Wednesday morning, after a tall cup of coffee and a peanut butter filled English muffin, I headed out onto the highways of Tennessee to travel (for work) north and east to Nashville. Truth be told, I started in Southaven, Mississippi via Route 55N, into Tennessee (just a few miles away), then hopped onto 240E before joining 40E. It was a beautiful day for a beautiful ride through the countryside feel of Western Tennessee. The farms, the greenery, the fields, the tall trees – just absolutely gorgeous. And along the way to Nashville, I stopped in at a few baseball treasures and took in an incredible MILB game to cap off my night. My first stop of the day – Jackson, TN and Rockabillys Stadium.
Rockabillys Stadium happens to be at the end of a long road filled with baseball fields. The West Tennessee Healthcare Sports Complex welcomes Rockabilly baseball fans with baseball field after baseball field on the left and right of Bancorpsouth Parkway, all the way up the hill, then a left onto Fun Place and the huge parking area for Rockabillys fans. I found a great parking spot in a shaded area and started towards the front gate area. When I arrived at the front gate, I was super psyched to see the gate was open. I snagged a few photos of the front gate area before entering the ballpark to find someone to say hi to.
From my research and via the Prospect League website, “The Prospect League is a premier Midwestern wood-bat collegiate summer baseball league with 20 teams across Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee and Pennsylvania. The League provides college players a professional setting with excellent competition and high-quality facilities while delivering exciting baseball action and affordable all-ages entertainment to its communities. Known as the Central Illinois Collegiate League from 1963-2008, the Prospect League has a proud tradition as one of the original and most recognizable summer leagues. The League’s rich history includes Hall of Famers and NCAA Champions, nearly 200 alumni in Major League Baseball, and more than 800 professional players.”
Inside Rockabillys Stadium, I found a groundskeeper working on the field and saluted him and spoke briefly to him. The groundskeeper was busy working, so I quickly said my message “here to take a photo or two of the field” and got the wave and then headed out to grab some great views of the stadium. And started behind home plate.
Spiritedly, I climbed the cement staircase from behind home plate to the concourse area. I walked around the concourse to check out the local eateries, some of the cool Rockabillys signage, and look for some interesting items to document. Pretty common theme around the ballpark was the guitar and the billy goat and music verbiage. I made it out to the left field area and snagged these photos along the way, one of them I loved – the designated crying area.
And check this out, Rockabillys Stadium has a “Blue Monster.” A tall wall in left field that reminded me, and I am sure others, of the famous “Green Monster” at historic Fenway Park in Boston, MA. As I was checking out the Blue Monster Wall, a member of the Rockabillys staff came out to greet me.
I chatted it up a bit with the Rockabillys staffer and asked him about the team, the stadium, and if Rockabilly had a POW/MIA seat of honor. He nodded and motioned me over to the D section of the stadium, near the entrance gate I used to walk into the stadium. I made my way over to the seat, snapped a few photos of the seat and plaque, paid my respects, and was so psyched to have had the chance to speak to the staffer and learn about this seat.
So, after reading through the POW/MIA seat plaque, I set out to take a few more photos of Rockabillys Stadium before heading back to my rental car and back on my road trip to Nashville.
It was a perfect pit stop in Jackson, Tennessee on the road to Nashville. The Jackson Rockabillys Stadium is an absolute treasure there in the Western portion of Tennessee. The Blue Monster, the Designated Crying Area, the beautiful wooden background behind the outfield seating area, and amazing stadium signage were just some of the incredible features at Rockabillys Stadium. I loved that the gate was open and that I was able to walk around and check out the entire ballpark, take photos, and have this opportunity to share my experience with you. Overall, it was an awesome Jackson baseball experience touring Rockabillys Stadium, home of the Jackson Rockabillys baseball team.
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