Visalia Rawhide Celebrate 70 Years of Baseball

The Visalia Rawhide, a California League Single-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks, will mark their 70th anniversary of minor league baseball with a special commemorative patch to be worn on their jerseys throughout the 2016 season.

The patch features the red barn at Recreation Ballpark, their home field, and also depicts the Sierra Mountains in the distance.

“We’re so proud of this club’s tradition, and we’re excited about its future. This logo encapsulates the best of our franchise’s heritage, and the anticipation of what’s to come.” – Rawhide General Manager Jennifer Pendergraft told MiLB.com

The Red Barn at Recreation Ballpark, featured in the anniversay patch (pic: bakersfield.com) — The Red Barn at Recreation Ballpark, featured on the anniversary patch (pic: bakersfield.com)

The Rawhide began life in 1946 as the Visalia Cubs, a Class-C affiliate of the National League ball club in Chicago. Over the years the club has played under various names as affiliations have changed, such as the Redlegs, Athletics, White Sox, and Mets. They’ve also had their fair share of their own names, during a single-season of unaffiliated play in 1953 they took the name Stars, in 1977 following a season in which they didn’t field a team they became the Visalia Oaks, which they remained until a major re-branding in 1993 had the club playing as the Central Valley Rockies. That drastic change lasted only two seasons before the Visalia Oaks name returned in 1995. In 2009 the team switched to their current Rawhide name to acknowledge the region’s rich agricultural history.