A minor league baseball treasure resides in the heart of Appalachia. West Virginia may be known for its natural resources—coal, logging, natural gas—but its roots in baseball date back more than 100 years. Charleston began its professional baseball history in 1910 with the Statesmen, a Class D team i the Virginia Valley League. The following year, the Statesmen played in the Class D Mountain State League.
The latest incarnation of professional baseball in West Virginia is the Power, a label that began with the 2005 season. Concurrently, the team created five mascots—Axe, Gusty, Pyro, Hydro, Charlie. In 2010, Chuck replaced all five. A yellow creature with a bowler and an eye patch, Chuck is a hallmark of Power baseball. The eye patch is highly significant because it pays homage to the Power’s parent team—the Pittsburgh Pirates.
In the Charleston Daily Mail article “New Power mascot dons bowler”—dated September 1, 2010—Zack Harold describes Chuck’s initial appearance: “After weeks of anticipation, the West Virginia Power baseball team debuted its new mascot—a furry, yellow, bowler-hat wearing creature named Chuck—during Tuesday night’s game.
“Chuck made his grand appearance in the middle of the second inning, riding into Appalachian Power Park on a Suzuki four-wheeler. The Davisson Brothers Band welcomed him to the stadium with a special adaptation of their song Big City Hillbilly.”
Appalachian Power Park houses the Power. Noting the financial realities demanding a change in venue for Power home games, the team’s web site states, “Modern baseball economics could not survive in Watt Powell Park and several groups worked to preserve the game in Charleston. From political support and work with the Economic Development Grant Commission to WVWINS, a community action group that mobilized local fans and businesses to back the project, an East End ballpark was put on the map. Appalachian Power would quickly agree to take on the naming rights to the new 23 million dollar facility.”
Change continued with the team’s branding. Charleston’s professional baseball history has several labels, though there are gaps:
- Statesmen (1910-1911—Virginia Valley League in 1910, Mountain State League in 1911)
- Senators (1913-1916, Ohio State League)
- Senators (1949-1951, Central League)
- Senators (1952-1960, American Association)
- Marlins (1961-1964—International League in 1961, Eastern League in 1962-1964)
- Charlies (1971-1983, International League)
- Wheelers (1987-1994, South Atlantic League)
- Alley Cats (1995-2003, South Atlantic League)
- Power (2004-Present, South Atlantic League)
A version of this article appeared on www.thesportspost.com on May 7, 2015.