Tri-City Dust Devils

Not to be confused with Tri-City ValleyCats.
Tri-City Dust Devils
Founded in 2001
Pasco, Washington
Team logoCap insignia
Class-level
Current Short-Season A (1979-Present)
Minor league affiliations
League Northwest League (1979-Present)
Division Eastern Division
Major league affiliations
Current San Diego Padres (2015-Present)
Previous
Minor league titles
League titles 1997
Division titles 1997, 1999, 2007, 2009, 2011
Team data
Nickname Tri-City Dust Devils (2001-Present)
Previous names
  • Portland Rockies (1995-2000)
  • Bend Rockies (1992-1994)
  • Bend Bucks (1987-1991)
  • Bend Phillies (1981-1986)
  • Central Oregon Phillies (1979-1980)
Ballpark Gesa Stadium (2001-Present)
Previous parks
Owner(s)/
Operator(s)
 George Brett/Northwest Baseball Ventures
Manager Freddie Ocasio
General manager Derrel Ebert

The Tri-City Dust Devils are a minor league baseball team in Pasco, Washington, United States. The Dust Devils play in the Northwest League and are the Short-Season A farm team of the San Diego Padres. The Devils play their home games at Gesa Stadium. Opened in 1995, the stadium seats 3,654 fans. The Tri-City Dust Devils broadcast their games on Newstalk 870 AM KFLD and on their website.

History

Playing in Bend (1979-1994)

The Dust Devils were founded in 1979 in Bend, Oregon as the Central Oregon Phillies. The team replaced the Bend Timber Hawks who relocated to Medford, Oregon to become the Medford Athletics (now Northern League incarnation of the Vancouver Canadians). The team was renamed three times while based in Bend, Oregon. The name changes were Bend Phillies in 1981, Bend Bucks in 1987 and Bend Rockies in 1992. While based in Bend, the played at Vince Genna Stadium from 1979-1994.

Playing in Portland (1995-2000)

The team relocated to Portland, Oregon in 1995 and became the Portland Rockies. The team replaced an incarnation of the Portland Beavers who relocated to Salt Lake City, Utah where that Triple-A team became the Salt Lake Buzz (later the Stingers and are now known as the Salt Lake Bees) by then-owner Joe Buzas in 1994. Portland was without a baseball team for the first time since 1899. The Portland Rockies logo mimicked the mountain theme of the Colorado Rockies logo, even though Portland is not located in the Rocky Mountains. A rose was added to the team's cap logo to signify city's nickname, the "Rose City".

The team had some success in Portland, including a league championship in 1997. Although few single-A teams play in cities as large as Portland, the Portland Rockies were able to maintain local interest in baseball. The team served an important role for the city, whose demand for a major league team was growing. While based in Portland, the team played at Jeld-Wen Field (then known as Civic Stadium when the team played there) from 1995-2000 and produced future major leaguers such as Chone Figgins, Juan Pierre, Clint Barmes, Brad Hawpe, Jake Westbrook, and Garrett Atkins.

Playing in the Tri-Cities (2001-Present)

With the city's support for the Portland Rockies, Jeld-Wen Field was renovated in 2000, in responds to the return of Triple-A baseball which proved to be the case as the team relocated to Pasco, Washington located in the Tri-Cities in 2001 to make way for the relocation of the Albuquerque Dukes to Portland to become a new incarnation of the Triple-A Beavers. After the relocation, the Portland Rockies were renamed Tri-City Dust Devils.

The team currently plays at Gesa Stadium (formerly Tri-City Stadium from 1994-2004 and Dust Devils Stadium from 2005-2007). The stadium was renamed in 2008, becoming Gesa Stadium in a ten year naming deal with a local financial institution.

