Bowen Field (Bluefield, VA)

The Bluefield Orioles played their final minor-league game on August 31, 2010 at Bowen Field in Bluefield, Virginia. (Photo courtesy of Davebanner12 / Creative Commons 1.0)

 

In the early 1900s in the town of Bluefield, West Virginia, the colors blue and gray still stirred bitter memories of the Civil War. Along the ridges that became the West Virginia-Virginia border, sympathies were divided and skirmishes were fought. Subsequently, however, a friendly rivalry developed between the towns on either side of the state line—and baseball, in the form of a team called the Blue-Grays, served as unifying force. Some 100 years later, Bowen Field at Peters Park, which is located on the Virginia side but owned by the city of Bluefield, West Virginia, continues this legacy of cross-border partnership.

In the 1880s, Bluefield, West Virginia, transformed from a frontier outpost to a booming coal and railroad town. In short order, local companies began to form baseball teams. The sport provided a much-needed diversion from the strikes, explosions, and cave-ins that accompanied life in a coal town. By 1915, an organized team of Norfolk & Western Railroad workers had begun playing in the Bluefield area.1 A decade later, railroad and coal company teams dotted southern West Virginia and northwestern Virginia, and a few independent squads formed to oppose them.2

One such unsponsored team was the Bluefield Blue-Grays, whose name attempted to unite the once-adversarial sides of the border.3 In the early days, the team played at the fairgrounds and drew significant interest from fans. While few players rose beyond semipro ball, future Detroit Tigers batterymates Vic Sorrell and Ray Hayworth played with the club in 1924 and ’25.4 The two cities failed to sponsor a team in 1926 owing to financial issues, but the Norfolk & Western company team, as well as several local amateur clubs, remained active throughout the 1920s.5 Bluefield Institute, a historically Black college in West Virginia now known as Bluefield State University, also fielded heralded teams.

The popularity of baseball in both Bluefield communities led to conflict over playing grounds. Glenwood Park was a popular diamond and hosted teams known as the Nut Busters and the State Liners.6 Other West Virginia squads used Weller Field, which was associated with the N. & W.7 The Tri-County League played games on the Virginia side.8

In the 1930s, Bluefield mounted a push to join a semipro or professional circuit. In 1933, Emmett Cain, a local baseball player who had climbed as high as Class A Chattanooga, angled to get Bluefield into the semipro Blue Ridge League, which had organized in 1932 after the demise of the Class D Blue Ridge League in 1930.9 The bid sparked construction of a new ballpark in the east end of the West Virginia side.10 Cain Field stood at the intersection of Virginia and Princeton Avenues.11 This location hosted baseball (as well as carnivals and novelty shows such as “Donkey Baseball”) for much of the decade.12

In 1937, professional baseball finally came to Bluefield with the formation of the Mountain State League, a Class D outfit organized and helmed by longtime minor league player-manager Ray Ryan.13 While Cain Field was a perfect location for local amateur teams, Class D ball called for a more modern stadium. The newly built Mitchell Stadium, a Works Progress Administration project designed to host football, was deemed unfit because of the impracticality of adapting the existing field to the dimensions of a baseball diamond.14 In the interim, the Blue-Grays settled for Cain Field, which lacked lights but added 500 bleacher seats and expanded the playing field.15

Bowen Field’s Early Years

After two years of success at Cain Field, Bluefield City Park became home to a brand-new stadium, whose reported cost was cited as anywhere between $20,000 and $50,000.16 While the stadium sits on the Virginia side of the border, the park itself is owned and operated by the West Virginia side’s parks and recreation department. Similarly, the baseball club, although it played in Virginia, remained headquartered in Bluefield, West Virginia.

