The Binghamton Rumble Ponies are an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

Minor League Baseball team based in

Binghamton, New York Binghamton () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the conflue ...

. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

major-league club. The Rumble Ponies play in

Mirabito Stadium Mirabito Stadium (formerly known as Binghamton Municipal Stadium and NYSEG Stadium) is a stadium located in the northern section of downtown Binghamton, New York. It is home to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies of the Eastern League. Construction b ...

, located in Binghamton.

History

In 1976, the franchise played as the

Williamsport Bills The Williamsport Bills were a Class AA Eastern League baseball affiliate of the Cleveland Indians, Seattle Mariners, and New York Mets from 1987 to 1991 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania in the United States. They played their games in Bowman Field, ...

Williamsport, Pennsylvania Williamsport is a city in, and the county seat of, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. It recorded a population of 27,754 at the 2020 Census. It is the principal city of the Williamsport Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a popula ...

. It played in

Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, from 1979 through 1984. It returned to Williamsport in 1987. The team was an affiliate of the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

in 1987 and 1988, and of the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. (The Bills franchise was actually two separate franchises. After the 1988 season, the original owners moved the Bills to

Hagerstown, Maryland Hagerstown is a city in Washington County, Maryland, United States and the county seat of Washington County. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2020 census was 43,527, and the population of the Hagerstown metropolitan area (exten ...

, while the Eastern League franchise based in

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield� ...

, moved back to Williamsport before the 1989 season.) It was purchased by the

in 1991, and moved to Binghamton in 1992 as the Binghamton Mets. NYSEG-Stadium

In 2016, the franchise announced a plan to stay in Binghamton for the foreseeable future, and to change the team's name. The team held a name-the-team contest on its website from May 17 to June 1; the finalists were the Bullheads (for the

bullhead catfish ''Ameiurus'' is a genus of catfishes in the family Ictaluridae. It contains the three common types of bullhead catfish found in waters of the United States, the black bullhead (''Ameiurus melas''), the brown bullhead (''Ameiurus nebulosus''), a ...

abundant in the nearby

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...

), Gobblers (for the rich hunting culture of the area, as well as the turkeys in Binghamton), Rocking Horses (for the Triple Cities' nickname as the "Carousel Capital of The World"), Rumble Ponies (also a carousel tribute), Stud Muffins (for the collections of carousel horses in Binghamton), and Timber Jockeys (for everyone who rides the carousels). On November 3, 2016, the team announced that it would be rebranding as the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, and released a new logo. In 2019, Major League Baseball released a proposal to sever ties with 42 minor-league teams, including the Rumble Ponies and fellow Double-A teams such as the

Erie SeaWolves The Erie SeaWolves are an United States, American professional baseball team based in Erie, Pennsylvania. They compete in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) as a member of the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League's Southwest Division, serving ...

and

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

, in 2021. On November 10, 2020, the Mets announced they would continue their affiliation with Binghamton, saving the Rumble Ponies from elimination. The team was organized into the

Double-A Northeast AA, Aa, Double A, or Double-A may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''America's Army'', a 2002 computer game published by the U.S. Army * '' Ancient Anguish'', a computer game in existence since 1992 * Aa!, a J-Pop musical group * Do ...

. In 2022, the Double-A Northeast became known as the Eastern League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.

Roster

Season records

(Place indicates finish in Eastern League from 1987 to 1993, in the Northern Division from 1994 to 2009, in the Eastern Division from 2010 to 2020, and in the Northeastern Division from 2021. ''Italics indicates league champions.'') ;Williamsport Bills *1987: 60–79 (7th), managers

Steve Swisher Steven Eugene Swisher (born August 9, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player and minor league manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Diego Padres from 1974 to ...

Orlando Gomez Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...

*1988: 66–73 (6th), manager

Mike Hargrove Dudley Michael Hargrove (born October 26, 1949) is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and manager. He is currently employed as an advisor with the Cleveland Guardians. Hargrove batted and threw left-handed. He played for the Texas Rang ...

*1989: 63–77 (7th), manager

Jay Ward Joseph Ward Cohen Jr. (September 20, 1920 – October 12, 1989), also known as Jay Ward, was an American creator and producer of animated TV cartoon shows. He produced animated series based on such characters as Crusader Rabbit, Rocky & Bu ...

*1990: 61–79 (7th), manager

Rich Morales Richard Angelo Morales (born September 20, 1943 at San Francisco, California) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and manager. An infielder, he appeared in Major League Baseball between 1967–1974 for the Chicago White Sox ...

