Photo courtesy of hooveral.org.
0213 Hoover Met Aerial
The Hoover Met will undergo renovations later this year.
The University of Alabama will play its 2015 home baseball games at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium.
The city of Hoover approved the agreement at a special city council meeting the morning of Sept. 22.
Sewell-Thomas Stadium, UA’s on-campus baseball stadium, is undergoing a $35 million renovation that will not be completed until the 2016 season.
Approximately 30 games will be played at The Met, and UA will pay the city $3,500 per game. Concession rights remain with the city. In accordance with Southeastern Conference rules, no alcohol will be served.
Any postseason play – NCAA regionals or super-regionals Alabama may host – will also be at The Met. The university will pay $3,500 for each additional game.
Additionally, as already scheduled, the SEC Tournament will be at The Met from May 19-24.
The season-opening game at The Met will be against Maryland-Eastern Shore on Friday, Feb. 13. Nonconference games include games against Samford (March 16) and UAB (April 14). Weekend home series include games against Texas A&M, LSU, Georgia, Arkansas and Vanderbilt.
Current lessees of skyboxes retain those rights but must purchase tickets for Alabama games. Several skyboxes will be made available for the university to lease. Parking will be free.
The stadium will be slightly reconfigured to approximate the dimensions of TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb., where the College World Series is played. The walls in left and right field will be brought in about 4 feet. The power alley in left will come in about 11 feet, and the alley in right will move in about 7 feet. The center field wall will be about 4 feet deeper.
Landing a home tenant, even for a season, is a coup for Hoover, since The Met has been without a permanent baseball tenant since the Birmingham Barons moved downtown to Regions Field in 2013.