Bowen Field was named for coal magnate Joseph Bowen, who served as the Blue-Grays’ president beginning in 1940.17 It included a 2,100-seat grandstand but could accommodate up to 8,000.18 Night baseball came to the area thanks to a new lighting system. The outfield fences stood 335 feet down the foul lines and a mere 365 feet in center.19 In its opening season, Bowen Field served as the home stadium for the Blue-Grays as well as the Bishop State Liners, an amateur Black baseball team based out of Bishop, which straddles the West Virginia-Virginia border.20

The Blue-Grays found immediate success in their new stomping grounds. In 1939, the stadium’s inaugural year, the Bluefield squad got hot late in the season and, despite finishing the regular season in fourth place, stormed through the playoffs. Bluefield swept Welch and moved on to face the pennant-winning Williamson Red Birds to decide the league champion. Bowen Field hosted Game Four, which decided the series in favor of the home team.21 Of more note, though, was an 18-year-old who clubbed two home runs in Game Two,22 Williamson’s only win. The performance must have turned some heads because mere months later Stan Musial was training with Asheville of the Class B Piedmont League. Musial spent one more season at Class D with the Daytona Beach Islanders and rose to Class C Springfield and Double-A Rochester in 1941 before debuting with the St. Louis Cardinals on his way to Cooperstown.23

Bluefield also won an unofficial postseason battle against Ryan’s Class D Virginia League champion, Harrisonburg. Ace Jack Talbot took the mound at Bowen Field in the decisive Game Five of the interstate series. The hurler limited Harrisonburg to four hits and was supported by a bases-loaded double by first baseman Oscar Martin in a 3–1 victory.24 The team’s success and the new stadium helped Bluefield draw a league-record 70,000 fans in 1939.25

With baseball on the rise in the Virginias, Ryan staged an all-star exhibition between the Mountain State League and Virginia League in 1940. Bowen Field, the newly constructed gem of the region, would host the event. Invitations were issued to the governors of each state, Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis, and mayors from up and down the Blue Ridge Mountains.26 On August 2, Pittsburgh Pirates president Bill Benswanger and Cincinnati Reds assistant business manager Frank Lane headlined the baseball men in attendance for the all-star matchup.27 Bluefield pitcher Ralph Eakin took home the win as the Mountain State contingent dominated the Virginians, 13–0.28

During the early years of World War II, Bowen Field attracted several major-league clubs to the area. The Cincinnati Reds faced the Boston Red Sox and the New York Giants tangled with the Cleveland Indians prior to the 1940 season.29 The Giants and Indians returned to Bluefield in the lead-up to the 1941 season.30 The loop also attracted big-league talent in the manager’s role. In 1942, as the Mountain State League moved up to a Class C designation,31 Johnny Gooch took the reins of the club (and appeared in 14 games). However, the Blue-Grays’ dismal form—they finished in next-to-last place—forced Gooch to resign in July.32

Like many other minor leagues, the Mountain State League shuttered in 1943 as more and more young men joined the armed forces. During the down years, Bowen Field hosted American Legion tournaments, barnstorming baseball teams such as the Harlem Globetrotters and Havana La Palomas, and beauty pageants.33 In 1947, Bowen Field hosted spring training for the Watertown (New York) Athletics of the Border League.

Professional baseball returned to Bowen Field when the Class D Appalachian League materialized in 1946. Over the course of the late 1940s, the Blue-Grays, as a Boston Braves affiliate, emerged as a powerhouse. The Braves leased the stadium from the city of Bluefield, West Virginia, providing a key revenue stream that allowed for upgrades. Prior to the 1948 season, the Blue-Grays erected an electric scoreboard, and new bleachers increased the seating capacity to roughly 3,000 in 1949.34

That year, under the management of Ernie White, a member of the St. Louis Cardinals’ 1942 World Series team, the Blue-Grays stormed to the pennant with an 88–34 record and swept Johnson City and Bristol to take home the Appalachian League title. White’s success earned him a promotion to manager of the Braves’ Class B club in Evansville, Indiana.

The success drove ticket sales; Bluefield sold out of box seats in 1946, but the 1949 season set the standard in terms of attendance.35 That year, Bowen Field welcomed 122,136 spectators, accounting for more than a quarter of Appalachian League ticket sales.36 A May 25, 1949, doubleheader against Bristol at Bowen Field drew an Appalachian League record 3,543 spectators.37

Bill Adair succeeded White as manager and led Bluefield to a league pennant. Pitcher Bob Bowman, who hailed from nearby Keystone, West Virginia, anchored the Bluefield rotation in those title runs and accumulated a 22–4 record with a 3.36 ERA in 1949 and 1950, his final two years of professional baseball.

