York Revolution | |||||
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Information | |||||
League | Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (North Division) | ||||
Location | York, Pennsylvania | ||||
Ballpark | WellSpan Park | ||||
Founded | 2006 | ||||
Nickname(s) | The Revs | ||||
Division championships | (4) 2010, 2011, 2017, 2024 | ||||
Atlantic League championships | (4) 2010, 2011, 2017, 2024 | ||||
Colors | Navy blue, gold, white, silver | ||||
Mascot | DownTown | ||||
Retired numbers | 42, 8, 35, 5 | ||||
Ownership | York Professional Baseball Club LLC | ||||
Manager | Rick Forney | ||||
General Manager | John Gibson | ||||
President | Eric Menzer | ||||
Media | WOYK 1350AM York Daily Record York Dispatch | ||||
Website | www |
The York Revolution is an American professional minor-league baseball team based in York, Pennsylvania. It is a member of the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent "partner league" of Major League Baseball. [1] [2] The Revolution plays its home games at WellSpan Park, which opened in the surrounding Arch Street neighborhood in 2007. The team has won the league championship four times, most recently over the Charleston Dirty Birds on September 27, 2024. [3]
Before the Revolution's inaugural season, baseball fans in York had waited almost four decades for the return of professional baseball to their city.
In 2012, the Revolution franchise/team introduced a new brand and logo to also emphasize York's contributions to American history in the Industrial Revolution of the early 19th century, with a secondary emphasis on patriotism. The southeast Pennsylvania region is home to many industrial manufacturers such as Harley-Davidson, Stauffer's, and York International/Johnson Controls. [4]
The York White Roses (known as the York Pirates in their last two seasons of existence, because of their affiliation then with Major League Baseball's Pittsburgh Pirates), played for 85 years in York from 1884 to 1969. The White Roses were bitter rivals of the Lancaster Red Roses baseball team of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, county seat and largest town in adjacent Lancaster County to the east. Both teams were named after the two warring 15th-century royal houses and political factions from the historic cities of York and Lancaster in the Kingdom of England's 32-years-long civil war in the Wars of the Roses (1455–1487).
York tried for ten years to bring professional baseball back to the city. The process looked promising in 2003, until politics halted the project. The new baseball stadium was to be located at the Small Athletic Field, on York City School District property, but the district school board voted negatively as they did not believe the ballpark would be the best use of district money and land. For three years, political and financial discussions continued to delay the project. A new site for the stadium was agreed upon in the Arch Street neighborhood, and that plan was successful. Other sites that were considered but not chosen included Hoffman Field and the Ohio Blenders of PA, Inc.
In April 2006, the American minor league Atlantic League of Professional Baseball formally announced an expansion team for the city of York. [5] One of the prominent members of the team's ownership group was Brooks Robinson, a Golden Glove award-winner, All-Star, and World Series champion third-baseman who played briefly with the minor league old York White Roses and later further south in the Major Leagues with the Baltimore Orioles of the American League from 1955 to 1977. In addition to Robinson memorials erected at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in southwest Downtown Baltimore, a statue of Robinson was erected and dedicated in York in the area outside the Arch Street stadium entrance named Brooks Robinson Plaza in his honor. [6] Robinson died in 2023. [7]
The Revolution's inaugural season saw the team finish third in the South Division with a record of 58–68. Their fortunes changed quickly, however, with 2008 bringing a first-place finish in the newly named Freedom Division and the franchise's first trip to the playoffs. The Revs were ousted early in the 2008 playoffs, but were back in 2010 when they won the Atlantic League championship, the first professional baseball title the city had won since the 1969 York Pirates of the Eastern League. [8] The Revs took home the trophy again the next season in 2011, winning back-to-back championships and becoming just the second team in league history to accomplish the feat. They returned to the playoffs for a third straight season in 2012, but lost in the opening round.
