The Lakewood BlueClaws
are a minor league baseball team affiliated with the Philadelphia Phillies. They are based in Lakewood Township, New Jersey. They play in the Class A South Atlantic League. Their home field is FirstEnergy Park. Dusty Wathan will manage the team in 2009.
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JERSEY SHORE BLUECLAWS TICKETS
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History
The BlueClaws moved to Lakewood from
Fayetteville, North Carolina, where they had been known first as the
Fayetteville Generals and later as the
Cape Fear Crocs. Their first season in Lakewood was
2001. The Phillies' previous
South Atlantic League affiliate was based in
Kannapolis, North Carolina, and known as the
Piedmont Boll Weevils
from
1995 to
2000. Prior to that, the team was based in
Spartanburg, South Carolina.
Fan support
Since their arrival in
New Jersey, the BlueClaws have been a success at the gate. In each of their first five seasons, they have averaged over 6,500 fans per game. On
August 26,
2002, in a game against the
Hickory Crawdads which the BlueClaws won 3-0, attendance was a South Atlantic League record 13,003. The BlueClaws have led the South Atlantic League in either average or total attendance every year, and became the fastest team in South Atlantic League history to reach the 2 and 3 million fan attendance mark. They are expected to top 4 million at the end of the 2009 season. This box office success comes in the absence of great success on the field. In their first five seasons, the BlueClaws failed to qualify for the playoffs. Their overall record topped the .500 mark for the first time in
2004.
All told, in their first eight seasons, the BlueClaws have topped 10,000 fans at a game twice, including 10,027 on August 29th, 2008. They have gone over 9,000 fans 13 different times, and have exceeded the 8,000 mark 81 times.
Each season a small but dedicated group of fans choose one person on the BlueClaws to cheer for, and in 2008, these fans developed a particular interest in third baseman Travis "Moose" Mattair. These fans, who call themselves "Mooseketeers" in reference to Mattair's childhood nickname, cheer loudly for both Mattair and the team in general. They are known for displaying homemade signs and jerseys, and their novelty moose hats were a regular fixture at FirstEnergy Park throughout the 2008 season.
Other developments
On
September 1,
2004,
Ryan Howard became the first former BlueClaw to play in the major leagues, playing first base for the Phillies in a 7-2 loss to the
Atlanta Braves at
Citizens Bank Park. He played for the BlueClaws in the
2002 season. In
2005, he was named the National League
Rookie of the Year, and in
2006 he was named the National League
Most Valuable Player. In May 2007, while on the 15-day disabled list, Ryan Howard played two rehab games with the BlueClaws after suffering a hamstring injury. Each game drew over 8,000 fans and helped push the BlueClaws to a new team attendance record for the month of May.
The 2008 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies featured several former BlueClaws on their roster. Former NL MVP Ryan Howard was with the BlueClaws in 2002. World Series MVP Cole Hamels was with Lakewood in 2003, and starting catcher Carlos Ruiz was a member of the original Lakewood BlueClaws roster, in 2001.
One key member of the 2008 Phillies was
Joe Blanton, acquired through a trade with the Oakland Athletics. In exchange the Phillies sent over three minor leaguers, including two former BlueClaws in
Adrian Cardenas (2007) and
Josh Outman (2006).
Recently, the BlueClaws announced via their blog (blog.blueclaws.com) that
Darryl Strawberry would be appearing at FirstEnergy Park to sign autographs on August 1st.
On February 17, 2009, the Lakewood BlueClaws announced that instead of doing just Monday Kids Eat Free presented by ShopRite, they will be doing Kids Eat Free every game of the 2009 season. All children under the age of 12 will be presented with a voucher for a free hot dog, bag of chips, and fountain drink as they enter the gates.
The team offers a post-game fireworks show after every Friday home game, and at the ballpark, and seniors eat free every Tuesday night. Thursday nights are "Thirsty Thursdays," with discounted beverages and live music all night.
During the 2009 season, the Blueclaws announced that the team would adopt a new logo, color scheme, and uniforms. These changes are expected to be made for the 2010 season
Records
Season Records
| Season
| Affiliation
| Manager
| First Half Record
| Second Half Record
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| 2001
| Phillies
| Greg Legg
| 28-42, 7th place North
| 32-37, 5th place North
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| 2002
| Phillies
| Jeff Manto
| 33-36, 6th place North
| 36-34, 5th place North
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| 2003
| Phillies
| Buddy Biancalana
| 22-47, 8th place North
| 35-34, 3rd place North
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| 2004
| Phillies
| P.J. Forbes
| 31-36, 7th place North
| 39-30, 3rd place North
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| 2005
| Phillies
| P.J. Forbes
| 25-45, 6th place North
| 31-38, 7th place North
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| 2006
| Phillies
| Dave Huppert
| 37-32, 4th place North
| 47-23, 1st place North
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| 2007
| Phillies
| Steve Roadcap
| 33-32, 3rd place North
| 36-33, 2nd place North
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| 2008
| Phillies
| Steve Roadcap
| 38-32, 3rd place North
| 42-28, 2nd place North
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Post-Season Records
The Blue Claws won the
2006 South Atlantic League Championship on September 15, first defeating the
Lexington Legends in the Northern division final, two games to none, then defeating the
Augusta GreenJackets in a dramatic 5-0 victory, winning the championship series three games to one.
In 2008, the team finished 80-60, the best record in the South Atlantic League's Northern Division, but did not win the division title in either the first or second halves, and missed the playoffs.
Alumni
- Ezequiel Astacio
- Rod Barajas
- Michael Bourn
- Eude Brito
- Taylor Buchholz
- Carlos Carrasco
- Gavin Floyd
- Greg Golson
- Cole Hamels
- J. A. Happ
- Ryan Howard
- Kyle Kendrick
- Scott Mathieson
- Chris Roberson
- Carlos Ruiz
- Robinson Tejeda
- Shane Victorino
- Randy Wolf
- Tim Worrell
- Mike Zagurski
- Sergio Escolona
Roster
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| Players
| Coaches/Other
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Starting rotation
Bullpen
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| Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
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| Manager
Coaches
† Disabled list
‡ Reserve list
§ Suspended list
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