Martinez Sturgeon

History

The Martinez Sturgeon are a professional baseball team that plays in Martinez, California, as part of the Pecos League's Pacific Division. This league operates independently, with no connection to Major League Baseball or Minor League Baseball. Their home games take place at Joe DiMaggio Fields at Waterfront Park, a field originally built for little league and still used for that purpose today.

The team's journey began on December 29, 2019, when it was announced that Martinez would join the Pecos League for the 2020 season. Although the Pacific Association had shown interest, league commissioner and owner Andrew Dunn decided to put the new club in the Pecos League's Pacific Division. The club was named the Martinez Sturgeon on February 10, 2020, with team colors and schedule revealed the next day. However, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the start of the 2020 season, and all 63 scheduled games were eventually canceled.

In 2021, former Major League Baseball player Ron Witmeyer became field manager on May 5, after the originally chosen manager, Pecos League veteran Bill Moore, stepped down due to health issues. The Sturgeon finished that season with a 23-17 record, placing second in their division. They swept the Monterey Amberjacks two games to zero in the first round of the bay championship series, but lost the final to the San Rafael Pacifics one game to two.

On February 23, 2022, former Major League Baseball pitcher Manny Corpas was named field manager. Corpas also pitched for the Sturgeon that season, leading the Pecos League in wins, strikeouts, and innings pitched. He finished with a 9-3 record, a 4.26 ERA, 114 innings pitched, and 147 strikeouts, though the team ended with a 19-31 record.

Matthew Repplinger became field manager on April 8, 2023. That year, the Sturgeon hosted the Pacific Division All-Star Game on July 9. Repplinger guided the team to a 25-24 record, their first winning season since 2021. Outfielder Nick Adgar set a franchise record with 15 home runs.

The 2024 season saw the Sturgeon finish with a 20-34 record, placing them last in the division and out of the playoffs. In 2025, they posted a 25-30 regular-season record, which earned a playoff spot, but they were eliminated by San Rafael in the first round, losing a best-of-three series two games to none.

The 2026 regular season ended with a 26-23-1 record, putting the Sturgeon in fourth place in the Pacific Division. In the playoffs, they swept the first-place Dublin Leprechauns in the first round, then swept San Rafael in the second round to become Pacific Division champions. They advanced to the league championship series against the Garden City Wind but lost two games to none.

Did You Know?

• Former Major League Baseball pitcher Manny Corpas led the Pecos League in wins, strikeouts, and innings pitched in 2022, finishing 9-3 with a 4.26 ERA and 147 strikeouts over 114 innings.
• Outfielder Nick Adgar set a franchise record with 15 home runs in the 2023 season.