85,000+ anticipated for Braves/Reds game at Bristol Motor Speedway

Workers still have some finishing touches to put on the field inside the racetrack at Bristol Motor Speedway, and officials are expecting a record crowd in a week to watch the Cincinnati Reds play the Atlanta Braves in the MLB Speedway Classic on Aug. 2.

It'll be the first ever MLB game in Tennessee.

More than 85,000 tickets have already been sold. The previous paid attendance record of 84,587, was set on Sept. 12, 1954, when Cleveland Stadium hosted the New York Yankees.

While the venue has a capacity of 146,000 for racing, MLB said it will limit access to just under 90,000 for the game.

The largest crowd ever to see a baseball game was 115,300 for a March 2008 exhibition between the Red Sox and Dodgers at Los Angeles Coliseum.

Bristol packed in 156,990 for the Battle of Bristol college football game in 2016.

Officials showed off the work Friday with a baseball field now sitting on top of the infield inside the half-mile bullring where cars and a building once sat for NASCAR races.

Final touches still remain for the clay along with all the padding and branding, which should be in place by Wednesday at the latest.

Even though the Braves play the Reds in Cincinnati on Friday, the day before the Bristol game, fans are being encouraged to settle in for the big party planned both outside and then inside the racetrack for game day.

Caldwell said fans should show up by noon on game day to enjoy the attractions outside the track, including music, a 110-foot Ferris wheel, a food truck row, pitching tunnels and batting cages and team mascots. Once fans head inside, there'll be pregame pageantry from the U.S. Navy and a ceremonial first pitch between two Hall of Famers: Chipper Jones (Braves) to Johnny Bench (Reds). Tim McGraw and Pitbull are scheduled to perform.

The MLB Speedway Classic also will be included in the “MLB The Show 25” video game after an update scheduled for Tuesday.


(Photo: Bristol Motor Speedway via AP)