| Madison Mallards | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| League | Northwoods League (Great Lakes West 2019–present) (South Division 2001–2018) |
| Location | Madison, Wisconsin |
| Ballpark | Warner Park |
| Founded | 2001 |
| League championships | 2 (2004, 2013) |
| Division championships | 4 (2004, 2005, 2008, 2013) |
| Colors | Blue, Yellow, Green, Tan |
| Ownership | Steve Schmitt |
| Management | President: Vern Stenman General Manager: Samantha Rubin |
| Manager | Donnie Scott |
| Media | Wisconsin State Journal WOZN/WRIS-FM |
| Website | MallardsBaseball.com |
The Madison Mallards are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Madison, Wisconsin that plays in the Northwoods League. Warner Park on Madison's Northside is the team's home field.
The history of minor league baseball in Madison begins with the early success of the Madison Muskies. A Midwest League Oakland A's affiliate, the Muskies were competitive and gained a healthy following in the years following their 1982 origins. By 1993 the crowds had declined and the Muskies became less profitable. [1]
In 1994 the Muskies were replaced for a single season by the St Louis affiliate, Madison Hatters. 1996 began the five-year stint of the independent Madison Black Wolf, but once again low attendance and little interest plagued the team and they were forced to move to a more profitable community. [2]
In 2001, area businessman Steve Schmitt introduced the Madison Mallards to Warner Park. The Mallards joined the Northwoods League, which features amateur college players playing summer ball during their off-season. [3]
On October 17, 2019, the pro shop had significant damage done to it by a suspicious fire and the police investigated it as arson. There was an estimated $150,000 in damages. [4]
The Mallards made it to the playoffs in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2013, 2015, 2016, and 2021. They have made four Northwoods League Championship Series appearances, which resulted in runner-up finishes in 2005 and 2008. They won the Northwoods League championship in 2004 and 2013. [5]
In 2014, the Mallards ownership group created Big Top Baseball. Big Top Baseball was a leader in summer collegiate baseball, operating four Northwoods League franchises in the state of Wisconsin at the time. Big Top Baseball owns and operates the Madison Mallards and Kenosha Kingfish and formerly owned the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters and Green Bay Bullfrogs, which were sold off during the COVID-19 pandemic. [6]
Warner Park, built in 1982, currently seats 6,750 people. [7]
The playing surface of the field is mainly grass, and the dimensions from home plate are 308 1/3 feet to left field, 380 feet to center field, and 290 2/3 feet to right field. The 440-square-foot scoreboard, installed in 2013, is located in left-center field. 14 flat-screen televisions can be found throughout the stadium. There is a children's playground and picnic seating close to the foul lines in left field.
The Mallards routinely lead the nation in attendance among collegiate summer baseball teams, averaging over 6,308 fans per game in 2017 and 6,249 in 2018. [8] [9]
The club offers a promotion called the Duck Blind, a group of seats in right field that cost up to $41 and include unlimited food, soda, and beer. [10] In 2018, the Duck Blind underwent a $1 million renovation. [11]
The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not paid, so as to maintain their college eligibility. Graduated senior pitchers are also eligible to play in the Northwoods League. Each team may have four of these players at a time.
The La Crosse Loggers are a La Crosse, Wisconsin based baseball team playing in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. Since the team's inaugural season in 2003, they have played at Copeland Park. The ballpark is nicknamed "the Lumberyard."
The Thunder Bay Border Cats are a baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. The league's only Canadian team, their home games are played at Port Arthur Stadium in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Warner Park is a municipal park and ballpark on the northeast side of Madison, Wisconsin near Lake Mendota.
The Madison Hatters were a minor-league baseball team based in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1994. A Class A minor league baseball affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, they were a member of the Midwest League. The team played its home games at Warner Park.
The Madison Muskies were a Class A minor league baseball team that played in the Midwest League from 1982 to 1993 in Madison, Wisconsin. In 1993, the team relocated to Comstock Park, Michigan and became today's West Michigan Whitecaps. The Muskies were an affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. The team, which was founded by former Rochester Red Wing GM and announcer of professional baseball's longest game Bob Drew and Linda Drew played at Breese Stevens Field and Warner Park.
Breese Stevens Municipal Athletic Field is a multi-purpose stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. Located eight blocks northeast of the Wisconsin State Capitol on the Madison Isthmus, it is the oldest extant masonry grandstand in Wisconsin.
