50 plus years of grooming tomorrow's stars

Among the shadows of Mount Rainer in Tacoma, Washington, the crack of a baseball bat and the smell of freshly cut grass has been no stranger to the locals. For more 50 years consecutive years, Tacoma has played host to AAA baseball. Presently, The Tacoma Rainers, who get there name from the afore mentioned 14,000 plus foot elevated mountain, call the city home. The Rainers franchise, is currently affiliated with their seventh big league club. Before being linked to the geographically compatible Seattle Mariners, the club was paired with the Athletics, Indians, Yankees, Twins, Cubs, and Giants in reverse chronology. Regardless of the affiliation over the seasons, the club has been a member of the Pacific Coast League, playing in the Norhern Division. Tacoma's history of baseball, however, didn't originate a mere half century ago. Starting way back in 1904, Tacoma had a club known as the Tigers, who played to a first place finish in both halves of their first season. Accordingly, the club won the cities first ever Pacific Coast League title. A mere half season later, affiliated baseball left Washington State until its much anticipated return in 1960. During its current string of teams which have played in the city, the club has called Cheney Stadium home. The park, which was opened in 1960 upon the arrival of the club, has gone through multiple renovations to bring it up to respectable standards based on present day technology. In it's current form, the stadium can seat 9,600 fans at capacity. As if the 50 year history and survival of the club isn't enough to testify for the love the locals have for their club, the original structure was erected in a mere 42 days in order to begin play in time for the inaugural season. That my friends, is commitment and passion. Over the years, some big name players have made stops in Tacoma. Some of which are: Alex Rodriguez, Jason Giambi, Jose Canseco, and Mark McGwire. The cap shown above, and current logo seen, was first used last season in 2010. The fitted, has a navy brim, navy crown, and a capital "T" for Tacoma in front of a snow capped silhouette of Mt. Rainer. This is a great cap, which I hope to acquire on my trip to Washington, later this summer. As if the cap isn't nice enough to just pick up strictly based off looks, the history discussed in today's post hopefully gives you some added incentive to appreciate the team. The cap can be found on Lids.com under "Tacoma Rainers", or on the team website HERE. Until next time, keep exploring the world of baseball. There's always something new to learn.