Outfielder Jonas Moore, of USC-Sumter, readies for a hit in the Peaches' inaugural, blistering summer. Photo courtesy of the Spartanburg County Peaches
While baseball fans have been pushed to brave record temperatures this summer, Inman-ites have battled the heat with more cheers than sweat while urging on the Spartanburg County Peaches, their new hometown team.
The Peaches are one of eight teams in the Blue Ridge League, stretching from Greenwood, S.C., to Marion, Va. Play began in late May, with the Peaches’ home games at historic mill stadium Jim Everhart Field, and will last until the final weekend on July 26.
And while no one expected the new team to contend for a league championship, the players are not only showing future promise, but have brought summer baseball back to Inman in ways reminiscent of the 1960s and 1970s.
“It has already been an exciting year overall,” said league chairman Greg Sullivan.
“The Spartanburg County Peaches, Greenwood Flying Monkeys, and Joanna Hornets have had some really competitive games against each other, and from the league side, we like to see that kind of parity.”
The Peaches opened strong on the road May 29 with a 12-4 rout of the Uwharrie Wampus Cats, but fell 9-6 two nights later in their home opener to league-leading Carolina Disco Turkeys.
Since then, there have been more losses than wins, as the Peaches are in 5th place with a mark of 6-9.
But in the two games, centerfielder Jacob Prevatte led the team with seven hits, three RBIs and four stolen bases; while head coach Henry Leach experimented with the lineup, fielding positions, and batting order to figure the best combinations.
“Even though many of these players came from different schools and levels of college baseball, they've bought into our culture and compete for each other every day,” Lech said.
By July, the Peaches were starting to jell, beating the Joanna Hornets 9-6 July 5 on 16 hits with a single-game team batting average of. 400.
Shortstop Jet Cajigas, 1b Coleman Brown, alternate 1b Jabari Thompson, 2b Tyler Scott, RF Chase Thompson, and Prevatte all had multiple hits as the team scored early and often and held on through the pitching of Ethan Cooker, Amarai Wilkins, and game-winner Campbell Whitener.
“Sometimes expansion teams take time to become competitive on the field,” said Sullivan, pointing out that several of the Peaches’ losses, and wins, could have gone either way. “Fans have seen a lot of good baseball, including two walk-off wins in a row at home at one point this season.”
The Peaches’ last game July 26 will find them on the road at Greenwood.
The top two teams by winning percentage will meet in a best-of-three championship series at the end of July.
At this point, even if the Peaches were to win out the rest of their games, the Carolina (20-5) from Winston-Salem, N.C., and the Queen City Corndogs (11-2) from Charlotte, N.C., are likely to finish at the top of the standings.
But even with the summer heat bearing down on the players, the fans, and suffering team mascot Fuzzy, Lech and Sullivan indicated that the biggest factor surrounding this season is bringing baseball back to several areas, most notably Inman.
“Fan response has been encouraging,” Sullivan said. “We think the Peaches can draw not only from Inman, but also from places like Greer, Boiling Springs, Spartanburg and other nearby communities. The opportunity now is to continue growing the brand throughout the broader Spartanburg County area.”
