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Michigan Battle Cats
The Michigan Battle Cats were a Minor League Baseball team which began playing in the Midwest League in 1995 and called C.O. Brown Stadium in Battle Creek, Michigan, home. The franchise had previously been located in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1994 where they were called the Madison Hatters. Prior to that the team was located in Springfield, Illinois, and was known as the Springfield Cardinals. Upon moving to Battle Creek the team initially sought the name Battle Creek Golden Kazoos to help create a regional tie-in with the city of Kalamazoo, Michigan, but legal disputes led to the adoption of the Battle Cats moniker. The team became known as the Battle Creek Yankees beginning with their affiliation with the New York Yankees in 2003, and again changed names and affiliations in 2005 and became the Southwest Michigan Devil Rays. In 2007, citing declining attendance, the team moved to Midland, Michigan and became the Great Lakes Loons. Team history Boston Red Sox affiliate: 1995 to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Midwest League
The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganization of the minor leagues. The Midwest League began as the Illinois State League (1947–1948) and then became the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League (1949–1955). In 1956, the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League was renamed the Midwest League. The circuit temporarily operated for the 2021 season as the High-A Central before reassuming its original moniker in 2022. The Lansing Lugnuts and Wisconsin Timber Rattlers franchises jointly have won the most Midwest League championships, with nine each. History The Midwest League directly evolved from two earlier leagues in the region. In 1947, the Class D Illinois State League (ISL) began operation with six Illinois teams: the Belleville Stags, Centralia Cubs, Marion Indians, Mattoon Indians, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Lakes Loons
The Great Lakes Loons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Midland, Michigan, and play their home games at Dow Diamond, which opened in April 2007. History The Midwest League came to Battle Creek, in 1995 after the franchise formerly known as the Madison Hatters moved. The team was first known as the Battle Creek Golden Kazoos. Due to a trademark dispute and general fan dissatisfaction with the name (which is a nickname for the nearby city of Kalamazoo), the name was changed to the Michigan Battle Cats on March 9, 1995. The team was affiliated with the Boston Red Sox (1995–98) and Houston Astros (1999–2002). The team changed its name to the Battle Creek Yankees after becoming an affiliate of the New York Yankees in 2003. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays took over affiliation of the team after the 2004 season, and the team name was changed to the Southwest Michigan Devil Rays. In January 20 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chris Reitsma
Christopher Michael Reitsma (born December 31, 1977) is a Canadian American former right-handed professional baseball pitcher. He played seven seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from until , with the Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves, and Seattle Mariners. Professional career Red Sox and Reds Reitsma, drafted in the first round of the 1996 MLB draft by the Boston Red Sox (34th overall), made his MLB debut in 2001 for the Cincinnati Reds. After spending three seasons with the Reds as both a starter and reliever, the Atlanta Braves traded for him on March 26, 2004 to bolster their bullpen. Atlanta Braves Reitsma was used as a setup man for Atlanta's closer John Smoltz in 2004. He appeared in 84 games and did a serviceable job, however he was shelled in Game 5 of the 2004 National League Division Series against the Houston Astros, allowing the game to be broken open, and essentially ending the Braves' season. In , with newly acquired closer Danny Kolb getting off to a rou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shea Hillenbrand
Shea Matthew Hillenbrand (born July 27, 1975) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and first baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and Los Angeles Dodgers. Minor league career Hillenbrand played 72 games in 1996 for the Low-A Lowell Spinners in the New York–Penn League. In 1997, he was promoted to the Sarasota Red Sox of the Florida State League, and was promoted again after 57 games, finishing the season with 64 games with the Michigan Battle Cats of the Midwest League. Despite being drafted as a shortstop, he played at first base and third base his first two years in the minors. In 1998, still with Michigan, he was converted to play catcher and responded with his best season in the minors, with a .349 batting average and 19 home runs. This earned him a promotion in 1999 to AA Trenton Thunder of the Eastern League. However, a l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lansing Lugnuts
The Lansing Lugnuts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Lansing, Michigan, and play their home games at Jackson Field (Lansing), Jackson Field. The Midwest League came to Lansing after owners Tom Dickson and Sherrie Myers moved the team to work with the city for a public-private lease to build a new stadium. Mayor David Hollister, and the City Council worked to attract the owners and build the stadium for downtown economic development. The team began playing in downtown Lansing in 1996. The franchise began as the Lafayette Red Sox in Lafayette, Indiana, in 1955; after two seasons it became the Waterloo Hawks (baseball), Waterloo Hawks, moving to Waterloo, Iowa, where it stayed for 36 seasons. Before the 1994 season it moved to Springfield, Illinois, but only spent two seasons there before moving to Lansing. The franchise was an affiliate of the Kansas City Royals on two occasions in three c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
San Francisco Chronicle
The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de Young. The paper is owned by the Hearst Corporation, which bought it from the de Young family in 2000. It is the only major daily paper covering the city and county of San Francisco. The paper benefited from the growth of San Francisco and had the largest newspaper circulation on the West Coast of the United States by 1880. Like other newspapers, it experienced a rapid fall in circulation in the early 21st century and was ranked 18th nationally by circulation in the first quarter of 2021. In 1994, the newspaper launched the SFGATE website, with a soft launch in March and official launch November 3, 1994, including both content from the newspaper and other sources. "The Gate" as it was known at launch was the first large market newspaper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rafael Betancourt
