joe davis.jpg

Look closely at the facade of Joe W. Davis Stadium, and faint outline of old Huntsville Stars logo can barely be seen (Mark McCarter/mmccarter@al.com)

The final departure of minor league baseball from Huntsville has been delayed.

The Biloxi Shuckers, formerly the Huntsville Stars, will play at least 15 home games at Joe W. Davis Stadium this summer, with the possibility of more.

The Southern League is sending a revised 2015 schedule to its teams today, noting the reshuffling of games to Huntsville.

The Shuckers, the Class AA affiliate of the Brewers, will be playing in a new stadium in Biloxi but the park remains under construction and it's expected to be June at the earliest that a certificate of occupancy can be issued and approval of Minor League Baseball is awarded, even as construction would continues there throughout the season.

Huntsville will host the Mobile BayBears from April 30 through May 4, then begin a 10-game stand May 16 through 25, hosting Jacksonville and Birmingham for five games apiece. One of the Jacksonville dates will likely be a doubleheader to meet travel requirements for the Suns.

The stadium will also host a May 12 game between the University of Alabama and Mercer University. The Crimson Tide is also a team without a home, with a massive makeover taking place at its Tuscaloosa park.

The "home team" is required by Minor League Baseball to wear Biloxi Shuckers uniforms and will be officially referred to as such in box scores, etc., no matter the ties to this city, which was represented by the Stars since 1985.

Buck Rogers, general manager of the Shuckers, acknowledged that other games could be shifted to Huntsville should complications arise in Biloxi. The Stars, owned by Ken Young and other partners, have a lease with the City of Huntsville for the use of Joe W. Davis Stadium through the end of this season.

John Hamilton, city administrator, told AL.com in December that demolition of the stadium would likely take place before the end of 2015, with plans to use that space for a multi-sport indoor facility.

Rogers said the rescheduling has been "a logistical nightmare," with other Biloxi "home games" being played in other parks. The Shuckers were to have opened the season at home on April 20 against Jacksonville, but that home stand has been moved to Jacksonville, where Biloxi will be the home team on the scoreboard. They will also move a May 6 home stand to Pearl, Miss., where the Shuckers again will home team against the Braves.

The stadium construction in Biloxi is "ahead of schedule," according to Rogers, with much of the interior work being completed, the pre-cast set and parking garage built.