Times Observer photo by Matt Spielman Jamestown’s Brady McGuire reacts after hitting a bases-clearing double during the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League West Division semifinals at Diethrick Park on Tuesday.

The headline on the cover of the Jamestown Tarp Skunks’ program, which first saw the light of day two months ago, has proven to be prophetic. Above a photo of a smiling, fist-pumping Russell E. Diethrick Jr. — the city’s “Mr. Baseball” — are four words in italic type

They read: “Plenty to Cheer About.”

It’s been that kind of summer for the local team in the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League.

Tuesday night was just the most recent example as the second-seeded Tarp Skunks routed No. 3 Niagara Falls 12-2 in the West Division semifinal before 870 delighted fans at Diethrick Park. The win advances Jamestown into the West Division final at 6:30 tonight at top-seeded Batavia, which knocked off No. 4 Auburn 6-1 in the other semifinal.

Regardless of the outcome against the Muckdogs this evening, the 2025 PGCBL season — Jamestown’s fifth since its rebranding — has to be considered a figurative home run, according to Randy Anderson, a member of the board of directors of Jamestown Community Baseball LLC.

“My assessment is it’s been our most successful ever as far as the finances of the team and the performance on the field,” he said Tuesday afternoon. “Christian (Dolce) has done a tremendous job as the general manager and Frank Jagoda has done an equally outstanding job as the manager. We’re lucky to have both of those guys working for us.”

In addition to strong numbers at the gate, the franchise, which recorded its first playoff win last night in franchise history, has been the beneficiary of a talented roster, which is at or near the top of most statistical categories.

“Five years ago I was worried we wouldn’t get to the second year,” Anderson said. “Think what we had to accomplish in one year, (which was) basically start a team from scratch. There was a lot of work that went into that by (then-general manager) Frank Fanning and by Jordan Basile, who at the time was the field manager.

“To start a team from scratch is a tremendous amount of work. I didn’t know if we had the staying power. Fortunately we’ve had good general managers over the years. Jacob Kindberg did a tremendous job when he was here. We’ve really been blessed with (Dolce); (Basile) did a good job as field manager; and (Jagoda) is knocking it out of the park, night after night.”

Before the Tarp Skunks became a reality — their first season was in 2021 — Anderson admitted that he was an “infrequent” visitor to baseball games on the city’s east side. But now that the team is community owned, he says he feels it’s “part of my role as a member of this community to support this team anyway that I can.”

He added: “What I like most about going to a ballgame, other than watching the team, is interacting with the community that comes out and supports the Tarp Skunks. We have a very loyal fan base. When you go to virtually every game, pretty soon you know just about everyone in the stadium. I just love walking in the stadium, saying hello to people, shaking hands and talking about the team. It’s such a community event, in my mind. It’s great to have this in Jamestown.”

Should the Tarp Skunks win tonight at Batavia, which would earn them a trip to the best-of-three championship series against the East Division winner, Anderson knows where he’ll be.

“Oh, my god,” he said, “if they win the West and make it into the finals, I’ll be consulting my AAA map to figure out how to get to Amsterdam.”