MLB is playing a game Thursday at the oldest ballpark in America, and it isn’t Fenway Park.
While Fenway may be MLB’s oldest ballpark, Birmingham’s Rickwood Field owns the distinction of being the oldest in the United States.
The Giants and Cardinals will play at Rickwood as MLB pays homage to the Negro Leagues by playing at the former home of the Birmingham Black Barons.
Here’s what to know about Rickwood Field and the oldest baseball stadiums in the United States.
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Oldest baseball stadium in America
Rickwood Field is the oldest baseball stadium in America. It was built in 1910 in Birmingham, Alabama — two years before Fenway Park was built in Boston — and still contains some of its original structure.
The original Rickwood Field cost $75,000 to build and served as the long-time home of the Birmingham Barons. The team began playing there in 1910 and continued on full-time until 1988. Since then, the minor league club has only been part-time stadium residents.
The Birmingham Black Barons — a Negro League team — also played at there for about 50 years, from 1910 to 1960. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Phillies held their spring training at Rickwood in 1911 and 1920. The Pittsburgh Pirates did the same thing in 1919, while other clubs played at the stadium while traveling from spring training to their home ballparks.
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Oldest MLB stadiums
Boston’s Fenway Park is the oldest MLB stadium, beating out Chicago’s Wrigley Field by two years. Fenway opened April 20, 1912, just five days after the Titanic sunk.
The Red Sox won their first regular-season game at Fenway Park 7-6 over the New York Highlanders (now the Yankees). Charley Hall got the win while Steve Yerkes and Tris Speaker combined for eight hits. Hippo Vaughn took the loss for New York.
Wrigley Field opened just over two years later on April 23, 1914. The Cubs earned a 2-1 win over the Reds thanks to a strong outing from pitcher Jimmy Lavender, who got the win and scored one of the Cubs’ two runs during the contest.
Below is a look at the 10 oldest MLB stadiums and when they officially opened:
| Ballpark | Home team | Date opened |
| Fenway Park | Red Sox | April 20, 1912 |
| Wrigley Field | Cubs | April 23, 1914 |
| Dodger Stadium | Dodgers | April 10, 1962 |
| Angel Stadium | Angels | April 19, 1966 |
| Kauffman Stadium | Royals | April 10, 1973 |
| Rogers Centre | Blue Jays | June 5, 1989 |
| Guaranteed Rate Field | White Sox | April 18, 1991 |
| Oriole Park at Camden Yards | Orioles | April 6, 1992 |
| Progressive Field | Guardians | April 4, 1994 |
| Tropicana Field | Rays | March 31, 1998 |
Just 12 MLB stadiums were opened before 2000. Fenway and Wrigley are the only ones more than 62 years old.
Negro Leagues stadiums still standing
There are six extant Negro League stadiums today. They are as follows:
| Ballpark | Location | Games first played |
| Rickwood Field | Birmingham, Ala. | 1924 |
| Hamtramck Stadium | Hamtramck, Mich. | 1930 |
| Bush Stadium | Indianapolis, Ind. | 1931 |
| Hinchliffe Stadium | Paterson, N.J. | 1934 |
| J.P. Small Stadium | Jacksonville, Fla. | 1938 |
| League Park | Cleveland, Ohio | 1939 |
Among the six stadiums, baseball is still played at just five of them. Bush Stadium has been converted into housing, though the ballpark look of the building and neighborhood remains.
Only one park is still host to a professional team. That would be Hinchliffe Stadium, the home of the Frontier League’s New Jersey Jackals.