The Lake Country DockHounds are a professional baseball team based in

Oconomowoc, Wisconsin Oconomowoc ( ) is a city in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The name was derived from Coo-no-mo-wauk, the Potawatomi term for "waterfall." The population was 15,712 at the 2010 census. The city is partially adjacent to the Town of Oco ...

, that plays in the

American Association of Professional Baseball The American Association of Professional Baseball is an independent professional baseball league founded in 2005. It operates in the central United States and Canada, mostly in cities not served by Major League Baseball teams or their minor lea ...

, an official Partner League of

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), ...

. The DockHounds played their first season in 2022, becoming the first professional sports team in

Waukesha County Waukesha County () is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 406,978, making it the third-most populous county in Wisconsin. Its county seat and largest city is Waukesha. Waukesha Co ...

History

On March 3, 2020, Blue Ribbon Baseball, LLC received approval from the City of Oconomowoc to build a stadium and training facility in the Pabst Farms development. Originally planned to join the

Northwoods League The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not paid, so as to maintain their college el ...

in 2021, however 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 ...

the construction of their stadium was postponed. The delay gave the team time to research their options for leagues to join. The Dockhounds management team is made up of Tom Kelenic (father of MLB outfielder

Jarred Kelenic Jarred Robert Kelenic ( ; born July 16, 1999) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball (MLB). Kelenic was drafted in the first round of the 2018 MLB draft by the New York Mets and was trad ...

), Tony Bryant, Sonny Bando (Son of

Sal Bando Salvatore Leonard Bando (born February 13, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player and general manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from to , most prominently as the team captain for the Oakland Athletic ...

, a former general Manager of the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

and MLB All-star), and Tim Neubert. The American Association, following the 2020 season, saw the departure of the

St. Paul Saints The St. Paul Saints are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and have played their home games at CHS Field since 2015. They prev ...

to join Minor League Baseball and become the Triple-A affiliate of the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

. They also saw the folding of the

Texas AirHogs The Texas AirHogs were a professional baseball team based in Grand Prairie, Texas from 2008 to 2020. The AirHogs were members of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. Be ...

. The

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are an independent professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their ho ...

joined the league, leaving them with 11 teams. The

Houston Apollos The Houston Apollos were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Houston, Texas. They played in the Central Hockey League from 1965 to 1969, and then from 1979 to 1981. From 1965 to 1969, they were a farm team of the NHL's Montreal Canadie ...

of the

Pecos League Pecos may refer to: Places * Pecos River, rises near Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States * Pecos, Texas, a city in Reeves County, Texas, United States * Pecos County, Texas, named for the Pecos River ** Pecos Spring, a spring * Pecos, New Mexico, ...

were then recruited to the American Association as a traveling team for the 2021 season to balance the schedule. Seeking a permanent 12th member, the American Association formally awarded a franchise to Blue Ribbon Baseball LLC on May 17, 2021. The DockHounds named was unveiled on June 10 as the result of a name-the-team contest that netted over 2,700 entries, with other finalists including Kraken, Bobbers, Hoppers and Paddlers. The name references the prevalence of dogs on docks and boats during the summer in the region. Partnering with the Wisconsin Brewing Company, a

craft brewing Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis o ...

company based in

Verona, Wisconsin Verona is a city in Dane County, Wisconsin, in the United States and is a suburb of Madison. The population was 14,030 at the 2020 census. The city is located ten miles southwest of downtown Madison within the Town of Verona. It is part of the M ...

, ground was broken for the DockHounds' home stadium June 29, 2021. The facility's name, Wisconsin Brewing Company Park, and the team's logo were also unveiled. August 10, 2021, The Dockhounds announced Jim Bennett as their manager,

Dave Nilsson David Wayne Nilsson (born 14 December 1969) is an Australian retired professional baseball catcher and current manager of the Australia national baseball team and the Brisbane Bandits. He played for Major League Baseball's Milwaukee Brewers ...

as bench/hitting coach, and

Paul Wagner Paul Alan Wagner (born November 14, 1967) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher, who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1992–1997), Milwaukee Brewers (1997–1998), and Cleveland Indians (1999). Amateur career Wagner atten ...

as their pitching coach. On May 13, 2022, the DockHounds began their inaugural season on the road in nearby

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...

against the

Milwaukee Milkmen The Milwaukee Milkmen are an independent baseball team based in Franklin, Wisconsin. They are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball. They began play in 2019 and play hom ...

, taking an 8-4 loss. The DockHounds earned their first win two days later, in game three of the series. The franchise then opened Wisconsin Brewing Company Park to a sold out crowd of 3,999, on May 20, 2022, with an 8-5 win over the

Winnipeg Goldeyes The Winnipeg Goldeyes are a minor-league baseball team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The Goldeyes play in the American Association of Professional Baseball, which they joined in 2011. Previously, the Goldeyes were members of the Northern ...

Mascot

The DockHounds mascot is Louie B. Sluggin, an

anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...

hound dog who wears a blue pinstriped uniform with the number 5, and a

bucket hat A bucket hat (variations of which include the fisherman's hat, Irish country hat and session hat) is a hat with a narrow, downward-sloping brim. Typically, the hat is made from heavy-duty cotton fabric such as denim or canvas, or heavy wool s ...

. The number 5 represents the number of O's in Oconomowoc.

Season-by-season record

Roster

Notable alumni

* Efraín Contreras (2022–present) * Alex McRae (Chicago White Sox & Pittsburgh Pirates) * Duncan Snider (San Diego Padres) *

Jake Snider Jake Snider (born March 22, 1976) is the former lead vocalist and guitarist in the band Minus the Bear. He also plays guitar in Onalaska. He has previously been a part of the bands Sharks Keep Moving and State Route 522. He also plays guitar in ...

(Colorado Rockies) * Zion Pettigrew (Washington Nationals) * Luis Aviles (Houston Astros) *

Dai-Kang Yang Dai-Kang Yang (, a.k.a. ; born January 17, 1987, Taitung City, Taitung County, Taiwan; previously known as ''Yang Chung-shou'' or ''Chung-Shou Yang'' 陽仲壽) is a Taiwanese professional baseball outfielder for the Lake Country DockHounds o ...

(2022–present) * Evan Kruczynski (2022–present)

References

External links

* {{Wisconsin Sports American Association of Professional Baseball teams Professional baseball teams in Wisconsin Baseball teams established in 2021