On Tuesday, a report surfaced that Major League Baseball will schedule a regular season contest at the famed Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee, in 2025. The Cincinnati Reds will play the Atlanta Braves in the first baseball game ever held at the renowned venue, according to a story by The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi and Evan Drellich.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and Speedway Motorsports CEO Marcus Smith are scheduled to announce the very unique sporting event on Friday. It’s been widely speculated that this could be the start of more games being held in conjunction with NASCAR. However, as of press time, MLB declined to comment on the matter. Will this end up being a good idea?
Bristol is a Haven For History
Next season, the Reds will face the Braves at Bristol.
In 2016, Tennessee played Virginia Tech here and attracted 157,000 fans.
There’s a good chance this game will be the highest attended MLB game in history. pic.twitter.com/GgEjJHPcQd
— Barstool Cincinnati (@UCBarstool) August 6, 2024
The track at Bristol originally opened on July 30, 1961, and it is known as one of auto racing’s most celebrated stadiums. While it is more closely associated with stock car racing, the speedway has held a variety of events, including NCAA FBS college football games, and sprint car races. In 2016, the Tennessee Volunteers played the Virginia Tech Hokies and drew 157,000 fans. Now, baseball can be added to its list of featured events.
Bristol Motor Speedway has a capacity of 146,000 for NASCAR events, meaning Bristol could set the overall MLB attendance record for a single game. The current mark is 115,300 – set in an exhibition contest between the Red Sox and the Dodgers at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 2008.
In recent years, MLB has looked for alternative venues to hold special, historic events. For example, they have scheduled games at the majestic ‘Field of Dreams’ in Iowa – made famous by the 1989 motion picture of the same name.
The league has also played several games in international venues, as they may consider expansion abroad at some point down the road. It’s a very similar model that the NHL has employed with the annual “Winter Classic,” where teams will play in an outdoor stadium normally used for baseball or football.
MLB Scheduling Several Special Events
As usual, MLB is planning out the 2025 schedule before this season even ends. Commissioner Manfred has been one of the more innovative leaders in modern baseball history, as the game continues to expand globally. Taking the world by storm appears to be the business model for baseball as we roll on in the 21st century.
Some key dates on the calendar (aside from the reported event at Bristol) are already set in stone. The 2025 regular season schedule is filled with several notable events. The season will begin with the Tokyo Series from March 18-19, where Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers will kick off the schedule against the Chicago Cubs. It marks the sixth time that the MLB’s season opener will be played in Japan.
Also on the MLB calendar in 2025 is Rivalry Week, where interleague rivals will face off against one another in mid-May. And, the All-Star Game festivities promise to be bigger than ever. Next year’s mid-summer classic will be hosted by the Atlanta Braves and played at Truist Park on July 15.
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