80 Years of Clinton Affiliation History

Clinton LumberKings
22 min readOct 19, 2018
Fans file into to Riverview Stadiums first ever game in 1937.

A good postseason to you all from the LumberBlog! While there is Major League Baseball on, and postseason runs in full swing, we long suffering Minor League Baseball fans have been without our baseball for going on five weeks! Although the offseason conjures up pictures of relaxation, sleeping in, and tropical vacations the only thing tropical about the LumberKings offseason this time around has been their new parent club the Miami Marlins.

Announced late Thursday night on September 20th, the LumberKings and Seattle Mariners ended their ten-year long affiliation in order to sign a two-year Player Development Contract (PDC) with the Miami Marlins. The PDC ends the second longest affiliation in franchise history which got us to thinking about Clinton’s history of affiliation.

The LumbeKings are well-known as the last remaining charter member in the Midwest League, yet their franchise goes back even further to the opening of their current ballpark back in 1937.

Prior to the Second World War, Clinton professional baseball called the now defunct Three-I League home. Thanks to the Works Progress Administration’s efforts along with local help in 1935 Riverview Stadium, as it was then called, was opened for business on May 9th, 1937.

The excitement of a new baseball stadium inspired a “name the team” contest which came up with the following names for the Clinton Club. In third place, and the winner of $5 worth of tickets, was W.M. Scholtes submission for the “Clinton Cyclones.” Coming in a close second was H.L. Hansen’s “The Clinton Kernels” which was good for $10 worth of tickets and nearly stole the current Cedar Rapids team name. The winner ended up as Francis Kampling, who took home the grand prize of a season pass to the inaugural year of the ballpark for the winning name of the “Clinton Owlz” complete with a slogan, “we don’t give a hoot.”

Program from Brooklyn Dodgers trip to Clinton in 1937.

The Owlz name has since lived on in legend in Clinton but was the team’s name for just four seasons when the club was affiliated with their first two Major League clubs. When the current home of the LumberKings opened as the crown jewel of the Three-I League in 1937, Clinton’s first parent club, the Brooklyn Dodgers, sent their Major League club to play their minor league Class-B affiliate in an exhibition contest to start the season.

By 1939, the first affiliation change came to Clinton with the dropping of the Dodgers for their bitter rivals, the New York Giants. The start of a new era of Clinton professional baseball lasted just two years, coming to an end following the 1941 season with the entry of the US into World War II.

For the next five seasons, semipro and amateur baseball took the place of Minor League Baseball in a national retraction of the game during the war from a lack of available young men who could play. Still, affiliated baseball would return and bring with it the most successful run to date in Clinton’s history of professional baseball.

Starting in 1947, Clinton welcomed in their third Major League parent club, the abutting Chicago Cubs. Over a three-year period, the Cubs sent teams that dominated the Central Association winning, a then team record, 73 games in 1947 only to best that total the following the season in 1948 with 79 wins. Both seasons culminated in championships for Clinton, their firsts in franchise history and, to date, the only instance where Clinton has gone back-to-back with league titles.

Despite the successful run in Clinton, the Cubs left town in front of the 1949 season, leaving the city without a Major League affiliate. The team was then co-opted by Major League Baseball who sent a collection of Major League teams minor league players to Clinton for the only season of Clinton Steers baseball.

A dark period then followed where professional baseball in Clinton was gone for four years, the last hiatus from pro ball in Clinton. In 1954, the drought came to an end with Clinton admitted as a charter member in the Mississippi-Ohio Valley League, later shortened to the Midwest League in 1956.

The Pittsburgh Pirates came into Clinton to open the city’s move to Class-D of the Minor Leagues, a partnership that lasted for five consecutive seasons and eight total. In the first seasons of the Midwest League, the Clinton Pirates, as they were then known, became a perennial power. Over the Pirates first five seasons in the Midwest League they sent their Clinton club to the playoffs four times including two trips to the Championship Series in 1954 and 1957. The period still remains tied for the most playoff appearances by a Clinton team over a five-year period.

The 1954 Championship Series unfortunately proved to be a nothing burger for Clinton. Over a best of five game series, Clinton never held a lead and thus were swept over three games by the Danville Dans,

The 1954 failure set the tone for early franchise struggles in the new League’s Championship series. Over their first three trips to the Midwest League Championship Series Clinton fell, and had combined to go 0–6 in Championship games.

The success of the Pirates in Clinton came to a convincing end in the final season of affiliation. During the 1958 season Clinton posted a league worst 44–80 record to end a four-year playoff streak and establish a then franchise record for losses in a single season.

