NEW ORLEANS ZEPHYRS

The 'New Orleans Zephyrs' are a minor league baseball team based in Metairie, Louisiana — a suburb of New Orleans. The Zephyrs play in the Pacific Coast League and are Triple-A affiliates of the New York Mets. The Zephyrs play their home games at Zephyr Field.
The Zephyrs joined the PCL after the 1997 season, when the American Association was disbanded. The Zephyrs were one of five clubs from the AA to join the PCL, with three joining the International League. Triple-A baseball was also expanded at that time, concurrent with the expansion of Major League Baseball.
The Zephyrs won the 1998 Pacific Coast League championship and went on to win the Triple-A World Series against Buffalo Bisons, 3-1 . The were also slated to participate in the 2001 championship series with the Tacoma Rainiers, but the season was cancelled in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks, and both teams were named co-champions.
The Zephyrs finished the 2005 season three days before Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, and though Zephyr Field sustained moderate damage ^[1], the team was able to open the 2006 season at home, becoming the first professional team in New Orleans to do so since the hurricane^[2].

Contents

History

Major League Affiliations and Minor League Membership

Current Roster

References

External links

History

The New Orleans Zephyrs started in Kansas City in 1900^[3] before moving to Denver, Colorado in 1955 and then to New Orleans in 1993. After moving to Denver, the Triple-A Bears played in the American Association (1955-1962; 1969-1984) and the Pacific Coast League (1963-1968) until the team name was changed to the Denver Zephyrs in 1985. The Triple-A Bears were affiliated with the New York Yankees at the outset, with Ralph Houk managing many players who would reach the majors and play in the World Series.
The team played at what became known later as Mile High Stadium, but was originally known as ''Bears Stadium'' after the team. This stadium was one of the largest venues in history to host minor league baseball on a routine basis. For many years, the biggest crowds were on July 4th fireworks night, and every year the American Association scheduled the Bears for a home game; crowds of 45,000 and more watched the fireworks game, easily the biggest crowds most of the minor leaguers had ever played before. The Bears name has been used for other sports teams in Denver in the past several years as well.
In the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s, the Bears' repeat opponents were the Wichita Aeros, the Iowa Cubs, the Oklahoma 89ers, the Omaha Royals, and the Tulsa Oilers. Except for the Aeros, who moved to Buffalo, New York in 1984, those teams continued to be regular opponents until the American Association dissociated in 1997. This included the Oilers, who had become the Louisville Redbirds. The Nashville Sounds and Indianapolis Indians were also among the last teams in the American Association.
In the mid-1960s, the Bears included notables such as Cesar Tovar (who later had the distinction of playing all nine positions in one game for the Minnesota Twins) and Ted Uhlaender. The Denver Bears had some good teams from the 1970s to the mid-1980s, producing such players as Tim Wallach, Warren Cromartie, Tim Raines, Graig Nettles, Terry Francona, Pat Rooney, and Bill Gullickson. Billy Martin and Felipe Alou both began their managing careers with the Denver Bears. In 1980, the Bears finished with the 37th best record of all-time (92-44) and won the American Association pennant.
In 1985, the team name was changed to the Denver Zephyrs.
The Zephyrs arrived in New Orleans in 1993, having been forced out of their previous home, in Denver by the expansion Colorado Rockies of the National League. This was the second time the team had been pushed out by a major league team. When the Philadelphia Athletics moved to Kansas City, Missouri, in 1955, the Yankees' Triple-A club, the Kansas City Blues, became the Denver Bears. The Bears later changed their nickname to the Zephyrs. The New Orleans lawyer/business promoter Robert E. Couhig, Jr. led the effort to relocate the team to New Orleans.

Major League Affiliations and Minor League Membership

1949-1951	Boston Braves	American Association
1952-1954	Pittsburgh Pirates	American Association
1955-1958	New York Yankees	American Association
1959	None	American Association
1960-1962	Detroit Tigers	American Association
1963-1964	Milwaukee Braves	Pacific Coast League
1965-1968	Minnesota Twins	Pacific Coast League
1969	Minnesota Twins	American Association
1970-1971	Washington Senators	American Association
1972	Texas Rangers	American Association
1973-1974	Houston Astros	American Association
1975	Chicago White Sox	American Association
1976-1981	Montreal Expos	American Association
1982	Texas Rangers	American Association
1983-1984	Chicago White Sox	American Association
1985-1986	Cincinnati Reds	American Association (Named change to Denver Zephyrs, often referred to as the "Z-Bears")
1986-1996	Milwaukee Brewers	American Association
1997-2005	Houston Astros	American Association (1997), then Pacific Coast League
2005-2006	Washington Nationals	Pacific Coast League
2007-present	New York Mets	Pacific Coast League

Current Roster

''As of August 16, 2007''

'Catchers' ★ ★ ★ 'Infielders' ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 'Outfielders' ★ ★ ★ ★ † ★ ★ † = on 7-day disabled list

'Pitching Staff' ★ ★ ★ † ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ † ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

References

1. http://www.nola.com/sports/t-p/index.ssf?/base/sports-21/113428680576920.xml
2. http://www.zephyrsbaseball.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=355&Itemid=44
3. http://www.sportkc.org/visit_kc/history.htm

External links

★ New Orleans Zephyrs official website

★ New Orleans Zephyrs roster, splits, and sSituational stats