The Mississippi Braves close out their regular season on Sunday. What’s next for Trustmark Park in Pearl?

“And then there it was,” Atlanta Braves broadcaster Skip Carey shouted as first baseman Sid Bream charged toward home plate and beat Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Barry Bonds to clinch Game 7 of the 1992 National League Championship Series.

Although the World Series is not yet on the line, the Mississippi Braves began their final series Tuesday with their final home game at Trustmark Park in Pearl City.

After 20 years, the team, owned by Diamond Baseball Holdings, is moving to Columbus, Georgia, and the Braves’ lease at 8,480-seat Trustmark Park expires at the end of this season, which ends on Sept. 15.

Now with a home game against the Tennessee Smokies and one final away game against the Biloxi Shuckers left, there is a chance the Braves can make it to the playoffs before the Jackson Metro area has two empty minor league baseball stadiums and very few prospects on the horizon.

The Braves enter Wednesday’s game one behind the Shuckers for the final playoff spot in the Southern League. If they can clinch that spot, they would be guaranteed at least one home playoff game at the end of the regular season.

“We’re keeping our fingers crossed and hoping for a great final two weeks,” Braves general manager Pete Lavin said. “We’re looking at this week as the Braves’ last games at Trustmark Park for nostalgic reasons, but it would be nice to get a few more games in the postseason.”

Nobody knows what will happen next with the stadium.

The stadium is owned by Bloomfield Equities of Pearl, a subsidiary of Yates Construction. There is no word on a future permanent tenant.

Trustmark Park, once a catalyst for economic development in Pearl as the second development along the corridor after Bass Pro Shops, could find itself vacant without a major tenant.

Lavin has said repeatedly that he believes Trustmark Park will host professional baseball in 2025, but he said so only from a distance.

“I don’t have any inside information, but whether it’s affiliated or independent, if a team comes here, they’re going to get the best available baseball stadium in America,” he said. “It’s still a great stadium, and someone should play here.”

The Braves currently play the Southern League’s top team every day this week at 6:35 p.m. at the Pearl, except for Sunday’s 2:05 p.m. game.

The Braves have special giveaways and activities planned for every night this week.

“Every night, for the first time ever, we’ll have memorabilia from the park and people’s offices and different types of furniture as giveaways,” Lavin said. “We’ll have old autographs, photos, baseballs and jerseys from years past in tow.”

He said things will really get going this weekend, when mystery gifts and other unique souvenirs will be available for giveaways.

Trends in minor league baseball

In recent years, there has been a trend in minor league baseball for Major League franchises affiliated with teams to move minor league teams closer to the main office. The Mississippi Braves’ move to Columbus brings the Double-A franchise closer to Atlanta. While this doesn’t always happen, it’s happening more and more often.

It’s a story of minor league baseball in the metropolitan area. The former Jackson Mets, who played at Smith-Wills Stadium on Lakeland Drive, were relocated in 1990 to Binghamton, New York, to be closer to the parent club. Jackson was able to recruit the Houston Astros affiliate for the 1991 season, where he remained until the end of the 2000 season, when the Astros moved the team to Texas to be closer to the parent club.

Smith-Wills Stadium will host the new Legacy League next summer. The new college summer league will have several celebrity owners, including Dusty Baker, Brian Jordan, Andrew Jones and former NBA star Tracy McGrady.

The Braves have played at Pearl Stadium and Trustmark Park since 2005.

Similarly, Jackson, Tennessee lost its minor league team in 2020. It has failed to find another related baseball tenant since then.

Shreveport, Louisiana, lost its minor league team after the 2002 season to Frisco, Texas, minutes from MLB parent Texas Rangers. Shreveport Stadium has sat empty along Interstate 20 ever since. The Shreveport City Council voted in 2022 to demolish the facility at a cost of more than $500,000, but that has yet to happen.

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What will 2025 bring?

Updated stadium requirements from Major League Baseball were set to go into effect in 2025. Those requirements include a larger visiting clubhouse, improved practice facilities, improved stadium lighting, and more food preparation and dining areas. There is also a requirement for new locker rooms for female staff.

That’s good news for those trying to attract tenants to the Pearl, Lavin said.

Unfortunately, there aren’t many options. Aside from the Braves announcing plans to move to Georgia, there have been no other announcements from Major League Baseball-affiliated teams looking to leave their homes.

There remains the possibility of independent league teams. While there may always be someone who would like to own and manage a team, there aren’t many leagues with relatively easy travel options.

There is the Pecos League with many options to play with teams from Texas. There is also the Atlantic League which has a team in Lexington, Kentucky as the closest option to Jackson.

There is also a league with teams from western Arkansas and Missouri, but those teams feature both professionals and college players.

Last series?

Interestingly, the last two teams with a real chance at the last playoff spot are the Braves and the Biloxi Shuckers. They’ll face off next week in what could be called a playoff series. They’ll play six games in Biloxi. If the Braves can close the gap and win, there’ll be one more game at Trustmark Park.

That is the hope for Lavin and all Braves fans in Mississippi. If not, baseball enthusiasts will have to wait and see what happens next.

The Shuckers finished last in Double-A attendance in 2023. The Mississippi Braves finished second from last in 2023. With the Braves leaving, Biloxi now has eligibility for the only affiliated professional baseball league in the state after the season ends.

Ross Reily he can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at 601-573-2952. He can be followed on Platform X, formerly known as Twitter @GreenOkra1.

This article originally appeared in the Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi Braves final games at Trustmark Park. What’s next?