White Sands Pupfish

Lore & Background

The franchise began as the Coastal Kingfish in the Continental Baseball League, serving as a travel team without a home ballpark in 2009. In early April 2010, the Kingfish replaced the West Texas Road Hogs as the CBL travel team. The team joined the Pecos League in 2011, rebranded as the White Sands Pupfish, and relocated to Alamogordo, New Mexico. Over nine seasons, the Pupfish compiled a record of 215–364, with their best season in 2011 (41–29) under manager J.D. Droddy and their worst in 2018 (7–51) under Cameron Haskins. The team's single-season individual records include Ernie Munoz's .427 batting average (2012), Henry Gonzalez Jr.'s 17 home runs (2013), and Anthony Pastrana's 82 strikeouts (2016) — though the latter is not the franchise's single-season strikeout record.

Reader's Guide

The White Sands Pupfish represent the volatility and resilience of independent baseball. Their 2011 championship-caliber season under Keith Essary stands in stark contrast to the 2018 and 2019 campaigns, where the team won only 7 and 8 games respectively. Despite these struggles, the Pupfish produced notable alumni such as Yermín Mercedes (2014) and Chris Smith (2011), who advanced to higher levels of professional baseball. The team's existence highlights the Pecos League's role in providing opportunities for players outside the affiliated system. Their legacy is one of perseverance, as they continued to field teams through nine seasons of extreme performance swings, ultimately ceasing operations after 2019.

Did You Know?

• The team was originally called the Coastal Kingfish and played in the Continental Baseball League before joining the Pecos League in 2011.
• In 2009, the Coastal Kingfish were a travel team without a home ballpark.
• The Pupfish's single-season wins record is 41 (2011), and their single-season losses record is 51 (2018).
• Mickey Speaks is the winningest manager in franchise history with a 65–67 record over the 2015 and 2016 seasons.