By Steve Svetovich
Baseball is life.
And Dunmore’s Charlie Terrery and his son Alex are living it in the Dunmore Freedom League at Sherwood Park.
Alex, a Dunmore High School and Penn State graduate, grew up in Dunmore learning about the game of baseball from his dad who mentored and coached him.
Never did Alex ever think he would get to play with him.
But in this “Field of Dreams” at Dunmore’s Sherwood Park, that is exactly what this father and son are doing this summer.
This father and son duo are doing their own rendition of Ken Griffey, Sr. and Ken Griffey, Jr. who once hit back-to-back homers while playing in the same outfield for the Seattle Mariners.
Charlie Terrery is show in the 1981 photo of the Ohio Northern University baseball team.
Charlie Terrery, 57, a pharmacist at Gino Merli Veterans Center, Scranton, is playing competitive baseball this summer with his son Alex, 24, in the Dunmore Freedom League. Charlie is more than 20 years older than the league’s next oldest player. Most of the players are between 18 and 30.
Still, Charlie has been able to compete at a high level and is closing in on 10 hits for the season after two recent 2-hit games in which he drove in three runs. He has been playing first base and DH.
He made sure he was in shape for the season and did not want to embarrass anyone. He wanted to compete with players 20, 30, and even 40 years younger.
“This has been great,” said his son Alex who played four years of baseball at Dunmore and four more at Penn State Worthington. My dad taught me everything about baseball since I was a small child. To see him doing it on the field and playing with me is icing on the cake.
“And he has played quite well. At first I just told him not to get hurt. But he has been very competitive. He hits the ball almost all the time. He rarely strikes out. He fields the ball clean.
“This has been a really fun time. He loves it. I think he is coming back next year. He is having a blast.”
Alex Terrery is shown here playing with the Penn State Worthington baseball team.
Alex, a 2011 graduate of Dunmore, was a first team all-star first baseman in his senior year. He was a second team all-star as a junior. He led his conference in hitting and gained all-star status as a junior at Penn State Worthington. He was a pitcher-catcher-shortstop-first baseman at Penn State.
Alex graduated from Penn State in 2016 with a B.S. in Information Technology and minor in Security Risk Analysis. He currently works as a computer analyst at TMG Health Care, Jessup.
Charlie is a 1977 graduate of Dunmore High School where he played four years of baseball as a center fielder.
He went on to play three more years of baseball at Ohio Northern University where he earned his Pharmacy degree. He was an outfielder-catcher there.
Charlie also teaches Advanced Pharmacology at the University of Scranton and University of Binghamton at SUNY.
Charlie played 20 years of modified softball in local leagues. He coached both of his sons, Alex and Jason, in Dunmore baseball leagues from T-Ball to Little League through American Legion. He was proud to watch his son Jason play in the state title game for Dunmore’s football team in 2007.
Charlie and his son Alex play for McGuinty’s in the Dunmore Freedom League.
He started thinking about playing again last summer while watching Alex play in the league.
“I thought I was still in pretty good shape to compete,” he said. “And I don’t like sitting. So I decided to give it a shot this year. So far it has worked out.
“My reaction time is a little slower and my legs are slower, but I can still compete.
“Alex was supportive and comfortable with it. I coached him from T-Ball right through Legion, so it has been great playing with him. My wife Faith has been supportive.
“I’m not embarrassing Alex, because I’m still hitting the ball and making the plays.
“It feels great to play baseball again. I always loved the game. I’m very comfortable on the field.
“And I will play again next year if I am healthy and can still compete.”