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Experience Birmingham Tours is your way to re-live the rich historic culture of the civil rights movement as well as a taste of some local dynamic food which is also putting Birmingham on the map. We've just recently added a mobile cigar lounge to our list of available options. This is a great way to connect as part of your team-building or social event. 

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Everyone has different tastes when it comes to how they'll spend their free time. We offer several very distinct tours, which are sure to be unforgettable. You'll have the opportunity taste samples from Birmingham's best restaurants during the Eat. Drink. Ride. Tour. Then there's our new "In Their Footsteps" Civil Rights Tour. You'll be taken back in time as we explore and visit unique historical places in the city. And don't forget to reserve the Incognito Mobile Cigar Lounge for your next event.

Media Coverage

"Birmingham area businesswoman opens rolling cigar lounge" Steve Crocker/WBRC  September 21, 2022

"More relief on the way for small businesses in Alabama with fewer than 20 employees"   ABC 33/40   February 23, 2021

"Incognito Mobile Cigar Lounge now rolling around Birmingham" Patience Itson/Bham Now  September 16, 2022

"New civil rights tours launch in Birmingham"  Stephanie Rebman/Birmingham Business Journal    January 28, 2020

"Mobile cigar lounge hits Birmingham's entertainment scene" Stephanie Rebman/Birmingham Business Journal   September 15, 2022

"Comedienne Joy launches bus tours of Birmingham civil rights landmarks"    Shauna Stuart/al.com   January 19, 2020

"Joy King wants to create a safe school dance experience with Magic City Prom Tours"   AL.com   February 24, 2021

"In Their Footsteps Tours"  WBRC Television January 14, 2020

Notice: Incognito Cigar Lounge Update We'd like to inform our valued customers that the Incognito Cigar Bus previously operating in Birmingham has been sold. While it's no longer under our ownership, we're thrilled to share that the spirit of the Incognito Cigar Bus continues to thrive in the DMV area. We extend our heartfelt thanks for your support throughout the journey of the Incognito Cigar Lounge.

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The Big Brum Open Top Buz Sightseeing Tour

In a nutshell

Allow time for the Big Brum Open Top Buz Sightseeing Tour if you're planning a family day out in Birmingham. Both fun and educational, this live guided bus

Victoria Square, Birmingham

Contact details

Tel: 07805 115998

Activity type

Historical Sites, Indoor Activities, Outdoor Activities, Trips and Transport

Suitable for

Ages 5 - 12, All ages, Schools and Groups, Teenagers, Under 5s

Price guide

£20.00.

(based on family of 4)

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The Big Brum Open Top Buz Sightseeing Tour details...

Allow time for the Big Brum Open Top Buz Sightseeing Tour if you’re planning a family day out in Birmingham. Both fun and educational, this live guided bus tour is a great way to explore and learn about the city. The tour includes the Jewellery Quarter and many buildings of architectural interest.

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The Big Brum Open Top Buz Sightseeing Tour reviews...

See all the best bits of Brum from the open top bus (sorry Buz) great route, well commentated and from the top deck you get to see the wonderful architectural details of some of the very old buildings in the city centre. Choose a dry day and go up top!

4:38 PM October 7, 2022

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It’s hard not to fall in love with Birmingham and the surrounding area and it's never been easier to travel around and explore some of our hidden gems.

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No matter your transportation needs, Thrasher Brothers Trailways is here to service them.

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With over a half century of experience transporting groups across North America, Thrasher Brothers Trailways is looking forward to being a part of your next adventure and serving your motorcoach needs. When you're looking for safe, reliable, and comfortable transportation our team at Thrasher Brothers Trailways has you covered. Thrasher Brothers Trailways is one of the independently owned and operated Trailways Transportation System companies around the world. Through this Worldwide Network of Transportation Companies, we have access to backup support that other bus companies do not have access to. Thrasher Brothers Trailways is a founding leader in the Alabama Motorcoach Association, and an active member nationally in the United Motorcoach Association.We invite you to learn more about Thrasher Trailways as you make your decision for Bus Travel in the United States and Canada.  We look forward to seeing you soon and you can get your quote online today.

