As a revitalized Hinchliffe rises, Paterson readies for baseball's return | Sayegh

Andre Sayegh
·2 min read

If you build it, they will come. That famous phrase was featured in the movie, "Field of Dreams." Well, Hinchliffe Stadium is New Jersey’s Field of Dreams and we’re building it and ... they’re coming.

Last month, the New Jersey Jackals announced that they will be calling Hinchliffe Stadium home. After playing at Yogi Berra Stadium for 25 years, the minor league baseball team is relocating from Little Falls to Paterson and bringing an abundance of opportunities with them.

Hinchliffe Baseball
Hinchliffe Baseball

In addition to having professional baseball played in Paterson for first time in several decades, the arrival of the Jackals will mean that the team will align with local businesses and bring additional recreation programs to the community such as kids camps and baseball clinics. Moreover, this endeavor will afford our residents with employment opportunities.

We also anticipate the multiplier effect occurring as a result of this move. Restaurants and retail stores stand to benefit from our city’s new team. Furthermore, this will give a big boost to tourism in Paterson especially with all of the work we are doing to enhance the aesthetic and economic appeal of our number one natural asset, The Great Falls.

Resurrecting Historic Hinchliffe Stadium has been a priority for me ever since I was elected to the Board of Education in 2004. It is one of only two stadiums still standing that hosted Negro League games and tells the story of the struggle for social justice and civil rights in our country. Therefore, the restoration of this American Treasure is cause for celebration and a victory for a city that really needs one.

We are profoundly grateful for our partners, Al Dorso, owner of the Jackals, and Baye Adofo Wilson, lead developer, for making this move manifest. Moreover, we are eager for the Jackals season to start in May of 2023 so that when we sing “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” we’ll be singing it at Hinchliffe Stadium in the city Of Paterson.

Andre Sayegh is mayor of Paterson.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Paterson NJ Hinchliffe Stadium ready for New Jersey Jackals