Look, don't touch: Braves' trophy draws fans at Aiken stop
Apr. 20—A 30-pound creation of sterling silver was a major attraction Tuesday afternoon at Academy Sports and Outdoors, as the Atlanta Braves' new World Series trophy had Aiken on its agenda for a tour of Georgia, the Carolinas, Alabama, Tennessee and Mississippi, with fans having the chance to pose for free pictures with the trophy.
One of the out-of-town visitors was Ninety Six resident Gene Carter, a lifelong Braves fan, in the company of some family members. Carter said he heard about the traveling trophy by way of the internet. "We thought this would be the closest thing we had, and I think tomorrow's going to be in Columbia ... We just wanted to come out and get a look at it."
Carter's Braves memories involve such names as Phil Niekro, Dale Murphy, "and, of course, Hank Aaron," he said, referring to the slugger whose 715th home run (April 8, 1974) eclipsed the record previously held by Babe Ruth. "Hank Aaron hit his 715th on my birthday. I was 8 years old, and my mama and daddy let me stay up extra-late to see that."
The longest-distance traveler of the bunch may have been Shannon Burrell, from Gastonia, North Carolina, who saw the opportunity while "just watching the news." She added, "My husband's working down here, and I just decided to come down today."
The tour began Feb. 15. Other nearby stops in the near future includes ones in Columbia (Wednesday, 4-7 p.m., at the University of South Carolina's softball game); Thomson, Georgia (Thursday, 5-8 p.m. at the Thomson Depot); and North Augusta (Friday, 5:30-9:30 p.m. at the Augusta GreenJackets' baseball game).
The trophy, according to the website of its creator, Tiffany and Company, was commissioned by Major League Baseball in 2000 and is "one of the most celebrated awards in all of sports: The Commissioner's Trophy." It was reportedly made in Rhode Island over the course of six month, with 140 hours of labor involved in the process.
The official description notes that the "24-inch trophy features 30 flags, one for each Major League team, with latitude and longitude lines symbolizing the world." Some of Tuesday's more enthusiastic visitors got a friendly reminder to avoid touching the trophy.
The 2021 World Series champs have a relatively strong connection to the Aiken-Augusta area, as the Augusta GreenJackets are now associated with the Braves, as the Atlanta team's single-A affiliate, helping send players into a system that also includes the High-A Rome Braves, in Rome, Georgia; the AA Mississippi Braves, in Pearl, Mississippi; and the AAA Gwinnett Stripers, in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
SRP Park, in North Augusta, is the GreenJackets' base of operations, and the squad is having its first home stand of the season this week, facing the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, of North Carolina, April 19-24. They are also to be at home next week, versus the Delmarva Shorebirds, of Salisbury, Maryland, April 26 to May 1.