1959 called for Clinton’s fourth affiliation change, bringing in that season’s American League pennant winners, the Chicago White Sox.

Over a wire-to-wire race in the summer of 1958, the Clinton C-Sox battled the Waterloo Hawks for division titles in the first and second halves. By season’s end, Clinton had compiled a 71–52 record to crack the 70-win threshold for the first time in 10 years. Still the C-Sox were bested by Waterloo in both halves of the season to miss the playoffs. The year was the last competitive season for Clinton for several summers with the team failing to reach the postseason until 1963.

The 1963 season opened with not much in the way of expectations for the Clinton C-Sox. After stumbling to a 63–62 record in the previous campaign even less was expected of the C-Sox in 1963 after losing their ace, and future Major League All-Star, Denny McClain following the 1962 season.

Five future big leaguers were assigned to Clinton in 1963, Angel Bravo, Fred Klages, Rich Morales, Rich Severson, and Ed Stroud. For 112 days over a 124-game schedule Clinton remained in first place in one of the most dominant seasons of baseball ever played by a Clinton team.

Stroud played in every game for Clinton as the main stay atop a lineup that ranked first in the league in doubles, second in runs scored, and second in stolen bases. His 1963 season still ranks one of, if not the most, impressive for a leadoff hitter. Stroud led the team in runs scored, 116, good for third most in franchise history and finished the year with 74 stolen bases, also ranking as the third best total in a season by a Clinton player.

On the pitching side of things, the 1963 Clinton C-Sox year was led by Jerome Rozmus. A Chicago native who posted a 17–5 record, still tied for the third most wins in a single season in franchise history, and owned an ERA of 1.44, third best in the club’s single season record books. Still, Rozmus Clinton accolades aside, his career ended without a stop at the Major League level.

A picture of the 1963 Clinton C-Sox Midwest League Championship Team.

Dominance by the Clinton C-Sox in 1963 culminated in a Midwest League Championship without any playoff games needing to be played. The team won both halves of the season to run away with a league championship. The next closest team, the Burlington Bees, finished 11 games back thus marking the first Midwest League Championship in Clinton’s history!

The C-Sox then defended their title with a 77–48 overall record in 1964 to narrowly hold off the Fox Cities Foxes in the first half with a 42–21 mark that won the half by two and half games. Still Fox Cities did not go away, and their red hot second half set up a one game playoff in Clinton to determine the 1964 Midwest League title. A pair of three-run rallies by the Foxes, one in the first inning, led a lopsided 8–5 Clinton loss, preventing back-to-back championships for the second time in club history.

The success of the White Sox affiliation in Clinton turned on a dime in 1965. After a 5–3 extra inning win in Decatur on April 25th to open the season, the big story of the year hit on April 28th with the “Great Flood of ’65.” Riverview Stadium was hard hit by the greatest natural disaster in Clinton’s history, greatly effecting the Clinton C-Sox final year. The team was without their home ballpark until May 27th when the C-Sox returned to host a doubleheader with Wisconsin. In the meantime, Clinton had split their home games between Douglas Park and Lowden Field. Resulting in the smallest crowd ever announced seeing Clinton professional baseball on May 13th at Douglas Park when just 44 people turned out to see the C-Sox fall 13–3 to Cedar Rapids.

The season continued to circle the drain even when Clinton returned to their home ballpark on May 27th to host Wisconsin. By season’s end, Clinton stood in dead last with a record of 45–72 and 34 and half games back of first; bringing to an end a seven-year affiliation with the White Sox.

The 1966 year was a season of changes for Clinton, some old and others new. Before the 1966 campaign, Clinton welcomed back in the Pittsburgh Pirates with a three-year affiliation deal that intended to bring back the glory days of Clinton’s first parent club in the Midwest League. In addition to the return of the Pirates to Clinton, a new team name was unveiled beginning an 11-year period of Clinton Pilots baseball.

Unfortunately for Clinton, the three-year return of the Pirates as the parent club was an incredibly consistent period. All three season the Pilots finished in ninth place losing more than 65 games in each of the three seasons.

For the 1969 season Clinton again was on the move with their affiliation, becoming the Class-A minor league club for the expansion Seattle Pilots. In one of baseball’s oddest chapters, the Seattle Pilots existed for just one season when the team was purchased by a young car salesman from Milwaukee with baseball ties named Bud Selig.

To this day Clinton still honors their Clinton Pilots past with throwback jersey nights on Thursday.

