Smokies prep for Tennessee Night time, however downtown may host actual Vols baseball this fall – Knoxville Information Sentinel

Knoxville’s new downtown baseball stadium may welcome a 3rd residence crew this fall.
Will probably be Tennessee Night at Covenant Health Park for the Aug. 23 Knoxville Smokies sport, however the Tennessee Volunteers baseball crew may take the sector for a sport of its personal.
The Minor League Baseball season wraps up quickly, and One Knoxville SC may host a house playoff sport as late as Nov. 15. After that, Covenant Well being Park will want different methods to fill the stands.
Smokies President Chris Allen informed Knox Information the crew appears to be like to collaborate with the College of Tennessee in no matter approach they will, particularly if meaning Vols baseball.
“Tony (Vitello) and I’ll textual content backwards and forwards very often about various things,” Allen stated.
Each the Smokies and UT are fascinated about exploring methods to host the Vols downtown. Whereas plans haven’t been set in stone, conversations are underway to have the Vols take the Covenant Well being Park area as early as this yr.
This would not be the primary time the Vols have performed in the identical venue because the Smokies. Tennessee baseball’s Orange & White Fall World Series games in 2024 had been held on the Lookouts stadium in Chattanooga and the previous Smokies Stadium in Kodak. In reality, UT was the final baseball crew to play on the Kodak stadium as Covenant Well being Park was getting ready to open April 15.
“I anticipate we’ll have a lot of UT video games over time right here,” Allen stated. “Tony and I’ve had some conversations about doing a little early, probably a sport this fall.”
Within the meantime, Smokies followers will be capable of exhibit their Vols satisfaction on Tennessee Night time with meals, drinks, in-game leisure and a post-game fireworks present themed round UT. Smokies gamers might be sporting specialty jerseys, and the primary 2,000 followers contained in the stadium as soon as gates open at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 23 will get a Dylan Sampson bobblehead.
Now, greater than ever, is the time for Tennessee baseball to shine. Tennessee received its first-ever Faculty World Sequence in 2024, and Gov. Bill Lee recently made his first visit to Covenant Health Park, the place he stated the Volunteer State is slowly changing into synonymous with baseball.
Lee spearheaded the hassle for the first-ever MLB game in Tennessee. Earlier this month, the Atlanta Braves beat the Cincinnati Reds in a wet, two-day sport at Bristol Motor Speedway that brought in 91,032 fans.
“It spoke nicely to the truth that Tennessee has numerous baseball followers,” Lee stated throughout an in-game chat with the media on the new Knoxville ballpark Aug. 7. “We want an MLB crew in Tennessee. I am actually hopeful that is coming.”
Some Smokies gamers beforehand informed Knox Information the $114 million Knoxville stadium, with towering flats linked to the ballpark and a metropolis skyline because the backdrop, already looks like a professional park. Over on campus, Lindsey Nelson Stadium is within the midst of a multi-year, $105 million renovation project that’s scheduled so as to add a brand new plaza, sound system, concessions, retailers and extra upgrades previous to the 2026 Tennessee baseball season.
Covenant Well being Park value $9 million greater than the Lindsey Nelson renovation, and a Vols sport within the new ballpark may function an early style of what UT baseball appears to be like like with upgraded services and recent facilities.
A fall UT sport may simply be the beginning if Knoxville follows the lead of different cities with downtown ballparks. Durham Bulls Athletic Park, the minor league stadium for the Durham Bulls, has been the neutral-site host for the ACC Baseball Championship 12 instances, together with the 2025 championship, and would be the web site of the 2027 and 2029 ACC Baseball Championships.
The Durham Bulls, the Triple A affiliate for the Tampa Bay Rays, is a step up from the Knoxville Smokies, a Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The Durham ballpark has a ten,000-person capability, in comparison with Covenant Well being Park’s 7,000-person capability.
“All of our followers, I am positive most of them are UT followers, too,” Allen informed Knox Information. He’s excited at the opportunity of the Vols taking part in at Covenant Well being Park.
If Covenant Well being Park shies away from changing into a impartial web site, Allen nonetheless expects UT video games to achieve success on their very own.
“(UT) can play anyone at our facility, and we’ll promote numerous tickets and generate an enormous crowd as a result of everybody desires to observe that machine go,” Allen stated. “So yeah, I anticipate we’ll have a couple of video games a yr, yearly.”
Two former Vols gamers, Blake Burke and Christian Moore, have already got performed inside Covenant Well being Park in opposition to the Smokies. Each members of the 2024 nationwide championship crew, Burke performs for the Biloxi Shuckers, and Moore was taking part in for the Rocket Metropolis Trash Pandas before being promoted to the Los Angeles Angels.
“I’m not used to being at a baseball area in Knoxville and misplaced,” Moore stated earlier than an April sport in opposition to the Smokies. “However it’s superior. That is what it’s about. Knoxville loves baseball.”
Knox Information reporter Joanna Hayes reviews for the enterprise progress and improvement crew. E mail: joanna.hayes@knoxnews.com; Instagram: @knoxeat65. 
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