Richmond, Va. - Back in 2009, if you had asked Todd "Parney" Parnell the odds of him still being in Richmond a decade later with the baseball team he was about to birth, he wouldn't have put much down on his future.
"At our first press conference, I was dressed in a suit jacket" Parney, the Flying Squirrels C.O.O. recalled. "Now, I'm in Parney Pants. So many wonderful things have happened. People ask me where I'm from, I say I'm a North Carolina kid that is a Richmond, Virginia adult."
"I fell in love with this place".
Richmond has returned the love right back to Parney and the entire Flying Squirrels organization. As they prepare for their 10th season on the Boulevard, the team unveiled a new logo to commemorate the upcoming season.
"I can't believe 10 years has happened this quick" Parney said. "I can't imagine it happening any better, even with everything we've been through.
2019 will see the Squirrels host the Eastern League All Star game for the first time ever, and a new video board in the Diamond outfield. It will not see them in a new stadium, something that has been a constant source of interest for everyone even remotely associated with the team. Parney and his staff will choose instead to focus on some of the highlights of the first nine seasons while keeping an always watchful eye on the future.
"There will be some giveaways and other things that will focus on the guys who have made an impact both here and in San Francisco" Parney explained. "At the same time, we never take our eye off the future."
The Squirrels will open their 10th season on April 4th, and the Squirrels store will have 10th anniversary items for sale in the next couple of weeks.
