Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (Class AAA; International League) President/GM Rob Crain is making a bold prediction: he’s guaranteeing 60-degree weather on the April 4 season opener. He’s a brave soul: the long-term Moosic forecast for April 4 calls for a high of 48 degrees, with a chance of rain. “I guarantee that on Opening Day April 4 […]
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RailRiders reach out for community support
After spending a year on the road and working through a rebranding process, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barres RailRiders (Class AAA; International League) are reaching out for what could be crucial in rebuilding the franchise: extensive community support for the team. Now, lots of team run community-outreach programs, but President/GM Rob Crain and crew have crafted a pretty […]
New for 2013: Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders
Goodbye Yankees, hello Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (Class AAA; International League), as the team combines the top two vote-getters in a name-the-team contest into a single brand. It certainly takes a bold hand to create a team identity that combines porcupines and a trolley car — with the end result a trolley-riding porcupine that sometimes dons conductors’ […]
New SWB moniker to be unveiled Nov. 14
The overhaul of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League) is proceeding apace, with a new moniker set to be unveiled Nov. 14 and renovations to PNC Field on schedule. The team had settled on six finalists — Blast, Black Diamond Bears, Fireflies, RailRiders, Porcupines, Trolley Frogs — before leaving things to an open vote […]
Sadak to SWB Yankees; Janus replacement in Wilmington
Award-winning John Sadak is the new voice of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League); he’ll be replaced as the voice of the Wilmington Blue Rocks (High Class A; Carolina League) by Matt Janus. Regular followers of the Ballpark Digest awards know Sadak from our annual recognition of his work as one of the best […]
SWB Yankees invite fans out to sign ballpark beam
Nice offseason promo by the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League): fans are being asked out to the PNC Field construction site to sign a beam to be placed in the ballpark. Fans will see the signatures once it’s put in place in the outfield picnic area. From the Times-Tribune: “This will be the first […]
SWB Yankees to dive right into 2013 season
No pressure here: the new Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League) will begin the 2013 season at a renovated PNC Field on April 4 — the first day of the MiLB season. Normally teams opening a new ballpark open the season on the road to give everyone involved every possible minute to complete their tasks. […]
The Week That Was: July 29
The sad demise of the London Rippers, ballpark changes for 2013 and potential ballpark deals in Hagerstown and Oakland. The most popular stories on Ballpark Digest this past week, as measured by page views. Developer: I can build new A’s ballpark with private financing Rippers pull out of Frontier League; to be replaced by road […]
Boston Rob ready for Yankee challenges
This coming offseason may be the most important one ever for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League), but we’re thinking new president/GM Rob Crain will be up to the challenge. Crain, tapped earlier this month to lead the franchise, certainly has a lot on his plate. First, he’ll need to oversee the re-opening of […]
The Week That Was: July 15
Tampa Bay attendance woes, MLB TV contracts, a new El Paso ballpark and spring training made news this week. The most popular stories of the past seven days on Ballpark Digest, as measured by page views. Selig: Rays attendance is “inexcusable” NBC vying for piece of MLB media-rights pie? El Paso: Let’s sell Cohen Stadium […]
Demolition ending on SWB ballpark; next up is construction
The demoliton of the second level of PNC Field, home of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League), is drawing to a close, with framing for the new suites level set for August. The ballpark is being fundamentally transformed this year: the old steep second deck is almost done, to be replaced by a more […]
Crain new prez/GM of Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees
We hinted at this a few weeks ago: Rob Crain, current AGM of the Omaha Storm Chasers (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League), is the new president/GM of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League). Here’s where we laid the hint about Rob; we’re guessing his high-energy approach will go over well as Scranton/Wilkes-Barre fans prepare for […]