The Charlotte Stone Crabs were a
Minor League Baseball team located in
Port Charlotte, Florida
Port Charlotte is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Charlotte County, Florida, United States. The population was 54,392 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Punta Gorda, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Port ...
, from 2009 to 2020. They competed in the
Florida State League
The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...
(FSL) as the
Class A-Advanced
High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...
affiliate of the
Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) team. They played their home games at
Charlotte Sports Park
Charlotte Sports Park (formerly known as Charlotte County Stadium and Ranger Stadium) is a baseball stadium in Port Charlotte, Florida. The stadium is the home field for Tampa Bay Rays spring training operations, as well as its Rookie-class Flo ...
and were named for the
Florida stone crab
The Florida stone crab (''Menippe mercenaria'') is a crab found in the western North Atlantic, from Connecticut to Colombia, including Texas, the Gulf of Mexico, Belize, Mexico Jamaica, Cuba, The Bahamas, and the East Coast of the United State ...
, which is indigenous to the
Charlotte County region.
The Stone Crabs arrived in Port Charlotte in 2009 after the
Vero Beach Devil Rays
The Vero Beach Devil Rays, originally the Vero Beach Dodgers, were a minor league baseball team based in Vero Beach, Florida. They played in the Class A-Advanced Florida State League from 1980–2008, at which point they relocated to Port Charlot ...
were purchased by Ripken Baseball and relocated from
Vero Beach, Florida
Vero Beach is a city in and the seat of Indian River County, Florida, United States. Vero Beach is the second most populous city in Indian River County. Abundant in beaches and wildlife, Vero Beach is located on Florida's Treasure Coast. It is thi ...
. They played 11 seasons in Port Charlotte. The 2020 season was cancelled due to the
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 ...
. After the cancelled season, the Stone Crabs were dropped as a Rays affiliate and not invited to join another organization as a part of MLB's 2021 reorganization of the minor leagues.
History
On August 25, 2008, it was announced that the
Vero Beach Devil Rays
The Vero Beach Devil Rays, originally the Vero Beach Dodgers, were a minor league baseball team based in Vero Beach, Florida. They played in the Class A-Advanced Florida State League from 1980–2008, at which point they relocated to Port Charlot ...
, the
Class A-Advanced
High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...
affiliate of the
Tampa Bay Devil Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home ve ...
playing in the
Florida State League
The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...
(FSL), had been sold to Ripken Baseball. This resulted in a relocation of the franchise from
Vero Beach, Florida
Vero Beach is a city in and the seat of Indian River County, Florida, United States. Vero Beach is the second most populous city in Indian River County. Abundant in beaches and wildlife, Vero Beach is located on Florida's Treasure Coast. It is thi ...
, to
Port Charlotte with the team becoming the Charlotte Stone Crabs.
In preparation for the new team's arrival, Charlotte County Stadium, which last housed the Charlotte County Redfish of the now defunct
South Coast League
The South Coast League of Professional Baseball (SCL), based in Conyers, Georgia, was a professional, independent baseball organization located in the Southeastern United States. It operated in cities not served by Major or Minor League Baseba ...
, underwent a $27 million renovation, which was completed in January 2009. Renamed
Charlotte Sports Park
Charlotte Sports Park (formerly known as Charlotte County Stadium and Ranger Stadium) is a baseball stadium in Port Charlotte, Florida. The stadium is the home field for Tampa Bay Rays spring training operations, as well as its Rookie-class Flo ...
, it became the
spring training
Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...
home of the Tampa Bay Rays as well as the regular season home of the Stone Crabs.
On April 9, 2009, with the
Fort Myers Miracle
The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Fort Myers, Florida, and play their home games at the Lee County Sports Complex a ...
as opponents,
Alex Cobb
Alexander Miller Cobb (born October 7, 1987), nicknamed Swan, is an American professional baseball pitcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the fourth round of the 2006 MLB draf ...
threw the first pitch in Stone Crabs history. A rehabbing
B. J. Upton
Melvin Emanuel Upton Jr. (born August 21, 1984), known as B. J. Upton, is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays / Rays, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Pad ...
was the first Stone Crabs batter, and Matt Fields hit a
home run
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
to lead off the second inning, laying claim to the first Stone Crabs
hit
Hit means to strike someone or something.
Hit or HIT may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super''
* Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...
