Valley League baseball returns to Sager Field this evening when the Charles Town Cannons open their 2015 season against Strasburg at 7 p.m.

The Valley League will have 12 teams this summer and will feature two divisions with six teams in each of the divisions.

Charles Town is placed in a division that includes Aldie, Strasburg, Front Royal, Winchester and Woodstock.

The majority of the Cannons’ games will be played against the five teams in their own division.

Charlottesville is the newest Valley League member and joins with Covington, Waynesboro, New Market, Harrisonburg and Staunton to form the other six-team division.

Charles Town returns two pitchers from the 2014 team that reached the championship game of the league’s playoffs before falling to a rallying Harrisonburg team. Austin Stephens pitches for South Alabama where he was 1-2 for the Jaguars this spring. He is the likely choice to start tonight’s opening game against Strasburg. Tyler Dearden also returns to the Cannons after pitching for Marist the spring. Dearden was 2-2 with the Red Foxes.

All of Charles Town’s home games are played at Sager Field on the campus of Jefferson High and all the games have a 7 p.m. start time.

After tonight’s season opener, the Cannons are at home again tomorrow night when the Aldie Senators are the opposition.

The league keeps Mondays open for rescheduling rain outs, so the Cannons will have their first two road games on Tuesday and Wednesday of next week.

The Valley League has been a summer home for college players longer than any other such league in the country. All players must have remaining collegiate eligibility to qualify for the league. The Valley League uses wood bats and plays nine-inning games.

The schedule calls for a regular season that extends from tonight through the end of July. There will be eight teams that qualify for the playoffs where the official league champion is crowned.