White Center Now: The blog about White Center

Southwest Little League is registering players for 2023 – and it’s not just baseball this year – they’ve added a new girls’ softball division to SWLL. You can register online right now, or if you and the player(s) in your household would rather sign up in personm the annual chance to do that is coming up February 11th, noon-3 pm at the Little Log Cabin at Steve Cox Memorial Park (1321 SW 102nd).

Find out more on the SWLL website.

Lariat Bar sent word that as part of this Sunday’s White Center Block Party, they’re presenting live, free wrestling – the Defy Summer Bash. You’re invited to two rounds 1 pm-2:30 pm and 3:30 pm-5 pm. Spectators have to be 21+ to watch from inside the beer garden but all ages are welcome outside the beer garden. If you haven’t yet been to Lariat, it’s at 9827 16th SW. The Block Party is happening noon-6 pm Sunday (August 28th).

Chef Gino from TheHomeSkillit.com invites you to the first of his tailgating events, Friday nights in White Center:

This is the first in a series of Friday events:

If you don’t know Chef Gino, he’s a West Seattle-based entrepreneur and says he’ll be vending at Lumen Field on these gamedays:

The Seahawks’ first preseason game is on the road tomorrow vs. the Steelers

Summer goes by so quickly. It’s already the final weekend for the DubSea Fish Sticks! Here’s a reminder we received from the team this morning:

(Photo by Robby Mullikin)

The DubSea Fish Sticks summer collegiate baseball team is wrapping up their season with two final home games at Mel Olson Stadium on Saturday evening at 6:05 pm and Sunday afternoon at 1 pm.

On Saturday, July 30th the team will be running a Christmas in July theme with Christmas décor, songs and iced out jerseys the players will be wearing. The team is donating $5 of every ticket sold to the White Center Food Bank, who will also be running a 50/50 raffle at the event.

On Sunday, July 31st the team will host its final game of the 2022 inaugural season beginning at 1:05pm. Fan appreciation day will feature special give-aways, fun between inning promotions and the last chance for a fan to roll giant dice for a chance to win $50,000 from Burien Chevrolet.

The summer collegiate baseball team recruits players from colleges across the country to come and play for the months of June and July. The 2022 summer roster is compiled of players from twenty-six different colleges. The players report in late May and play with the team to hone their skills and hope to one day play professionally.

You can purchase tickets and find more information on the Fish Sticks at GoFishSticks.com.

(Also published on partner site West Seattle Blog)

(WCN photos)

Two days before their first game as the DubSea Fish Sticks, collegiate baseball players from all over the country were at the stadium in Steve Cox Memorial Park today for practice. It’s the team’s home stadium for the summer, and the first game is Saturday night.

Today, the players were mostly wearing apparel from their college teams – but the brand-new Fish Sticks uniforms and hats were awaiting pickup:

This year’s roster for the team formerly known as the Highline Bears features players from 30 different colleges, according to Fish Sticks general manager Justin Moser. He promises a trip to the park will deliver more than baseball – they’re also offering food, beer, music, and “crazy promotions.”

The Fish Sticks will play 27 home games, including every Friday and Saturday from June 4th to July 31st. Single-ticket prices are $12 adults, $8 youth (12 and under), seniors, and military, or you can get discounted tickets in “flex packs” for three to 14 games. If you haven’t been to Steve Cox Memorial Park, it’s at 1321 SW 102nd. Opening-night game time is 6:35 pm Saturday vs. the Everett Merchants.

Those are some of the riders who left the White Center Bike Playground on Sunday morning to head out on the fundraising Ride for Major Taylor. It was actually two rides – a 63-mile route, with riders heading out as early as 7 am, and a 26-mile route with departures starting at 8:30 am.

The ride raises money to help youth via the Major Taylor Project. The presenting organization, Cascade Bicycle Club, explains it:

Marshall “Major” Taylor was a Black athlete and cycling legend who was one of the greatest bicyclists of his era, setting numerous world records and winning a World Championship–all while battling racism throughout his career from the late 1800s to early 1900s. He was an international superstar whose amazing talents and drive were as well-known in his era as LeBron James or Serena Williams are today.

The Major Taylor Project is a year-round, youth leadership cycling program focused on introducing young adults from underserved communities to the recreation of cycling and creating an inclusive culture of bicycling that will continue to future generations. The Major Taylor Project currently serves schools in the Puget Sound region; Seattle, Tacoma, and Puyallup.

The Major Taylor Project welcomes donations year-round.

Want to work in baseball? Here’s your chance!

The DubSea Fish Sticks summer collegiate baseball team is holding a job fair Sunday, April 10, 2022 at Mel Olson Stadium inside King County’s Steve Cox Memorial Park. The job fair will run from 1 pm-3 pm.

