Darius Rucker has joined the star-studded list of investor alongside Justin Timberlake, Luke Combs and Kane Brown to bring a major league baseball team to Nashville, Tennessee.
According to PEOPLE, the superstars signed as financial supporters for the new initiative to bring a major baseball team to Music City. The team would be named the Nashville Stars, as a tribute to former semi-pro early 1900’s Negro Major League team of the same name. Rucker, Timberlake, Brown and Combs would also serve as members of Music City Baseball’s advisory board to bring a “deep music industry influence” to the table.
“I have always been a big fan of Major League Baseball so I’m excited about being part of bringing a team to Tennessee,” Rucker said in a statement. “Nashville is already a great home to several professional sports teams, and I believe baseball is the next step in continuing Nashville’s reputation as one of the greatest cities in the United States.”
“Music City Baseball is committed to elevating the heritage of our game. This initiative lays the foundation for Major League Baseball to make history and continue to advance our sport with the unprecedented naming of a franchise in honor of the Negro Leagues,” said Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Museum, in a press release. “We are proud to partner and support this historic effort.”
The Nashville Stars would be the first MLB expansion franchise since the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Rays in 1998.