The Hoover Met
The latest version of the Barons came back to Birmingham in 1981. The Barons played in front of their largest opening night crowd in 31 years (9,185) on April 14, 1981 in a 6–5 win over Jacksonville. The 1981 squad featured future major league star Howard Johnson and former Arizona Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin. Good times followed as the Barons won the 1983 title over Jacksonville in 4 games. It was apparent by 1986 that historic Rickwood Field would not host the Barons forever. Clarkson made plans to move the team to Hoover, Alabama, a Birmingham suburb, and a 10,800 seat Hoover Metropolitan Stadium (now called Regions Park). The final game at Rickwood (September 9, 1987) was a 5–4 loss to Charlotte in the second game of the Southern League title series. The team won "one more for Rickwood" by taking the title in 4 games.
The Barons took the field for the first time at the Hoover Met on April 18, 1988. Birmingham won 8–2 over Greenville in front of 13,279. The club has won three titles (1989,93,02) since the move to Hoover. The 1993 title was led by former Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona.
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