Sacramento was previously represented in the Pacific Coast League by the Solons, a charter member of the league which was founded in 1903. Three different versions of the Solons played in California's capital city in 1903, 1905, from 1909 to 1914, from 1918 to 1960, and from 1974 to 1976. The River Cats have played in the PCL since 2000, including the 2021 season in which it was known as the Triple-A West, and are the only charter city to still host a PCL team.
The River Cats have won five PCL championships. Recently they won the league crown in 2019; previously they won back-to-back in 2007 and 2008. They went on to win the Triple-A National Championship Game in all three seasons. Sacramento also won the PCL title in 2003 and 2004.
History
Following the 1999 season, the Pacific Coast League's Vancouver Canadians were purchased by a group led by Art Savage, moved south to West Sacramento, and renamed the River Cats for the 2000 season. Savage was the majority owner of the team until his death at age 58 in November 2009. His widow, Susan Savage, became majority owner after her husband's death.[3]
In 2016, Mike Piazza became the first and only former River Cats player to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, after earning an 83% vote by the committee. Piazza played three games in Sacramento as part of a 2007 rehab assignment before rejoining the Oakland Athletics.[4][5][6][7]
In conjunction with Major League Baseball's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the River Cats were organized into the Triple-A West.[8] They also entered into a new 10-year Professional Development License agreement to remain the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants through 2030.[9] Sacramento ended the season in fourth place in the Western Division with a 52–65 record.[10] No playoffs were held to determine a league champion; instead, the team with the best regular-season record was declared the winner.[11] However, 10games that had been postponed from the start of the season were reinserted into the schedule as a postseason tournament called the Triple-A Final Stretch in which all 30 Triple-A clubs competed for the highest winning percentage.[11] Sacramento finished the tournament tied for 20th place with a 4–6 record.[12] In 2022, the Triple-A West became known as the Pacific Coast League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.[13]
In August 2022, owner Susan Savage sold a majority interest in the team to the Sacramento Kings.[14]
In April 2024, it was announced that the major-league Oakland Athletics will be moving to Sacramento to play their home games at Sutter Health Park in 2025 and remain there until 2027 before officially moving their franchise to Las Vegas.[15] The River Cats announced that, tentatively, they will remain as well, playing at Sutter Health Park on days when the Athletics are not playing there.[16]
Season-by-season records
Table key
League
The team's final position in the league standings
Division
The team's final position in the divisional standings
GB
Games behind the team that finished in first place in the division that season
‡
Class champions (2000–present)
†
League champions (2000–present)
§
Conference champions (2000–2020)
*
Division champions (2000–2020)
Season-by-season records
Season
League
Regular-season
Postseason
MLB affiliate
Ref.
Record
Win%
League
Division
GB
Record
Win%
Result
2000 *
PCL
90–54
.625
2nd
1st
—
2–3
.400
Won Pacific Conference Southern Division title Lost Pacific Conference title vs. Salt Lake Buzz, 3–2[17]
Raley Field in 2007River Cats at Raley Field in 2007River Cats players in 2007
After arriving at Raley Field in 2000, the River Cats led minor leagues in attendance for nine straight seasons.[48]
In 2015, the team drew 672,354 fans in 72 home games, leading the minor league in total attendance. In 2015, they also drew the second highest attendance per game in the minors with an average of 9,338 fans per game.[49]
For the 2017 season, the team drew 562,237 fans in 70 home games, placing them third in overall attendance for the Pacific Coast League.
The River Cats have won 12 division titles, including back-to-back titles in 2000 and 2001, three years in a row from 2003 to 2005, and six consecutive titles from 2007 to 2012. In 2019, the River Cats snapped a six-year playoff drought by winning the Pacific Northern Division.
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