Rafael Jose Betancourt (born April 29, 1975) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians and Colorado Rockies, as well as in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yokohama BayStars. Career Boston Red Sox He was originally signed as an amateur free agent by the Boston Red Sox in September 1993. The Red Sox released him following the 1999 season and then re-signed him as a free agent in December 2000 after he spent the 2000 season with the Yokohama BayStars. He was granted free agency again in October 2001, after serving the required time to acquire free agency. Cleveland Indians After sitting out the 2002 season he signed with the Cleveland Indians as a minor league free agent and made his Major League debut for the Indians on July 13, 2003 against the Chicago White Sox. He pitched in 33 games for the Indians, registering an ERA of 2.13. In 2004, Betancourt went 5-6, his first full season ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carl Pavano
Carl Anthony Pavano (born January 8, 1976) is an American former professional baseball player. A right-handed pitcher, Pavano played in Major League Baseball from 1998 to 2012 for the Montreal Expos, Florida Marlins, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, and Minnesota Twins. He was a member of the 2003 World Series champions and appeared in the 2004 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. He signed with the Yankees in 2005, where he became known for his frequent injuries during his four year stint with them. Amateur career Born in New Britain, Connecticut, Pavano graduated from Southington High School in Southington, Connecticut, the alma mater of former major league pitcher Rob Dibble. Pavano's retired jersey (14) still hangs (unretired as of 2011). At Southington, Pavano led the baseball team to a state championship in 1994. Pavano initially committed to play college baseball at Louisiana State. Professional career Boston Red Sox Pavano was selected by the Boston Red Sox in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Donnie Sadler
Donnie Lamont Sadler (born June 17, 1975) is an American former professional baseball utility player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1998–2007. Career An alumnus of Valley Mills High School in Valley Mills, Texas (where he was an all-state shortstop), Sadler is small in stature, standing at only 5'6" tall and weighing 175 pounds. His cousin, Ray Sadler, is an outfielder in the Tampa Bay Rays organization. Drafted 229th overall by the Boston Red Sox in , Sadler quickly displayed impressive speed in the minor leagues. From 1994 to , for example, he averaged nearly 36 steals per season, while playing in an average of only 95 games each year. He earned a spot on the Midwest League All-Star team in because he not only stole 41 bases, he batted a respectable .283 with nine home runs and 55 RBI. Sadler made his big league debut at the age of 23 in the second game of the season, April 1. Although Sadlers' Red Sox beat the Oakland Athletics 2-0 that game, he went 0 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
DeMarlo Hale
DeMarlo Hale (born July 16, 1961) is an American professional baseball coach who is currently serving as bench coach for the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball (MLB). Hale played minor league baseball from 1983 to 1988 in the Boston Red Sox and Oakland Athletics organizations. Biography Following his playing career, Hale, a graduate of Chicago's CVS High School, worked at the Bucky Dent baseball school in Boca Raton, Florida from 1989 through 1992, when he became a coach for Double-A New Britain in the Eastern League. Hale started his managerial career in 1993 in the Boston farm system with High-A Fort Lauderdale Red Sox in the Florida State League. A year later, he guided Sarasota to the FLS playoffs, and in 1995 he also was a playoff qualifier with Michigan in the Midwest League, being rewarded as Manager of the Year. He spent 1996 with Sarasota and was promoted to Double-A Trenton in 1997, managing the American League team in the Double-A All-Star Game. Hal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beloit Snappers
The Beloit Sky Carp are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Beloit, Wisconsin, and play their home games at ABC Supply Stadium. They previously played at Harry C. Pohlman Field from its opening in 1982 until moving into their current ballpark in August 2021. Originally known as the Beloit Brewers from 1982 to 1994 and the Beloit Snappers from 1995 to 2021, the team played in the Class A Midwest League from 1982 to 2020. In conjunction with Major League Baseball's reorganization of Minor League Baseball in 2021, Beloit was shifted to the High-A Central, though this was renamed the Midwest League in 2022. The team rebranded as the Sky Carp prior to the 2022 season. History The Beloit Brewers joined the Midwest League as an expansion franchise in 1982. The club was a Milwaukee Brewers farm team from its inception through 2004. Beloit switched to the Minnesota Twins' farm system for the 2005 seas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West Michigan Whitecaps
The West Michigan Whitecaps are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Comstock Park, Michigan, a suburb of Grand Rapids, and play their home games at LMCU Ballpark. Franchise history The Midwest League came to the Grand Rapids area in 1994 upon the arrival of the former Madison Muskies. The Whitecaps were brought to West Michigan by local businessmen Lew Chamberlin and Dennis Baxter. The Whitecaps were affiliated with the Oakland Athletics before they joined the Tigers' farm system in 1997. Their home ballpark is LMCU Ballpark in Comstock Park. Before the 2002 season it was known as Old Kent Park; the name was changed when the park's title sponsor, Old Kent Bank, was purchased by Fifth Third Bank. Before the 2021 season, the Lake Michigan Credit Union renamed the venue "LMCU Ballpark". The team's official mascots are Crash the River Rascal, Roxy the River Rascal and Franky the Swimming Pig. The fra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
