The Colorado Springs Sky Sox were a Minor League Baseball team in

Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

. The team played in the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

(PCL) and was the Triple-A affiliate of the major league Milwaukee Brewers (2015–2018),

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

(1993–2014), and

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 ...

(1988–1992). The Sky Sox won the PCL title in 1992 and 1995.

History

From 1950 to 1958, the original incarnation of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox were a Class A affiliate of the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

in the Western League. The Sky Sox's nickname originated with their affiliation with the White Sox. The

Pikes Peak Pikes Peak is the List of mountain ranges of Colorado#Mountain ranges, highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, in North America. The Ultra-prominent peak, ultra-prominent fourteener is located in Pike National Forest ...

region was without professional baseball for 30 years until 1988, when the

Hawaii Islanders The Hawaii Islanders were a minor league baseball team based in Honolulu, Hawaii, that played in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League for 27 seasons from 1961 through 1987. Originally an affiliate of the Kansas City Athletics, the Islanders played ...

of the PCL relocated to Colorado Springs and became the second incarnation of the Sky Sox. From 1988 to 1992 the Sky Sox were the Triple-A affiliate of the

. When

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

was awarded a major league franchise for the 1993 season, the new

arranged for the Sky Sox to become their top farm team. During their first season, the Sky Sox moved from Spurgeon Stadium (in Memorial Park) to the brand new Sky Sox Stadium, later known as

Security Service Field UCHealth Park (formerly known as Sky Sox Stadium from its opening until 2005 and as Security Service Field from then until 2019) is a professional baseball stadium on the eastern edge of Colorado Springs, Colorado. Since 2019, it has hosted the Ro ...

. The ballpark, on the eastern edge of Colorado Springs, cost

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

3.4 million to build and held 8,500 spectators. In later years, the Sky Sox invested over $8 million in ballpark renovations which included a new video scoreboard, redesigned entrance plaza, new picnic facility and banquet hall. It has the highest elevation of any professional ballpark in the United States: its natural grass field sits at

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

. On June 21, 2017, team owner David G. Elmore announced the relocation of the Sky Sox Triple-A franchise to

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, in 2019, with the team continuing to compete in the Pacific Coast League as the San Antonio Missions, who were previously members of the Double-A

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. Concurrent with this move, the

Rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

Helena Brewers The Helena Brewers were a Minor League Baseball team in the Pioneer League located in Helena, Montana, from 1978 to 2018. The team played their home games at Kindrick Legion Field, which was built in 1939. They were affiliated with the Milwauke ...

of the Pioneer League relocated to Colorado Springs, operating as the

Rocky Mountain Vibes The Rocky Mountain Vibes are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, an MLB Partner League. They are located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and play their home games at UCHealth Park. As a result of a contraction of Minor League Ba ...

. Image:ColoradoSpringsSkySox.png, Sky Sox logo (1993–2008) Image:ColoradoSpringsSkySoxCap.png, Sky Sox cap (2000–2008)

Notable alumni

Sandy Alomar Jr. Santos "Sandy" Alomar Velázquez Jr. (, ; born June 18, 1966) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher between 1988 and 2007, most notably as a member of the Cleve ...

Nolan Arenado Nolan James Arenado (; born April 16, 1991) is an American professional baseball third baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). Arenado is widely recognized as an elite third baseman, both offensively and defensively. ...

Garrett Atkins Garrett Bernard Atkins (born December 12, 1979) is an American former Major League Baseball third baseman. Between 2003 and 2010, he played for the Colorado Rockies and Baltimore Orioles. Amateur career High school career Atkins attended Univer ...

Brad Ausmus Bradley David Ausmus (; born April 14, 1969) is an American former professional baseball manager and catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). In his 18-year MLB playing career, Ausmus played for the San Diego Padres, Detroit Tigers, Houston Ast ...

Albert Belle Albert Jojuan Belle (born August 25, 1966), known until 1990 as Joey Belle, is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder who played from 1989 to 2000, most notably for the Cleveland Indians. Known for his fierce, competitive temperament ...

Vinny Castilla Vinicio "Vinny" Castilla Soria (; born July 4, 1967) is a Mexican former Major League Baseball third baseman who played his best years with the Colorado Rockies and Atlanta Braves. Previously, he played with the Atlanta Braves (1991–1992, 200 ...

Alan Cockrell Atlee Alan Cockrell (born December 5, 1962) is an American professional baseball outfielder and coach. He was most recently the hitting coach for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball. Football career Twice named first-team all state, Co ...

Craig Counsell Craig John Counsell (born August 21, 1970) is an American former professional baseball player who is the manager for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Counsell became the Brewers' manager in May 2015; he became the longest-te ...

Joe Girardi Joseph Elliott Girardi (born October 14, 1964) is an American former professional baseball player and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Girardi played the catcher position for the Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, New York Yankees, and S ...

Jimmy Gobble Billy James Gobble (born July 19, 1981) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who last played in the Colorado Rockies organization. High school career Gobble attended John S. Battle High School in Bristol, Virginia and started four years on t ...

* Carlos González *

Brad Hawpe Bradley Bonte Hawpe (born June 22, 1979) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. Hawpe played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies, Tampa Bay Rays, San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Before he b ...

Todd Helton Todd Lynn Helton (born August 20, 1973) is an American former professional baseball first baseman who played his entire 17-year career for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). A five-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger, and ...

Matt Holliday Matthew Thomas Holliday (born January 15, 1980) is an American professional baseball coach and former left fielder who is the bench coach for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB from 2004 to 2018 for the ...

* Doug Jones *

Gabe Kapler Gabriel Stefan Kapler (born July 31, 1975), nicknamed "Kap", is an American former professional baseball outfielder, and current manager of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). Kapler was a 57th-round draft pick (1,487th ove ...

Juan Pierre Juan D'Vaughn Pierre (born August 14, 1977) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2000–2013 for the Colorado Rockies, Florida/Miami Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, Ch ...

Scott Podsednik Scott Eric Podsednik (; born March 18, 1976) is an American former professional baseball outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). Best known for his baserunning, Podsednik led the major leagues in stolen bases in with 70, in times caught stea ...

Jim Thome James Howard Thome (; born August 27, 1970) is an American former professional baseball corner infielder and designated hitter, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 22 seasons (1991–2012). He played for six different teams during the ...

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 ...

(Manager) *

Charlie Manuel Charles Fuqua Manuel Jr. (born January 4, 1944), is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. During his playing career, he appeared over parts of six Major League Baseball seasons for the Minnesota Twins and Los Angel ...

(Manager)

References

External links

{{Commons category, Colorado Springs Sky Sox
Colorado Springs Sky Sox official website
Defunct Pacific Coast League teams Sports in Colorado Springs, Colorado Professional baseball teams in Colorado Baseball teams established in 1988 Baseball teams disestablished in 2018 1988 establishments in Colorado Cleveland Guardians minor league affiliates Colorado Rockies minor league affiliates Milwaukee Brewers minor league affiliates 2018 disestablishments in Colorado Defunct baseball teams in Colorado