New Haven Ravens
Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, 1994–2003. The team was sold on January 27, 2003, to Lowell Spinners owner Drew Weber, with the intention of moving the franchise to Manchester, New Hampshire. The Eastern League baseball team owners voted to ap
The New Haven Ravens were a Double-A minor league baseball franchise that began play in 1994 as an affiliate of the Colorado Rockies.[1][2] The team was named through a contest sponsored by local media, with Priscilla Shrumruck of Orange winning the prize for submitting the "Ravens" name.[2] The franchise's relocation to Manchester, New Hampshire was approved by Eastern League team owners on September 3, 2003, and the team's initial season in that city was 2004.[3]
Quick Facts
- Founded
- 1994
- City
- Manchester, New Hampshire
- Founding city
- New Haven, Connecticut
- Based
- 2004
- Class level
- Double-A (1994–present)
- Current league
- Eastern League (1994–present)
- Division
- Northeast Division
- Majorleague
- Toronto Blue Jays (2003–present)
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
New Haven was granted an expansion Double-A franchise on October 3, 1992, alongside Portland, Maine.[1][2] The ownership group hired Joe Zajac as the club's first employee in spring 1992.[2] Led by Eastern League Pitcher of the Year Juan Acevedo, the team finished second in the Northern Division with a 77-63 record and qualified for the playoffs.[2] The Ravens were swept 3-0 in the playoffs by Binghamton after Acevedo and Bolick suffered injuries.[2]
The renovations added a new color electronic scoreboard installed in left field, and the Party Pavilion was built in right field, which was later transformed into the Short Porch Cafe.[2] The Ravens were defeated by the Reading Phillies in their opening game, but secured their first victory the next evening with a 6-5 score.[2] On January 27, 2003, Drew Weber, the owner of the Lowell Spinners, purchased the franchise with the plan to relocate it to Manchester, New Hampshire.[3] The team's debut season in Manchester took place in 2004, with home games held at Gill Stadium while a new ballpark was being built.[3][4]
What the cited sources add
The 2001 Ravens souvenir program states that Yale University identified the need for stadium renovations in spring 1992, which led to the franchise effort.[2] The same program notes that New Haven faced competition from a dozen other cities for the expansion teams, with the field narrowed to four before New Haven was selected.[2] According to the program, the Ravens received over 800 name suggestions from more than 2,000 people in the naming contest.[2] The program reports that the Ravens signed a player development contract with the Colorado Rockies in early May 1993, becoming the Rockies' first-ever Double-A affiliate.[2]
The same article notes that Solomon points out thirty-four Fisher Cats players have gone on to play in the major leagues.[5] Solomon attended roughly twenty-five home games per year, most in New Hampshire.[5]
References
- Wikipedia, "New Hampshire Fisher Cats" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Franchise history from the New Haven Ravens 2001 Souvenir Program (Second Edition)", Pataky.net, 2001 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "Franchise history from the New Haven Ravens 2001 Souvenir Program (Second Edition)", Pataky.net, 2001. facts only, no text reused. pataky.net
- Wikipedia, "New Hampshire Fisher Cats" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Manchester to get Double-A baseball", Sun Journal, January 28, 2003; Woody, "EL Approves Move", Hartford Courant, September 4, 2003 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "New Hampshire Fisher Cats" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Gill Stadium", City of Manchester NH Official Web Site (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- McLaughlin, "When Business Can Be Fun", March 16, 2011. facts only, no text reused. brownalumnimagazine.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article New Hampshire Fisher Cats (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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