In the spring of 1996 Auburn opened Plainsman Park, a $4.2 million renovation of the baseball stadium.

Baseball, historically, is a powerhouse program at Auburn but, before this season they were playing in one of the most unfortunate parks in the country. Now they have one of the best.

The Glomerata, though, shows one exterior black and white photo of the stadium from the winter. It is almost in focus and the stadium is surrounded by scaffolding. Instead of seeing the beautiful park you can see Shawn McNally sliding back into first. The fence down the right field side has ivy, the die hard fans heckle opponents from over the right field wall. There's a big green wall in center field; you can shake hands with players in the bullpen and enjoy a great day at the park in the 3,186 seat stadium.

"Plainsman Park bridges the gap between baseball's past, present and future, giving the Tigers a facility that is uniquely Auburn," one school official said.

Hal Baird, as good a baseball man as you could ever hope to meet, was the longtime coach at Auburn. His team finished the regular season 46-9, ranked number one in the nation and came up just short of a dream trip to Omaha. Baird made it to the College World Series twice, 1994 and 1997, and retired in 2000 with a 779-394-1 record. There wasn't anyone better to talk to about Auburn or baseball or most any other topic.

The 1996 squad had three All-Americans, at least two future professional baseball players and a college baseball head coach.

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