Sonoma County Crushers

Last updated
Sonoma County Crushers
SonomaCountyCrushers.png
Minor league affiliations
Previous classesIndependent
League Western Baseball League
Team data
Previous parks
Rohnert Park Stadium

The Sonoma County Crushers were a minor league baseball team located in Rohnert Park, California. They were a member of the independent Western Baseball League, and were not affiliated with any Major League Baseball team.

The team was one of the founding members of the league, beginning play in 1995. They won their first and only league championship in 1998. The team folded with the league after the 2002 season. The Crushers were the only team in the WBL that remained in constant operation through the league's eight years. At one point, former San Francisco Giants outfielder Kevin Mitchell managed the Crushers.

The team played in Rohnert Park Stadium, which was built in 1981 for the California League's now-defunct Redwood Pioneers. The team mascot was Crusher, the Abominable Sonoman , with large purple feet for stomping grapes, in reference to the surrounding Wine Country region.

The team produced one notable professional baseball player in Chad Zerbe, who pitched for the San Francisco Giants from 2000–2003, including three appearances in the 2002 World Series against the Anaheim Angels. He was credited with a win in Game 5.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oakland Athletics</span> Major League Baseball franchise in Oakland, California

The Oakland Athletics are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. The team currently plays its home games at the Oakland Coliseum, with plans to temporarily move to Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, California, for the 2025–2027 seasons, prior to their permanent move to Las Vegas. The nine World Series championships, fifteen pennants, and seventeen division titles that the A's have won throughout their history is the second-highest in the American League after the New York Yankees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Giants</span> Major League Baseball franchise in San Francisco, California, US

The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. Founded in 1883 as the New York Gothams, the team was renamed the New York Giants three years later, eventually relocating from New York City to San Francisco in 1958. The Giants play their home games in Oracle Park in San Francisco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California League</span> Baseball league in California, US

The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganization of the minor leagues. The league temporarily operated for the 2021 season as the Low-A West before reassuming its original moniker in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Candlestick Park</span> Former stadium in San Francisco, California

Candlestick Park was an outdoor stadium on the West Coast of the United States, located in San Francisco's Hunters Point area. The stadium was originally the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 until 1999, after which the Giants moved into Pacific Bell Park in 2000. It was also the home field of the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League from 1971 through 2013. The 49ers moved to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara for the 2014 season. The last event held at Candlestick was a concert by Paul McCartney in August 2014, and the demolition of the stadium was completed in September 2015. As of 2019, the site is planned to be redeveloped into office space.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oracle Park</span> Baseball park in San Francisco, CA, US

Oracle Park is a baseball stadium in the SoMa district of San Francisco, California. Since 2000, it has served as the ballpark of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants. Previously named Pacific Bell Park, SBC Park, and AT&T Park, the stadium's current name was purchased by the Oracle Corporation in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Kent</span> American baseball player (born 1968)

Jeffrey Franklin Kent is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1992–2008 for the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, San Francisco Giants, Houston Astros, and Los Angeles Dodgers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fresno Grizzlies</span> Minor league baseball team

The Fresno Grizzlies are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They are located in Fresno, California, and play their home games at Chukchansi Park, which was opened in 2002 in downtown Fresno. They previously played at Fresno State's Pete Beiden Field from 1998 to 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Seals (PCL)</span> Minor league baseball team

The San Francisco Seals were a minor league baseball team in San Francisco, California, that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 until 1957 before transferring to Phoenix, Arizona. The organization was named for the abundant California sea lion and harbor seal populations in the Bay Area. The 1909, 1922, 1925, and 1928 Seals were recognized as being among the 100 greatest minor league teams of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lefty O'Doul</span> American baseball player and manager (1897-1969)

Francis Joseph "Lefty" O'Doul was an American professional baseball player and manager. Though he spent eleven seasons in Major League Baseball, most notably for the New York Giants and Philadelphia Phillies, he is best known for his career in the Pacific Coast League, where he was a star player and a successful manager. Before and after World War II, O'Doul also

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bay Bridge Series</span> Major League Baseball cross-bay rivalry between the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants

The Bay Bridge Series, or the Battle of the Bay, is a series of baseball games played between—and the rivalry of—Major League Baseball's Oakland Athletics of the American League and San Francisco Giants of the National League. The series takes its name from the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge which links the cities of Oakland and San Francisco. As of 2018, the winner of the annual series retains a trophy fashioned from a piece of the original bridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fresno Giants</span> Minor league baseball team

The Fresno Giants were a minor league baseball team that played in the California League from 1941 to 1988. The team was based in Fresno, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Oeschger</span> American baseball player (1892–1986)

Joseph Carl Oeschger was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Giants, Boston Braves, and Brooklyn Robins from 1914 to 1925. Oeschger is best known for holding the Major League Baseball (MLB) record for the most innings pitched in a single game. In 1920, both Oeschger and Leon Cadore pitched 26 innings for their respective teams in a game that was eventually called a tie due to darkness. After his baseball career ended, Oeschger was a teacher for the San Francisco Board of Education for 27 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sports in the San Francisco Bay Area</span> Overview of sports in the San Francisco Bay Area

The San Francisco Bay Area, which includes the major cities of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, hosts six major league sports franchises, with a major women's sports franchise soon to start play, as well as several other professional and college sports teams, and hosts other sports events.

The 2002 season was the 120th in the history of the San Francisco Giants, the franchise's 45th season in San Francisco, and their third in Pacific Bell Park. The season ended with the Giants winning the National League pennant but losing to the Anaheim Angels in the World Series.

The 1989 San Francisco Giants season was the Giants' 107th season in Major League Baseball, their 32nd season in San Francisco since their move from New York following the 1957 season, and their 30th at Candlestick Park. The Giants finished in first place in the National League West with a record of 92 wins and 70 losses. It was their second division title in three years. The Giants defeated the Chicago Cubs in five games in the NLCS. However, they were swept by their cross-Bay rivals, the Oakland Athletics, in an earthquake-marred World Series.

The 1969 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 7 to October 16, 1969. It included the third Major League Baseball expansion of the decade, with the Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos, San Diego Padres, and Seattle Pilots each beginning play this season. The season was also celebrated as the 100th anniversary of professional baseball, honoring the first professional touring baseball team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings of 1869.

The 1965 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 12 to October 14, 1965. The Los Angeles Dodgers and Minnesota Twins were the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The Dodgers then defeated the Twins in the World Series, four games to three.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giants–Yankees rivalry</span> Major League Baseball rivalry

The Giants–Yankees rivalry is a Major League Baseball rivalry between the San Francisco Giants of the National League and the New York Yankees of the American League. It was particularly intense when both teams not only inhabited New York City but also, for a time, the same ball park. During that era the opportunities for them to meet could only have been in a World Series. Both teams kicked off the first Subway Series between the two leagues in 1921.

References