Hard work and hustle: How Michael Jordan gave baseball his all in 1994

He made this night very exciting. The Barons are leading 5-1, and Jordan is coming up to bat for the fourth time. The previous three outings had almost ended in home runs. In the fourth inning, he sent the ball high into the air to the left side towards the fence, and in the sixth, Jordan hit it even higher and missed by two feet. The ball goes deep left again, Ratliff comes back, returns to the edge of the field, looks up ... Gonzo Jordan did it! This is how the stadium commentator of the Birmingham Barons covered the game played on July 30, 1994.

The Barons no longer play at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium. But before they moved to Regions Field in downtown Birmingham in 2013, they paid tribute to some of the greats who played there at the old field south of the city. There was the Rollier Fingers Bullpen Deck, named after the 1967 and 1968 relief pitcher who later entered the Hall of Fame. The Robin Ventura Pavilion is named after the third baseman who left the Barons for the Chicago White Sox in 1989, while the Frank Thomas Picnic Area is dedicated to the famed Southern League pitcher in 1990. And the restaurant is named after a certain outfielder who was with the Barons in 1994, writes Steve Wulf for ESPN.com.

The Michael Jordan Banquet Hall

There is a certain irony in the name The Michael Jordan Banquet Hall. It all began with the frenzy of that April night 25 years ago, when he officially made his professional baseball debut at the Hoover Met. He wore the number 45, just as he had on his high school basketball team, and as a 31-year-old basketball immigrant, he attracted 10,359 spectators and 130 journalists. They all followed him in his first at-bat against John Courtright of Chattanooga. Let it be recorded that the opponent at Jordan had three strikes and that Chattanooga won 10:3. The audience went home slightly disappointed.

Jordan is no longer in Birmingham, as are most of the players and coaches who wore the Barons jersey that season. Coach Terry Francona has been leading the big clubs for 19 years, and his achievements include an MLB championship title with the Boston Red Sox in 2004, which ended an 86-year drought, another title with Boston three years later, and success with his current team, the Cleveland Indians. As many as 20 Barons players from 1994 played in big clubs. Jordan never managed to do that, but he took solace in three more NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls.

Today, sports fans consider his foray into baseball a whim, and when they look at his .202 (BA) batting record, they conclude that his baseball career was a failure. And then they forget about Jordan's baseball episode and erase it from their memory, just like the audience did that April night in 1994. They make mistakes, just like I made mistakes.

Ask Curt Bloom, the stadium announcer who has been calling every game for the Barons for the past 27 seasons.

"There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about the 1994 season. I spent 150 days with Michael Jordan. I played basketball with him, I remember trying to block him, and he said, 'I don't need that.' My daughter Chloe will be celebrating her 25th birthday in August. She was born right after Michael rubbed my wife's belly for good luck. I watched him struggle for a few months, but I also watched him become a baseball player right before my eyes. He worked hard, but he also enjoyed himself and fit in well with the team. I was sure he would end up in the MLB," Bloom said.

Or ask Mike Barnett, who was the Barons' hitting coach that season and now works with Francon for the Cleveland Indians.

"Michael practiced five times a day. He would do his regular batting practice in the cage before breakfast. He would do soft tosses with the coach, then pitch for the game. After the game, he would go back to the cage. His palms were swollen and bloody, he was working at an incredible intensity. Forget his batting average. Look at the 51 runs scored on his outings or the 30 bases on base. He hadn't played baseball since high school, and he managed to hold his own in a Double-A league full of ambitious and promising players. By August, he was hitting balls over the fence in practice. I don't think I've ever seen a more beautiful sight on a baseball field than when Michael Jordan hits a ball between two fielders and runs. In two seasons, he would be a legitimate candidate for an extra outfielder, maybe even a starter," Barnett explained.

And if you don't believe them, ask Tito Francona.

He had everything. The skill, the talent, the work ethic. He was always respectful of what we were doing and considerate of his teammates. Of course, he had a lot to learn. I remember one time, when he was up 11-0 against Chattanooga, he reached second base and then stole third. I waved to opposing coach Pat Kelly, who was laughing. When I asked Michael later what he needed, he said, 'When you're leading by 20 in the NBA, you try to get to 30.' With another 1,000 at-bats, I'm sure he would have been a great batsman.