The little town that could

by Jason S Rufner
Published on June 25, 2003 under Frontier League (FL)

Chillicothe, Ohio, has about 22,000 people. It is a small city, or, more practically, a mid-sized town. It is also a minor league miracle.

Since the inception of the Frontier League in 1993, the Chillicothe Paints, whose interesting moniker is derived from the Paint breed of horse which has wildly roamed the Ohio countryside, have been a resolutely successful franchise, the only club to persist in its existence during that entire 10-year tenure. Fittingly, in 2000 the Paints were the first in the Frontier League to have an alumnus crack the bigs when Brian Tollberg took the mound for the San Diego Padres.

Tollberg is but one of several Paints who have gone on to success in affiliated baseball, and holds one of the five numbers retired in Chillicothe. Though it may seem absurd for a team in an independent league to retire numbers, the Paints have achieved a wealth of success on the field roughly equivalent to their popularity off of it. Even now, former Paints Kevin Connacher and Matt Hampton play at the Triple-A level, along with scores of chuckers and whackers on affiliated teams who once donned Paint jerseys.

The Frontier League, under the guidance of commissioner Bill Lee, began modestly, placing clubs in cities such as Lancaster, OH, and Pikeville, KY. It is a testament to Chillicothe that in the eleven years hence, during which the FL has emerged as a relatively stable and well respected independent league and has gradually moved franchises into the Pittsburgh, Chicago, St. Louis and Cincinnati suburbs, the Chillicothe Paints have retained their viability -- even enhanced it.

Attendance at VA Memorial Stadium is consistently around 2,000 patrons per contest -- an improbable nine percent of the town's immediate population -- and rarely fluctuates much from that figure, no matter the day of week, nor the year. The fact of their respectable attendance is doubly amazing when considering not only the fact of the town's tiny population, but also the stadium's odd location, a full five miles from downtown Chillicothe, on the grounds of a large hospital neighboring an expansive correctional facility.

And yet they come. And they have come for more than a decade, carving out a niche that is arguably unique in professional sports. The Paints logo, a dynamic silver horse emerging from a cursive C, is sported in Chillicothe with almost as much frequency and fervor as the scarlet O of the Ohio State Buckeyes. Fans in the stands speak knowledgeably about their players, past and present. Not merely there for a show, Chillicothe Paints fans are there to watch the game.

On Opening Night, 2003, with the threat of rain omnipresent, nearly 3,000 people crammed into VA Memorial Stadium to watch the Paints take on the Florence Freedom for the first game in the latter club's history. It mattered not that Florence manager Chris Sabo had resigned the previous day, or that the air was nearly saturated with moisture. The many present crowded the modest stands and peered over the ordinary fences to watch the game, to root on the Paints with reserved enthusiam.

Hundreds of children played, generally oblivious to the happenings on the field, in and around a makeshift playground, trampling a long bed of flowers surrounding it. Frisbees flew, rarely caught on the fly. Along the first base dugout, several older patrons congenially clapped the backs of their diamond warriors, many of whom they personably knew on first-name bases. The game was entertaining, with the Paints emerging victorious 2-1, with the winning run scoring on a controversial balk committed by the Freedom hurler. An impressive fireworks display followed, shot off from immediately behind the left-field wall, towering overhead and sprinkling the Ohioans with fiery dust. Patriotic music accompanied the light show.

The parking lot is a long stretch of turf, beaten down by feet and tires. Before vacating, the public address announcer reminds patrons to "remember that the speed limit on hospital grounds is ten miles per hour." The uniqueness is everywhere.

This is minor league; this is independent league; this is the Frontier League. These are the Chillicothe Paints, and it appears evident that their fans, their quaint town which was once the capital of Ohio but is now relegated to being a rest stop between Ohio State and Marshall Universities, would have it no other way.

Attending a professional baseball game in Chillicothe is to witness a minor league miracle, in an era of shiny new stadiums and large market envy. Perennially the Paints are the Frontier League's Organization of the Year, and frequently they are mentioned on Baseball America's list of top independent franchises. While other franchises are failing in much more populous areas, the Paints are succeeding in a very ordinary, very sparsely populated town. Yet it works, as the turnstiles continually turn, and the citizenry continually cares. It is strongly recommended that baseball fans make the trek to witness this minor league miracle; as per the advice of one t-shirt spotted on Opening Night: May the horse be with you.

Frontier League Stories from June 25, 2003

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