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The
Chillicothe Paints are a member of the top collegiate wood bat league in the
country, The Prospect League. The Prospect League fields teams in cities
throughout Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Illinois, West Virginia and
Missouri. The Chillicothe Paints, the charter member of The Prospect League
since 2009, make their home at V.A. Memorial Stadium.
In the
summer of 2007, the idea of forming a baseball league that would be a better
fit for the communities who had found Independent Professional baseball
growing out of their markets began to be discussed. This idea became the
Prospect League, which was officially formed in mid-summer 2008. The core
of the new league was formulated to include current and former Frontier
League teams in Chillicothe, Ohio, Richmond, Indiana and Slippery Rock,
Pennsylvania. During the development process, we found ourselves in
conversation with the team owners and the Commissioner of the Central
Illinois Collegiate League, which brought a rich 45-year summer collegiate
league history to the table, as well as six teams within the footprint the
Prospect League were looking to develop. A quick and solid alliance was
formed and through continuous talks and negotiations during the fall of
2008, the eleven-team Prospect League was formed.
The league entered its
inaugural season under the Prospect League moniker, but it brings with it
plenty of tradition and a long list of former players and coaches who have
made it to clubs at the MLB level. The Prospect League is the merger of the
startup effort described above, along with the former Central Illinois
Collegiate League (CICL), one of the original and most recognized summer
baseball leagues in the country. The CICL was formed in 1963 as a charter
member of NCAA certified summer baseball. The league maintained
certification for the entire 41 years of oversight by the NCAA, which ended
its certification program in 2005.
In the winter of 2008 the six teams of
the CICL voted to join the five expansion teams to form the new 11-team
Prospect League. Coming from the CICL in the Prospect League's inaugural
season were the Dubois County Bombers, Danville Dans, Springfield Sliders,
Dupage Dragons, Quincy Gems, and Hannibal Cavemen. Joining them for the 2009
season were the Chillicothe Paints, North Coast Knights, Butler BlueSox,
Slippery Rock Sliders, and the Richmond RiverRats.
The winter of 2009 saw
explosive growth for the 2010 Prospect League season, with the addition of
the DeKalb County Liners in northern Illinois, the West Virginia Miners in
their brand new facility in Beckley, WV, the Terre Haute Rex playing at
Indiana State University and the Nashville Outlaws who will host their home
games at Vanderbilt University. "Our goal was to make the Prospect League
the best summer collegiate baseball league in the country and the success of
the 2009 season along with the quality growth for the 2010 season takes us a
long way towards that goal" said Bryan Wickline, President of The Prospect
League.
In 2010,
the League chose Dave Chase as the a new Commissioner.
The
Chillicothe Paints finally captured that long elusive championship trophy by
winning the 2010 PL title, in commanding wire-to-wire style. A “walk-off”
home run by first baseman, Ian Neilsen in the 11th inning of the
PL championship game was the title-winning blow against the Danville Dans.
In 2011,
Paints’ fans were treated to another exciting season, despite the team
falling one game short of gaining a playoff berth. Attendance averaged over
1,750 for each of the Paints’ 28 home
games…and a total of over 100,000 fans
walked through the gates as VA Memorial Stadium hosted over
300 events
February through November!
The
Paints are especially excited about the 2012 season, as they will be
celebrating their 20th Anniversary of providing Southern and
Central Ohio with exciting and fun-filled family entertainment. In addition
to the many special promotions that are featured every Paints’ season, a “20th
Anniversary/ Reunion” weekend will be an event that loyal Paints’ fans won’t
want to miss!
Other Events scheduled
for 2012 at V.A. Memorial Stadium:
North
Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Baseball Tournament
Great
Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Baseball Tournament
Mizuno
All-Ohio High School Showcase
Numerous
high school and collegiate baseball and softball games throughout the
spring, summer and fall
Ohio High
School District and Regional Tournaments
American
Legion Invitational and District Tournaments
Chillicothe Paints Baseball Club Summer Youth Clinics
Local
elementary school field trips and tours during the school year
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PAINTS
HISTORY INCLUDE:
Recipient of the 2005 Chillicothe Gazette / Rotary Foundation
Business Ethics Award
Voted a
“Top 10” Independent Minor League franchise by Baseball America
Twice
awarded “Organization of the Year” in the Frontier League
Players
and staff are involved annually in the community through youth programs,
clinics, charitable donations and fundraisers, and public appearances
Adult
slow-pitch softball league and tournament
The Frontier League Era
In February of 1993, Dr. Chris Hanners along with the
Chillicothe/Ross Chamber of Commerce and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center brought
professional baseball to Southern Ohio. On a rainy Wednesday night in June of 1993, fans
totaling 2,154 saw the first-ever Frontier League game in Chillicothe. The Paints were
victorious on that night over the Portsmouth Explorers, and Paints' Baseball began to
thrive and prosper throughout Southern Ohio.
On Opening Day of 1995, the Paints brought
in Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench to catch the first pitch. In 1996, another member of
the Big Red Machine, Pete Rose, Major League Baseball's all-time hit king, thrilled fans
at V.A. Memorial Stadium. In 1999, Hall of Famer and voice of the Cincinnati Reds, Marty Brennaman spoke to a group of over 200 Paints' fans at the first annual Winterfest and the
2000 Winterfest brought 250 baseball fans to see Ken Griffey, Sr. speak. Former
Paints’ pitcher, Brian Tollberg, was the 2001 Winterfest guest speaker. Tollberg
became the first Frontier League player in history to make it to Major League
Baseball. And this past February, Winterfest 2002 showcased the baseball
movie, A Little Inside. The motion picture premiered in front of a
packed house at the historic Majestic Theatre. The film had many scenes shot at V.A.
Memorial Stadium at a local downtown restaurant named, The Dock at Water. In
attendance that night was two of the film's stars, Benjamin King and Hallie Eisenberg.
Throughout the history of the Paints, appearances by
syndicated talk show host Gary Burbank and 700 WLW personality Andy Furman have enhanced
Paints' baseball.
The Paints drew 20,253 fans in the inaugural season of
1993. In their second year, attendance grew to 32,808. Winning Organization of the Year
honors in 1996, the Paints increased attendance by 65% to 51,419 fans. In winning
Organization of the Year for the second time in three years, 1998's attendance improved
once again, reaching 71,782 fans; an average of over 1,800 per game. For
over ten
straight years, the Paints have drawn more than 70,000 fans each season.
In the Spring of 2006, The Ross County
Board of Commissioners and the Chillicothe Paints installed a
state-of-the-art playing surface called Field Turf. The
synthetic playing surface allows VA Memorial Stadium to become a true
multi-purpose facility! A venue that will host football, soccer, festivals,
concerts and numerous other events without the worry of damaging the playing
surface.
In 2008, the Paints played their last
season in the Frontier League of Professional Baseball.
Chillicothe Professional Baseball is proud of their
team logo and trade name, the Chillicothe Paints featuring the Paint Horse. The logo was
chosen to stay within the original theme set by the Frontier League. The Paint horse is
documented as being the preferred horse by the American Indians, considered by many
authorities to be the greatest horsemen who ever lived. The Paint horse is known for it's
combination of versatility, strength and aggressiveness which we display within our logo;
a horse with markings and war feathers flowing from the horse's mane. The Paint horse is
to symbolize the team spirit and is known as the Sports Model of the Horse World. The
official team colors are navy blue and white with accents of scarlet and gold.
If you want to see baseball as it was meant to be played,
Chillicothe, Ohio is the place! |