On July 23, 1953, Bowen Field saw its first no-hitter. Earl Walton, just 19 years old and in his only season of professional ball, shut down the Bristol Twins in the first game of a doubleheader. Walton allowed one walk and hit two batters in a seven-inning victory.38 The first nine-inning no-hitter at the park came almost exactly two years later, when Norman Tanner handed Bristol an 8–0 loss on July 28, 1955.39

The Baby Birds

The 1950s were a time of transition. The Blue-Grays operated as a farm club for five different organizations (the Braves, Washington Senators, Boston Red Sox, Brooklyn Dodgers, and Baltimore Orioles). The Appalachian League folded after the 1955 season, resuming play in 1957. Baseball, though, was as popular and successful as ever in Bluefield; the club added championships in 1954 and 1957. Exhibition games also drew massive crowds and big names to Bowen Field. The Kansas City Monarchs – with Satchel Paige on the mound – took on the Birmingham Black Barons in a two-game set on June 28 and 29, 1955.40

In 1958, Bluefield came to terms with the Baltimore Orioles to operate as the club’s short-season Class D affiliate. For the next five decades, the mountain town would host the Baby O’s. The first breakout star for the Bluefield Orioles was remembered by Bluefield general manager George Fanning as “a big ol’ awkward kid.”41 As a 17-year-old in 1959, Boog Powell lofted balls into the maple trees beyond center field at a rate of one homer every 15 plate appearances and led the Appalachian League in slugging. His teammate Bob Saverine eked out the batting title by two points over Powell. Pitchers Arne Thorsland and Dean Chance finished 1-2 in the ERA race.

Success at Bowen Field foreshadowed the Baltimore clubs that would take home World Series titles in 1966 and 1970. Bluefield claimed the Appy League title five times between 1962 and 1971. Tom Phoebus got his start in Bluefield, although his 1960 squad failed to secure the league title. Sam Bowens also played in Bluefield in 1960; he and Larry Haney, a member of the 1961 Bluefield Orioles, appeared on the 1966 World Series roster but did not get any playing time. Mark Belanger (’62) and Dave Leonhard (’63) appeared with the champion Orioles in 1970. The 1967 squad was particularly stacked; Bobby Grich, Don Baylor, and Johnny Oates all ascended from Bluefield to make their big-league debuts during the 1970 championship season.

Bowen Field also became a proving ground for those on the managerial track. Billy Hunter steered the 1962 and ’63 Bluefield teams to league titles. His success earned him a promotion to third-base coach for the big-league club in 1964, a position he held for 13½ seasons. Jim Frey, who took over for Hunter, worked his way first to a scouting position and then to a coaching job in Baltimore despite losing records in his two seasons in Bluefield. Joe Altobelli proved his merit with an Appalachian League championship in 1967 en route to filling Earl Weaver’s shoes as Baltimore’s manager in 1983 and winning that season’s World Series.

Rising From the Ashes

The good times didn’t last, though. Bluefield entered the 1970s with a pair of pennants and a league championship, but 1972 brought on a decade-long championship drought. Even worse, a fire broke out early in the morning of May 23, 1973, just a month before the start of the Appalachian League season. The blaze essentially destroyed the wooden stadium, consuming the grandstand, bleachers, and press box.42 It also ripped through newly constructed concessions areas and dressing rooms. In the wee hours, Bluefield general manager George Fanning and his wife Catherine helplessly watched the field burn. Fanning, who oversaw the club from 1947 until his death in 1995, quietly wept. While the fire was originally investigated as an arson, the most likely cause was a lightning strike that blew a transformer on one of the power poles at the stadium.43

The Baby Birds leaned on the greater Bluefield community and their parent club for support in the wake of the disaster. Fanning reached an agreement with Mitchell Stadium that allowed players to use the shower facilities at the nearby football field.44 Rather than seeking an alternative home field or delaying the season, Bluefield encouraged fans to bring their own chair to the park and sought funds from Baltimore to help address the estimated $160,000 in damages wrought by the fire.45 Some fans made do with temporary bleacher seats or simply plopped down on the grass of the hillside.46