Thrasher Trailways is proud of our service to Alabama's motorcoach needs for over 50 years ! Family owned and operated, we are continuing our tradition of proven reliability for Charter Buses in Birmingham. Our new Rental Buses bring our service to a new level. If you have not ridden in one of our modern motorcoaches, you are still just riding a bus! Thrasher Brothers is the only company in the Birmingham market with Nationwide Trailways Service.  All coaches are equipped with WiFi, and Motive state of the art ELDs for tracking our coaches all over the U.S. and Canada.  At the Trailways National Meetings Thrasher has been awarded its ‘Vision Award’ and ‘Outstanding Community Achievement’ recognition, a testament to our incredible team and their hard work serving the state of Alabama.

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Welcome to After 6 Tours

After 6 Tours is a premier party bus company in Birmingham, Alabama. We accommodate all itineraries and events, such as weddings, bachelor/bachelorette parties, regular nights out on the town, and more. You'll find that we can provide service to literally any event. Our top-of-the-line party bus is as luxurious to travel in as anything that the wealthiest celebrities can access. It's packed with stunning features such as a booming sound system that hooks up easily to your smartphone and HDTVs with Blu-ray/DVD player so you can watch movies, music videos, or even home movies. At the same time, you travel with absolutely pristine leather interiors that are clean and comfy, color-changing neon lighting to put you in a party mood, and of course, that essential ice-filled cooler, and bar that is ready to be stocked with the beverages of your choice. Everything you need is literally at your fingertips, plus you've got a professional chauffeur at the wheel while you party it up. What more could you ask for? We can guarantee our party bus rental is perfect for any trip or last-minute party for large groups. Do you have more questions, or are you ready to reserve your party bus today? We love to speak to our clients: past, present, and future. Give us a call or email us today!

Large Party Bus - $300 per hour

Up to 20 passengers depending on size of group.

LED lighting, State of the art sound system, flat screen HD TVs.

Bluetooth Radio / Auxiliary Audio input /  Wi-Fi.

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Mid - Size Party Bus - $200 per hour

Up to 16 passengers depending on size of group.

LED lighting, State of the art sound system, flat screen HD TV. 

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Small Built-in cooler / cup holders' space.

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Blacked out privacy w indows.

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​ ​ (Up to  20 pass e ngers depending on size of group and preferred party bus) $200 - $300 per hour.

No hourly minimum or hidden fees.

Complimentary videos and photos included with signed consent.

We do not allow smoking / Not wheelchair accessible.

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All deposits are 50% of total booking price and required to reserve your specific rental date / time frame.

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A minimum $125 fuel surcharge is factored into total booking price based upon the clients’ itinerary and location.

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As a valued After 6 Tours customer your safety and wellbeing are our top priority. The Party Bus is sanitized prior to and after all reservations. After 6 Tours carries no responsibility or liability in the contracting of COVID-19 or any symptoms relating to the virus.

Giants' Bandura attends MLB at Rickwood Field

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For just about everyone in attendance at the game at Rickwood Field Thursday night, it was perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime experience. But for Giants prospect Scott Bandura, there was a familiarity about being at this old, historic ballpark that not many would understand. Bandura, currently an outfielder with Single-A San Jose,

For just about everyone in attendance at the game at Rickwood Field Thursday night, it was perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

But for Giants prospect Scott Bandura , there was a familiarity about being at this old, historic ballpark that not many would understand.

Bandura, currently an outfielder with Single-A San Jose, was one of several players invited by the club to attend the history-making game between the Giants and Cardinals -- MLB at Rickwood: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues .

Both participating teams invited all of their Black Minor League players to make the journey to Birmingham, Ala., to watch the game. Between the two, 14 accepted -- 10 from the Giants, four from the Cardinals .

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It would mark the second trip to this ballpark for Bandura, whose youth baseball team, the Anderson Monarchs, played at Rickwood Field in 2015 on a trip that was equal parts a civil rights educational trek through the South and a barnstorming tour that pitted them against youth baseball teams located in various cities that they visited.

“It’s kind of a full-circle moment,” Bandura said of his return to Rickwood. “I really appreciate the Giants for letting all of the Minor Leaguers be able to attend this and step away from our teams for a couple of days to be able to experience this.”

Along with Bandura, Giants prospects Reggie Crawford ( No. 8 ), Grant McCray ( No. 13 ), Ben Madison, Josh Bostick ( No. 28 ), Nadir Lewis, Elijah Pleasants, Donovan McIntyre, Bo Davidson, Michael Rodriguez made the trip out to Birmingham for the game.

“What a way to celebrate African-American history and baseball than having teams play at this field, in a predominantly Black city [and] opening up this field and having a MLB game,” said Lewis, also an outfielder for Single-A San Jose. “I think it’s just a cool experience. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Lewis also added that this week’s Rickwood game provided an opportunity for people to learn more about the historical significance of the field .

“I actually kind of did my own little deep dive trying to figure out exactly what was going on because I wasn’t super knowledgeable at the time,” he said about his reaction when the Rickwood game news was originally announced. “Which I feel like is good because a lot of people probably did that, and they probably got more in touch with what’s going on and what happened in the history of this field.”

Bandura had a little bit of a head start on this. As a 14-year-old, he met Henry Aaron on that barnstorming tour in 2015 -- the group stopped in Atlanta to visit Martin Luther King Jr.’s church and home, and met Hammerin’ Hank during a special visit to the Braves’ ballpark -- and he has a deep, extensive understanding of the history of the Negro Leagues and the timeline that led to Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in 1947.

“I already had an idea of how cool of an experience it would be,” he said of returning to Rickwood. “And now they’re wearing the Negro League uniforms tonight, and I think it could be the start of a really, really special tradition.”

To this day, Bandura, the Giants’ seventh-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, stays connected to Black history by paying tribute to the players that came before him. Bandura has a 42 tattoo, a nod to Robinson.

“Baseball has been able to take me to some really cool places, and that was even before the Draft and everything,” Bandura said. “So I just wanted to appreciate the history and everything that baseball has done for me. And that wouldn’t have been possible without the people that came before, [with] Jackie being a huge part of that.”

The former Princeton Tiger also touched on the historical feel that Rickwood has.

“It really felt like a time capsule almost,” Bandura said. “Like all of the advertisements on the outfield wall hadn’t changed, and even the stadium lights were the same ones that had been there forever. [It] felt like nothing had changed from the time that it was being used full-time.”

Bandura’s father, Steve, used an original Negro League bus to transport the Monarchs during that 2015 barnstorming tour. The bus, decorated in Birmingham Black Barons logos, was on display this week at Rickwood Field as a part of the festivities. While the bus has clear historical significance, it also holds a lot of personal memories for Bandura.

“My parents are down here with the bus and they’ve been hanging out and explaining the story of the bus to people who walk by… there’s definitely some nostalgia because I’ve spent so many hours and so many miles on that bus between the tours we went on,” he said. “It’s definitely really cool because it’s probably one of a very few number of those buses left. And the fact that we’re able to showcase it and show it off at this event makes it pretty special.”

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Memories of Willie Mays loom large in Negro Leagues tribute

June 20, 2024 at 5:00 p.m.

by ALANIS THAMES / The Associated Press

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — As Ajay Stone strolled around historic Rickwood Field and gazed at tributes displayed in honor of Willie Mays and other Negro Leaguers, he clutched a cherished memory under his arm.

It was a picture from 2004 of Mays holding Stone's daughter Haley, just 10 months old at the time, who was wearing San Francisco Giants gear. In Mays' hand was a chunk of a chocolate chip cookie, which he was handing over for Haley to eat.

"Willie gave her that cookie. She had no teeth," Stone remembered. "But we took the cookie and we kept it in her stroller for a year and a half. The great Willie Mays gave it to her, so it was special to us."

Stone and his wife Christina traveled from Charlotte, North Carolina, to be in Birmingham on Thursday for a moment they deemed just as special.

It was hours before Rickwood Field hosted its first Major League Baseball game — the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Giants 6-5 — which MLB called "A Tribute to the Negro Leagues" and was meant to honor the legacy of Mays and other Black baseball greats who left an enduring mark on the sport.

MLB planned a week of activities around the former Giants star and the Negro Leagues, including an unveiling ceremony on Wednesday of a Mays mural in downtown Birmingham. Those tributes took on a more significant meaning Tuesday afternoon when Mays died at 93.

As news of his death spread throughout the Alabama city, celebrations of his life ramped up.

You could hear the celebration at 114-year-old Rickwood Field on Thursday even before arriving at the ballpark with the rapid thumping of a drum echoing from within the venue, excited murmurs from fans skipping toward the music and frequent bursts of laughter.

Inside the ballpark, there were reminders of history all around.

There were photos and artifacts of National Baseball Hall of Famers who played at what is now the oldest professional ballpark in the United States, including Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige and Jackie Robinson, who broke MLB's color line when he took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. The original clubhouse of the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues, where Mays got his pro start in 1948, was open. A memorial of Mays was at the front, with bobbleheads, a signed glove and his Black Barons and San Francisco Giants jerseys on display.

Outside, fans stood in line to hold a bat used by Mays in 1959. They took photos sitting inside an original bus from 1947 that was typically used during barnstorming tours by Negro Leagues teams. They danced to live music and ate food from concession stands featuring menu boards designed to reflect the look and feel of the 1940s.

Eddie Torres and his son Junior wore matching Giants jerseys as they took pictures inside the ballpark. They're lifelong Giants fans who came from California for the game.

"I never even got to see Willie Mays play, but as a Giants fan, you knew what he meant to the game of baseball," Torres said. "My son, he's only 11. Willie Mays had such an effect on the game that even he knew who Willie Mays was."

Musical artist Jon Batiste strummed a guitar while dancing on a wooden stage near home plate just before the first pitch. Fans stood as former Negro Leaguers were helped to the field for a pregame ceremony.

Shouts of "Willie! Willie!" broke out after a brief moment of silence.

For Michael Jackson, sitting in the stands at Rickwood Field reminded him of the past.

The 71-year-old played baseball in the 1970s and 1980s with the East Thomas Eagles of the Birmingham Industrial League, a semiprofessional circuit made up of iron and steel workers that was an integral form of entertainment in Birmingham in the 20th century.

Jackson's baseball journey took him to Rickwood many times. After all these years, he was just excited that it's still standing.

"It's nice seeing them redo all of this instead of tearing it down," he said. "We played in the same ballpark they named after Willie Mays out in Fairfield (Alabama). And then I had my times out here playing at this ballpark. It's all very exciting."

While the Giants' bid to win one for Willie was spoiled by the Cardinals, players on both sides considered it an honor to take part in the tribute game.

Brendan Donovan, who hit a two-run homer and a double as a part of a 3-for-3 showing for St. Louis, called it "a special night." On top of everything else, Donovan was back in the state where he grew up.

"I mean, this is something that we should celebrate. This right here is pretty amazing," he said. "And to do it in Alabama, I've got some friends and family in the stands, it's like playing summer ball again."

Plenty of other Negro Leagues greats were honored, including former Black Barons player Bill Greason, who threw out the ceremonial first pitch. The game also featured the first all-Black umpire crew in American League and National League history.

"It was fun," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. "The pregame ceremony was incredible. I got emotional. Just knowing where you're standing. Just the overall feel of the tribute to Willie Mays. The impact he had on people that he met, but also people he never met, that's when you know you've done it right."

Both teams wore throwback uniforms with Mays' No. 24 on them. Over 23 seasons in the majors, mostly with the New York/San Francisco Giants but also two with the New York Mets at the end and one in the Negro Leagues with the Black Barons at the beginning, Mays batted .301, hit 660 home runs, totaled 3,293 hits and scored more than 2,000 runs.

The National League's rookie of the year in 1951 and a two-time MVP of the league, he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his first year of eligibility.

"One of a kind type of place to play," Giants manager Bob Melvin said of Rickwood. "You look around and kind of can feel what transpired here a long time ago and the players that played on the field. It'd be nice to win the game, but pretty cool experience."

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Fans wonder if Taylor Swift will say 'So long, London' after Eras Tour

LONDON (AP) — Taylor Swift fans enjoy parsing the  singer-songwriter’s lyrics  for references to her romantic life and insights into her state of her mind.

But the pop superstar’s fans in the U.K. didn’t have to listen closely to her  latest album , “The Tortured Poets Department,” to get the sense that Swift had soured on the country’s capital city after long making it a regular hangout and then her second home. The record’s fifth track is titled  “So Long, London.”

As Swift brings her  blockbuster Eras Tour  to London’s Wembley Stadium, some Swifties therefore are wondering if they are witnessing the beginning of an extended goodbye. She is performing three nights starting Friday, and is scheduled to return to Wembley for six nights in August to close the  tour’s European leg .

London  is the only city on the tour where Swift is stopping twice. Some worry the arrangement may represent a swan song of sorts, while others think it just reflects a new era in Swift’s bond with the Big Smoke. Whether “So Long, London” turns out to be a final chapter or a bookend to her valentine to the city, the song “London Boy,” Eras is arriving as an emotional milestone.

“Her relationship now kind of assumes London won’t be somewhere she will be. It’s not like there is an American football player living here,” said Maggie Fekete, 22, a Canadian graduate student who credits the London references in Swift’s music with orienting her when she moved to the city three years ago. “I think there will be a lot less London in her music, which is sad.”

For those who haven’t been paying attention, Swift had a series of romances with famous British citizens, starting with Harry Styles in 2012 and ending last year, when she started dating Kansas City Chiefs tight end  Travis Kelce . The speculation surrounding “So Long, London” and a mournful companion song that mentions  a London pub , “The Black Dog,” stems from the 2023 breakup of Swift and English actor Joe Alwyn, who were together for over six years.

Alwyn is assumed to have inspired “London Boy,” a song from her 2019 album “Lover.” A special-edition “Lover” CD included what appeared to be a January 2017 diary entry in which Swift talked about being “essentially based in London” but trying to lay low. British tabloids later reported that Swift spent much of the COVID-19 pandemic sheltering with Alwyn in north London.

The Sun newspaper reported in December that the multiple Grammy-winner had bought a large property in the area and was remodeling it to be her base in Europe. After Swift released “The Tortured Poets Department” last month, however, a writer for the British edition of ELLE magazine observed that Londoners had an opening “for an all-American A-lister who can slot into her place in our collective consciousness.”

“We had Swift before we lost her to her record-breaking, box office-breaking Eras Tour and now, it would appear that her vacant position has been filled by  Zendaya ,” writer Naomi May playfully posited before listing the various locations the American actor had been spotted with her longtime boyfriend, British actor Tom Holland.

Either way, the capital is putting on quite a show of its own to make sure Swift and her fans feel appreciated. Guides are offering walking, bus and taxi tours that retrace her footsteps, including a kebab shop whose owner says his establishment is supplying sandwiches for the singer and her crew on Friday.

Before the end of August, Swifties can partake in a full diet of Swift-themed brunches and dance parties, or ride the London Eye Ferris wheel accompanied by a string quarter playing her music. Souvenir stalls in Camden Market, one of the places mentioned in “London Boy,” stocked up on Swift-specific caps, T-shirts, bags and stickers in preparation.

“We’re very proud that London is hosting more shows than any other city on Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour, a real testament to her love for London,” Laura Citron, CEO of tourism agency London & Partners, said.

Fans started lining up outside Wembley on Thursday in hopes of being among the first ticket-holders to claim spots in standing sections close to the stage. A pop-up tour merchandise store opened in a parking lot by the stadium that morning.

Zachary Hourihane, who co-hosts a Swift podcast called “Evolution of a Snake” and posts YouTube and TikTok videos under the name Swiftologist, said it’s too soon to know whether the singer will retain her honorary citizenship or part ways with London. As her fans know all too well, only time will tell with Taylor.

Hourihane notes that Swift started spending more time in London after a difficult year in which she went from  winning album of the year  at the 2016 Grammy Awards for “1989″ to seeing her popularity plummet amid  a public feud  with Kim Kardashian and Kanye West. From his study of her life in England, he thinks the happy memories she created there come mixed with “a sense of isolation.”

“There is a lot of nostalgia that might have turned into regret,” Hourihane said. “She felt like she was trapped there for a while.”

Fast forward several boyfriends, 10 albums (including the  Taylor’s Version re-records  ) and the Eras Tour juggernaut, and it’s not surprising her life is up for reappraisal. Hourihane suspects Swift is “not quite ready to give up on London” for both practical and artistic reasons.

“Taylor is someone who retraces her steps a lot. Things are never really over with her. She likes to revisit things that have finished,” he said. “Let’s be realistic about it. Her relationship, even if it is, ‘so long, goodbye,’ she has good reason to be in London and good money to make there.”

Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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The best moments from a historic, poignant night at Rickwood Field

Betelhem Ashame

Matthew Ritchie

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The moment finally arrived on Thursday night, and it lived up to every expectation.

Wearing throwback uniforms that evoked their Negro Leagues counterparts (the San Francisco Sea Lions and St. Louis Stars), the Giants and Cardinals made Rickwood Field -- the oldest professional ballpark in the country -- their own. At the same time, they paid tribute to those who came before -- central among them, the late, great Willie Mays -- both before the game and with their play during it.