, home run, and
RBI. After starting the season 0–3, the franchise notched its first win on April 13 in Fort Myers. The Stone Crabs won the South Division title in their first season, but lost the
FSL championship to the
Tampa Yankees
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
, three games to two. In 2010 and 2013, they again won the FSL South and returned to the league championship series, but lost to the
Tampa Yankees
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
(2010) and
Daytona Cubs Daytona refers to the city of Daytona Beach, Florida, or things named after it.
Daytona may also refer to:
Locations
* Daytona Beach Shores, Florida
* South Daytona, Florida
* The Daytona Beach metropolitan area
* Halifax area, also known as Dayt ...
(2013).
In 2012, the Stone Crabs hosted the Florida State League All-Star Game. The South Division All-Stars came from behind for a 6–3 win over the North All-Stars with Charlotte pitchers bookending the game.
C. J. Riefenhauser started the evening with a perfect inning and
Chris Rearick threw a scoreless ninth for the
save.
St. Lucie Mets
The St. Lucie Mets are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the New York Mets. They are located in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and play their home games at Clover Park. The Mets have been members ...
third baseman
Wilmer Flores
Wilmer Alejandro Flores Garcia (born August 6, 1991), nicknamed "Catire", is a Venezuelan professional baseball infielder for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). On his 16th birthday in 2007, Flores signed as an internatio ...
took home Most Valuable Player honors, and
Lakeland Flying Tigers
The Lakeland Flying Tigers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Lakeland, Florida, and play their home games at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium.
H ...
outfielder
Avisaíl García won the Home Run Derby.
Charlotte won their lone FSL championship in 2015, defeating the
Daytona Tortugas
The Daytona Tortugas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Daytona Beach, Florida, and play their home games at Jackie Robinson Ballpark; opened in ...
, 3–1.
The 2019 season became the team's last. The
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 ...
resulted in the cancellation of the 2020 season. After the cancelled season,
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
took direct control of
Minor League Baseball. The Stone Crabs were not among the four teams invited to remain as affiliates of the Tampa Bay Rays, with whom they had been affiliated since 2009. This ended the team's 12-year run. General manager Jeff Cook was the team's final employee.
Uniform
The Stone Crabs had four jerseys and two hats that they wore during the season. The uniforms were manufactured by Rawlings and the hats were made by New Era. Navy socks were worn high with all uniforms, per team policy. Player names were not worn on the jersey backs.
Jerseys
The home white had "Stone Crabs" across the chest with navy piping around the neck, down the center of the jersey, and around the two sleeves. There was also a thin navy line down both white pant legs. The number on the back was navy with a light blue outline.
The road grays had "Charlotte" written across the chest with navy piping around the neck, down the center of the jersey, and around the two sleeves. There was also a thin navy line down both gray pant legs. The number on the back was navy with a white outline. There was also a crab patch on the left sleeve.
The alternate uniform was light blue with the alternate logo (a crab claw grasping a capital C) on the left side of the chest. Parallel navy stripes ran along the shoulders, navy piping circles each sleeve, and navy bars ran from the armpits down the side of the jersey to the base. The number on the back was navy with a white outline. New for the 2014 season and made of a lightweight material, these jerseys were worn nearly every game. As of 2018 these jerseys were no longer worn.
The fourth jersey was the alternate prior to 2014, but was later used exclusively for warm-ups. Made of a mesh material, these navy blue, two button pullovers had "Stone Crabs" across the chest with light blue piping that ran from the collar bone down both sleeves. There was also a light blue semi-circle that ran from the shoulders under each armpit. The numbers on the back were light blue with a white outline. These jerseys were only used for batting practice.
As of 2017, the Stone crabs had another Jersey. The Jersey was navy blue with the SC stone crabs logo on the front of the Jersey. The Jersey featured a crab logo on the sleeve of the jersey. These were worn on select home week days.
Hats
The primary hat was navy blue with a matching navy brim and button, the "SC" logo on the front, and a white New Era flag logo on the left side.
The alternate hat was light blue with a navy blue brim and button, the alternate crab claw logo on the front, and a navy New Era flag logo on the left side.
The 2014 season saw a new hat added to the rotation, which was used exclusively for warm-ups. It was made of a navy blue, lightweight material with the crab logo on the front, a light blue brim and button, and a light blue New Era flag logo on the left side.