The team is currently looking to hire 20-30 part-time employees for the months of June and July. High school and college students are welcome to apply with select positions being available to those 15 years of age and older. There are select positions such as servers and security that do require the applicant to be 21 years of age or older.

The job fair will allow those interested in working for the Fish Sticks to find out more information about each position and apply on site. For those that are interested but cannot attend the job fair they can apply online at GoFishSticks.com/jobs. Positions that are currently available include concessions, ticketing, game day operations, servers and security.

The DubSea Fish Sticks’ season begins on Saturday, June 4th, running through July 31st. They will host 27 different home shows (games) this summer at Mel Olson Stadium also known as The Fryer by fans. The team hosts upwards of 40 college players from around the country for the summer where they will play 48 games throughout the Pacific Northwest.

For more information on the DubSea Fish Sticks, you can visit www.GoFishSticks.com.

It’s baseball season! Southwest Little League gets going on Saturday – here’s the announcement:

Southwest Little League 2022 season opener Jamboree Day
Steve Cox Memorial Stadium
April 2nd, 2022 @ 12 pm

*Will hold a 50/50 raffle contest
*Have baked goods for free with encouraged donations accepted for the league
*Juniors team (Dodgers) will play in their 1st game at 2 pm

All are welcome for as much or as little baseball as you want to watch! The stadium is at 1321 SW 102nd.

Time to look ahead to this year’s youth-sports seasons. Southwest Little League baseball is registering players for spring! You can sign up at southwestlittleleague.org or in person on February 12th, noon-3 pm, at the Little Log Cabin in Steve Cox Memorial Park, 1321 SW 102nd.

10:47 AM: We’re at the Edgewater Hotel on the downtown Seattle waterfront, where the owner of the former Highline Bears has just announced the team’s new name: Dub Sea Fish Sticks. After a process that involved fans proposing more than 200 possible new names, followed by 5,400+ votes between this name and one alternative (Dub Sea Seal Slingers), this morning brought the official unveiling. Owner Justin Moser says they’ll also start calling Mel Olson Stadium at Steve Cox Memorial Park – the team’s home stadium – “The Fryer.” Temporary mascot, as seen above, but another contest will engage people soon in naming the official mascot. The team didn’t play the past two summers because of the pandemic but they’re planning games this year, starting June 4th. The team’s website is now at gofishsticks.com.

ADDED 11:54 AM: Here’s our video of the big reveal:

Back in June, we reported on the White Center-based (former) Highline Bears‘s plan to pursue a new name. Now it’s down to the final two, and they’re inviting you to help choose. From today’s announcement:

Today the Highline Bears summer collegiate baseball team announced the final two possible new team names. The final names are the DubSea Seal Slingers and the DubSea Fish Sticks. The team will now let the community vote online for which name they want to see on the field next summer. Fans can vote online at RenameOurTeam.com, and they can also vote by pre-ordering merchandise of the logo and team name they like best. Voting will remain open for four weeks and the final team name will be announced on November 15th.

Back in June the team announced they would be renaming the team and ran a “Name the Team” contest for 2 weeks. After receiving more than 200 entries, they flew in the baseball-branding company Brandiose. The branding company has helped name dozens of teams in minor league baseball over the past fifteen years, including the Rocket City Trash Pandas and Armadillo Sod Poodles. While in town in July they canvassed the area, ran community focus groups, and brainstormed with the team about what direction they should go. Over the course of the past three months the team has been working on narrowing down all the fan entries, checking trademark statuses on potential names and developing the final two brands,

The team plays more than two dozen games during regular summers (not the past two years, though) with a 40-player roster of college players from around the country, who stay with host families during the season. Their home field is Mel Olson Stadium at Steve Cox Memorial Park.

A big bike ride in and near White Center, West Seattle, and beyond is set for Sunday (June 27th), and Cascade Bicycle Club spokesperson Paul Tolmé emailed the announcement to be sure you know:

Cascade Bicycle Club’s Ride for Major Taylor will take place this Sunday. We would like to alert residents that there will be bicycles on the roads (and many youth bicyclists) and we ask for drivers to be alert and aware of our youth bicyclists. Cascade and its Major Taylor Project would also like to thank residents for being courteous to our riders.

And due to the forecast heat, we’d also like to let residents know that we encourage them to come out and cheer on our riders — and maybe offer willing riders a spray from the garden hose to cool off :)

Above is the 26-mile route map (see the route’s turn-by-turn description on the second page here); below, the 65-mile route (or here, with turn-by-turn on the second page).

Both start from the bicycle playground at Dick Thurnau Park. Registration is closed, as they maxed out at 500 riders. P.S. The ride is a benefit for the Major Taylor Project; read about its namesake, a superstar runner and rider in the 19th/20th centuries, here.

