The Class AA Southern League named Pensacola Blue Wahoos President Bruce Baldwin as the 2012 Jimmy Bragan Executive of the Year and Jacksonville Suns Director of Group Sales January Squyres as the league’s Woman of Excellence. Votes for both awards were received from league general managers. It is the second Southern League Executive of the […]
Tag Archives | southern league
2012 Affiliated Attendance by League
With the Minor League Baseball regular season over, we’ll begin looking at the winners and losers on the attendance front. We’ll start with a look at teams by league, ranked by average attendance. We’ll follow this up with listings of affiliated attendance by average and attendance by total. Summer-collegiate attendance has already been posted, with […]
Jacksonville may honor Bragan with field naming
The Jacksonville City Council is looking at honoring Peter Bragan Sr. by naming the playing field at the Baseball Grounds after the late owner of the Jacksonville Suns (Class AA; Southern League). Bragan, who passed away on July 7 at the age of 89, bought the Suns in 1984 and built the franchise over the years. The City […]
2012 Organization of the Year: Pensacola Blue Wahoos
Forty sellouts, an enthralled fan base and a successful ballpark opening adds up to a very good debut season, making the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Class AA; Southern League) our choice for the 2012 Ballpark Digest Organization of the Year. Starting a ballclub from scratch is a daunting task, but when Quint and Rishy Studer decided […]
Mudcats owners: We’re happy with move to Carolina League
The move to the Carolina League hasn’t impacted the Carolina Mudcats, according to team officials: attendance may be down, but weather played a large part in the decline. In 2010 Mudcats owner Steve Bryant sold his Class AA Southern League franchise to Quint and Rishy Studer, who moved the franchise to Pensacola and purchased the Kinston […]
Biscuits’ Davis to ESPN; Vargas is replacement
Montgomery Biscuits (Class AA; Southern League) broadcaster Joe Davis is joining ESPN in a full-time role, with broadcaster Aaron Vargas replacing him as the Voice of the Biscuits. Vargas, 23, joined the Biscuits for the 2012 season after two years as the Director of Marketing/P.R. for the Florida Collegiate Summer League, and four years as […]
Blue Wahoos break 300K mark in attendance
What a rookie season: the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Class AA; Southern League) broke the 300,000 mark in attendance tonight — the first Southern League team to hit the milestone this season. The Apostolides family of Perdido Bay, Florida, were honored as part of the accomplishment. “To be the first club in the Southern League to reach […]
Stars, Brewers talking PDC renewal
Though the Milwaukee Brewers remain unhappy with the condition of Joe Davis Stadium, GM Doug Melvin was in town to discuss player-development renewal with the Huntsville Stars (Class AA; Southern League). There are only six open affiliations at the Class AA level, and we expect half of them — Binghamton/Mets, Akron/Indians, Jacksonville/Marlins — to renew. So, realistically, there are only two […]
Global Spectrum, SMG vying for Jacksonville ballpark management
Global Spectrum and SMG are vying to manage the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville, home of the Jacksonville Suns (Class AA; Southern League), with the decision generating some controversy. The city wants to sign a contract with Global Spectrum to manage the ballpark, Veterans Memorial Arena and EverBank Field, home of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars. All […]
Brawls and thrown bases: your video update
A Mississippi/Mobile brawl and a second eruption from the Asheville Tourists’ legendary Joe Mikulik is making for some fine, fine video viewing today. You all remember Joe Mikulik, manager of the Asheville Tourists (Low Class A; Sally League), whose first eruption during a game in 2006 made the viral-video rounds. Indeed, it’s one of the best […]
Blue Wahoos, Reds extend PDC for four more years
Totally expected: the Cincinnati Reds and the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Class AA; Southern League) extended their player-development contract for four more years, through 2016. “We have been very extremely impressed with the operation in Pensacola, from the terrific new facility to the first-class treatment of our players by Quint Studer, Bruce Baldwin and their entire […]
The Week That Was: July 22
MiLB history, affiliation shifts, Ebbets Field plans and the return of the Albuquerque Dukes for one night. Here are the most popular stories of the past week on Ballpark Digest, as measured by page views. Pete Rose, hot girlfriend to hit reality TV this fall Webb makes MiLB history: first female league president Could Blue […]
Webb makes MiLB history: first female league president
Lori Webb is the new president of the Class AA Southern League — the first woman to be chosen for a league presidency in the history of Minor League Baseball. Her appointment is effective Aug. 1. Webb becomes the sixth president in the Southern League’s modern era. She joins Sam C. Smith (1964-71), Billy Hitchcock (1971-80), […]