As a result, when the Seattle Pilots became the Milwaukee Brewers in 1970, the Clinton Pilots continued as the Pilots in 1970 but as an affiliate of the Brewers. The one-year affiliation with Milwaukee is still the only instance in Clinton’s history when they were affiliated with a Major League club for a single season.

After nearly missing the playoffs in 1969 with a 72–51 record, the Clinton Pilots took several steps back in a 1970 season where the team combined to go 57–67.

Over a nine-year period, Clinton endured their second longest playoff drought in franchise history. Over this time Clinton had five different Major League affiliates and did not finally break through until 1973 when Clinton returned to postseason play as an affiliate of the Detroit Tigers.

The return to the playoffs for the Clinton Pilots was a tour de force. Seven players that came through Clinton during the 1973 season went on to reach the big leagues including baseball legend Ron LeFlore. They ended the year with the best overall record in the Midwest League, 73–51, but only punched their return ticket to the playoffs in the second half on the final day of the season with a 3–1 win over Quad Cities.

Ron LeFlore (holding mic) joined his 1977 Clinton Pilots manager Jim Leyland (center) in a 2014 “Throwback Night” in Clinton.

The Pilots matched up with the Wisconsin Rapids Twins in a best of three game series and came out flat. After briefly holding a 1–0 in game one through the second inning, three home run by Wisconsin Rapids put the Twins in front for good. The Pilots would go on to be swept over the brief two games series having only held one lead in the series.

A six-year affiliation with the Tigers came to an end in 1976 in an assimilation of talent. In one of the last examples of Major League co-opting a minor league team, the ’76 Clinton Pilots were made up of prospects from both the Tigers and Chicago White Sox. The team suffered through a mediocre campaign that ended with a fourth place finish and 59–70 record.

By 1977, the affiliation game had returned to normal with one Major League team supplying all of the prospects. The year would open a brief three-year stint with the Los Angeles Dodgers serving as the parent club.

In the three seasons with the Dodgers as the parent club, Clinton baseball fans were treated to a sneak peek at the figures that would come to dominate the 1980’s and lead to the last of the glory days for Los Angeles. In just three season of baseball, starting in 1977, 23 players from the Dodgers came through Clinton that would go on to Major League careers among these were some of the biggest names to dawn a Clinton jersey.

Dave Stewart’s 1977 Clinton Dodgers baseball card, in just one year he would reach the Major Leagues.

World Series stand out Dave Stewart made all but one of his starts in 1977 with Clinton before making his Major League debut with the Dodgers in ’78.

In 1979 Clinton appeared to be a team of destiny in the Midwest League. Led by Dave and Steve Sax, Candy Maldonado, and future CY Young Award winner Orel Hershiser, Clinton was home to some of the top prospects in all of baseball. After a disappointing third place finish in the first half, and slow start in the second half, the Clinton Dodgers rattled off 11 straight wins to capture first place. Two weeks later, Clinton clinched a playoff spot with 6–5 extra inning win over Cedar Rapids to match up with the Quad Cities Cubs in the Divisional Series.

The return to the postseason for Clinton began with a 3–0 shutout win in Quad Cities. In a best of three game series, the Clinton Dodgers stood just one win away from advancing to the Midwest League Championship Series with Orel Hershiser taking the ball in game two. In his only loss while pitching in Clinton, Hershiser fell in a tightly contested 3–2 ball game at Riverview Stadium. The series came to an end the following night in Clinton with a 7–5 Quad Cities win. The playoff series was the first between Clinton and Quad Cities and marked the last game in which the Dodgers were the parent club in Clinton.

As was the case in the late 30’s the Giants followed the Dodgers to Clinton in the late 70’s. In advance of the 1980 season, the San Francisco Giants made their way to Clinton for what would become the longest affiliation in Clinton’s franchise history, 15 years.

Still the Giants return to Clinton was not marked by success though the first 11 seasons of affiliation. Four winning years were all the Clinton Giants could lay claim to through the first 11 years without one postseason appearance. The longest playoff draught in franchise history, 11 years, came to an end in 1991 on September 1st with the Clinton Giants 7–2 win over Waterloo.

In the most remarkable season by a Clinton pitcher, Salomon Torres turned in a 1991 campaign that carried Clinton to their first title in nearly 30 years. Over his 210.1 innings pitched, third most for a single season in club history, Torres set the team record for lowest ERA ever posted, 1.41. The success during the year earned Torres both the Midwest League Prospect of the Year Award and Midwest League MVP Award for 1991.

