A look at the history of minor-league baseball in Wilmington
The Wilmington area’s on-again, off-again relationship with minor-league baseball could be back on in the near future.
With news that the Texas Rangers have reached out to the town of Leland about creating a baseball stadium and entertainment complex off U.S. 17, Southeastern North Carolina could return to the fold of America’s pasttime.
PLAY BALL?Texas Rangers considering Leland for minor league baseball stadium, entertainment venue
Here’s a look at baseball’s history in the area, dating back to the 1920s.
Wilmington Pirates
The area’s first foray into minor-league baseball started in 1928, with the Wilmington Pirates.
The Pirates had three versions: 1928-29, 1932-34 and 1946-50 in three different leagues and were affiliated with the Boston Red Sox and Cincinnati Reds over those tenures.
Port City Roosters
Wilmington was a planned two-year stopover in 1995 and 1996 for Charlotte’s Double-A franchise that was shuffled to Nashville, and was supposed to land in Springfield, Missouri, but ended up in Mobile, Alabama.
The Seattle Mariners’ farm club had a pair of losing records while playing at UNCW’s Brooks Field, but local fans got to see future major-league players Jason Varitek, Derek Lowe and Raul Ibanez, among others.
Wilmington Waves
The Dodgers brought their South Atlantic League affiliate to Wilmington for 2001, with original plans to create a stadium plan. Instead, everything fell through after one season at Brooks Field.
While the on-field product wasn’t terrible (they finished 75-63), the team moved to Albany, Georgia, and is now in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Where would a Leland franchise play?
It's likely that Leland would inherit the Down East Wood Ducks or Hickory Crawdads, which are already a Rangers franchises in the state.
Down East plays in the Carolina League, a group of single-A franchises located throughout Virginia and the Carolinas. Teams are located in Fredericksburg, Lynchburg and Salem, Virginia; Kannapolis, Fayetteville, Zebulon and Kinston, North Carolina; and North Augusta, Columbia, Myrtle Beach and Charleston, South Carolina.
Down East plays at Grainger Stadium in Kinston, which was built in 1949 and is one of the oldest active parks in minor league baseball.
Hickory is part of the high-A South Atlantic League, which is split into North and South Divisions. The South includes three teams in North Carolina (Asheville, Hickory and Winston-Salem), as well as Greenville, South Carolina; Rome, Georgia; and Bowling Green, Kentucky. The North Division is Greensboro, N.C.; Aberdeen, Maryland; Wilmington, Delaware; Brooklyn, New York and Poughkeepsie, New York (Hudson Valley).
The Crawdads play at L.P. Frans Stadium, which was built in 1993. They've been a Texas affiliate since 2009.
The Rangers’ other minor-league franchises are located in Frisco, Texas (Double A); Round Rock, Texas (Triple A).
Don’t the Wilmington Sharks count?
Currently, New Hanover County is the home of the Wilmington Sharks, who have played summer collegiate wood-bat baseball in the Coastal Plain League since 1997. That team plays from late May through early August annually at Buck Hardee Field off Carolina Beach Road.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington NC's off-again, on-again history with minor league baseball