The short season of 1973 gave way to rapid construction, and a new steel-and-cinderblock grandstand with seating for 2,004 rose in the old wooden structure’s place.47 The distance down the foul lines remained the same (335 feet), but the center-field fence moved to a daunting 405 feet.48 The unique set-up—Bluefield, West Virginia, owning the club and stadium but Bluefield, Virginia, being the location—caused some funding headaches. The West Virginia administrators received $200,000 in federal revenue sharing for reconstruction, and the legalities of spending that money in Virginia came into question in 1975.49

The Orioles inaugurated the new Bowen Field by posting the best record in the Appalachian League’s South Division in 1974, although they lost the league title to rival Bristol. On June 28, 1975, the Baltimore Orioles honored the resilience of the Bluefield Baseball Club and the teams’ shared history by presenting a plaque which, as of 2026, still graced the wall of the concessions area at Bowen Field. An adjacent plaque honored Bluefield, West Virginia, city officials; mayor Edwin Elliott; city engineer William H. Looney, Jr.; and Fanning, among others who raced to replace Bluefield’s treasured baseball diamond.50

The city of Bluefield needed a symbol of hope and rebirth. In 1974, the interstate highway system came to town and replaced much of the railroad industry that had sparked the mountain town’s growth in the early part of the century. At its height in 1950, Bluefield, West Virginia, claimed roughly 21,000 inhabitants; by 1980, the population had dropped to 17,484.51 As of July 2024, Bluefield’s population had declined further to an estimated 9,157.52 Of interest, the population of the Virginia community, always the smaller of the two, rose through the 1980s to a peak of nearly 6,000 before declining in the 21st century.

Bowen Field became a place of community for the down-on-its-luck region. When the summer heat soared above 90 degrees, a rarity in “Nature’s Air Conditioned City,” fans were treated to free lemonade, a city tradition almost as old as Bowen Field itself.53 The remodeled grandstand featured simple concrete rows without seats, so fans could bring their own chair and stake out their preferred spot as soon as the gates opened. Early entry paid off as fans got an early glimpse of a future Orioles legend in 1978. At just 17 years old, Cal Ripken Jr. was drafted by Baltimore and sent to rookie ball. Like most players in the lower levels, he billeted with a local resident, Ilee Short, who described the future Hall of Famer as “a nice, quiet young man” who sought Short’s help in dodging the local girls who hoped to catch Ripken’s eye.54 Cal struggled in Bluefield, tying for the team lead in strikeouts (46) and posting a .632 OPS. Still, he made short work of the upper levels and reached Baltimore in 1981 at the age of 20.

A New Era of Bluefield Baseball

Little changed in and around Bowen Field in the latter part of the 20th century. Orioles prospects came and went; a few youngsters started successful careers, such as Armando Benitez, Arthur Rhodes, and Gregg Zaun. Also, 30-year-old Grady Little held his first managing job with the 1980 Orioles. However, most men in Bluefield’s dugout from the 1980s and 1990s did not find stardom in the majors. Even so, the lack of star power did little to dent Bluefield’s on-field success. The Orioles made the finals six times between 1992 and 2002, winning four Appalachian League championships. In 1993, the team averaged roughly 1,650 fans per game, a feat for the twin towns whose aggregate population had dropped below 19,000.55

The first sign of change came in the mid-1990s when the Bluefield club reached an agreement with the Disney-owned Anaheim Angels to purchase seats during the renovation of Anaheim Stadium.56 The vibrant orange seats stand in stark contrast to the verdant green of the surrounding hills, though they were a perfect fit for the Baby Birds.

The Orioles struggled to fill those seats as both Baltimore and Bluefield entered a fallow period. Between 1998 and 2010, Bluefield managed just one winning season;57 Baltimore finished above .500 three times in the same span. The Orioles’ farm system became bloated through the creation of two Dominican Summer League teams in 1997, a short-season Class A club in 2002, and a second rookie-ball team in the Gulf Coast League in 2007. Consequently, at the conclusion of the 2010 season, Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail announced the dissolution of the 53-year relationship between Baltimore and Bluefield. At the time it was the longest uninterrupted affiliation in MLB history.58

The other AL East birds swooped in and took up roost at Bowen Field. The Bluefield Blue Jays found immediate success thanks to a trio of 18-year-old future All-Star pitchers—Joe Musgrove, Aaron Sanchez, and Noah Syndergaard—and Appalachian League batting champion Kevin Pillar. That 2011 squad won the East Division but fell in the championship.