Salomon Torres led Clinton to its last Midwest League championship with one of the best pitching seasons in club history in 1991.

For Clinton, the success of Solomon Torres translated in postseason success. After dropping the Burlington Bees 7–6 in game one in Clinton, Torres took the ball in game two. Over an eight inning start he allowed two runs and struck out eight batters. Torres pitching allowed for the Clinton Giants offensive to arrive late with five unanswered runs for a 5–2 win and two game series sweep that sent Clinton back to the Midwest League Championship Series for the first time since 1964.

The Championship series proved to be more of the same for Clinton who swept the Madison Muskies in three games to take the 1991 Midwest League championship. Torres again factored into the series winner with his second playoff start in game two. He took the ball into the ninth inning, struck out 10 batters, and earned the win in a closely contested 2–1 win, his final start as a Clinton Giant.

Clinton needed to wait only two years before returning to the playoffs and the Midwest League Championship Series. In 1993, Clinton missed a first half playoff berth by finishing four games back of the Springfield Cardinals only to go wire-to-wire in the second half and clinch their postseason appearance over a week before the regular season’s end.

The Clinton Giants handled their first half nemesis Springfield Cardinals without much trouble in the first round meeting. In a best of three game series, Clinton always held the lead beating the Cardinals in both games with 19-year-old Jason Myers earning the win in the decisive second game.

Clinton’s reward for their series sweep was a best of five game match up with the South Bend White Sox. In game one, Clinton squandered two late leads to fall 7–6. Jeff Locklear, in the final home game of the year for Clinton, went the distance in a complete game shutout that netted the Giants a 4–0 win and evened the series at one game apiece.

When the series shifted to South Bend the Giants were out of gas. They fell in both games to drop the Midwest League Championship Series but perhaps the biggest take away from the series occurred in game three. After striking out four of the first five batters that Clinton pitcher Jason Myers faced, both Myers and manager Jack Mull, were ejected following a hit batter. Enraged at the umpiring call, Mull then pulled his team off the field which triggered a shoving match in the Clinton Giants own dugout. The Giants fell 5–2 once play was resumed and dropped the series decisive match the following night 4–1.

The LumberKings became the official name of the Clinton team in 1994, the final year of affiliation with the San Francisco Giants.

The San Francisco Giants affiliation ended the following year in 1994 without another playoff run. In the final season of affiliation with the Giants, Clinton went 57–82 and returned to the cellar for a last place finish. In fact, the biggest take away from the 1994 season was the team’s adoption of the name ‘LumberKings’ which still serves as the team name today.

By 1995, the now, LumberKings welcomed into Clinton their 11th Major League parent club, the San Diego Padres. The Padres, at this time, were just reaching their most successful stretch in franchise history. In 1996 the Padres captured their first NL West division title since 1984 and two years later in 1998 returned to the World Series for just the second time in club history.

Still the success of the parent club did not trickle down to Clinton. Over the four seasons in which the Padres sent their players to Clinton, they went a collective 245–300 with all losing seasons. The LumberKings highest finish during the Padres seasons were back-to-back 10th place finishes in 1996 and 1997.

The Clinton LumberKings clinch a playoff berth during the first half in 2008.

Still in the final year of affiliation, 1998, the LumberKings broke into the playoffs after a poor first half in which they finished 30–40, and nine and half games back of first. A hot start to the second half that included winning eight of their first 12 games set the tone for a second half battle with Cedar Rapids for a wild card spot. On September 6th, the final day of the season, Clinton clinched with a win over Burlington. In a best of three game series, the LumberKings edged out the heavily favored Quad Cities River Bandits with a dramatic 3–2 win in Quad Cities.

The win over their Western Division rival advanced Clinton to face the West Michigan Whitecaps of the Eastern Division, in the then three division Midwest League. Over a two game sweep the LumberKings offense was a no show. After falling 4–1 in game one in Clinton, the Whitecaps shutout the LumberKings 1–0 to advance to the Midwest League Championship Series.

Following the 1998 season, the Padres moved their Single-A club to their current location in Fort Wayne while Clinton began a period of consistent affiliation changes. From 1999 through 2000 the LumberKings became the Single-A home of the Cincinnati Reds farm hands.