The Highline Bears, the White Center-based summer collegiate baseball team, are looking for a new name and inviting you to suggest one (or more!).

This all began with the recent news that the team’s mascot Buntly the Bear was retiring.
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“Buntly has been the heart and soul of this team since day one. Replacing him with just another bear didn’t seem like the right thing to do,” general manager Justin Moser explained in a video released this morning.

So the Bears have launched a naming contest. You can suggest a name and send it with an explanation of “why the name embodies the community and greater Pacific Northwest.” Submit your idea via RenameOurTeam.com. The team will narrow the list and then ask fans to vote for a winner.

Moser says the team is looking for “a name that’s original, that’s fun, crazy, and embodies our community and the great Pacific Northwest.”

Backstory from the team’s announcement:

The Highline Bears launched the team in 2015 and have steadily grown a following in the greater West Seattle/White Center area. The team is a summer collegiate team where players from colleges around the country come to hone their skills during the summer months. Players stay with host families or bunk with local players that are on the team, while playing a rigorous game schedule.

While the baseball is always competitive, the Bears games are beloved for their affordability for families, fun promotions and intimate atmosphere.

The contest runs through 9 am July 4th. Prize: Lifetime tickets for Bears – or whatever the new name is – games!
For more information on the Highline Bears visit www.HighlineBears.com

Baseball season hasn’t even started yet and already there’s been a snow-out. Southwest Little League had to postpone last Saturday’s planned in-person signups to THIS Saturday – so you can go register noon-2 pm February 20th at the Log Cabin at Steve Cox Memorial Park (1321 SW 102nd). Here’s our original report on this year’s SWLL registration.

From Southwest Little League: Spring baseball registration will start January 1st. You’ll be able to do it online at southwestlittleleague.org, or wait for word on their TBD in-person sessions when safety allows. SW Little League is for girls and boys 4-16.

You knew this was coming, but still … The Highline Bears have sent their final word on
2020:

The local summer collegiate baseball team, the Highline Bears, announced to their players this past Monday evening that they will be canceling their entire 2020 season, due to the lack of potential fields being available in a reasonable amount of time.

The Bears would have been starting their season on Friday, May 30th, but the opening night and all home events had been canceled due to Covid-19. In the letter to fans in May the Bears had stated they were planning on having the team play on the road with no fans, if permitted in phase 3. “The likelihood of Pierce and Snohomish county going to phase 3 by our deadline of July 6th and fields being available for us to play at in phase 3 was just too uncertain for us to continue to move forward,” said the General Manager, Justin Moser.

The Bears said that they lost most of their partners and sponsors when the stay at home order went in place in March. The Bears did say even though local businesses were unable to purchase advertising this summer that they will continue to offer advertising to all businesses at no cost for the next year, even though they aren’t playing.

“We were hoping to be able to have some sort of season for our players this summer but the uncertainty is just too big right now. Making our players and coaches wait even longer with the odds of playing dwindling, just didn’t seem right. It’s sad and unfortunate for a ton of reasons, I feel for our players and coaching staff. Ben Harley did an amazing job putting this team together. On paper this is the best team we’ve ever had, including 9 Division 1 players,” Moser said.

The Pacific International League that the Bears play in, are hoping they can play sometime later in July but that will be dependent on certain counties moving into phase 3 and fields being available. The league continues to meet every week to plan and discuss if playing this summer will be possible.

The Highline Bears said that they are planning to come back in 2021 “stronger, bigger and better” bringing the community the “best show in town”. Moser also said that Covid-19 has affected this like so many other businesses: “I’m not going to lie to you, this has been a huge hit to our club financially and we can use all of the support we can get from our community.”. If you would like to support the Highline Bears during this difficult time, you can purchase new 2020 merchandise on their website at shop.highlinebears.com

Just announced by the Highline Bears:

The local summer collegiate baseball team, the Highline Bears, announced Wednesday that they will be canceling all their home games and events this summer at Mel Olson Stadium inside Steve Cox Memorial Park.

The Bears would have been starting their season on Friday, May 30th but the opening night had been postponed due to Covid-19. In the letter to fans from the team, they state that they are planning on having the team play on the road with no fans, if permitted in phase 3.

The Bears stated that they lost most of their partners and sponsors when the stay at home order went in place in March. The Bears did say even though local businesses were unable to purchase advertising this summer that they would continue to offer advertising to all businesses at no cost for the next year, whether or not they play.

The Pacific International League that the Bears play in, has voted to start playing games in phase 3 when permitted but do have a drop dead date of July 6th for games to start before having to cancel the season indefinitely.

The Highline Bears exclaimed that they are planning to come back in 2021 “stronger, bigger and better” bringing the community the “best show in town.” If you would like to support the Highline Bears during this difficult time you can purchase new 2020 merchandise on their website at shop.highlinebears.com

Here’s the full letter to fans:

Dear Fans,

The Highline Bears have made the tough decision to not host any home games, or events for the
2020 summer.