In 2017, Bowen Field underwent significant renovations. Fresh Bermuda grass took root in the infield, and offices and ticket booths expanded. Both clubhouses were refreshed. Behind it all were board member and local philanthropist Charles A. Peters and his wife Dafney. In honor of their contributions, the board of the Bluefield Baseball Club (the non-profit entity that oversees the team and the stadium) renamed the facility “Bowen Field at Peters Park.”59 Peters passed away less than a year later.

No amount of success or superstar appeal could stem the tide of dwindling attendance across the Appalachian League. Many of the stars of the Blue Jays’ 2025 World Series run – including Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Alejandro Kirk, and Addison Barger – spent a summer in the mountains. As of 2019, though, the Baby Jays were only pulling in 624 fans per game. The COVID pandemic broke out the following year; subsequent restructuring of the minor leagues ended affiliated baseball in Bluefield.

For its next act, as the Appalachian League transformed into a collegiate summer circuit, Bluefield looked to the past. Inspired by the railroad that once brought business and baseball to the region, the club adopted a new moniker: the Ridge Runners.60 The team, which allows collegiate players to gain exposure and refine their skills in advance of the MLB draft, is just the latest iteration of a baseball tradition in Bluefield and Bowen Field that spans nearly a century.

Last revised: July 1, 2026

 

Acknowledgments

This story was reviewed by Kurt Blumenau and Rory Costello and checked for accuracy by members of SABR’s fact-checking team.

 

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com and Retrosheet.org for background information on players, teams, and seasons.

 

Notes

1 “N. & W. Beats Appalachian,” Bluefield (West Virginia) Daily Telegraph, April 25, 1915: 2.

2 “Bluestone Team Still Leads in N. & W. Baseball League,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, May 29, 1925: 11.

3 “How BlueGrays Got Name,” The Sporting News, May 16, 1940: 5; “About Town of Bluefield,” Bluefield, 2025. https://www.bluefieldva.org/our_community/about_town_of_bluefield/index.php, accessed November 20, 2025. Around the same time, the Virginia side changed its name from Graham to Bluefield, further linking the twin communities.

4 “Baseball Fans to Meet Friday Eve,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, February 11, 1925: 10.

5 “Vic Sorrell Setting Pace in International,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, September 16, 1926: 4.

6 “Nine Bloody Bobbles Prove Downfall of Locals to Welch,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, May 3, 1927: 9; “Glenwood Park Leased for Games,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, May 14, 1931: 7.

7 “N & W Sport Bosses Deny Rumors of ‘Outlaw’ Loop,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, April 30, 1931: 10.

8 “Bluefield Amateur Baseball League Will Probably Have Six Entries This Year,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, April 26, 1931: 11.

9 Associated Press, “Bluefield Nine Seeks Berth in New League,” Charleston (West Virginia) Daily Mail, April 3, 1933: 7.

10 “Blue Grays in Exhibition Today,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, May 14, 1933: 13. Cain was unsuccessful in his attempts to bring professional baseball to Bluefield.

11 Bill Archer, “Glory days of Cain Field remembered,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Sept. 27, 2015.

12 Advertisement, Bluefield Daily Telegraph, June 21, 1935: 8.

13 “Mountain State League,” The Sporting News, August 19, 1937: 11.

14 “Ryan Asserts Class D Ball Loop Almost Certain,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, February 17, 1937: 8.

15 “Blue-Grays Get Lease on Cain Field, Expect to Hire Manager Early Next Week,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, April 22, 1937: 9. “Important Meeting For Baseball Fans Tuesday,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, April 25, 1937: 23.

16 Stan Tobin, “Mountain State Trails,” The Sporting News, April 6, 1939: 9; Stubby Currence, “Bluefield May Lose Vic Sorrell As Manager Via Retirement,” The Sporting News, October 24, 1940: 5. The inflation calculator of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that $20,000 in April 1939 would have the buying power of roughly $486,000 in May 2026, while a $50,000 stadium would be akin to $1.214 million.

