Slippery Rock Sliders
Professional and collegiate summer baseball team from Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania.
The Slippery Rock Sliders started as a professional baseball club and later became a collegiate summer team. They were based in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania, and competed in the Frontier League before joining the East Division of the summer collegiate Prospect League. The team was created for the 2007 season to balance the Frontier League’s schedule after the departure of the Richmond Roosters.
In their first year, the Sliders played 48 home games at Jack Critchfield Park in Slippery Rock, with 48 games on the road. For 2008, they became a traveling team, playing all games away and adopting the name Midwest Sliders. The following season, they moved to Ypsilanti, Michigan, playing at Eastern Michigan University’s Oestrike Stadium as the Midwest Sliders of Ypsilanti. In 2010, the team was renamed the Oakland County Cruisers and moved to the new Diamond at the Summit ballpark. By 2012, they relocated to London, Ontario, becoming the London Rippers, who played the entire season; the Road Warriors identity was used only for the final road games, not as a permanent incarnation. That was the franchise’s final form; it did not return for 2013.
When the Prospect League formed, Slippery Rock was announced as a franchise location. Owner and general manager Mike Bencic bought the Sliders name and logo rights, reviving the team in 2009. That season, the Sliders were managed by Chase Rowe, a Slippery Rock University alumnus who was then head coach at nearby La Roche College. Over the next five years, the Sliders developed a small rivalry with fellow Butler County Prospect League team, the Butler BlueSox. The Sliders stopped operating in Slippery Rock after the 2013 season; the Champion City Kings are a separate expansion franchise, not a direct relocation of this team.
- born
- 2007
- died
- 2013
- field
- Jack Critchfield Park, Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania
- nationality
- United States
- known_for
- Frontier League and Prospect League baseball team; later became the Midwest Sliders, Oakland County Cruisers, London Rippers, and Road Warriors (temporary identity)
Quick Facts
- League
- Prospect League
- Division
- East Division
- Location
- Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania
- Stadium
- Jack Critchfield Park
- Founded
- 2007 (Frontier League), 2009 (Prospect League)
- Series
- Division
- Former Names
- Slippery Rock Sliders (2007, 2009-2013)
- Former Leagues
- Frontier League (2007)
- Owner
- Slippery Rock Sports Group, LLC
- Management
- Mike Bencic (GM)
- Manager
- Brad Neffendorf
- Media
- Aaron Anderson (Web Broadcaster)
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The Sliders played 48 home games at Jack Critchfield Park in their inaugural 2007 season, with the remaining 48 games on the road. For the 2008 season, they became a traveling team under the name Midwest Sliders. In 2009, the team moved to Ypsilanti, Michigan, playing at Eastern Michigan University's Oestrike Stadium, and was renamed the Midwest Sliders of Ypsilanti. The franchise continued to relocate, becoming the Oakland County Cruisers in 2010 and the London Rippers in 2012, who played the entire season; the Road Warriors identity was used only for the final road games, not as a permanent incarnation. The team did not return for the 2013 season.
Reader's Guide
The Slippery Rock Sliders represent a notable example of franchise mobility in independent and collegiate summer baseball. Their initial formation in 2007 addressed a league need for an even number of teams, but the team struggled to establish a stable home base, moving multiple times and eventually becoming a traveling team. The Sliders name was revived in 2009 for the summer-collegiate Prospect League, where the team operated in Slippery Rock until ceasing operations at the end of the 2013 season. The franchise then relocated to Springfield, Ohio, becoming the Champion City Kings. The Sliders' history illustrates the challenges of sustaining minor-league and collegiate summer teams in smaller markets, as well as the fluid nature of franchise identities and locations in American baseball.
Did You Know?
- The Sliders were formed for the 2007 season to ensure an even number of teams in the Frontier League after the Richmond Roosters departed.
- In 2008, the team became a traveling team called the Midwest Sliders.
- The Sliders name and logo rights were acquired by owner/GM Mike Bencic for the Prospect League revival in 2009.
- The franchise did not relocate to Springfield, Ohio; the Champion City Kings are a separate expansion franchise.
More in Prospect League teams 1-24
Spotted an error? Know more?
This is a living reference — every entry is fact-audited, and reader corrections feed straight into our audit queue. Suggest an edit · See this site's audit record