Birmingham Barons

The Birmingham Barons are a minor league baseball team based in Birmingham, Alabama, that plays at the Double-A level in the Southern League and has been affiliated with the Chicago White Sox since 1986. Birmingham has hosted professional baseball since 1885, and the current team has played in the city since 1981. Their home is Regions Field, which opened in 2013.[1]

History

Professional baseball began in Birmingham in 1885 with the Coal Barons of the Southern League. Birmingham teams used many names over the years, including Ironmakers, Maroons, Grays, Blues and Bluebirds, and the Barons name has been used for 1901-1961, 1964-1965 and 1981 to the present. The team played in the Southern Association from 1901 to 1961, and the current franchise arrived in Birmingham in 1981 from Montgomery, where it had been the Montgomery Rebels.[1]

Ballparks

Birmingham teams have used Rickwood Field since 1910; the Barons played there full time from 1981 to 1987 and have returned for special occasions since. Hoover Metropolitan Stadium was home from 1988 to 2012, and Regions Field in downtown Birmingham has been home since 2013.[1] See also Rickwood Field.

Michael Jordan and championships

Michael Jordan played for the Barons in 1994 during his time away from the NBA, a season remembered as the “Summer of Jordan.” The Barons have won eight Southern League titles (1983, 1987, 1989, 1993, 2002, 2013, 2024, 2025) and six Dixie Series titles, with the Dixie Series wins in 1929, 1931, 1948, 1951, 1958 and 1967.[1] The Wikipedia page lists some conflicting title years in its infobox. Ownership changed in 1995, 2005 and 2023, when Diamond Baseball Holdings acquired the team.[1]

Franchise history

Birmingham has had baseball since the Birmingham Coal Barons of 1885. The current club has played in Birmingham since 1981 after previously operating as the Montgomery Rebels, and the Chicago White Sox have been its major league affiliate since 1986. It plays at Double-A in the Southern League, and the Southern Association team played in Birmingham from 1901 to 1961.[2]

Ballparks

Rickwood Field was home from 1910 to 1961 and again from 1981 to 1987, and the team still uses it for special occasions. Hoover Metropolitan Stadium hosted the club from 1988 to 2012, and Regions Field opened in downtown Birmingham in 2013.[2]

Titles and players

The Barons have won Southern League titles in 1983, 1987, 1989, 1993, 2002, 2013, 2024 and 2025, and Dixie Series titles in 1929, 1931, 1948, 1951, 1958 and 1967. Michael Jordan played with the team in 1994, and Frank Thomas, Bo Jackson, Reggie Jackson and Rollie Fingers are among former players.[2]

FAQs

Where do the Barons play? At Regions Field in downtown Birmingham.

Who played for the Barons in 1994? Michael Jordan.

Sources

1. Wikipedia: Birmingham Barons
2. Wikipedia: Birmingham Barons

Editorially reviewed by Specialty Digest Editorial TeamLast reviewed November 10, 2026Researched and drafted with AI assistanceReport an issue