The Birmingham Barons are a Minor League Baseball team based in Birmingham, Alabama. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox and plays at Regions Field in downtown Birmingham. The Barons were previously located in Montgomery, Alabama, and known as the Montgomery Rebels.[2]
| Birmingham Barons | |||||
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| Minor league affiliations | |||||
| Class | Double-A (1946–1961; 1964–1965; 1967–1975; 1981–present) | ||||
| Previous classes |
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| League | Southern League (1972–1975; 1981–present) | ||||
| Division | North Division | ||||
Previous leagues |
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| Major league affiliations | |||||
| Team | Chicago White Sox (1986–present) | ||||
| Previous teams |
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| Minor league titles | |||||
| Dixie Series titles (6) |
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| League titles (13) |
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| Pennants (10) |
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| Division titles (9) |
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| First-half titles (11) |
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| Second-half titles (6) |
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| Team data | |||||
| Name | Birmingham Barons (1981–present) | ||||
Previous names |
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| Colors | Black, red, gray | ||||
| Mascot | Babe Ruff (1992-present) Lillie Mays (2006-present) WickyWood (1981-1992) | ||||
| Ballpark |
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Previous parks |
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Owner(s)/ Operator(s) | Diamond Baseball Holdings[1] | ||||
| General manager | Jonathan Nelson | ||||
| Manager | Sergio Santos | ||||
| Website | milb.com/birmingham | ||||
History
editMost of the professional baseball teams that have played in Birmingham have used the name Barons. The current team began playing in Birmingham in 1981, having previously played in Montgomery, Alabama as the Montgomery Rebels. Like previous Barons teams, they played at Rickwood Field on a full-time basis from 1981 to 1987. Since then, they have only played at Rickwood on special occasions. From 1988 to 2012, the team played at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in the suburb of Hoover, Alabama, where former basketball star Michael Jordan played with the team in 1994. Since 2013, the team plays at Regions Field in the downtown part of Birmingham.
As a result of Major League Baseball's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Barons were organized into the eight-team Double-A South.[3] In 2022, the Double-A South became known as the Southern League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.[4]
In 2023, Diamond Baseball Holdings purchased the team from The Logan Family.[1]
Playoffs and championships
edit- Southern League playoff appearances (17): 1983, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2024
- Southern League championships (7): 1983, 1987, 1989, 1993, 2002, 2013, 2024
- Dixie Series championships (6): 1929, 1931, 1948, 1951, 1958, 1967[5]
Television and radio
editAll Birmingham Barons games are televised live on MiLB.TV.[6] All games are also broadcast on radio on either WJQX 100.5 FM, WJOX-FM 94.5 FM or WJOX-AM 690 AM.[7] Birmingham Barons Hall-of-Fame broadcaster Curt Bloom is the broadcast commentator for both WERC and MiLB.TV and has been the voice of the Barons since 1992.[8]
Roster
edit| Players | Coaches/Other | |||
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Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
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Manager Coaches
60-day injured list
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Notable Barons/A's
edit- Jeff Abbott
- Tim Anderson
- Wilson Álvarez
- Dylan Axelrod
- Wally Backman (manager)
- Sal Bando
- Jason Bere
- Eddie Brinkman (manager)
- Vida Blue
- Britt Burns (pitching coach)
- Mark Buehrle
- Mike Cameron
- Bert Campaneris
- Phil Cavarretta (manager)
- Ron Coomer
- Joe Crede
- Rob Dibble
- Dave Duncan
- Ray Durham
- Darrell Evans
- Scott Eyre
- Rollie Fingers
- Terry Francona (manager)
- Jon Garland
- Brad Goldberg
- Burleigh Grimes
- Sam Hairston (bench coach) (Patriarch of the 3-generation Hairston MLB family)
- Mike Heath (manager)
- Roberto Hernández
- Bo Jackson
- Reggie Jackson
- Bobby Jenks
- Howard Johnson
- Michael Jordan
- Paul Konerko
- Marcel Lachemann
- Rene Lachemann
- Tony La Russa
- Carlos Lee
- Paul Lindblad
- Rube Marquard
- Jack McDowell
- John McNamara (manager)
- Bob Melvin
- Jim Nash
- Blue Moon Odom
- Miguel Olivo
- Magglio Ordóñez
- Jake Peavy
- Rico Petrocelli (manager)
- Jimmy Piersall
- Aaron Poreda
- Johnny Riddle (player/manager)
- Luis Robert
- Aaron Rowand
- Joe Rudi
- Marcus Semien
- Razor Shines (manager)
- Bill Stafford
- Wally Taylor
- Gene Tenace
- Bobby Thigpen
- Frank Thomas
- Pie Traynor
- Robin Ventura
- Omar Vizquel (manager)
- Phil Weintraub
- Bob Wickman
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Reitz, Ian (12 September 2023). "Birmingham Barons sold to new ownership group". WVTM. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
- ^ "1965-1980 Montgomery Rebels - Fun While It Lasted". Fun While It Lasted. November 18, 2017. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
- ^ Mayo, Jonathan (February 12, 2021). "MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues". Major League Baseball. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
- ^ "Historical League Names to Return in 2022". Minor League Baseball. March 16, 2022. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
- ^ O'Neal, Bill (1994), The Southern League: Baseball in Dixie, 1885–1994, Eakin Press, pp. 307–308, ISBN 0890159521
- ^ "MiLB.tv". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved July 28, 2017.
- ^ "Covering the Barons" (PDF). Birmingham Barons Media Guide. Minor League Baseball. p. 108. Retrieved July 28, 2017.
- ^ "Barons Front Office Staff" (PDF). Birmingham Barons Media Guide. Minor League Baseball. p. 105. Retrieved July 28, 2017.