Team managers and coaches
On December 20, 2008, the team announced that Vero Beach manager
Jim Morrison
James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, poet and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredicta ...
would follow the team to Port Charlotte and become the first skipper of the Stone Crabs, a position he would retain through the 2012 season. In 2013, managing duties were passed to
Brady Williams
Brady Charles Williams (born October 18, 1979) is an American professional baseball coach who is the third base coach for the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Life and career
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, he is the son of Jimy Will ...
, who had managed the class A affiliate
Bowling Green Hot Rods
The Bowling Green Hot Rods are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and play their home games at Bowling Green Ballpark, which open ...
for the previous three seasons. Williams was promoted to the
Double-A Montgomery Biscuits
The Montgomery Biscuits are a Minor League Baseball team based in Montgomery, Alabama. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays and play in the Southern League. The team was founded in Orlando, Florida, in 1973 as the Orlando Twins ...
for the 2014 season and a Hot Rods manager was again called on to fill the vacancy, this time former Tampa Bay Devil Ray
Jared Sandberg
Jared Lawrence Sandberg (born March 2, 1978) is an American professional baseball coach and a former Major League Baseball (MLB) third baseman and minor league manager. Sandberg served as the manager for Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas in the PCL f ...
.
Season-by-season
* The Stone Crabs finished with the same record as the
Fort Myers Miracle
The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Fort Myers, Florida, and play their home games at the Lee County Sports Complex a ...
, but since the Miracle had the better head-to-head record in the second half (4–2), the Stone Crabs did not win the division.
* The playoffs were canceled due to the impending threat from
Hurricane Dorian
Hurricane Dorian was an extremely powerful and catastrophic Category 5 Atlantic hurricane, which became the most intense tropical cyclone on record to strike the Bahamas, and tied for strongest landfall in the Atlantic basin. It is also reg ...
.
All-time records
Noteworthy games
No-hitter
*
Blake Snell
Blake Ashton Snell (born December 4, 1992), is an American professional baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Tampa Bay Rays selected Snell in the first round of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. ...
, August 2, 2014: The first no-hitter in Stone Crabs history was a rain shortened one, as lefty Blake Snell stumped the Daytona Cubs for 5.1 innings before heavy rains washed away the final frames at Charlotte Sports Park. The Stone Crabs won 10–0.
Single-season records
Offensive
Hits: 145.....Tyler Bortnick '11
Doubles: 38.....Mike Sheridan '11
Triples: 11.....Hak-Ju Lee '11
Homeruns: 14.....Alejandro Segovia & Jeff Malm '13
RBIs: 73.....
Richie Shaffer '13
Walks: 79.....Tyler Bortnick '11
Stolen Bases: 43.....Tyler Bortnick '11
Pitching
Wins: 14.....Jeremy Hall '09
Strikeouts: 208.....Matt Moore '10
Saves: 25.....Zach Quate '10
Notable Stone Crabs alumni
*
Alex Cobb
Alexander Miller Cobb (born October 7, 1987), nicknamed Swan, is an American professional baseball pitcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the fourth round of the 2006 MLB draf ...
(2009)
*
Jake McGee
Jacob Daniel McGee (born August 6, 1986) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. McGee was selected by Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the fifth round of the 2004 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut in 2008. He previou ...
(2009)
*
Matt Moore (2010)
*
Stephen Vogt (2009–10)
*
Jake Bauers
Jakob Christopher Bauers (born October 6, 1995) is an American professional baseball first baseman, outfielder, and designated hitter in the New York Yankees organization. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays, Cleve ...
(2015)
*
Blake Snell
Blake Ashton Snell (born December 4, 1992), is an American professional baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Tampa Bay Rays selected Snell in the first round of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. ...
(2015)
*
Brandon Lowe
Brandon Norman Lowe ( ; born July 6, 1994) is an American professional baseball second baseman for the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Amateur career
Lowe attended Nansemond River High School in Suffolk, Virginia, where he played ...
(2017)
*
Willy Adames (2015)
References
External links
*
Statistics from ''Baseball-Reference''
{{Florida State League
Charlotte County, Florida
Defunct Florida State League teams
Professional baseball teams in Florida
Tampa Bay Rays minor league affiliates
Baseball teams established in 2009
Baseball teams disestablished in 2020
2009 establishments in Florida
2020 disestablishments in Florida