Grand Junction Rockies
Grand Junction Rockies
Founded in 1978
Grand Junction, Colorado
|
|
|
| Class-level |
- Advanced Rookie (1978-1985, 1987-present)
|
| Minor league affiliations |
|
|
| Major league affiliations |
|
|
|
| Name |
- Grand Junction Rockies (2012-future)
- Casper Ghosts (2008-2011)
- Casper Rockies (2001-2007)
- Butte Copper Kings (1978-1985, 1987-2000)
|
| Ballpark |
|
|
| Minor league titles |
|
|
| League titles |
1981 |
|
|
| Division titles |
1981, 1988, 1989 |
|
| Owner(s)/Operated by: |
| Manager: Tony Diaz |
| General Manager: Chris Maxwell |
The Grand Junction Rockies are a minor league baseball team in the Pioneer League based in Grand Junction, Colorado, United States, where they play at Suplizio Field. They are the Advanced-Rookie affiliate of the Colorado Rockies.
Franchise History
The Butte Copper Kings, named for the once-powerful owners of the copper mines of Butte, Montana, began play in the Pioneer League in 1978 as a co-op team with players from the Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers organizations.[1]
Beginning in 1987, the franchise had been operated by Silverbow Baseball Corp. It was sold in 1996 to the Goldklang Group in a move necessary to stem conflict-of-interest issues when Silverbow head Jim McCurdy had taken the position of President of the Pioneer League in 1994.[2] Silverbow had attempted to sell the franchise in 1994 to investors from California, but the deal fell through when it was discovered that the would-be owners had lied about their personal financial backgrounds.[3]
Following the 2000 season, the team relocated to Casper, WY as the Casper Rockies (and renamed to the Ghosts before the 2008 season[4]) and affiliated with Colorado.[5]
On January 13, 2011, Casper Professional Baseball Club, LLC announced the sale of the team to Monfort Investment Group, a group headed by Colorado Rockies General Partners. At the same time it was announced that Tim Ray would become the executive director of the Ghosts; Chris Maxwell and Phil Choler remain as General Manager and Assistant General Manager, respectively.[6]
October 17, 2011 Grand Junction city officials, officially approved a lease agreement to the team, making Suplizio Field home to the newly renamed Grand Junction Rockies. [7]
Team Record
Roster
|
| Players |
Coaches/Other |
|
Pitchers
- 38 Alejandro Barraza
- 31 Russell Brewer
- 32 Matthew Crocker
- 23 Raul Fernandez
- 33 Trevor Gibson
- 36 Alex Gillingham
- 39 Brook Hart
- 17 Jefri Hernandez
- 41 Benjamin Hughes
- 35 Patrick Johnson
- -- Logan Mahon
- 22 Alving Mejias
- 21 Geoff Parker
- 28 Kyle Roliard
- 18 Jonathan Vargas
- 19 Daniel Winkler
- 12 Michael Wolford
|
|
Catchers
- -- Michael Ramirez
- 16 Angel Reyes
- 14 William Swanner
Infielders
- 2 Juan Ciriaco
- 5 Miguel De Leon
- 29 Rosell Herrera
- 30 Harold Riggins
- 4 Jose Rivera
- 1 Yafistel Roja
- 3 Trevor Story
Outfielders
- 24 Robert De La Cruz
- 25 David Kandilas
- 20 Francisco Sosa
- 11 Dillon Thomas
- 9 Carl Thomore
- 27 Julian Yan
|
|
Manager
Coaches
- 47 Craig Bjornson (pitching)
- -- Drew Saylor (hitting)
7-day disabled list
* On Colorado Rockies 40-man roster
∞ Reserve list
§ Suspended list
‡ Restricted list
# Rehab assignment
Roster updated December 14, 2011
Transactions
→ More rosters
|
Notable players
Butte Copper Kings[8], Casper Rockies and Casper Ghosts[9] players who have made appearances on Major League teams:
References
- ^ "Pioneer Adds Butte". The Sporting News: p. 63. February 25, 1978.
- ^ "Copper Kings Have New Owners, Affiliation". bozemandailychronicle.com. Bozeman Daily Chronicle. June 18, 1996. http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/article_d97c6814-a876-5517-958a-3f587ea3a2cb.html. Retrieved June 9, 2011.
- ^ "Jury Rules in Favor of Former Cooper Kings Team Owner". bozemandailychronicle.com. Bozeman Daily Chronicle. October 12, 1996. http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/article_5ce46ec0-5031-57b1-a4d3-68b50a09de64.html. Retrieved June 9, 2011.
- ^ "Casper Ghosts Launch Glow-in-the-Dark Identity". ghostsbaseball.com. Casper Ghosts. October 31, 2007. http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071031&content_id=319205&vkey=pr_t539&fext=.jsp&sid=t539. Retrieved June 9, 2011.
- ^ "Affiliations: Pioneer League". The Official Site of the Pioneer League. Pioneer Baseball League. http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/league3/page.jsp?ymd=20070314&content_id=191585&vkey=league3_l128&fext=.jsp&sid=l128. Retrieved May 9, 2011.
- ^ "Monfort Investment Group Purchases Casper Ghosts". Official Site of the Casper Ghosts. Casper Ghosts. January 13, 2011. http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110113&content_id=16431356&vkey=pr_t539&fext=.jsp&sid=t539. Retrieved June 9, 2011.
- ^ "Grand Junction officials OK Casper Ghosts' move to Colorado". trib.com. Casper Star Tribune. October 17,2011. http://trib.com/sports/baseball/grand-junction-officials-ok-casper-ghosts-move-to-colorado/article_ff8a6a66-bcce-50ff-95d8-6e4d85ff8e63.html.
- ^ "Butte Alumni". thebaseballcube.com. The Baseball Cube. http://www.thebaseballcube.com/leagues/alumni.asp?T=/10121.shtml. Retrieved June 9, 2011.
- ^ "Casper Alumni". thebaseballcube.com. The Baseball Cube. http://www.thebaseballcube.com/leagues/alumni.asp?T=/10497.shtml. Retrieved June 9, 2011.
External links
|
|
|
|
|
|
| The Franchise |
|
|
| Ballparks |
|
|
| Culture |
|
|
| Key Personnel |
|
|
National League
Pennants (1) |
|
|
National League
Wild Cards (3) |
|
|
Minor League
Affiliates |
|
|
|
Seasons (19)
|
|
| 1990s |
|
|
| 2000s |
|
|
| 2010s |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| North Division |
|
|
| South Division |
|
|