When all was said and done, the Cardinals came away with a 6-5 win . Here are the best moments from one of the biggest nights in baseball history:

1. Alabama product gets the party started

While Statcast metrics aren’t available at Rickwood, you wouldn’t need them to know that Cardinals left fielder Brendan Donovan demolished the first home run of the game. The towering blast landed on the green awning beyond the right-center-field wall, giving St. Louis a 3-0 lead in the opening frame.

Donovan, who was born in Würzburg, Germany, grew up in Enterprise, Ala., and played college ball at the University of South Alabama, making it a fitting homecoming for the 27-year-old.

2. The stories you need to hear

In his 99 years on this earth, former Negro Leaguer Bill Greason -- who threw out the ceremonial first pitch -- has lived as full a life as one possibly can .

To name a few of his many accomplishments: He is the oldest living Negro Leagues player. He grew up across the street from Martin Luther King Jr. He fought in the Battle of Iwo Jima. And he spent 53 years as a minister at Bethel Baptist Church.

We'll just let Greason tell you about his life in his own words.

3. Stirring pregame ceremonies

Five-time Grammy winner Jon Batiste put on a pregame show that was both heartwarming and upbeat all at once, before he announced the entrance of former Negro League players onto the field, accompanied by players from the Giants and Cardinals.

They took their seats along the foul lines as a tribute to the late, great Willie Mays played on the video board. Then Mays' son, Michael, came out onto the field alongside Barry Bonds and Ken Griffey Jr.

"Birmingham, I've been telling y'all if there's any way on earth my father could come down here, that he would," Mays said in a short speech. "Well he found another way. He already stands at your feet. Let him hear you, he's listening."

The crowd then erupted in a standing ovation and began to chant "Will-ie! Will-ie!"

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4. Giants CF goes deep

Giants center fielder Heliot Ramos is playing his way towards All-Star consideration, and his hot streak with the bat continued with a game-tying three-run blast to right field , depositing a hanging curveball from Andre Pallante just over the fence in the third inning.

Ramos, a native of Puerto Rico who plays the same position for San Francisco as Mays, is up to his 10th homer of the season. He brought home Brett Wisely and Mike Yastrzemski, who had singled earlier in the frame and whose grandfather, Carl, was a contemporary of Mays.

5. Donovan comes through again

It was the Alabama product’s day through and through, as Donovan drove in his third run of the evening on an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth, fighting off a wipeout slider from lefty Taylor Rogers to score Alec Burleson, giving the Cardinals a healthy 6-3 lead. Donovan’s three-hit day, in which he finished a triple shy of the cycle, was integral to providing St. Louis with enough insurance as the Giants tried to claw back throughout the night.

6. Turning back the clock

If you were tuned in to the game via the FOX television broadcast, you may have done a double take coming back from commercial break during the fifth inning. The game was coming into your television sets exactly the way it looked some 70 years ago, when baseball first made its way onto the screen.

"You haven't lost your mind. Your TV's not broken," play-by-play man Joe Davis said.

It certainly was something to see the Cardinals turn a 6-4-3 double play in this throwback setting.

7. ‘Rise Up’ to cancer

At the end of the fifth inning, everyone within Rickwood’s walls – players, coaches and fans alike – took to their feet for the Stand Up to Cancer moment, as has become tradition during MLB’s signature events like the All-Star Game and the World Series.

With Grammy Award-winning singer Andra Day providing a moving performance of her hit song “Rise Up,” the FOX broadcast showed everyone holding placards that read, “I stand up for,” followed by personal messages. Some of those included: patients, loved ones, those we’ve lost and children everywhere.

Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) is a groundbreaking initiative created to accelerate innovative cancer research that gets new therapies to patients quicker. MLB and its 30 clubs are the founding donors of SU2C. Learn more at StandUpToCancer.org/MLB .

8. Helsley shuts the door, fireworks galore

The Giants certainly presented a tangible threat in the final frame, putting runners on first and second base with two outs, leaving Matt Chapman with a chance to send the game into the bottom of the ninth with the go-ahead run on. But Cardinals’ closer Ryan Helsley pulled through, dropping a devastating slider past Chapman’s swing for the three-pitch punchout to seal the St. Louis victory, 6-5.

