The Victoria Mussels were a

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

team located in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. The Mussels were members of the

short-season Class A Short Season (officially Short-Season A) was a level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States from 1965 through 2020. In the hierarchy of minor league classifications, it was below Triple-A, Double-A, Class A-Advanced (cre ...

Class A

Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Pacific Northwest, Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Maj ...

from 1978-1979. Besides the Mussels, the other teams in the 1978 North Division were the

Bellingham Mariners The Bellingham Mariners were a Minor League Baseball team in the Class A-Short Season Northwest League, based in Bellingham, Washington. The club served as the Seattle Mariners' short-season affiliate from 1977 to 1994. History Major League B ...

, Grays Harbor Loggers and the

Walla Walla Padres The Walla Walla Padres were the primary name of a minor league baseball team in the northwest United States, located in Walla Walla, Washington. Named after their parent club, the Padres were members of the Class A short-season Northwest League fo ...

. The South Division consisted of the Bend Timberhawks,

Salem Senators The Salem Senators are the longest lasting name used by several minor league baseball teams based in Salem in the U.S. state of Oregon. The team name derived from Salem being the capital of Oregon. The team was founded in 1940. The current incar ...

Eugene Emeralds The Eugene Emeralds (nicknamed the Ems) are a Minor League Baseball team in the northwest United States, based in Eugene, Oregon. The Emeralds are members of the Northwest League and are affiliated with the San Francisco Giants. Eugene plays their ...

and the Boise Buckskins. Jim Chapman managed the team in 1978 and played infield while Don Rogelstad served as the pitching coach along with pitching for the Mussels in 10 starts.CKDA 1220 Victoria - local radio broadcasting each weekCJVI 900 Radio Victoria - local radio broadcasting each week Prior to owning the Mussels, both players during the early 70's played in the MLB minor system where Jim rose to AAA in 1973 with the Peninsula Whips of the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...

and Don pitched in the New York Yankees farm system in 1972 with the Fort Lauderdale Yankees of the A class

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

. The 1978 season record ended at 29-40 with an attendance of 10,103 or an average of 288 fans per 35 home games. In the 1979 season the North Division teams were the Victoria Mussels, Bellingham Mariners, Grays Harbor Mets and the Walla Walla Padres. The South Division consisted of the

Central Oregon Phillies Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

(replacing the Bend Timberhawks), Salem Senators,

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(replacing the Boise Buckskins) and the Eugene Emeralds. In the 79 season the owners formed a partnership with Van Schley, an independent baseball entrepreneur from Texas/California who provided 16 players and his manager, Bill Bryk and coach Chris Gandy and covered the cost of the payroll for the team in exchange for the player contracts for each player which could be sold to MLB to recover his cost. Van Schley even brought along Bill Murray to liven up the crowd with his antics. Chapman and Rogelstad stepped away from their on-the-field roles to concentrate on promoting the team; along with Jim's brother Lynn, to a very hardball sleepy Victoria. Bryk's Mussels caught wind in the second half of 1979 winning 24 of their final 36 games finishing one game out of first with a 41-31 record. During the season the Mussels found a gem in knuckleball pitcher

Tom Candiotti Thomas Caesar Candiotti (born August 31, 1957) is an American former knuckleball pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Indians, Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers. As of the 20 ...

(the CandyMan) earning a 5-1 record & %.833. After the Mussels he moved on to AAA in 1983-85 with the Vancouver Canadians of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

earning an above %.600. He later made his MLB debut in 1983 as one of the first to make a comeback from Tommy John elbow surgery. He went on to play for the Brewers, Indians, Blue Jays, Athletics and Dodgers. He threw his final pitch in July 1999 at age 41. Since 2013 the Candyman has been a television and radio analyst for the Arizona Dianmondbacks Notables from the 1979 Mussels with a winning %.750 R-pitcher Edward Koziol, R-pitcher Roy Moretti from Victoria with a %.545, dependable southpaw 61 RBI hitter Emil Drzayich. Both Drzayich and Koziol were selected for the All-STAR team of the Northwest League Other notables from the 1978 Mussels were Dale Mohoric R-pitcher with %.545 who rose to AAA in 1981 with the Pacific Coast League

Portland Beavers The Portland Beavers was the name of separate minor league baseball teams, which represented Portland, Oregon, in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). The team was established in 1903, the first year of the PCL. Franchise history Many baseball teams ...

and finished out in 1990 with the Indianapolis Indians of the

American Association of Professional Baseball The American Association of Professional Baseball is an independent professional baseball league founded in 2005. It operates in the central United States and Canada, mostly in cities not served by Major League Baseball teams or their minor lea ...

, 3rd baseman Danny Gans with 27 RBI's, R-pitcher Roy Moretti from Victoria with a pitching %.545 and hard driving southpaw 42 RBI hitter and outfielder Paul Kirsch who ended his career in AA in 1983 with the Waterbury Reds of the

Eastern League (1938–2020) Eastern League may refer to: Baseball in the United States ''Most recent leagues listed first'' * Eastern League (1938–present), a minor league established in 1923 and renamed Eastern League in 1938, at the Double-A level * Eastern League (1916� ...

and southpaw pitcher Dave Cheadle, reaching AAA in 1976 with the Richmond Braves of the International League. After the 1979 season ended the Chapmans sold the Mussels assets (including logos, equipment and copyrights) to Nanaimo/Parksville real estate builder/developer Robert L. Peden formally from the Victoria sports family of the early 20th century. The name was changed to "The Victoria Blues Baseball Club" for the upcoming 1980 season with more to follow on the Blues Wikipedia page The 1979 season record ended at 41-31 with an attendance of 8,073 or an average of 224 fans over 36 home games. The 1980 Blues season was much better.

References

{{Reflist Defunct minor league baseball teams Defunct Northwest League teams 1978 establishments in British Columbia 1979 disestablishments in British Columbia Baseball teams in British Columbia

Mussels Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve mollusc Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,0 ...

Baseball teams established in 1978 Baseball teams disestablished in 1979