Lehigh Valley IronPigs
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| Lehigh Valley IronPigs | ||
| ||
| League | International League | |
| Division | North Division | |
| Year founded | 1993 | |
| Major League affiliation | Philadelphia Phillies | |
| Home ballpark | Lehigh County Ballpark | |
| Previous home ballparks | Lynx Stadium | |
| City | Allentown, Pennsylvania | |
| Current uniform colors | ||
| Previous uniform colors | black, red | |
| Logo design | ||
| Division titles | ||
| League titles | 1995 | |
| Manager | ||
| Owner | Joseph Finley, Craig Stein | |
The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are a new Minor League Baseball team, serving as the AAA affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They will begin playing their home games at Lehigh County Ballpark, in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in April 2008. Currently they are operating as the Ottawa Lynx in Ottawa, Ontario.
The name is a reference to pig iron, used in the manufacturing of steel, for which the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania is world renowned.
[edit] History
Before the IronPigs called the Lehigh Valley home, the region was home to a couple of independent baseball teams: the Allentown Ambassadors of the Northeast League and the Lehigh Valley Black Diamonds of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. The Ambassadors played at Bicentennial Park in Allentown until the team was disbanded in 2003. The Black Diamonds moved from Newburgh, New York in 2000 and expected to move into a new ballpark near Easton, until that project ran into some hurdles and ultimately was terminated. During the time the Black Diamonds waited for their new stadium, they played as a traveling team. The team assumed the name of the Pennsylvania Road Warriors when the ballpark was deconstructed and all chances to play in the Lehigh Valley were lost.
Since 2003, Joseph Finley and Craig Stein have been actively pursuing their interest in bringing affilitated baseball to the city of Allentown. Initially, the duo pursued a single-A franchise when the Ottawa Lynx were rumored to be moving to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. When the city of Harrisburg decided not to fund the effort to upgrade Commerce Bank Park to AAA standards, the Baltimore Orioles shifted their interest to Allentown. In 2005 and 2006, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Washington Nationals, and the Baltimore Orioles shifted their Minor League affiliates with the Columbus Clippers joining the Nationals, the Norfolk Tides joining the Orioles, and the Ottawa Lynx joining the Phillies. With declining attendance in Ottawa and its distance from the Mid Atlantic, the Orioles and the Phillies both desired to move the team to Allentown.
In 2008, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs will play their inaugural season at Lehigh County Ballpark in Allentown. The move of the Phillies AAA affiliate to Allentown has been extremely well received, since the Allentown region is comprised of enthusiastic Phillies fans and because the move to Allentown will permit Phillies players to rehab in Allentown without significant transportation time (Allentown is a mere 60 miles north of Philadelphia).
| Philadelphia Phillies Franchise | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| AAA | AA | A | Rookie |
| Ottawa Lynx | Reading Phillies | Clearwater Threshers Lakewood BlueClaws Williamsport Crosscutters | Gulf Coast Phillies |
