The Kaneohe Bay Dawgs were a planned expansion

Hawaii Winter Baseball Hawaii Winter Baseball (HWB), based in Honolulu, Hawaii, was a professional baseball league in the Hawaiian islands. It was loosely affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB). History The HWB league first began play in 1993. Funded by Major Lea ...

team based in the

Kaneohe Bay Kāneohe () is a census-designated place (CDP) included in the City and County of Honolulu and located in Hawaii state District of Koolaupoko on the island of Oahu. In the Hawaiian language, ''kāne ohe'' means "bamboo man". According to an a ...

area of

Oahu, Hawaii Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O’ ...

. The Kaneohe Bay Dawgs franchise folded before playing the 1996–1997 winter league season.

History

In August, 1996, during the Hawaii Winter Baseball conference at the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii, league officials announced the Kaneohe Bay Dawgs and

Kona Man O'Wars The Kona Man O'Wars were a planned expansion Hawaii Winter Baseball team based in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. The Kona Man O'Wars franchise folded just before the beginning of the 1996–1997 winter league season. History In August, 1996, during the Hawa ...

as expansion franchises into the Hawaii Winter Baseball league. The two franchises were planned to begin play as members of the 1996–1997 Hawaii Winter Baseball League, expanding the league from four teams to six teams. The two expansion franchises were added because of increased interest from

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), ...

and the Japanese and Korean pro leagues to send players to the Hawaii developmental league. With the expansion teams added, the league teams were scheduled to play a 54–game schedule. The Kaneohe franchise announcement was rescinded in October, 1996 and the franchise never materialized. League play was scheduled to begin on October 11, 1996. The Kona Man O'Wars franchise also did not proceed to play in the upcoming season. The franchise folded due to logistical and legal problems with the Kaneohe Bay Dawgs playing home games on the Kaneohe Marine Corps Base-Hawaii military base as had been planned. Without a home ballpark, the planned franchise was dissolved just before the start of the winter league play. Hawaii Winter League baseball folded after the 1997 winter season with the

Hilo Stars The Hilo Stars were a minor league baseball team in the Hawaii Winter Baseball league. They were based in Hilo, Hawaii. They played their home games at Vulcan Field and Wong Stadium. Former players include Ichiro Suzuki, Bill Mueller, Adam Kenedy ...

Honolulu Sharks The Honolulu Sharks were a minor league baseball team in the Hawaii Winter Baseball league based in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Sharks name comes from the large number of shark species native to the waters of Hawaii. They played their home games at the ...

Maui Stingrays The Maui Stingrays were a minor league baseball team in the Hawaii Winter Baseball league. They were based in Wailuku, Hawaii. They played their home games at Maehara Stadium. For the 1994 season, Julie Croteau and Lee Anne Ketcham, teammates w ...

and

West Oahu CaneFires The West Oahu CaneFires were a minor league baseball team in the Hawaii Winter Baseball league. They were based in Waipahu, Hawaii. The name CaneFires is derived from the burning of sugar cane before harvest on many plantations on the island of Oa ...

playing the season as members.

The ballpark

The Kaneohe Bay Dawgs were scheduled to play home games at the Kaneohe Marine Corps Base-Hawaii. Mokapu Peninsula and Kaneohe Bay

Timeline

Notable alumni

*There was no roster formed for the 1997 Kanehoe Bay Dawgs.

References

{{reflist Baseball teams established in 1997 Baseball teams disestablished in 1997 Defunct baseball teams in Hawaii Defunct Hawaii Winter Baseball teams Baseball in Hawaii