In the 2009 preseason, the Revolution joined the two other Atlantic League teams[ who? ] in holding their spring training at home instead of the traditional site in Lakeland, Florida.[ citation needed ] The respective ownership groups of the three teams[ who? ] made this decision to cut costs during the 2007–2008 financial crisis and the Great Recession.[ citation needed ]
On March 24, 2014, the Revolution became the first professional baseball team to accept Bitcoins as a form of payment for ticket purchases. [9]
The Revolution hosted the 2011 Atlantic League All-Star Game at the four-year-old WellSpan Park on Arch Street on July 14, 2011. Seven Revs players were named to the All-Star team in addition to manager Andy Etchenbarren (former longtime player with the Baltimore Orioles), who skippered the Freedom Division. In front of a sellout crowd, two of those Revolution players, Corey Thurman and Val Majewski, helped to lead the Freedom Division to a 7–0 shutout over the Liberty Division. Thurman started the game, throwing two shutout innings and Majewski hit a solo homerun over the right field wall to start the scoring. Michael Hernandez of the Somerset Patriots ended up taking home the game's MVP award with a solo blast of his own and an RBI triple in the seventh inning. [10] Prior to the game, Val Majewski participated in the home run derby and was a member of the winning team. The first pitch of the Atlantic League All-Star Game was thrown out by former local Dover High School and later National Football League Green Bay Packer player John Kuhn. [11]
The Revolution again hosted the Atlantic League All-Star Game at WellSpan Park eight years later in July 2019. [12]
From 2007 to 2010, the York Revolution's team colors were navy blue, red, white, brass, and silver. The original brand focused exclusively on patriotic symbols such as the United States flag and the bald eagle national bird symbol of America. The team re-branded after four years for the 2011 season to the different look used today.
The current team colors of the York Revolution are navy blue, yellow, white, and silver. The "Revolution" wordmark is colored white in an industrial script centered on a navy blue background. The word "York" is featured above in white with a baseball standing in for the letter "o". The entire wordmark is outlined in silver. Centered above the wordmark is an American bald eagle holding a baseball bat.
The York Revolution wear caps produced by the firms of OC Sports and uniforms by New Balance. The caps are navy blue throughout with a stylized white "Y" topped with an eagle's head clutching a baseball. The entire cap logo is outlined in silver. The Revolution wordmark is centered on the back, lower edge of the cap. There is also an all yellow hat featuring the York "Y" being grasped by an eagle talon.
The home jerseys are white with navy blue and yellow paneling down the sides. They feature a navy blue cursive serif wordmark with a yellow outline that pays tribute to the Baltimore Orioles' style of script on their black / orange and white team jerseys. The Revolution away jersey is gray with navy blue and yellow paneling down the sides. Across the chest is the cursive "York" wordmark in navy blue outlined in yellow with a traditional underscore. The team also sports a third alternate jersey, which has changed numerous times over the years.
York Revolution | |||||
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Season | Record | Win % | Finish | Manager | Playoffs |
2007 | 58–68 | .460 | 3rd | Chris Hoiles | Did not qualify for playoffs |
2008 | 71–69 | .507 | 1st | Chris Hoiles | Lost Division Championship vs. Somerset Patriots, 2–0 |
2009 | 53–87 | .379 | 4th | Chris Hoiles/Sam Snider/Andy Etchebarren | Did not qualify for playoffs |
2010 | 69–71 | .493 | 2nd | Andy Etchebarren | Won Freedom Division vs. Somerset Patriots, 3–2 Won Atlantic League Championship vs. Bridgeport Bluefish, 3–0 |
2011 | 73–51 | .589 | 1st | Andy Etchebarren | Won Freedom Division vs. Lancaster Barnstormers, 3–2 Won Atlantic League Championship vs. Long Island Ducks, 3–1 |
2012 | 79–61 | .564 | 2nd | Andy Etchebarren | Lost Division Championship vs. Lancaster Barnstormers, 3–0 |
2013 | 65–75 | .464 | 4th | Mark Mason | Did not qualify for playoffs |
2014 | 78–62 | .557 | 3rd | Mark Mason | Lost Division Championship vs. Sugar Land Skeeters, 3–2 |
2015 | 64–75 | .460 | 4th | Mark Mason | Did not qualify for playoffs |
2016 | 76–64 | .543 | 1st | Mark Mason | Lost Division Championship vs. Sugar Land Skeeters, 3–0 |
2017 | 68–72 | .486 | 2nd | Mark Mason | Won Freedom Division vs. Southern Maryland Bluecrabs, 3–1 Won Atlantic League Championship vs. Long Island Ducks, 3–0 |
2018 | 68–58 | .540 | 3rd | Mark Mason | Did not qualify for playoffs |
2019 | 75–65 | .534 | 1st | Mark Mason | Lost Division Championship vs. Sugar Land Skeeters, 3–1 |
2020 | Season canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||||
2021 | 56–64 | .467 | 4th | Mark Mason | Did not qualify for playoffs |
2022 | 56–76 | .424 | 4th | Mark Mason | Did not qualify for playoffs |
2023 | 71–54 | .568 | 1st | Rick Forney | Did not qualify for playoffs |
2024 | 80-45 | .640 | 1st | Rick Forney | Won North Division vs. Lancaster Stormers, 3–1 Won Atlantic League Championship vs. Charleston Dirty Birds, 3–0 |
Totals | 1,091–1,045 | .502 | — | — | 27–21 Playoff record 4 North Division championships, 4 Atlantic League championships |
The cities of Lancaster and York in South Central Pennsylvania, US have a historical rivalry in all sporting events from the high-school level to the professional. Since the cities are named after the English cities of Lancaster and York, their former Pennsylvania baseball teams were named for the opposing sides of the Wars of the Roses. As a metaphor, "War of the Roses" describes the intense baseball matches fought between the Lancaster Red Roses and the York White Roses. With the addition of York to the Atlantic League, the Revolution and Stormers now continue this tradition as they battle each other for lower Susquehanna supremacy.