Over just two seasons, in which the Reds Single-A team was in Clinton, the LumberKings returned to the playoffs in both years making it three straight playoff appearances for the first time in club history. The first half of Reds baseball prospects in Clinton was a hot one. The LumberKings clinched their playoff appearance in the first half with a 41–27 record to beat out Quad Cities. Unfortunately for Clinton a poor second half, in which the team batting average dropped to the third worst in the league, .255, carried into a best of three games series with the Burlington Bees. In a tightly contested series, the LumberKings fell in the third and decisive game in Clinton due to a ten run offensive explosion by the Bees.

The final season of Reds affiliation in Clinton saw a return to the postseason. For the second time in franchise history Clinton met the Beloit Snappers in the postseason and quickly jumped out to a 1–0 game lead behind a 6–5 win in Clinton. When the series shifted to Beloit, the LumberKings offense went flat. Clinton dropped the next two games scoring just two runs over the final 18 innings of the 2000 season.

Jason Bay bats for the LumberKings during the 2001 season.

After a brief two-year partnership with the Cincinnati Reds the LumberKings again switched affiliation. From 2001 through 2002 the Clinton became the Single-A club of the Montreal Expos. Two things will be most be remembered from the brief Expos LumberKings partnership. One; the teams that came to Clinton struggled mightily. In two seasons of baseball, Clinton finished 112–160 record, finishing in 14th and 11th place, respectively. The second take away from the Expos prospects stay in Clinton was the 2001

Mitch Moreland drove in 99 runs during his 2008 season in Clinton.

team’s top hitter Jason Bay.

Over 87 games in Clinton Bay hit .362 earning a promotion to high-A with the Jupiter Hammerheads in the Florida State League. The average, was the highest by a LumberKing, who qualified, in franchise history and is still just the second time in the team’s history in which a Clinton player won the league’s batting title, the other being Mitch Webster’s 1979 season in which he hit .326.

Stability returned to Clinton with the arrival of the Texas Rangers for the 2003 season. Texas would remain the parent club of the LumberKings for the next six seasons and send 33 of their players that came through Clinton on to the Big Leagues. Jesse Chavez, Ian Kinsler, Edison Volquez, Neftali Feliz, Derek Holland, Mitch Moreland, and Justin Smoak headlined a talented cast of characters that came through Clinton from 2003 through 2008.

The talent on the field with the Rangers led to five straight playoff appearances from 2003 through 2008, the most LumberKings All-Stars in a single season in 2008 with nine, and three straight Divisional Series appearances. While the Rangers version of the Clinton LumberKings never made a Championship Series appearance, Clinton baseball fans, again, saw the foundation of a team that would go on to establish themselves at the Major League level for years to come. Most of the LumberKings top Rangers prospects would go on to make up the core of the back-to-back American League pennants winning teams in 2010 and 2011.

The LumberKings celebrate following their 2016 Western Division Title.

The 2009 season brought in Clinton’s second Seattle based parent club, the Mariners, beginning what would become the team’s second longest affiliation. For ten seasons, the Mariners supplied the players for one of the most successful periods in LumberKings franchise history. Seattle graduated 40 of the players they sent through Clinton to the Major Leagues with more to follow in the years to come. Kyle Seager, James Paxton, Taijuan Walker, James Jones, and Ketel Marte headlined groups that were responsible for four playoff appearances, two Western Division titles, and a 2010 near miss in the Midwest League Championship series.

Taijuan Walker was the Mariners top prospect when he pitched in Clinton in 2009.

The LumberKings made their first playoff appearance as a farm club of the Mariners in 2010. In the first half Clinton was impressive, finishing five games over .500 but missing the playoffs by a wide margin. Relegated to a fifth place finish in the first half, Clinton ended the half six and half games back of the Cedar Rapids Kernels. In the second half, the LumberKings were one game worse, going 37–33, yet clinched a playoff spot to match up with Cedar Rapids in the first round.

In the only game played in Clinton in round one of the 2010 playoffs, the LumberKings fell to the Kernels 3–2 with a late rally falling one run short of a comeback. Still Clinton rebounded when the series shifted to Cedar Rapids to win the next two games and take the best of three game series two games to one. James Jones established himself in the series in game two with a three hit night including two RBIs as the leadoff hitter. Jones would become the key figure in the LumberKings 2010 playoff run.

Following the series win over the Kernels, the LumberKings met the Kane County Cougars to determine the Western Division title and again stumbled out of the gate in game one. Dan Straily of the Cougars combined with Josh Lansford to shutout the LumberKings, 4–0, to take game one before the series moved to Clinton. Following a change in scenery, for the second time in the postseason, Clinton rallied to win the next two games to advance to the Midwest League Championship series. A 13-hit barrage in game two produced a 6–2 win and in the series’ deciding third game Clinton rode a three-run sixth inning to a 4–1 win.

