With just about a week remaining until the MLB Speedway Classic at Bristol Motor Speedway, the construction of the venue is on pace according to event officials. Today BMS track president and general manager Jerry Caldwell and MLB field consultant Murray Cook gave another sneak-peek to media members as the historic game on August 2nd between the home team Cincinnati Reds and the visiting Atlanta Braves is rapidly approaching.
Standing just behind home plate in the middle of the infield where NASCAR race team transporter rigs usually sit, Caldwell said more sports history is upon The Last Great Colosseum.
“We are only eight days away from making history once again at Bristol Motor Speedway, and we are so thankful to be the host of the first major league baseball game in the history of the state of Tennessee,” Caldwell said. “We've been at this for a few years now with Major League Baseball. We've had wonderful partners all along the way, and we can't wait for next Saturday night, August 2nd, when that first pitch is thrown out and the stands are full, we'll be setting records. We'll be having attendance records. We'll be announcing all those details later on, but we'll be there.”
Cook, who has led field-building efforts like this for MLB on special jewel events all around the world, said that the construction continues to progress smoothly.
“We're real excited where we are with the time frame of all our construction, and we're right there, where we need to be, and should have everything punched out by next Tuesday or Wednesday,” Cook said. “It’s quite a bit of work by a lot of folks. The turf is down, with final touches on the clay, on the infield, and obviously all the padding and our branding is going up. We got a light check last night to take a look at those. The beautiful seating structures and the locker rooms are phenomenal and it’s just a credit to Bristol Motor Speedway helping us get this thing together and all of our partners so we can build a great ballpark.
“We’ve had a blast building this one,” Cook added. “It's been a great one of all the ones I've worked on. This one has gone just seamlessly. It's been very, very fun.”
Caldwell says there is a ton of momentum building for this game. The extended community and region are buzzing, as is the national sports landscape. He says it will be one of those events that is more than just a game. It’s a major happening.
“On gameday we're going to encourage people to get here early,” Caldwell said. “Things are going to start out at the Fan Zone at noon with lots and lots of things for people to do, incorporating the sport of NASCAR and the history of Major League Baseball. It’s going to be a lot of fun. It's going to be one of those days that you'll want to be here with your family to experience and be able to talk about for the rest of your life.”
And earlier this week, one of the area’s local MLB standouts moved from Triple-A Gwinnett up to the Braves roster. Caldwell says if the situation allows Hunter Stratton, who literally grew up less than five miles from the track, to make an appearance in the game in middle relief, local fans will go nuts.
“We may have a great local storyline with (pitcher) Hunter Stratton, who plays for the Braves,” Caldwell said. “He went to Sullivan East (High School), which is very close to here. If he gets called in as a relief pitcher that night, I know the place will go crazy.”
While everyone keeps their fingers crossed for that to potentially happen, Caldwell says he is looking forward to the vision, all the discussions, the planning, and the hard work come to reality when he hears those famed words “Play Ball!” Saturday night.
“We are so thrilled to be able to welcome everyone to Bristol through this partnership with Major League Baseball, the state of Tennessee and so many others to be able to pull this off,” Caldwell said.
For more information and to purchase tickets please visit the MLB Speedway Classic website.
