Crack! The batter makes a perfect connection. The small white baseball soars through the air and past the outfielder, right into the stands. Fans cheer as the batter rounds the bases. Baseball is America’s pastime, and in Portland, the Pickles are the team to support. The Pickles may not be a pro team, but they still field much love from fans, and have grown to be a staple of the community, going far beyond just baseball.
In 2007, it looked like baseball was leaving Portland for good. Portland’s baseball team at the time, the Portland Beavers, had just been bought and their stadium was being turned into Providence Park, where the Portland Timbers and Thorns now play. However, just nine years later, baseball returned to Portland in 2016 when the Pickles played their inaugural game at Walker Stadium, claiming it as their home field ever since.
The Pickles play in the West Coast League, a collegiate wooden bat league that runs in the summer. Their roster consists of all Division 1 college players, looking to spend their offseason playing at a high level. Many of them come from out-of-state and live with host families in Portland during the season. The fans are led by Dillon T. Pickle, the team’s mascot. Dillon gets up to all sorts of activities for the Pickles, including meeting fans, egging on the crowd, and even starting to campaign for president in 2024. But Dillon is not without flaws. In 2022, he got into some trouble for posting a picture of his private pickle, garnering national media attention. Andrew Metz is a Franklin student who works serving food at Pickles games during the summer. He believes that Dillon is a great mascot: “He’s really fun to watch. I always watch him greet the kids, and he’s super nice.”
Since the organization’s founding in 2015, the Pickles have become much more than just a baseball team. They have expanded to a team store called the Pickle Jar, located in downtown Portland. “We have merch, we have jackets, we have hats, we have everything a Pickles fan could want,” explained Kayla Becker, a cashier at the Pickle Jar. The store has been the one-stop shop for everything Pickles since its opening in 2021.
The Pickles also have recently opened a sports bar on Mississippi Avenue, called the Pickles Public House. The restaurant serves hot dogs, salads, and wood-fired pizzas, as well as alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. The Pickle Jar and the Pickles Public House show how community-oriented the Pickles are. Starting as just a baseball team, they have been able to grow and become a key part of Portland’s sports scene and community.
Metz is excited for the upcoming season, especially because of the environment at home games. Metz explains, “Adults and kids love it there. It’s a really great place to be.” The numbers of fans speak to that, in the 2022 season, an average of around 3000 fans filled Walker Stadium, which has a capacity of 1500, meaning many more bring their own chairs and sit on the lawn on each side of the outfield. These chairs can often be seen raised in the air, following a Pickles tradition to raise the chairs when they score a run. The tradition comes from a moment in 2016, when pitcher Max Compton raised his chair above his head while cheering, after the Pickles scored. The celebration spread to the rest of the team, and then to the fans, becoming an important and iconic tradition to the fan base.
The Pickles also host many community events at their games. There are many events that will be held this season, including Educator Appreciation Night, Dillon’s Drag Race, and Firefighter Appreciation Night. These events will be featured on May 28, June 1, and June 12 respectively. Metz appreciates these events, saying, “I think it’s the most important thing about the Pickles. They have nights where they bring small businesses and the community together, and people love it.” The Pickles also partner with over 75 small businesses, connecting the Pickles community with local businesses all over Portland.
Baseball in Portland has come a long way. Fewer than 20 years ago, with the departure of the Portland Beavers, the future of baseball in Portland was bleak. But within the last decade, the Portland Pickles have grown into something even bigger than just a baseball team. Their roster fields many talented players, and thousands of devoted fans file into Walker Stadium to watch the Pickles play. They have paired with countless local businesses and grown their brand to become entwined with Portland culture. The season spans from May 28 until Aug. 8, giving existing and new fans many opportunities to attend games and experience the unique atmosphere. Simply, the Pickles have not only joined the Portland community, they fuel it.