The 2010 playoff run returned Clinton to the Championship Series for the first time since the San Francisco Giants affiliation and run during the 1993 season. The LumberKings met the Lake County Captains in a best of five game series that would go the distance. Following a 9–6 game one loss in Clinton, the LumberKings made history in game two for length of game. Over 18 innings of baseball the LumberKings out lasted the Captains in an 8–7 win that evened the series at one game apiece. The series continued to seesaw when it moved to Eastlake Ohio. The Captains took game three before the LumberKings bested Lake County 3–2 in game four to set up a decisive fifth game. The offense for Clinton though would go no further managing just one run in a 3–1 loss that ended the LumberKings season. Jones three home runs over the 2010 postseason run still ranks as the most playoff home runs hit by a LumberKings in a playoff run, with two of the long balls coming in the Championship series.

From the 2010 run though, the LumberKings would begin a streak of four straight playoff appearances. In 2012, Clinton returned to the Divisional Series following back-to-back extra inning wins over the Beloit Snappers in the first round. The seasons, however, came to end two games letter when they were swept in two games by the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.

For two seasons Clinton failed to make the postseason. In 2014 the team finished 61–77 to end the year tied for 14th but reached new lows in 2015 when the club lost over 90 games to go 46–93. At one point the futility reached impressive heights in 2015 when the team dropped 15 straight games to tie a franchise and league record for consecutive losses.

Given 2015’s struggles not much was expected of a 2016 team that proved to be the polar opposite of its predecessor. From the start of the season till the end, the LumberKings were the best team in the Midwest League. They clinched their playoff spot in the first half with a win over the Kane County Cougars to earn the first half wild card and then picked up the pace in the second half to finish in first. Overall, the 2016 LumberKings won a franchise record 86 games earning a mark of 86–54 that matched them up with the Peoria Chiefs in round one.

The LumberKings regular season success carried into the postseason. In game one Nick Neidert threw seven strong innings and combined with Joey Strain and Matt Walker to shutout the Chiefs in a 4–0 game one win. The series moved to Peoria for game two and Clinton, after taking an early 4–0 lead, held on for a 4–3 win to take the series with the final out being recorded on a play at the plate.

Dimas Ojeda spent two seasons in Clinton, 2017 & 2018, as a prospect in the Mariners Minor League system.

Clinton returned to the divisional series to match up with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. The LumberKings dropped game one in Cedar Rapids before rallying to take the next two contests including a game three extra inning walk-off win (an image of Rayder Ascanio waving Louie’s LumberKings flag may be at the front of LumberKings fans minds from this night).

Unfortunately for Clinton the 2016 playoff magic ran out in the Midwest League Championship series. The LumberKings faced the Great Lakes Loons and pounded out 16 runs in game one in Clinton to coast to a 16–6 win. The offensive outburst proved to be an anomaly for Clinton. Over the next two games of the series, Clinton was shutout falling in consecutive 4–0 decisions. In the fourth game of the series, Clinton failed to stave off elimination despite a come from behind effort that ended with a 9–8 loss.

The Mariners remained the parent club of the LumberKings through the 2017 and 2018 seasons without another return to the postseason. The 2017 campaign for Clinton featured three separate managers and in 2018 what seemed like a sure first half playoff berth was quickly forgotten over a one week collapse with little to cheer for in the second half for the LumberKings faithful.

With the end of the second longest major league affiliation in Clinton’s history, the LumberKings will now be the home of the Miami Marlins Single-A club. While the Marlins are still yet to send a player to Clinton, the talent that is projected to make their way into a LumberKings jersey will be some of the Marlins best. The Mariners have been on the cusp of a playoff appearance for three seasons, and as a result, have spent much of their farm talent to bolster a postseason run that has yet to come. Conversely, Miami has been in tear down mode for the better part of two seasons now and is in the process of acquiring as much young talent as possible. Much of that young talent has yet to play above the Single-A level which could mean that the LumberKings would be a landing spot for some of the talent within the Marlins system.

One thing that is known, is that with the signing of a two-year PDC between the LumberKings and Marlins another era of baseball has begun in Clinton. The Marlins will now become the 16th Major League team to send their players to Clinton with their prospects taking the field in the Midwest League for the first time in 16 years on April 4th when the LumberKings open their 2019 season against the Cougars in Kane County.

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Clinton LumberKings

Class-A Affiliate of the Seattle Mariners & Charter Member of the Midwest League