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Forest City Owls
Logo
Information
League	Coastal Plain League (West)
Location	Forest City, North Carolina
Ballpark	McNair Field
Founded	2008
League championships	2009, 2010
Colors	Forest Green and Gold
Ownership	Phil Dangel, Rob Frost
General manager	Sabrina Vetter
Manager	DJ Russ
Coach	Alex Khan
Website	www.forestcitybaseball.com

TheForest City Owls are abaseball team in theCoastal Plain League, acollegiate summer baseball league. The team played its inaugural 2008 season inForest City, North Carolina after the same franchise (previously known as the Stingers), owned by Ken Silver, moved fromSpartanburg, South Carolina in the offseason. The Owls play their home games atMcNair Field, a new baseball stadium constructed near downtown Forest City by the municipal government utilizing town funds, private contributions, and more than $1 million in donations fromRobert C. McNair, a Forest City native and owner of theNFLHouston Texans. The Owls won their home (and season) debut on Thursday, May 29, 2008, by a score of 4–2 over theGastonia Grizzlies before 2,675 fans. McNair threw out the first pitch, and the Owls turned an ever-raretriple play in the top of the 6th inning.

In the 2009 season, the Owls won the Petitt Cup, the Coastal Plain League title, after going 51–9 in 60 games during the regular season and postseason. Forest City's 22–2 start, 24 first-half victories, 25 wins at home, and 46 regular-season wins all were CPL records. The Owls were also voted as the No. 1 collegiate summer team in the country, courtesy of pgcrosschecker.com.^{[citation needed]}

On January 27, 2011 it was announced that the Owls had been selected by USA Baseball to host Team Japan on July 1, 2011.^[1]

In the 2011 season, the Owls went back to the CPL playoffs to defend their back-to-back titles. The Owls fell in the second round to the Gastonia Grizzlies. The 2011 season was highlighted by the July 1, 2011 game of Team Japan vs. the Forest City Owls. Over 3,700 fans attended the game and witnessed the first-ever international game to be played at McNair Field. The Owls fell 8–1 to Team Japan but came back to have a 30–25 overall record for 2011. Over 64,400 fans walked through the gates at McNair Field that season.^{[citation needed]}

In September 2015, Mr. Silver sold The Owls to Phil Dangel from Knoxville, Tennessee.^[2]In 2017, The Owls led The CPL with the most victories for the entire season, winning both the first and second half. They also were recognized by the All-Star committee by having 5 all-stars as well as the coach, Matt Reed, was selected to coach The Western Division All-Stars.

The Owls did not compete in the 2020 season due to COVID-19 restrictions in North Carolina.

The Owls finished the 2025 regular season with their best record since their championship run in 2010. After earning a first-round bye, they swept the Boone Bigfoots in the West Division Championship Series before being swept by the Wilson Tobs in their first Petitt Cup Championship appearance since 2010.

The Owls boast four alumni inMajor League Baseball. Both lefty pitcherJosh Edgin and right-handed relieverHeath Hembree played for Forest City in 2008 and 2009. Edgin got drafted by theNew York Mets, where he is still a member of the organization. Hembree initially signed with theSan Francisco Giants and now plays for theBoston Red Sox.

InfielderVince Belnome joined the team for the 2009 championship season. Belnome now plays 1st base in theTampa Bay Rays organization.

Righty pitcherSpencer Patton played in Spartanburg in 2007 and made the jump to Forest City when the team moved in 2008. Patton made his Major League debut on September 4, 2014 and now pitches for theTexas Rangers.^[3] Patton also played with the Owls in 2009, where he finished with a 9-0 record and 1.46 ERA.

• Official Site
• Coastal Plain League
• N.C. baseball team racks up wins and shatters records - video segment of 2009 season; Tarheel Traveler,WRAL-TV.

• Coastal Plain League
• 2008 establishments in North Carolina
• Baseball teams established in 2008
• Amateur baseball teams in North Carolina
• Forest City, North Carolina

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