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No next year: Orioles final play tonightGood-Bye Baby Birds............................. A-4Saying farewell to the Orioles...........................C-1By TOM BONEluefield Daily TelegraphBLUEFIELD — For decades, “Wait ’til next year!” has been a rallying cry for baseball fans. For the Bluefield Orioles, there is no next year.The franchise will cease to exist after the final out of a doubleheader at Bowen Field, tonight, closing a historic'chapter in Bluefield baseball history. Whether that will bring a crowd out to the state-line site is open to speculation.George McGonagle, the acting general manager at BowenField, said on Monday, “We could have a packed house or an empty house. From what I’m gathering, we should have a pretty good crowd.”The local group that overseesminor league baseball in Bluefield, the Bluefield Baseball Club, has said they are seeking a new Major League Baseball team to affiliate with starting next summer, but tonight the’string of 53 consecutive years of cooperation with the Baltimore Orioles will be broken.That is thought to be a record in all of baseball.“I'm sorry to see 53 years end,” said James “Smokey”Shott, an active member of the baseball club board. “It’s the longest-running relationship in baseball. That’s a shame, but all good things must come to an end.”The Baltimore club announced on Saturday that it will not renew its affiliation with Bluefield.The Orioles’ local rivals, the Princeton Rays, will provide the opposition for the two-game evening at the historic ballpark.First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m., and the National Weather Service forecast calls for clear skies. Starting at about 5:45, the players, manager and staffof the Bluefield Orioles will be introduced for the final time, McGonagle said.He said the city of BluefieldOrioles, A-3*Staff photo by Jon BoltMaking the final cut...Bowen Field grounds crew member Chastin Akers drives out to mow the outfield for the Orioles' final game. The double header against cross-county rival, Princeton, will give Oriole fans one more chance to say farewell.
Newspaper Details
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
Bluefield, West Virginia, US
Tue, Aug 31, 2010
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Becky K.
NA, 02 Jun 2023
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