The first episode of the ‘Road to Rickwood’ podcast debuts today. The series explores the history of the Negro Leagues in Birmingham with Roy Wood Jr. hosting the new narrative series from National Public Radio and Major League Baseball. The podcast chronicles the story of Rickwood Field as a lead up to MLB’s upcoming game in Birmingham on June 20.

Listen to the first episode below.

The debut episode focuses on the origin story of Rickwood Field and how baseball and Birmingham are linked from the beginning. And while baseball uplifts both the white and Black communities, it also enforces the principle that rules Alabama: Segregation. The episode includes interviews with Alan “Rickwood” Woodward’s grandson’s Rick Woodward III and Bob Woodward, Black Barons coach Piper Davis’ daughter, Faye Davis, and 16th Street Baptist Church Pastor, Reverend Arthur Price, Jr.

From the podcast’s official description:

“Birmingham, Alabama was one of the fiercest battlegrounds of the Civil Rights Movement. But in order to understand the struggle, you don’t have to look any further than Rickwood Field, the oldest baseball stadium in the country. Across more than 113 years, it’s hosted Negro League baseball, a women’s suffrage event, a Klan rally and eventually, the first integrated sports team in Alabama.

“On June 20, Major League Baseball will host a regular season game at Rickwood. Leading up, host Roy Wood Jr. returns to his hometown Birmingham to tell the story of this ballpark.”

The upcoming “MLB at Rickwood” game will see the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants compete on June 20, the day after Juneteenth. There will be activities during the week that lead up to the game as part of a tribute to the Negro Leagues and its greatest living player – Hall of Famer, Giants legend, Alabama native and Birmingham Black Barons player Willie Mays.

The podcast is a collaborative effort from WWNO and WRKF. Distributed by the NPR network in partnership with support from Major League Baseball, and AL.com. The four-part series will release weekly starting May 28. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you download your podcasts. AL.com’s Cody D. Short is a producer of the podcast.