The "War of the Roses" was rekindled with the sound of celebratory cannon fire at the start of the 2007 Atlantic League season in Wrightsville, a borough located on the Susquehanna River, the natural boundary between Lancaster and York counties. The winner of the War of the Roses is presented with the Community Cup, while the defeated team is obligated to sing the ballpark classic "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" and plant a rose garden at the opponent's ballpark with their representative color: red for Lancaster, white for York. The first Community Cup was championed by the Stormers in the 2007 season, though the Revolution avenged them by winning it in 2008. [13] The clubs also competed in the Route 30 Showdown in 2009–2011, an annual cross-county doubleheader inadvertently created after the 2008 season by a rain-delay. [14]
Year | Series Winner | Stormers W | Revolution W | Notes |
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2007 | Stormers | 10 | 8 | first Community Cup |
2008 | Revolution | 9 | 11 | |
2009 | Stormers | 14 | 6 | |
2010 | Revolution | 4 | 16 | 2nd-earliest cup win; July 24 |
2011 | Stormers | 10 | 8 | |
2012 | Stormers | 10 | 10 | Lancaster retains cup in a tie |
2013 | Revolution | 8 | 12 | |
2014 | Revolution | 7 | 13 | first consecutive cup win |
2015 | Stormers | 15 | 11 | |
2016 | Stormers | 11 | 9 | |
2017 | Revolution | 9 | 10 | |
2018 | Stormers | 10 | 8 | [16] |
2019 | Revolution | 8 | 11 | [17] |
2020 | Season canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||
2021 | Revolution | 12 | 13 | [18] [19] |
2022 | Stormers | 18 | 14 | [20] |
2023 | Revolution | 8 | 13 | [21] |
2024 | Revolution | 4 | 18 | Earliest cup win; July 2 [22] [23] |
Overall | Revolution (9–8) | 167 | 191 |
In 2013, the team started the York Revolution Community Fund through the York County Community Foundation. The team raises funds through jersey auctions, memorabilia sales, 50/50 raffles, and the sale of other items like the Revs Kitchen cookbook, which sees Revolution players, coaches, and staff sharing their favorite recipes. The money raised by the fund is then given back to the community in the form of grants to local non-profit groups who provide services directly to York County. [24]
The Revolution benefit the Big Brothers Big Sisters youth mentoring organization annually by wearing purple jerseys that are auctioned off immediately following the Purple Jersey Night game. [25] Additionally, the team also partnered with Columbia Gas to donate $50 to the York Red Cross for each run scored by a Revolution player. [26]
The official broadcast home of the York Revolution is WOYK 1350 AM, with Darrell Henry as the "Voice of the Revolution". Prior to the 2010 season, games were heard on WSBA 910 AM.
While Revolution games are not broadcast via a traditional television network, each game was streamed live via a "York Revs TV" YouTube Channel through 2018, [27] and beginning in 2019 via the WOYK YouTube channel. [28]
The York Revolution's official mascot is an anthropomorphic, blue creature named DownTown. He wears the team's home jersey, the primary cap worn backwards, with blue and white sneakers. DownTown debuted on March 31, 2007, at the Mascot: The Musical production at the DreamWrights Theater. His full name is DownTown Yorkie, and is the result of a sponsorship deal with Downtown Inc, a partnership of community-minded companies that work to improve and celebrate downtown York. [29] [30] DownTown wears a jersey with the number "00". [31] The mascot was designed by the Raymond Entertainment Group, which also produced the Phillie Phanatic's costume.