Helsley pointed to the sky as red and silver fireworks erupted from the batters’ eye in center field, punctuating an emotional and joyous day with a hard-fought victory for the Redbirds.

9. Lineup exchange

Even though Lamonte Wade Jr. wasn’t able to suit up for the Giants at Rickwood Field, he was able to play his part in the historic game.

The outfielder, the Giants’ only Black position player, went out to home plate and handled the lineup card exchange for San Francisco. Wade was working to come back from the injured list for the Giants for this game -- even if it was just for a single at-bat -- but was unable to due to roster restrictions.

“If anybody wanted to play this game desperately, it was him,” manager Bob Melvin said.

Wade’s participation in the lineup card exchange coincided with another piece of history, as the home-plate meeting also featured the first all-Black umpiring crew in MLB history .

10. The arrival

Giants players honored Mays by wearing throwback Birmingham Barons jerseys on the bus, arriving to Rickwood Field in style.

“I don’t know how the idea came about, but I thought it was really cool to wear the hat and the jersey on the bus," said Giants pitcher Jordan Hicks. "It’s really cool to honor him that way.”

11. Saying Hey

Members of the Cardinals and Giants stopped by Willie Mays' Hall of Fame plaque to pose for pictures

The @Cardinals and @SFGiants Say Hey. #MLBatRickwood pic.twitter.com/YvWaV3OvZF — National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) June 20, 2024

Celebrations honor Willie Mays and Negro League players ahead of MLB game at Rickwood Field

B IRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — As Ajay Stone strolled around historic Rickwood Field and gazed at tributes displayed in honor of Willie Mays and other Negro Leaguers, he clutched a cherished memory under his arm.

It was a picture from 2004 of Mays holding Stone's then-10-month-old daughter Haley, who was wearing San Francisco Giants gear. In Mays' hand was a chunk of a chocolate chip cookie, which he was handing over for Haley to eat.

“Willie gave her that cookie. She had no teeth,” Stone remembered. "But we took the cookie and we kept it in her stroller for a year and a half. The great Willie Mays gave it to her, so it was special to us.”

Stone and his wife Christina traveled from Charlotte, North Carolina, to be in Birmingham, Alabama, on Thursday for a moment they deemed just as special.

It was hours before Rickwood Field hosted its first Major League Baseball game, as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Giants 6-5 . The game, which MLB called “A Tribute to the Negro Leagues,” was meant to honor the legacy of Mays and other Black baseball greats who left an enduring mark on the sport.

MLB planned a week of activities around Mays and the Negro Leagues, including an unveiling ceremony on Wednesday of a Willie Mays mural in downtown Birmingham. Those tributes took on a more significant meaning Tuesday afternoon when Mays died at 93. As news of his death spread throughout Birmingham, celebrations of his life ramped up.

You could hear the celebration at Rickwood Field on Thursday even before arriving at the ballpark with the rapid thumping of a drum echoing from inside the ballpark, excited murmurs from fans skipping toward the music and frequent bursts of laughter.

Inside, there were reminders of history all around.

There were photos and artifacts of baseball Hall of Famers who played at the 114-year-old ballpark, including Jackie Robinson, Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige. The original clubhouse of the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues, where Mays got his pro start in 1948, was open. A memorial of Mays was at the front, with bobbleheads, a signed glove and his Black Barons and San Francisco Giants jerseys on display.

Outside, fans stood in line to hold a baseball bat used by Mays in 1959. They took photos sitting inside an original bus from 1947 that was typically used during barnstorming tours by Negro Leagues teams. They danced to live music and ate food from concession stands featuring menu boards designed to reflect the look and feel of the 1940s.

Eddie Torres and his son Junior wore matching Giants jerseys as they took pictures inside the ballpark. They're lifelong Giants fans who came from California for the game.

“I never even got to see Willie Mays play, but as a Giants fan, you knew what he meant to the game of baseball,” Torres said. “My son, he’s only 11. Willie Mays had such an effect on the game that even he knew who Willie Mays was."

Musical artist Jon Batiste strummed a guitar while dancing on a wooden stage near home plate just before the first pitch. Fans stood as former Negro Leaguers were helped to the field for a pregame ceremony.

Shouts of “Willie! Willie! broke out after a brief moment of silence.

