Atlanta Braves to hold World Series celebration this weekend

The Atlanta Braves are taking the 2021 World Series trophy on tour to commemorate 151 years of Braves baseball. According to an Atlanta Braves release, the World Champions Trophy Tour will be presented by Truist Financial for Friday’s Mississippi Braves game, with festivities beginning at 5:30 p.m. at Trustmark Park.

“Fans are invited to take photos with the coveted 2021 World Series Trophy while enjoying the game,” said Chris Harris, director of communications and media for the Mississippi Braves, noting that stops at baseball stadiums require game tickets while admission to the Sports Hall of Fame on Monday is free.

The Braves dedicated their home opener and the six days that followed to honoring its players and supporters in a one-of-a-kind homage dubbed “Champions Week.”

“I want them to enjoy everything about this,” manager Brian Snitker said of his players. “You’re never guaranteed that you’re going to be able to experience this again, so enjoy every second of it.”

Since Thursday’s Opening Day, the Braves have given away World Series memorabilia, introduced new championship banners, and organized a ceremony to present players with their championship rings. Typically, these activities are squeezed into a single pivotal day, rather than being spread out across a whole week.

At Truist Park, the sights and sounds included sold-out crowds, anthem serenades by a local tenor, a fighter-jet flyover, a parade, fireworks displays, and a seemingly endless loop of Queen’s “We Are the Champions.”

“We have a lot to celebrate,” added Greg Mize, Braves vice president of marketing and innovation. “The way the entire city, region rallied around us, we wanted to make sure that we could spread out the celebration so that as many people as possible could be part of it.”

The Braves trophy will be on display at their place which is located at 1152 Lakeland Drive in Jackson, according to Bill Blackwell, executive director of the Mississippi Hall of Fame.

“On Monday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame will host a showing of the World Champions Trophy in Jackson,” Blackwell said. “Also, we’ve secured the right to get the 2021 NCAA championship trophy from Mississippi State. The event is free and open to the public. We expect a nice crowd.”

Tickets for Friday’s Mississippi Braves vs. Pensacola Blue Wahoos game are available for purchase on the Mississippi Braves website for a price ranging between $5 and $25.

Weeks of preparation

The past few weeks have been a lot of work for team officials, who organized a week-long celebration after the MLB released a new, post-lockout regular season schedule. After seeing that the team would be home for a full week when the season started, they wanted to do something the league said it had never seen before. This was the team’s first championship since 1995 and, so it was a big deal.

It was also the ideal homecoming for an All-Star first baseman who grew up rooting for the Braves. Matt Olson spent six years with the Oakland Athletics before was traded back to his hometown team last month to fill in for Freddie Freeman, who ended up signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers as a free agent.

“Getting here, feeling the atmosphere in the stadium and going out and being able to play,” said Olson. “It’s been a blast.”

One idea persisted throughout the entire week as Olson watched Atlanta supporters celebrate the 2021 team.

“It makes me want to win a World Series,” he said.