FORT SMITH, Ark. — The wait is over, and we now know what the new Mid-America League baseball team for Fort Smith will be called.
When the team starts playing in the spring, it will be known as the Marshals. The name and new look were unveiled on Jan. 18 at an event at the U.S. Marshals Museum in Fort Smith.
The general manager for the Marshals franchise says that the name won the popular vote with the community and people involved with the team brought the vision to life.
The team will be made up of mostly college baseball players and have a 68-game schedule between late May and early August.
The franchise was first announced back in November.
On Nov. 13 the Mid-America League announced Fort Smith would be the home of its fourth franchise yet, and the first outside of Texas.
"There hadn't been a baseball team here in the summer for such a long time. So, we're glad to finally bring that back in," said Matt Perry, President of the Mid-America League.
Perry said they chose Fort Smith for the loyal fan base and the growing population.
"There's already a 300,000-population base over that in the region, a really strong business base, and [we've gotten love from] the people down here," said Perry.
The team is working on plans for using a pre-existing facility for the 2024 and 2025 seasons while working with the City of Fort Smith to build a stadium on Riverfront Drive, expected to be ready by 2026.
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