For Michael Jackson, sitting in the stands at Rickwood Field reminded him of the past.

The 71-year-old Jackson played baseball in the 1970s and 80s with the East Thomas Eagles of the Birmingham Industrial League, which was a semi-professional league made up of iron and steel workers that was an integral form of entertainment in Birmingham in the 20th century.

Jackson’s baseball journey took him to Rickwood Field many times. After all these years, he was just excited that it’s still standing.

“It’s nice seeing them re-do all of this," he said, “instead of tearing it down. We played in the same ballpark they named after Willie Mays out in Fairfield (Alabama). And then I had my times out here playing at this ballpark. It's all very exciting.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Willie Mays’s legacy on full display at ‘A Tribute to the Negro Leagues’ showcase game

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — As Ajay Stone strolled around historic Rickwood Field and gazed at tributes displayed in honor of Willie Mays and other Negro Leaguers, he clutched a cherished memory under his arm.

It was a picture from 2004 of Mays holding Stone’s then-10-month-old daughter Haley, who was wearing Giants gear. In Mays’s hand was a chunk of a chocolate chip cookie, which he was handing over for Haley to eat.

“Willie gave her that cookie. She had no teeth,” Stone remembered. “But we took the cookie and we kept it in her stroller for a year and a half. The great Willie Mays gave it to her, so it was special to us.”

Stone and his wife Christina traveled from Charlotte, N.C., to be in Birmingham, Ala., on Thursday for a moment they deemed just as special.

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It was hours before Rickwood Field hosted its first MLB game, which ended in a 6-5 win for the Cardinals over the Giants. The game, which MLB called “A Tribute to the Negro Leagues,” was meant to honor the legacy of Mays and other Black baseball greats who left an enduring mark on the sport.

Brendan Donovan was 3 for 4 with a three-run homer in the first inning for St. Louis. San Francisco’s Heliot Ramos also hit a three-run shot to briefly tie the game in the third, but the Cardinals answered immediately to retake the lead, then held on for the victory.

MLB planned a week of activities around Mays and the Negro Leagues, including an unveiling ceremony Wednesday of a Mays mural in downtown Birmingham. Those tributes took on a more significant meaning Tuesday when Mays died at 93 . As news of his death spread throughout Birmingham, celebrations of his life ramped up.

You could hear the celebration at Rickwood Field on Thursday even before arriving at the ballpark with the rapid thumping of a drum echoing from inside the ballpark, excited murmurs from fans skipping toward the music and frequent bursts of laughter.

Inside, there were reminders of history all around. There were photos and artifacts of baseball Hall of Famers who played at the 114-year-old ballpark, including Jackie Robinson, Josh Gibson, and Satchel Paige. The original clubhouse of the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues, where Mays got his pro start in 1948, was open. A memorial of Mays was at the front, with bobbleheads, a signed glove and his Black Barons and San Francisco jerseys on display.

Outside, fans stood in line to hold a baseball bat used by Mays in 1959. They took photos sitting inside an original bus from 1947 that was typically used during barnstorming tours by Negro Leagues teams. They danced to live music and ate food from concession stands featuring menu boards designed to reflect the look and feel of the 1940s.

Eddie Torres and his son Junior wore matching Giants jerseys as they took pictures inside the ballpark. They’re lifelong Giants fans who came from California for the game.

“I never even got to see Willie Mays play, but as a Giants fan, you knew what he meant to the game of baseball,” Torres said. “My son, he’s only 11. Willie Mays had such an effect on the game that even he knew who Willie Mays was.”

Musical artist Jon Batiste strummed a guitar while dancing near home plate just before the first pitch. Fans stood as former Negro Leaguers were helped to the field for a pregame ceremony.

Shouts of “Willie! Willie! broke out after a brief moment of silence.

For Michael Jackson, sitting in the stands at Rickwood Field reminded him of the past. The 71-year-old played baseball in the 1970s and ‘80s with the East Thomas Eagles of the Birmingham Industrial League, a semi-pro team that was an integral form of entertainment in the 20th century. Jackson’s baseball journey took him to Rickwood Field many times. After all these years, he was just excited that it’s still standing.

“It’s nice seeing them re-do all of this,” he said, “instead of tearing it down. We played in the same ballpark they named after Willie Mays out in Fairfield [Ala.]. And then I had my times out here playing at this ballpark. It’s all very exciting.”