CHICO — For the last 25 years, the Chico Nuts American Legion Spring Fever event has been a large draw for baseball fans throughout Northern California, and Friday night was no different.
The event is a key fundraiser for the Chico Nuts, Chico Suns and Chico Rice teams, raising money for travel, tournament fees and other expenses.
A packed crowd at the Chico Elks lodge welcomed enthusiastic and charismatic guest speaker Jake Peavy — a former pitcher for the San Francisco Giants, Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox and San Diego Padres — as Peavy signed autographs for fans, took photos, shared conversations, then spoke to the crowd.
“I think the biggest thing in an autograph session like that is it’s nice when people are patient, because you don’t like to run through everybody,” Peavy said. “You like to have a few words with someone in line. It’s just fun hearing where everybody’s from and the effort that they made to come out, and you have a lot of young aspiring players come through.”
Peavy shared a couple of highlights from the hour-long autograph session, including an elderly woman who came through and talked about how much the Giants’ 2014 World Series victory was a highlight of her life. An 8-year-old boy told Peavy that 2014 was the year he was born.
“I love connecting with people. I’m a social creature,” Peavy said. “So getting the chance to meet Giants fans that appreciated what I was a part of is a pleasure.”
Life lessons
When speaking to the crowd, Peavy shared a plethora of stories from his 15-year career as an MLB player after being drafted out of St. Paul’s Episcopal School in Mobile, Ala. He then shared some of the most important messages the community, coaches and players needed to hear.
His main message to the youth was to remember that baseball is supposed to be fun, so be sure it is. Remember that life is about experiences, so enjoy them. Peavy also told the players about the importance of being a good teammate, encouraging one another, and the importance of staying locked in in key situations of the game.
For the coaches and fans, Peavy said the No. 1 job is to encourage. Don’t just tell a kid they could not lay down a bunt and how it could have changed a game if they did, but tell them how they can do better the next time they’re in that situation. The game of baseball isn’t always about wins and losses, but it is about learning. Peavy said to the crowd that his best pitching coach ever told him day in and day out that he was better than he was, and eventually that mindset stuck.
Peavy shared that his brief time in Chico had reminded him a lot like his home in the southern, rural part of Alabama. Peavy is the latest speaker at the Spring Fever event, which has featured players and coaches such as Will Clark, Dusty Baker, Ryan Vogelsong, Jeremy Affeldt, J.T. Snow, Rich Aurilia, Brooks Robinson, Bruce Bochy and Hunter Pence. Many have reached out, and when they brought it up to Peavy, they said how great of a time it was.
“The people of Chico love baseball, and in and around this area you can certainly feel that,” Peavy said. “The town showed up. Look at this room; it’s full, which is wild to think about.
“I certainly didn’t know it would be this big of an event, but this has been long standing now. That’s pretty remarkable when you talk about half of the century we’ve been doing something here, and for American Legion and for the youth to have the ability to continue to play baseball and that be promoted, great night all around.”
Dinner was served following a silent auction, which featured items from Chico businesses, local sports teams, and even trips.
Peavy, who learned of the event from past speakers such as Bochy and Pence, was thrilled to see the support of Chico showing up for its baseball community.
“Look at this room: It’s slammed with people who are supporting each other and causes and being here for each other,” Peavy said. “That’s what America is about in my opinion.”
Awards
Chico Nuts outfielder/utility player Landon Sable was honored prior to Peavy speaking as this year’s recipient of Mr. American Legion, an award given to a player who exemplifies character and leadership, and who represents the Nuts’ organization the way the leaders envisioned it. Many would consider it similar to the Willy Mac Award the San Francisco Giants give out each season.
Sable, a Sutter High School graduate now grey-shirting at Sacramento City College, spent two summers with the Nuts organization.
When Nuts head coach Brian Thomas was asked about why Sable was the deserving honoree this year, he mentioned first that his character is “top notch.”
“He was there every day, and he had to travel at least 45 minutes,” Thomas said. “That was one thing, and the other thing was how he held himself and the way he commanded the defense, in the dugout, and when we were doing room checks at night, he was always someone that you can count on who was going to be doing the right thing.”
Thomas shared a story about Sable that shocked both Thomas and the head of the Nuts’ organization, Tom Stevens. Sable’s high school team won the CIF NorCal Division IV championship on June 3, 2023, and in the following days, the town of Sutter was throwing a parade for the Huskies. The parade happened to take place on the first day of summer practice for the Nuts, and Sable showed up to practice in Chico. The day it happened, Thomas and Stevens looked at Sable and said, “What are you doing? You need to be on the back of a parade float!”
Sable responded with, “Hey coach, it’s baseball time. I committed to the team and I’m ready to practice.”
Thomas continued: “We were like, ‘How awesome is that?’ How he would take away from a celebration that he should have been at, because he was such a big impact for that school. It was crazy to see it all unfold, but it was special.”
Past winners of the Mr. American Legion award include Jackson Blakely last year, Troy Moench in 2022 and Mateo Martinez in 2021.