Wilmington Blue Rocks

For the 1940–1952 Interstate League Wilmington Blue Rocks, see Wilmington Blue Rocks (1940–52).
Wilmington Blue Rocks
Founded in 1993
Wilmington, Delaware
Team logoCap insignia
Class-level
Current Advanced-A
Minor league affiliations
League Carolina League
Division Northern Division
Major league affiliations
Current Kansas City Royals (1993–2004, 2007–present)
Previous Boston Red Sox (2005–2006)
Minor league titles
League titles (4)
  • 1994
  • 1996
  • 1998
  • 1999
Division titles (5)
  • 1993
  • 1995
  • 2001
  • 2004
  • 2015
Team data
Nickname

Wilmington Blue Rocks (1993–present)

    Ballpark Daniel S. Frawley Stadium (1993–present)
    Owner(s)/
    Operator(s)
    		 Clark Minker, Main Street Baseball
    Manager Jamie Quirk
    General Manager Chris Kemple

    The Wilmington Blue Rocks are a Minor League Baseball team located in Wilmington, Delaware. The Blue Rocks play in the Northern Division of the Carolina League.

    Franchise history

    Frawley Stadium
    Rocky Bluewinkle, mascot of the Wilmington Blue Rocks.

    The Blue Rocks play in the Carolina League, an advanced Single-A league in minor league baseball. The name "Blue Rocks" was chosen because of the blue granite found along the Brandywine River in Wilmington. The Blue Rocks play at Judy Johnson Field at Daniel S. Frawley Stadium in Wilmington's growing Riverfront district and was instrumental in bringing commerce and public attention to the once ignored and dilapidated area of the city.

    The Blue Rocks played their first season in 1993 when the Peninsula Pilots were purchased and relocated to the riverfront in Wilmington, Delaware. Principal owner Frank Boulton and co-owner Bud Harrelson bought the franchise in 1992, moved the team from Hampton, Virginia, and changed their affiliation from the Seattle Mariners' farm system to the Kansas City Royals'.[1] When the franchise moved to Wilmington in 1993, the ballpark was known as Legends Stadium, after the sports legends of Delaware. After Frawley, the Wilmington mayor who played a major role in the creation of the team, died while playing a recreational basketball game, the stadium was renamed Daniel S. Frawley Stadium in his honor.

    The Blue Rocks have always been a Kansas City farm team, except for the 2005 and 2006 seasons when the team was affiliated with the Boston Red Sox.

    In 2005, the Blue Rocks were featured in SportsCenter's 50 States in 50 Days. Matt Winer reported from a set in left field where Sportscenter did stories on the many mascots of the Blue Rocks. The Aug. 19 game featuring SportsCenter drew the Blue Rocks' largest crowd in team history.

    The Blue Rocks have three mascots. One is Rocky Bluewinkle, a blue moose. Another is Mr. Celery, a stalk of celery that comes out to "Song 2" by Blur when Wilmington scores a run, and dances and tosses stalks of celery into the crowd whenever a Blue Rocks player hits a home run. Finally, there is Rubble, a giant blue rock.

    Roster

    The Wilmington Blue Rocks' alternate logo
    Wilmington Blue Rocks roster
    Players Coaches/Other

    Pitchers

    • 31 Derek Gordon
    • 28 Brennan Henry
    • 38 Zach Lovvorn
    • -- Luis Rico
    • 40 Colin Rodgers
    • 43 Matt Tenuta

    Catchers

    •  7 Chad Johnson
    •  6 Luis Villegas

    Infielders

    •  4 Austin Bailey
    • 11 Wander Franco
    • 34 Robert Pehl

    Outfielders

    •  8 Brandon Downes
    • 29 Elier Hernandez

    Manager

    Coaches



    7-day disabled list
    * On Kansas City Royals 40-man roster
    # Rehab assignment
    ∞ Reserve list
    ‡ Restricted list
    § Suspended list
    † Temporary inactive list
    Roster updated April 12, 2016
    Transactions
    → More MiLB rosters
    → Kansas City Royals minor league players

    Playoffs

    Players of note

    More than 130 Blue Rocks have gone on to the major leagues, including All-Stars Carlos Beltrán, Lance Carter, Johnny Damon, Zack Greinke, Jon Lieber, José Rosado, and Mike Sweeney. Other former Blue Rock players of note include:

    Mike Moustakas during his tenure with the Wilmington Blue Rocks in 2009

    Retired numbers

    See also

    References

    1. ↑ "Delaware Gets Carolina League Team". Roanoke Times. 2009-10-30. p. B9.
    2. ↑ http://m.milb.com/news/article/201005069844624
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