17 United Press International, “Father’s Death Halts Candidate’s Campaign,” Raleigh Register (Beckley, West Virginia), October 11, 1966: 2; The Sporting News, April 25, 1940: 7.

18 “Mountain State and Virginia Loop All-Star Tilt Arranged,” The Sporting News, July 25, 1940: 6.

19 “Mountain State League,” The Sporting News, May 25, 1939: 13; Stubby Currence, “Paul Yankee Paying $6,000 to Run Bluefield Club in ’40,” The Sporting News, January 11, 1940: 6. The city maintained ownership of Bowen Field and agreed to rental deals with local clubs, including the Blue-Grays.

20 “State Liners Booking,” Pittsburgh Courier, June 17, 1939: 16. “Liners Will Tackle Colts,” Beckley (West Virginia) Post-Herald, June 12, 1937: 8.

21 Associated Press, “Bluefield Wins,” Evening Leader (Staunton, Virginia), September 11, 1939: 8.

22 Dan O’Neill, “Musial in the minors,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 20, 2013: S5 M 1.

23 Paul Jones, “Tourists Open Drills Tomorrow,” Asheville (North Carolina) Citizen-Times, March 24, 1940: 11. Musial was still harboring dreams of becoming a big-league pitcher and was sent to Class D Daytona Beach, where he posted an 18–5 record in 223 innings on the mound. During his time in the Florida League in 1940, he began his transition to the outfield.

24 “Series [Is] Won By Bluefield,” Staunton (Virginia) News-Leader, September 19, 1939: 6. Martin is listed as Occar on Baseball-Reference, but contemporary newspapers refer to him as Oscar.

25 Stubby Currence, “Bluefield May Lose Vic Sorrell As Manager Via Retirement,” The Sporting News, October 24, 1940: 5.

26 “Highest Officials Will Attend All-Star Game at Bluefield,” Staunton News-Leader, July 23, 1940: 6.

27 Associated Press, “Mountain State League to Rely on Offensive Power,” Staunton News-Leader, August 2, 1940: 10.

28 Associated Press, “Mountain State Takes Virginia League 13-0,” Staunton News-Leader, August 3, 1940: 6.

29 “Brief Bits of Gossip,” The Sporting News, February 15, 1940: 12.

30 Dan Daniel, “Yankees Toss Out Hooks For Tosser,” The Sporting News, January 9, 1941: 10.

31 There is some discrepancy regarding the Mountain State League’s status at this time. The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball lists the league as Class D in 1942, while Baseball-Reference claims it was Class C. Contemporaneous sources in The Sporting News label the Mountain State League as Class D in 1941 and Class C in 1942.

32 “Game’s Highlights Day-by-Day from War-Year Communiques,” The Sporting News, December 31, 1942: 10. Gooch was replaced by first baseman Harry Hughes. Hughes was mistakenly reported as having been killed in action on Iwo Jima in 1945. He returned to baseball after the war, playing two seasons (one as player-manager) with West Palm Beach in the Class C Florida International League. “Wife Refutes Reports Hughes Lost in Action,” The Sporting News, April 26, 1945: 20.

33 “Legion Juniors Play Bluefield,” Raleigh Register, July 5, 1946: 6; “At Bluefield,” Beckley Post-Herald, May 1, 1947: 6; “Minors From District 29 to Flock to Bluefield for Labor Day Meet,” Raleigh Register, August 31, 1947: 14.

34 Associated Press, “Baseball Is Serious Game In Bluefield,” Bristol (Tennessee) Herald Courier, June 2, 1948: 7; Associated Press, “Bluefield–Welch Open Appy Loop,” Raleigh Register, May 1, 1949: 11.

35 “Bluefield Sells All Boxes,” The Sporting News, April 11, 1946: 15.

36 Associated Press, “Appalachian League Sets New Attendance Mark,” Jackson (Tennessee) Sun, October 12, 1949: 9. The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball lists the official attendance as 116,572.

37 “Record Crowd Sees Bristol Take Two At Bluefield,” Bristol Herald Courier, May 26, 1949: 16.

