Rowdie

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Rowdie is a red bear that is the face of Indianapolis Indians, the AAA baseball affiliiate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. "Bearing" a 00 jersey, a black Indians cap and a baseball for a nose, Rowdie is a fan favorite at Victory Field and in the Indianapolis Community. Rowdie appears at 72 home baseball games and at approximately 100 community events each year.

The Story Behind Rowdie

In the spring of 1993, the Indianapolis Indians were kicking off another baseball season. While the baseball players and fans were at Bush Stadium preparing for an exciting game, a fuzzy red bear named Rowdie was sleeping soundly just down the river from the ballpark. Rowdie had not been able to find a cave in Indianapolis to hibernate for the winter, so instead he chose a bushy area along the river's edge to spend the winter.

Rowdie was resting comfortably until…POW! Something hit him right in the nose, woke him from his deep slumber and sent him rolling into the nearby river! All of a sudden, Rowdie was cold and wet and felt a terrible pain in his nose. Rowdie thought he would splash some cold water on his nose to ease the pain, but when he saw his reflection in the water he noticed there was a baseball stuck to his face where his nose use to be. Rowdie attempted to pull the baseball off his face but could not get it to budge. Rowdie decided to try to find out where the baseball came from, with the hope that he may happen upon someone who could remove it. He was walking along the river when another baseball went whooshing right by Rowdie's head!

Shortly after that, Rowdie saw Bush Stadium and heard all of the people inside. Rowdie entered the ballpark and approached the Indians team. All of the players gathered around Rowdie and tried to pull the baseball off his nose, but it would not budge. The Indians players invited Rowdie to stay and be their mascot. Rowdie decided that he could get use to having a baseball for a nose and would love to be the mascot for the Indians. So the team got a uniform for Rowdie with jersey #00. The Indians now play their home games at Victory Field in downtown Indianapolis, but Rowdie is still the team mascot. If you are able to make it to a game, make sure to look for Rowdie. This fuzzy red bear loves to see smiling fans at the ballpark! Rowdie may even give you a high five, sign an autograph or deliver a pizza to your seat!