Lowell Spinners

Did You Know?

• Spinners games were broadcast on Lowell talk station WCAP, and for the 2007 season they were on WLLH, an ESPN Radio affiliate, before returning to WCAP the next season.
• The Jack Kerouac bobblehead giveaway on August 21, 2003, made media headlines as far away as Los Angeles.
• The bobbleheads from the 2012 giveaway were also available online for ordering, with proceeds from online orders going to UMass Lowell English Department scholarships.

History

Lowell first appeared in organized baseball back in 1877, when the city fielded two teams: one in the League Alliance and another called the Lowell Ladies Men in the New England Association. The city was a regular member of the Class B New England League over the years, but it hadn't hosted a minor league team since 1947, when the Lawrence Millionaires moved to Lowell partway through the season. The modern team arrived in 1996, brought by Clyde Smoll Jr., who had bought the Elmira franchise in 1986 and was the son of a former major league pitcher. Drew Weber owned the Spinners from 1997 until June 2016, when Dave Heller bought the club. In 2000, the Spinners set a minor league record by selling out every home game, starting a streak of 413 consecutive sellouts that finally ended on August 30, 2010. On August 21, 2003, the team gave away a bobblehead of Jack Kerouac, a Lowell native who played football at Lowell High School. The bobblehead was accepted into Cooperstown in 2005, the first literary figure to be honored there, and raised $10,000 for the Jack Kerouac Scholarship Fund. The promotion was repeated on August 7, 2012, to coincide with the film release of On the Road, featuring a bobblehead with both a bobble head and a bobble arm. A third Kerouac bobblehead, showing him in his Lowell High football uniform, was given away on July 25, 2013.

Notable alumni

Select alumni are listed in this section; a full list of Spinners players who appeared in the major leagues, with their debut dates, was maintained on the team website. Abe Alvarez was on the 2003 roster and received a World Series ring for a spot start in 2004 for Boston. Mookie Betts was selected to the 2016, 2017, and 2018 MLB All-Star Games with the Boston Red Sox, won the 2018 World Series with them, and was the 2018 American League Most Valuable Player. Jackie Bradley Jr. was selected to the 2016 MLB All-Star Game with the Boston Red Sox and won the 2018 World Series. Drake Britton played for the Boston Red Sox in 2013 and 2014. Clay Buchholz won the 2007 and 2013 World Series with the Boston Red Sox. Felix Doubront won the 2013 World Series with the Boston Red Sox. David Eckstein was the first Spinner to play in a World Series (2002, with the Anaheim Angels) and the first to be named World Series MVP (2006, with the St. Louis Cardinals). Jacoby Ellsbury won the 2007 and 2013 World Series with the Boston Red Sox. Adam Everett was on the 1998 roster and won a gold medal with the US Olympic Baseball Team at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. Shea Hillenbrand was on the 1996 roster and was the first Spinner to be an All-Star selection (AL, 2002 MLB All-Star Game). José Iglesias was American League Rookie of the Month (June 2013) with the Boston Red Sox and was selected to the 2015 MLB All-Star Game with the Detroit Tigers. Ryan Kalish was an NYPL All-Star in 2007 and won the Harry Agganis Award as Red Sox Rookie of the Year in 2010. Ryan Lavarnway played for the Boston Red Sox from 2011 to 2014. Jed Lowrie hit a pre-season grand slam on April 4, 2009, the first major league home run at Citi Field. Justin Masterson was selected to the 2013 MLB All-Star Game with the Cleveland Indians. Will Middlebrooks won the 2013 World Series with the Boston Red Sox. Yamaico Navarro was the 2014 Korean Series winner and MVP and a 2015 KBO All-Star with the Samsung Lions. Jonathan Papelbon won the 2007 World Series with the Boston Red Sox. Hanley Ramírez was the 2006 NL Rookie of the Year. Aníbal Sánchez was on the 2004 roster, was the first Spinner to throw a no-hitter (2006 for the Florida Marlins), and won the AL ERA title in 2013. Freddy Sanchez won the NL batting title in 2006 as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates.