Lexington Legends

Last updated
Lexington Legends
Lexington Legends.png Lexington Legends cap.png
Team logoCap insignia
Information
League Atlantic League of Professional Baseball  (South Division)
Location Lexington, Kentucky
Ballpark Legends Field (2001–present)
Founded2001
League championships
  • 2001
  • 2018
  • 2019
  • 2021
Division championships
  • 2001
  • 2018
  • 2019
  • 2021
Former name(s)
  • Lexington Legends (2001–2022)
  • Lexington Counter Clocks (2023)
Former league(s) South Atlantic League (2001–2020)
ColorsBlue, green, silver, white
    
OwnershipTemerity Baseball [1]
Manager Gregg Zaun
General ManagerJustin Ferrarella
Website lexingtonlegends.com

The Lexington Legends are an American professional baseball team based in Lexington, Kentucky. They are a member of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a "partner league" of Major League Baseball. [2] [3] The Legends have played their home games at Legends Field since 2001. The team was known as the Lexington Counter Clocks during the 2023 season before reinstating their original name in 2024.

Contents

History

The Class-A Kissimmee Cobras moved from the Florida State League to Lexington following the 2000 season and changed their name to the Lexington Legends. The 2001 season began under manager J. J. Cannon. The team finished their first regular season with 92 wins and 48 losses and first place in the sixteen-team South Atlantic League. In the postseason, the Legends defeated the Hagerstown Suns in the first round and advanced to play the Asheville Tourists in the League Championship Series. However, the series was canceled after the Legends won the first two games due to the September 11 attacks, and the Legends were declared co-champions after having gone up 2–0 before game three was canceled.

Cannon returned to manage in 2002 and led the team to another winning record, but the Legends failed to qualify for the playoffs. Lexington returned to the playoffs in 2003 but was defeated by the Lake County Captains in the first round. In 2004, the Legends finished with a record of 68–72, their first losing record in team history. The following season, the Legends posted an 81–58 regular season record and finished in first place under manager Tim Bogar.

Roger Clemens

On May 31, 2006, Roger Clemens announced that he would come out of retirement to pitch for the Houston Astros for the remainder of the 2006 season. Clemens, planning to keep himself to a strict 60-pitch limit, returned to baseball with the Legends, where his oldest son Koby played. Father and son denied reports that Koby would catch his dad for the return. "He doesn't listen to me," Roger Clemens said. "We'd be shaking each other off and arguing too much." [4] In his first game, Clemens threw 62 pitches, allowed no walks, and only one run while striking out 6 batters in three innings of work with the Legends, who won the game 5–1.

Joe Mikulik incident

The team received national attention again in 2006 following a controversial game against the Asheville Tourists on June 25. In the fifth inning of the game, Tourists manager Joe Mikulik went on an extended tirade after being ejected from the game following an argument with an umpire. The event received coverage on various television programs, including NBC's The Tonight Show , ESPN's Pardon the Interruption and SportsCenter , and MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann . Roger Clemens' appearance as a Legend and Joe Mikulik's meltdown are chronicled in the 2011 documentary film Legendary: When Baseball Came to the Bluegrass.

2021 and beyond

The Lexington Legends were one of the minor league teams that lost MLB affiliation under a new plan by MLB. [5] On February 18, 2021, the team announced that it would be joining the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent MLB Partner league, for the 2021 season. [6]

On October 28, 2022, the team and their ballpark were sold to Nathan and Keri Lyons. [7] [8]

2023 name change

It was announced March 6, 2023, that the team was changing its name to the Lexington Counter Clocks. [9] For that season, their ballpark was known as Counter Clocks Field.[ citation needed ]

2024 sale and name change

It was announced January 25, 2024, that the team had been sold to Temerity Baseball along with several local investors. [1] On February 15, 2024, it was announced the team would be renamed back to the Lexington Legends. [10]

Branding and mascots

Logo of the Counter Clocks (2023) Lexington Counter Clocks logo blue.svg
Logo of the Counter Clocks (2023)

The Legends' mascot from 2001 to 2022 was Big L, a mustachioed baseball player caricature. His best friend was Pee Wee, another team mascot. The team's colors were blue, green, and yellow.

Along with its new name, in 2023 the Lexington Counter Clocks introduced two new mascots: Hoss, a horse that races to the left, and Dinger, a clock swinging a bat. [11] The team's colors are now blue, red, and white.

Along with the name change announced on February 15, 2024, a new mascot was introduced: Mighty Lex, a baseball with arms, legs, and the same mustache worn by past mascot Big L. [10]

Season by season results

Since its inception, the Lexington franchise has played 22 seasons, initially in the South Atlantic League (2001–2019) and later in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (2021–present). As of the completion of the 2022 season, the club had played in 2,886 regular season games and compiled a record of 1,400–1,486 for a .485 winning percentage. The team postseason record was 19–8.

League Champions
Post-season Berth
SeasonManagerRecord [a] Win %League [b] Division [c] GB [d] Post-season record [e] Post-season win %ResultMLB/League affiliate
2001
Joe Cannon 92–48.6571st1st4–01.000Won division series vs Hagerstown Suns, 2–0
Led Asheville Tourists 2–0 in League Championship Series
Declared Co-League Champions [f]
Houston
2002 Joe Cannon 81–59.5792nd2nd Houston
2003
Russ Nixon 75–63.5437th2nd250–2.000Lost division series vs Lake County Captains, 0–2 Houston
2004 Iván DeJesús 68–72.48610th7th17 Houston
2005 Tim Bogar 81–58.5831st1st Houston
2006
Jack Lind 75–63.5435th3rd0–2.000Lost division series vs Lakewood BlueClaws, 0–2 Houston
2007Gregg Langbehn59–81.42113th7th25 Houston
2008Gregg Langbehn45–93.32616th8th34 Houston
2009 Tom Lawless 68–72.4869th5th Houston
2010Rodney Linares71–68.5116th4th Houston
2011Rodney Linares59–79.42812th6th19½ Houston
2012 Iván DeJesús 69–69.5007th4th18 Houston
2013 Brian Buchanan 68–70.4938th6th/4th9.5/10 Kansas City
2014 Brian Buchanan 57–83.40711th6th/6th17/20.5 Kansas City
2015Omar Ramirez58–80.42012th6th26.5 Kansas City
2016Omar Ramirez52–87.37413th7th Kansas City
2017 Scott Thorman 62–75.45312th6th16 Kansas City
2018
Scott Thorman 76–60.5592nd1st-5–1.833Won division series vs Rome Braves 2–0
Won League Championship Series vs Lakewood BlueClaws 3–1
League Champions
Kansas City
2019
Brooks Conrad 68–70.4937th3rd95–1.833Won division series vs Augusta Greenjackets 2–0
Won League Championship Series vs Hickory Crawdads 3–1
League Champions
Kansas City
2020Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021
P. J. Phillips 60–60.5004th2nd4.55–2.714Won division series vs Charleston Dirty Birds 2–1
Won League Championship Series vs Long Island Ducks 3–1
League Champions
Atlantic League of Professional Baseball
2022P. J. Phillips56–76.4247th4th32 Atlantic League of Professional Baseball
2023Barry Lyons49-75.43959th5th29 Atlantic League of Professional Baseball

Notes

Roster

Active (25-man) rosterCoaches/Other

Pitchers

  • 31 Aldry Acosta
  • 27 Jose Acuna
  • 11 Dustin Beggs
  • 34 Parker Bugg Injury icon 2.svg
  • 25 Osiris German
  • 32 Nic Laio Injury icon 2.svg
  • 33 Alex MacKinnon
  • 36 Carlos Martinez
  • 28 Cristofer Mezquita
  • 20 Justin Miller
  • 22 Juan Pichardo
  •  6 Matt Reitz
  • 18 Javier Reynoso
  • 26 Joe Joe Rodriguez
  • 29 Raymells Rosa



 

Catchers

  • 16 Kole Cottam
  • 30 Luis Hernandez
  • 19 Keenan OBrien

Infielders

  •  3 Matt Bottcher
  •  7 Osmy Gregorio
  •  8 Gabe Howell
  •  4 Drew Jemison
  • 24 Gavin Johns
  • 13 Jesus Tavarez

Outfielders

 

Manager

Coaches

Injury icon 2.svg Disabled list
‡ Inactive list
§ Suspended list

Roster  updated June 16, 2024
Transactions

Lexington Legends Hall of Fame

The Lexington Legends honored ten past members of the organization by inducting them into the Lexington Legends Hall of Fame. [12] These individuals are:

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References

General
Specific
  1. 1 2 Hale, Jon (January 25, 2024). "Goodbye Counter Clocks. Under new owner, Lexington's baseball team changing name again" . Lexington Herald-Leader . Archived from the original on January 26, 2024. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  2. Reichard, Kevin (September 23, 2020). "Indy Atlantic League designated MLB Partner League". Ballpark Digest. August Publishing. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
  3. Reichard, Kevin (September 24, 2020). "American Association, Frontier League now MLB Partner Leagues". Ballpark Digest. August Publishing. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
  4. Bailey, Rick. "Pitch and catch at the park, Clemens style FATHER, SON 'GET AT IT' IN 90-MINUTE SESSION". Lexington Herald-Leader . Retrieved June 2, 2006.[ permanent dead link ]
  5. "Lexington Legends part of proposed downsizing" . Lexington Herald-Leader . November 17, 2019. Archived from the original on November 18, 2019. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  6. "Legends join the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball". The Lane Report. February 18, 2021. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  7. "Nashville developer acquires Lexington Legends, Wild Health Field". WLEX-TV . October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  8. Geoghegan, Zack (October 28, 2022). "Lexington Legends, Wild Health Field sold to Nashville developer". Kentucky Sports Radio . Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  9. "New for 2023: Lexington Counter Clocks". Ballpark Digest. August Publications. March 6, 2023. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  10. 1 2 Hale, Jon (February 15, 2024). "The Lexington Legends are back with a new mascot for the 2024 Atlantic League season" . Lexington Herald-Leader . Archived from the original on February 16, 2024. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  11. "We're the Lexington Counter Clocks". Lexington Counter Clocks. March 6, 2023. Archived from the original on September 23, 2023. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  12. "Legends Hall Of Fame | Lexington Legends History". Minor League Baseball. Archived from the original on March 11, 2016. Retrieved September 11, 2010.