*1991: 60–79 (7th), manager

Clint Hurdle Clinton Merrick Hurdle (born July 30, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) outfielder and manager. Hurdle played for the Kansas City Royals, Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets, and St. Louis Cardinals, and managed the Colorado Rock ...

;Binghamton Mets *''1992: 79–59 (2nd), manager

'' *1993: 68–72 (5th), manager

*''1994: 82–59 (1st), manager

John Tamargo John Felix Tamargo (born November 7, 1951) is a former Major League Baseball catcher and coach and long-time minor league manager. He played all or part of five seasons in the majors from until . He currently serves as the Latin America Field Coo ...

'' *1995: 67–75 (4th), manager

*1996: 76–66 (2nd), manager

*1997: 66–76 (4th), manager

Rick Sweet Ricky Joe Sweet (born September 7, 1952) is an American former professional baseball catcher and current manager of the Milwaukee Brewers' Triple-A affiliate, the Nashville Sounds. He played three seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) betwee ...

*1998: 82–60 (2nd), manager

John Gibbons John Michael Gibbons (born June 8, 1962) is an American former professional baseball player and former manager of the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). Gibbons briefly played in the Major Leagues as a catcher with the New York Me ...

*1999: 54–88 (6th), manager Doug Davis *2000: 82–58 (1st), manager Doug Davis *2001: 73–68 (4th), manager Howie Freiling *2002: 73–68 (3rd), manager Howie Freiling *2003: 63–78 (5th), manager

John Stearns John Hardin Stearns (August 21, 1951 – September 15, 2022), nicknamed "Bad Dude", was an American professional baseball catcher and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Mets from 1975 to 1984 after playing a single ...

*2004: 76–66 (2nd), manager

Ken Oberkfell Kenneth Ray Oberkfell (born May 4, 1956) is an American former third baseman. He played from 1977 to 1992 for six different teams. Oberkfell primarily played third base but he also played over 400 career games at second base. After retiring as a p ...

*2005: 63–79 (6th), manager Jack Lind *2006: 70–70 (3rd), manager

Juan Samuel Juan Milton Samuel (born December 9, 1960) is a Dominican former professional baseball second baseman / outfielder, who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), for the Philadelphia Phillies (1983–1989), New York Mets (1989), Los A ...

*2007: 61–81 (6th), manager

Mako Oliveras Max Oliveras Gutiérrez ako(born September 10, 1946 in Santurce, Puerto Rico) is a former Minor League Baseball player who later managed in the minors for several teams. He joined the Alpha chapter of Phi Sigma Alpha fraternity in 1964. Olive ...

*2008: 73–69 (3rd), manager

*2009: 54–86 (6th), manager

*2010: 66–76 (5th), manager

Tim Teufel Timothy Shawn Teufel (born July 7, 1958) is an American former professional baseball second baseman and current coach. He played Major League Baseball from to , most notably as a member of the New York Mets with whom he won a world championship ...

*2011: 65–76 (5th), manager

Wally Backman Walter Wayne Backman (born September 22, 1959) is an American former Major League Baseball second baseman. He is best known for his time with the New York Mets from – and was a member of their 1986 World Series-winning team. He was also the for ...

*2012: 68–74 (5th), manager Pedro López *2013: 86–55 (2nd), manager Pedro López *''2014: 83–59 (1st), manager Pedro López'' *2015: 77-64 (2nd), manager Pedro López *2016: 63-77 (5th), manager Pedro López ;Binghamton Rumble Ponies *2017: 85-54 (2nd), manager Luis Rojas *2018: 64-76 (5th), manager Luis Rojas *2019: 67-73 (4th), manager Kevin Boles *2020: Season canceled due to

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

*2021: 47-60 (4th), manager

Lorenzo Bundy Charles Lorenzo Bundy (born November 6, 1959) is a former Minor League Baseball player and current manager of the Winston-Salem Dash, the High-A Chicago White Sox affiliate. He has held Major League Baseball coaching positions with the Colorado ...

*2022: 53-83 (6th), manager

Reid Brignac Reid Michael Brignac (pronounced Brin-yack) (born January 16, 1986), is an American professional baseball manager and former professional baseball infielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays, Colorado Rockies, New ...

Playoffs

References

External links

*
Statistics from ''Baseball-Reference''
{{Upstate New York Sports Baseball teams established in 1992 Eastern League (1938–present) teams Sports in Binghamton, New York Professional baseball teams in New York (state) Cleveland Guardians minor league affiliates New York Mets minor league affiliates Companies based in Binghamton, New York 1992 establishments in New York (state) Double-A Northeast teams