38 Associated Press, “Young Hurler Twirls No-No from Bluefield,” (Phoenix) Arizona Republic, July 24, 1953: 30.

39 As of January 2026, Bowen Field has been the site of at least six no-hitters. Bluefield and Bristol have a long-standing rivalry that has produced nine no-hitters, according to Chuck McGill’s database of minor-league no-hitters.

40 Bob Wills, “Sports An’ Stuff: Monarchs, Barons Play at Bluefield,” Raleigh Register, June 28, 1955: 6.

41 Chuck Rist, “Bottom Rung Of Baseball’s Ladder,” Charleston (West Virginia) Daily Mail, July 23, 1975: 22.

42 Associated Press, “Fire Destroys Baseball Park,” (New York) Daily News, May 24, 1973: 211.

43 Tom Bone, “Monday will mark 50th anniversary of destructive Bowen Field fire,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, May 20, 2023. https://www.bdtonline.com/monday-will-mark-50th-anniversary-of-destructive-bowen-field-fire/article_805c72bc-f695-11ed-8942-9fc3f12d910f.html, accessed March 25, 2026.

44 Bone, “Monday will mark.”

45 Associated Press, “Going To Game? Bring Own Chair,” Raleigh Register, May 26, 1973: 3. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the equivalent cost would be $1.22 million in May 2026.

46 Bone, “Monday will mark.”

47 Bone, “Monday will mark.”

48 Tim Brennan, “Nothing but blue skies,” (Salisbury, Maryland) Daily Times, July 13, 2008: C5.

49 United Press International, “Bluefield Given Notice,” Raleigh Register, August 15, 1975: 3.

50 The reconstruction was not without its detractors. Because Bowen Field is owned by the City of Bluefield, West Virginia, but is situated on the Virginia side of the border, funding can be complicated. The federal government questioned Bluefield, West Virginia’s use of $200,000 in federal funds, claiming that the field is an “out-of-state” entity. “Bluefield Given Notice,” Raleigh Register, August 15, 1975: 3.

51 “1950 Census of Population: Preliminary Counts,” US Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, July 27, 1950: Series PC-2, No. 2. https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1950/pc-02/pc-2-02.pdf; “1977 Population Estimates for Counties and Incorporated Places in West Virginia,” US Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, November 1979: Series P-25, No. 861. https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/1979/demographics/P25-861.pdf.

52 “QuickFacts: Bluefield city, West Virginia; United States,” United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/bluefieldcitywestvirginia,US/PST045224#PST045224, accessed March 26, 2026.

53 Charles Owens, “Free lemonade to flow at Bowen Field Wednesday,” Daily Telegraph, July 8, 2025. https://www.bdtonline.com/news/free-lemonade-to-flow-at-bowen-field-wednesday/article_e44a4b78-7993-4bad-92b8-8d78603f7100.html, accessed March 26, 2026.

54 Jon Caroulis, “Baltimore, Bluefield: birds of a feather,” Sporting News, August 25, 1997: 55. Cal’s father, Cal Ripken Sr., hoped to have his son Billy board with Short as well, but her house was full by the time Billy landed in Bluefield in 1982.

55 Attendance records for the Appalachian League are spotty, but several seasons’ marks can be found on Baseball-Reference.

56 Brennan, “Nothing but blue skies,” C1.

57 Strangely, the club’s only league championship did not come in its winning season in 2002. Rather, the Baby Birds won the Appy League playoffs in 2001 when they finished 33–33.

58 “Orioles end affiliation with Bluefield,” MiLB.com, September 3, 2010. https://www.milb.com/news/gcs-14240322, accessed March 26, 2026.

59 Tom Bone, “Bluefield businessman’s name added to Bowen Field,” Bluefield Daily Telegraph, May 26, 2017. https://www.bdtonline.com/sports/peters-baseball-park-bluefield-businessman-s-name-added-to-bowen-field/article_d9a36776-41ca-11e7-9a34-1f0843002546.html, accessed June 15, 2026.

60 The Ridge Runner train, a tourist attraction once marketed as the “world’s smallest interstate railroad” before moving to its present location in Bluefield City Park, runs on a loop just beyond Bowen Field’s right-field fence. “World’s Smallest Railroad,” Historical Marker Database, August 12, 2025. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=281413, accessed March 26, 2026.