COLUMBUS, Ga. - The downtown Columbus ballpark that opened in 1926 as Golden Park, and that has been called Synovus Park for the last two baseball seasons, will carry a new name next year. The Columbus Clingstones and Pinnacle Financial Partners announced on Sept. 6 that, beginning in 2027, Synovus Park will be renamed Pinnacle Park. The change reflects the 2026 merger of Synovus and Pinnacle, according to the announcement, and it arrives with the Double-A Atlanta Braves affiliate's 2027 home opener already set for Tuesday, April 6.

The release says more details on the transition, including new signage and branding, "will be announced at a later date." Here is what is known so far, drawn from the team, the bank and the Atlanta History Center. The schedule for the 2027 season, which the team announced Aug. 10, is covered later in this story.

What was announced

According to the Sept. 6 release, the partnership began in 2024, when Synovus acquired naming rights to the historic ballpark ahead of the return of affiliated professional baseball to Columbus for the first time in 15 years. The venue operated as Synovus Park for the first two seasons of Clingstones baseball, 2025 and 2026. Pinnacle Park will be the first baseball venue to carry the Pinnacle Financial Partners name, the release says.

Heath Schondelmayer, regional president for Pinnacle, said in the release that Pinnacle Park is "another opportunity for our friends, neighbors and clients across the community to see our commitment to what matters most: local relationships, meaningful investment and a shared commitment to Columbus' future." The release describes Pinnacle as a $129.1 billion asset regional bank that joined forces with Synovus Financial Corp. in 2026. The release did not give financial terms for the naming agreement.

The 2027 home schedule

The team released its 2027 home schedule on Aug. 10. The 138-game Southern League season includes 69 home dates across 12 homestands, and every Southern League club is scheduled to visit Columbus at least once. Game times and the full promotional calendar were not yet released, according to the team, but season tickets for 2027 are on sale now through Clingstones.com.

General manager Pete Laven said in the schedule announcement that what is in store for 2027 includes "back-to-back-to-back Independence Day Fireworks and our first-ever Clingstones player bobblehead series." The team announced the 2027 schedule on Aug. 10, 2026, according to its release. The 2027 home slate has 69 dates, beginning with the April 6 opener.

Two seasons by the numbers

The Clingstones, who moved to Columbus from Pearl, Miss., where they played as the Mississippi Braves, drew 231,450 fans in their 2025 debut season, which the team said was the highest single-season attendance in the venue's 100-year history. Their first home game was April 15, 2025, a 3-0 win over Pensacola in front of a sellout crowd, according to WTVM. The 2026 season drew 192,717 fans through the gates, according to the team's year-in-review, a decline of 38,733 from 2025.

On the field, Columbus finished 2026 at 64-68 in a postponement-adjusted 132-game schedule, fourth in the Southern League South Division. The club hit 151 home runs, which the team says is a Braves Double-A franchise record going back to 1966. Two former Clingstones, Owen Murphy and Blake Burkhalter, made their Major League debuts with Atlanta during 2026, the team said.

The park's history

The ballpark opened in 1926 and is named for Theodore E. Golden, who owned Goldens' Foundry and Machine Co., according to the Atlanta History Center. It was renovated in 1951 and 1994, the center says, and it hosted all of the softball events at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, when women's fastpitch softball made its Olympic debut. The Sept. 6 release adds that more than 20 National Baseball Hall of Famers have appeared at the ballpark over the years.

The park was renovated before the Clingstones arrived. According to the team's media guide, a $50 million renovation broke ground on June 11, 2024, and the park reopened for the 2025 season. The team has also leaned into the history: in 2026 it added The Golden Lot, a wiffle ball field honoring the ballpark's roots, and the release said a bust of Theodore "Theo" Golden was to be unveiled near the park's entrance on Sept. 6.

What has not changed

The ballpark is still located along the Chattahoochee River in downtown Columbus, and the team is still the Clingstones, the Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. The release describes the new name as a continuation of the 2024 partnership, and it does not mention any change to ticket sales, seating or the 2027 schedule. The team directs fans to Clingstones.com for tickets and updates.

One practical note for fans: the Pinnacle Park name starts in 2027, so the ballpark remains Synovus Park through the end of 2026. The team has not yet said when new signs will go up, so fans should expect to see both names in use for a while. The renaming was announced Sept. 6 and takes effect in 2027.