The Dust Devils are currently headed up by President Brent Miles and Vice President/General Manager Derrel Ebert. Prior to Ebert taking over as VP/GM in September 2009, Monica Ortega held the position from 2008-2009 as the only female general manager in the Northwest League. The principal owner of the team is Baseball Hall of Fame member George Brett with Brent Miles as a minority owner.[1]

Before the Dust Devils

The Tri-Cities in southeastern Washington, which include Kennewick and Richland along with Pasco, have fielded a number of teams in the Northwest League and its predecessor, the Western International League. The Tri-City Braves were a member of the WIL from 1950 to 1955, when the team became a charter member of the new Northwest League. The Tri-Cities were continually represented through 1974 under various names (Braves 1955-60, 1962; Angels 1961, 1963–64; Atoms 1965-68; A's 1969; Padres 1970-72; Triplets 1973; Ports 1974).

In 1974, the Ports were an independent team and went 27-57 in front of 21,611 fans. The team was managed by owner Carl W. Thompson, Sr. before folding.

The Tri-Cities were without baseball until 1983 when the Tri-Cities Triplets (an homage to the 1973 name) formed, though they only lasted until 1986. The Triplets had relocated from Walla Walla and were an affiliate of the Texas Rangers for the first two years, independent for the final two. They played their home games at Richland High School baseball field, adjacent to the Bomber Bowl football stadium.[2] The team was owned by the Brett brothers in 1986, who sold it that fall to a group headed by the general manager, Mal Fichman. The Triplets relocated to southwestern Idaho for the 1987 season and became the Boise Hawks.

The Tri-Cities was also home to the Tri-City Posse of the independent Western Baseball League from 1995 to 2000. The Posse were founded in 1995 and won the league title in 1999, but they folded in 2000. The Posse was one of the founding members of the Western Baseball League.

Season-by-Season Records

Season-by-Season Records in Portland

Year Record Finish Manager Playoffs
1995 41-34 3rd P.J. Carey
1996 33-43 7th Ron Gideon
1997 44-32 3rd Jim Eppard League Champs
1998 34-42 5th(t) Jim Eppard
1999 39-37 4th Alan Cockrell Lost Playoffs
2000 32-44 8th Billy White

Season By Season Records in the Tri-Cities

Tri-City Dust Devils seasons[3]
Year Wins Losses Win % Result
2001 39 36 .520 2nd Northern Division
2002 40 36 .526 2nd Eastern Division
2003 33 43 .434 3rd Eastern Division
2004 50 36 .526 3rd Eastern Division
2005 36 40 .474 2nd Eastern Division
2006 38 38 .500 2nd Eastern Division
2007 37 39 .487 Eastern Division Champions
2008 36 40 .474 3rd Eastern Division
2009 47 29 .618 Eastern Division Champions
2010 30 46 .395 4th Eastern Division
2011 44 32 .579 Eastern Division Champions

Roster

Tri-City Dust Devils roster
Players Coaches/Other

Pitchers

  • 43 Alex Costanza
  •  9 Aaron Cressley
  • 31 Adrian De Horta
  • 15 Brandon Fry
  • 29 Chris Huffman
  • 45 Logan Jernigan
  • 14 Michael Kelly
  • 38 Elvin Liriano
  • -- Adys Portillo
  • 39 Travis Radke
  • -- Genison Reyes
  • 16 Griffin Russell
  • -- Zack Segovia
  • -- Chris Smith
  • -- Seth Streich
  • 32 Danny Wissmann

Catchers

  • 17 Michael Miller
  • -- Dane Phillips

Infielders

  • -- Chase Jensen
  • 10 Mitchell Morales
  •  6 River Stevens

Outfielders

  •  2 Joseph Epperson
  • 21 Jose Carlos Urena

Manager

Coaches


7-day disabled list
* On San Diego Padres 40-man roster
∞ Reserve list
§ Suspended list
‡ Restricted list
# Rehab assignment
Roster updated April 17, 2015
Transactions
→ More MiLB rosters
→ San Diego Padres minor league players

See also

References

  1. ↑ MILLIKIN, JACK (April 19, 2007). "Miles acquires ownership". Tr-City Herald. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-04-19.
  2. ↑ ballparkreviews.com - Bomber Bowl - Richland, WA - accessed 2011-10-19
  3. ↑ "Tri-City Dust Devils Statistics." The Baseball Cube. Retrieved on 24 July 2009.]

External links