The Gastonia Ghost Peppers are a

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Moder ...

team based in

Gastonia, North Carolina Gastonia is the most populous city in and the county seat of Gaston County, North Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest satellite city of the Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte area, behind Concord, North Carolina, Concord. The po ...

, which began play in 2024. They compete in the South Division of the

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are l ...

, a "partner league" of

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

. The Ghost Peppers play their home games at CaroMont Health Park, which opened in 2021. The team was known as the Gastonia Baseball Club in 2024 before becoming the Ghost Peppers in 2025.

History

In November 2023, the

Atlantic League The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are loc ...

terminated the membership of the

Gastonia Honey Hunters The Gastonia Honey Hunters were a professional baseball team based in Gastonia, North Carolina. They played in the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a "partner league" of Major League Baseball, at CaroMont Health Pa ...

, citing significant unpaid debts to the league, and announced the intent to field another team in

, in 2024. In February 2024, new owners of a yet-to-be-named Atlantic League team to play at CaroMont Health Park were announced. The city and Zawyer Sports and Entertainment signed a 15-year stadium lease agreement. The new team hired the

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

of the Honey Hunters, as well as other

coaches Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

. The Gastonia Baseball Club played their first game on April 25, 2024, a 3–2 loss to the

Southern Maryland Blue Crabs The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs are an American professional baseball team based in Waldorf, Maryland. They are members of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent "partner league" of Major League Base ...

. Their first win came the next day against the same opponent, 7–3, allowing no

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

until the eighth inning.

Name

The Gastonia Baseball Club retained that name for the 2024 season while testing seven other possible permanent names on specific "What If?" dates. The other names were Gastronauts, Bolognia, Galactic Dinos, Ghost Peppers, Zombees, Garden Gnomes, and Yarniaks. In August 2024, the team asked fans to vote for one of the names by the end of the month. The "What If?" promotion was recognized with the Atlantic League's "Promotion of the Year" award. On October 16, the team revealed its official name as the Gastonia Ghost Peppers.

Roster

References

External links

* {{North Carolina Sports 2024 establishments in North Carolina Baseball teams established in 2024 Atlantic League of Professional Baseball teams Professional baseball teams in North Carolina Gastonia, North Carolina