The New Britain Rock Cats
are a minor league baseball team based in New Britain, Connecticut. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins major-league club. The Rock Cats play in New Britain Stadium.
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NEW BRITAIN ROCK CATS TICKETS
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History
The franchise's timeline can be traced back to
Pittsfield, Massachusetts, which was the home of the Red Sox' Double-A affiliate from 1965 to 1969. The franchise then moved to
Pawtucket, Rhode Island, in 1970, and spent three years in the Ocean State. When the
Pawtucket Red Sox became a Triple-A team in 1973, the Sox moved their double-A franchise to
Bristol, Connecticut. Known as the
Bristol Red Sox
, the team played at
Muzzy Field
for ten seasons from 1973 to 1982. Starting with the
1983 season, owner Joe Buzas moved the team some 10 miles east to New Britain. Then known as the
New Britain Red Sox
, the team played its home games at
Beehive Field
, which is still standing next to the current stadium.
As Beehive Field became outdated and new facilities began to pop up in other cities around the league, Buzas was faced with the choice of staying in New Britain and building a new stadium, versus moving the franchise again. The Red Sox front office, led by Dan Duquette supported the idea of moving to
Springfield, Massachusetts, because it was closer to their fan base and closer to the Western Mass home of Duquette, but ultimately in August
1994, Buzas decided to stay. The Red Sox promptly pulled their affiliation, and moved it to
Trenton, New Jersey (ironically, farther away from the fan base). For the
1995 season, Buzas, who owned the Salt Lake Buzz (Minnesota AAA) signed a new development agreement with the Minnesota Twins, and this affiliation has continued since. During the 1995 season (their only season in Beehive Field), the team was known as the
Hardware City Rock Cats
, a reference to New Britain's nickname "The Hardware City". The current ballpark, New Britain Stadium, opened in 1996. The team name changed to the current "New Britain" Rock Cats in 1997.
Stanley Works continues to be a significant sponsor of the team and ballpark.
During
2003 and
2004, the team was involved in several lawsuits over its Friday night
fireworks displays. A group of residents living near the stadium claimed the noise was disruptive, and the ash and debris damaged their cars and homes. In May
2005, Judge Marshall Berger allowed the shows to continue after attending one himself, but ruled that their frequency should be scaled back. The team is currently limited to only one show a month (generally held on the first Friday home game), and has added
laser-light shows and other "quiet" promotions to replace the missing fireworks.
On July 12, 2008, the Rock Cats established a franchise record for single game attendance. The crowd of 8,115 marked the first time the 8,000 mark was surpassed for a game at New Britain Stadium. This record was broken on June 27, 2009 with a crowd of 8,212.
Roster
Notable alumni
- Third baseman Todd Walker (1995)
- Outfielder Torii Hunter (1996-98)
- Designated hitter David Ortiz (1997 and brief rehab in 2001)
- First baseman Doug Mientkiewicz (1997-98)
- Catcher A.J. Pierzynski (1998 and 2000)
- Outfielder Michael Cuddyer (2000-2001)
- Pitcher Juan Rincón (2000-2001)
- First baseman Justin Morneau (2001-2003)
- Catcher Joe Mauer (2003)
- Pitcher Francisco Liriano (2004-2005)
- Pitcher Pat Neshek (2003-2005)
- Third baseman Corey Koskie (1997)
Season records
| Season
| Manager
| W-L
| Win %
| Finish
| Playoffs
| Results
|
| 1995
| Sal Butera
| 65-77
| .458
| 5th
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| 1996
| Al Newman
| 61-81
| .430
| 5th
|
|
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| 1997
| Al Newman
| 70-72
| .493
| 3rd
|
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| 1998
| John Russell
| 83-59
| .585
| 1st
| Won Semifinals
Lost League Championship Series
| New Britain 3, Binghamton 1
Harrisburg 3, New Britain 1
|
| 1999
| John Russell
| 59-82
| .418
| 5th
|
|
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| 2000
| John Russell
| 51-91
| .359
| 6th
|
|
|
| 2001
| Stan Cliburn
| 87-55
| .613
| 1st
| Won Semifinals
League Championship Series Cancelled
1
| New Britain 3, Norwich 1
New Britain 0, Reading 0
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| 2002
| Stan Cliburn
| 67-72
| .482
| 4th
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|
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| 2003
| Stan Cliburn
| 73-68
| .518
| 2nd
| Lost Semifinals
| New Haven 3, New Britain 2
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| 2004
| Stan Cliburn
| 70-70
| .500
| 3rd
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| 2005
| Stan Cliburn
| 70-71
| .496
| 4th
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| 2006
| Riccardo Ingram
| 64-78
| .451
| 6th
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| 2007
| Riccardo Ingram
| 69-72
| .489
| 4th
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| 2008
| Bobby Cuellar
| 64-77
| .454
| 5th
|
|
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| 2009
| Tom Nieto
| 65-61
| .516
| 2nd
|
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12001 League Championship was canceled due to the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Mascots
Game Mascots
:
- Rocky the Rock Cat (main mascot)
- Rookie the Rock Cat (Rocky's nephew)
- Sandy the Lion
- Blooper the Walrus
- Toner the Advance Copy's Copy Cat
- Peanut the Elephant
- Baldy the Eagle
- South Paw the Inflatable Dog
Sponsored Inning Mascots
:
- The Dunkin' Donuts Trio - Coffee, Iced Coffee, and Donut
Trivia
- Rock Cats radio play-by-play voice Jeff Dooley is the brother-in-law of Boston Red Sox TV play-by-play man Don Orsillo.
- Employees play a variety of sponsored characters during games, including the Dunkin' Donuts Race inspired by the Sausage Race made famous by the Milwaukee Brewers