Opening day is here for the Asheville Tourists baseball team as they host the Winston-Salem Dash Friday evening at McCormick Field.
The Tourists celebrated the 100th anniversary of McCormick Field on April 3 in a pre-season exhibition game against the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, which ended in a 7-7 tie.
Manager Nate Shaver, who was brought back for a fourth consecutive season, said he is looking forward to Asheville's 2024 season.
“The city of Asheville is a great city to play baseball in. The support staff that we have there at the stadium is awesome. And our whole front office is great.”
This season’s roster has a total of 31 players: 16 pitchers and 15 position players. And according to MLB.com, the roster features six top 30 Houston Astros prospects.
Shaver said some prospects might not be with the High-A minor league team for long.
“We got a lot of good pitching prospects that are coming up. So we're gonna be moving guys fairly quickly through our organization and challenging them,” he said.
Shaver explained that the team always look forward to being at home.
“The scenery there and the nostalgia of that ballpark is pretty amazing compared to a lot of the facilities that we go to and play at throughout the season,” Shaver said. “We're always looking forward to being at home and having the support of our fans and giving them something to do in the summertime.”
Tickets for Opening Day and the 2024 season can be purchased online at TouristsTickets.com.