Athletic Park is a baseball stadium located in Wausau, Wisconsin. It is the home field of the Wausau Woodchucks baseball team of the summer collegiate Northwoods League. It hosted Wausau Minor League teams during 36 seasons between 1936-1990.
The Green Bay Rockers are a baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. The team joined the league as the Bullfrogs as an expansion franchise for the 2007 season along with the Battle Creek Bombers. Before the 2019 season, the Bullfrogs were renamed the Booyah, moved from their original stadium of Joannes Stadium to Capital Credit Union Park, and switched divisions from the Northwoods League South Division to the Great Lakes West Division.
The Battle Creek Battle Jacks are a baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. All players on the team must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. Their home games are played at the C.O. Brown Stadium in Battle Creek, Michigan. Their name refers variously to a previous Battle Creek baseball team, the Michigan Battle Cats, to Apple Jacks manufactured by Battle Creek-based Kellogg's, and to a "Jack of All Trades" as someone with multiple skills. Also, a "jack" is another term for a home run, and Cracker Jacks are often eaten by baseball fans during the game.
The Lakeshore Chinooks are a baseball team based in Mequon, Wisconsin, United States and a member of the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. The Chinooks play their home games at Kapco Park on the campus of Concordia University Wisconsin.
Corbett Field is a baseball park in the north central United States in Minot, North Dakota. Located east of downtown and south of the Roosevelt Park Zoo, it was designed by Minot architect Ira Rush and built between 1935 and 1937 through the Federal Emergency Relief Administration. The Minot Park Board began improvements on the ballpark in 1947, including a roof on the grandstand and field lights. It was named after local dentist Victor Corbett, the president of the park board during that time.
The Kenosha Kingfish are a baseball team that plays in the collegiate summer Northwoods League. Based in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the Kingfish play their home games at Simmons Field.
The Kalamazoo Growlers are a baseball team based in Kalamazoo, Michigan, that plays in the Northwoods League, a summer collegiate baseball league. The Growlers were founded in 2013 and played their first game on May 28, 2014, losing to the then defending league champion Madison Mallards 6-2. The Growlers played their first home game on May 30, 2014, beating the Battle Creek Bombers 13-3. The team plays its home games at Homer Stryker Field.
Kokomo Municipal Stadium is a baseball stadium in Kokomo, Indiana, United States. The Kokomo Jackrabbits of the college summer Northwoods League, and the Kokomo Wildkats use Kokomo Municipal Stadium as their home field. Other local high school baseball teams including the Taylor Titans, Northwestern Tigers, and the Western Panthers use the Kokomo Municipal Stadium for a portion of their games. Upon opening in 2015, Kokomo Municipal Stadium had a capacity of up to 4,000 in a combination of fixed and lawn seating. In May 2016, the Kokomo Mantis FC of the Premier Development League called the stadium home.
The Kokomo Jackrabbits are a college summer baseball team based in Kokomo, Indiana. They are a member of the summer collegiate Northwoods League, beginning with the 2019 season. Previously, the team played in the Prospect League. The Jackrabbits play at the 4,000-seat Kokomo Municipal Stadium in downtown Kokomo.
The Rockford Rivets are a baseball team in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. The league's only team based in Illinois, their home games are played at Rivets Stadium in Loves Park.
The Fond du Lac Dock Spiders are a baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League. Based in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, the Dock Spiders play their home games at Herr-Baker Field on the campus of Marian University. The Dock Spiders won the 2018 Northwoods League Championship and 2020 Northwoods League Wisconsin-Illinois Pod Championship.
Capital Credit Union Park is a multi-purpose stadium in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, a suburb of Green Bay. The stadium is home to the Green Bay Rockers of the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league; the Green Bay Voyageurs FC of USL League Two; and a variety of community athletic and social events. The Voyageurs christened the stadium with a 3–0 win over WSA Winnipeg on the morning of June 1, 2019 in a game postponed a day by rain. Later that day, the baseball team, then named the Green Bay Booyah, lost their inaugural home opener 12–6 to the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters.
Baker Field at Bill Taunton Stadium is a baseball stadium in Willmar, Minnesota that is home to the Willmar Stingers of the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. Bill Taunton Stadium is also home to Willmar High School baseball, Ridgewater College baseball, two local VFW teams, and an American Legion team. The stadium annually hosts a kickball game between the Willmar Stingers and teachers at nearby Roosevelt Elementary on the last day of school. In 2010, the stadium hosted the Minnesota State Amateur Baseball Tournament.
