open the door to a potential new professional team coming to Mobile.

One of the reasons for Bennett saving the stadium is his friendship with Hank Aaron himself. The two of them are close friends and Bennett even calls it Hank’s stadium. We all know that the stadium just bears its name and Aaron does not hold any rights to it, but it is still a part of his legacy and probably the heart and soul of Mobile. Bennett wants to preserve this monument and also bring back the sports spirit to Mobile as many fans are devastated after losing a beloved franchise.