After discussing different contingency plans with our staff and King County Parks we have decided
that we will not be able to host anything at Mel Olson Stadium this summer. With that said, we will
be letting our players play on the road if permitted, when the state moves to Phase 3 of the
reopening plan.

Our priority every summer is to bring the best experience to our fans, community and of course the
players we host from all over the country. Unfortunately, with the current state of events we will not
be able to have the normal summer we are used to, playing baseball and putting on a show in front
of hundreds of fans every Friday and Saturday night. This summer will be 100% committed to
providing our players a safe opportunity to play if allowed to. Our players college seasons were
canceled, and we will do everything we can to get them back out on the field when it is deemed safe
to do so.

The Pacific International League has voted to move back the first day of the season to June 24th
which would be the first day possible for our state to move to phase 3. The Bears will play games in
Tacoma, Edmonds, Redmond and Everett along with some other locations this summer, all with no
fans in attendance. The league hopes to play games into the second week in August.

In early March we spoke with our partners/sponsors and nearly all of them had to pull their
commitment this summer to continue to support their employees and make sure their business
could continue to operate. We have decided that we will continue to offer advertising for all of our
partners throughout the year at no cost to them. In times like this we need to support our local
businesses as much as we can. We ask that our fans please do their best to patronize all of our
partners and continue to support our local business community.

We are optimistic that 2021 we will come back stronger, bigger, and better than ever, bringing our
community the best show in town. All single game and season ticket holders will be given a credit
for tickets in 2021, or can receive a full refund by contacting the Highline Bears.

If you would like to support the Highline Bears during this time you can do so by purchasing new
2020 merchandise at shop.highlinebears.com. We can’t wait to see you all back at the ballpark in
2021!

Thank You,
Highline Bears

(WCN photo from 2013 Rat City bout at Southgate)

You may remember back when the Rat City Rollergirla were based in White Center. This Saturday, they’re returning (as Rat City Roller Derby)! Here’s the announcement:

Rat City Roller Derby is going back to where it all began for a special single-header, mash-up bout at Southgate Roller Rink in White Center. On Feb. 8, the Big Grief Maples will play the Western HemBlocks in a nod to not only RCRD’s roots, but also its home in the Evergreen State.

Details
Time: 6:45 p.m., doors open at 6 p.m.
Date: Saturday, Feb. 8, 2020
Location: Southgate Roller Rink, 9646 17th Ave. SW

For the founders of RCRD, the throwback game is an important acknowledgement of the league’s history and how far it has come.

“Rat City Roller Derby has come a long way since its days at Southgate,” said Carmin Thomas, also known as Clobberin’ Mame, who was one of the founding members of RCRD and still skates with the Sockit Wenches today. “And we’re thrilled to be returning to where it all began for this very special game.”

During the game, RCRD will give back to the community that supported it in its early days by collecting donations for the White Center Food Bank. Audience members are invited to bring unopened, unexpired, non-perishable goods to the game to help RCRD support the food bank’s mission to keep White Center fed. In addition, local band Burn Burn Burn will play a live halftime show.The after party will be held at Zippy’s Giant Burgers, 9614 14th Ave. SW, immediately after the game.

Last chance to see the Highline Bears this year! Tonight (Saturday, August 3rd) is their final game of the season, 7:05 pm at Steve Cox Memorial Park vs. the Redmond Dudes. It’s Fan Appreciation Night, too. Need tickets? Go here!

The 12-3 final score was only part of the story as the Highline Bears opened the 2019 season at Mel Olson Stadium in White Center’s Steve Cox Memorial Park on Saturday night. So many other fun touches were part of the night – like home-team players high-fiving fans in the stands as they were introduced (above, catcher Owen Napieralski). Then there were the Shorewood Elementary students who sang the national anthem:

The “unofficial mayor of White Center,” Christine Spencer, threw out the first pitch:

And there was the guest base runner:

Hudson Borg had his own cheering section at home plate:

Mascot Buntly the Bear roamed the stadium:

Other sightings ranged from his between-innings Macarena to a moment where he sat down and checked out our laptop (hard to type with paws, so he moved on). All that and we haven’t even gotten around to the baseball yet. Yes, there was a full nine-inning game between the Bears and the visiting Laces:

That’s #12 Cody Chavis. You can see the full Bears roster here. They all had a lot to high-five about:

The night also included facepainting, live games, the youth league West Seattle Baseball running a 50-50 raffle, and … chair-throwing. See for yourself next home game, which is Friday night (June 7th):

It’ll be National Donut Night on Friday; can’t miss that. Here’s the schedule; here’s where to get tickets. (Kids 8 and under are free!)