DownTown has a cousin named SmallTown, who will occasionally turn up at games. He debuted in 2009 and wears the number "1⁄2".[ citation needed ] A kid wears the costume and follows DownTown for a day. [31]
The Revolution also host a character named Cannonball Charlie, who fires a cannon after each home run or home game victory by the team. He wears the uniform of a period Continental Army soldier. [32]
The following players were named to the Atlantic League All-Star team in each particular season. An asterisk (*) indicates the player participated in the home run derby.
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Player of the Year
Manager/Executive of the Year
Baseball America All-Independent Team
These are some of the notable players who made it to the majors after playing in York. The years in parentheses indicate when they were with the Revs.
Active roster | Coaches/Other | |||
Pitchers
| Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
| Manager
Coaches
|
The Bridgeport Bluefish were an American minor league baseball team based in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The team was a member of the Liberty Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, which was not affiliated with Major League Baseball. They played their home games at The Ballpark at Harbor Yard from 1998 to 2017.
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The Lancaster Stormers is an American professional baseball team based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It is a member of the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a "partner league" of Major League Baseball. The team has played its home games at Clipper Magazine Stadium in the city's Northwest Corridor since 2005 when the stadium was completed.
The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs are an American professional baseball team based in Waldorf, Maryland. They are members of the South Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent "partner league" of Major League Baseball. Since 2008, the Blue Crabs have played their home games at Regency Furniture Stadium. They represent the counties of Charles, Calvert, and St. Mary's, which are located on the Southern Maryland peninsula between Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River.
WellSpan Park is a 7,500-seat baseball park in York, Pennsylvania. It is the home of the York Revolution of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. The park hosted its first regular season baseball game on June 16, 2007, as the Revolution defeated the Newark Bears, 9–6.
Below are lists of Rule 5 draft results since 1997. Players selected in the Major League Baseball (MLB) phase of the Rule 5 draft must be kept on their new team's active roster for the entire following MLB season, or they are placed on waivers and offered back to their original team if not claimed. Players chosen in the Minor League Baseball phase(s) of the Rule 5 draft remain with their new organization without restrictions.
The York White Roses was the name of a minor league baseball team based in the city of York, Pennsylvania, US, that existed between 1894 and 1969.
The Virginia Cavaliers baseball team represents the University of Virginia in NCAA Division I college baseball. Established in 1889, the team participates in the Coastal division of the Atlantic Coast Conference and plays its home games at Davenport Field at Disharoon Park. The team's head coach is Brian O'Connor. The team has reached the College World Series seven times, most recently in 2024, and won the national championship in 2015.
The 2008 Seattle Mariners season was the 32nd Major League Baseball season in the team's history. Coming off the heels of the previous 2007 season, in which the Mariners finished with their first winning record since 2003, the team was widely expected to once again compete for the American League West championship. The team was bolstered by some major roster additions during the previous offseason, most notably starting pitchers Érik Bédard and Carlos Silva. However, by the end of May, it became apparent that the team had gone back to its losing ways of the 2004–06 seasons. Despite their losing ways, they won their first and last game of the season. Their longest winning-streak of the season is 4 games after a sweep of the Cleveland Indians at the end of August and a 12-6 win against the Texas Rangers on the first day of September. However, standing at 57–87, their longest losing-streak of the season is 12 games, 11 on the road, 1 at home, after being swept by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, and suffering a loss at the last homestand opener against the Angels. On September 23, the Mariners became the first club to spend $100 million in payroll and lose 100 games. The team finished the season with a 61–101 (.377) record, last in the West for the 4th time in 5 years, and second worst in the majors.
The 2009 Seattle Mariners season was the 33rd season in franchise history. They improved upon a disappointing 2008 season, where they finished last in the American League West with a 61–101 record. They finished 3rd in the AL West with an 85–77 record, a 24 win improvement. The 2009 Mariners became the 13th team in MLB history to have a winning record following a 100+ loss season. On September 13, 2009, Ichiro Suzuki got his 200th hit of the season. In the process, he set a new MLB record by getting at least 200 hits for nine consecutive seasons, passing the mark held by Wee Willie Keeler.
The Texas Rangers 2009 season was the 49th in franchise history and the team's 38th year in Arlington, Texas.
The 2011 Boston Red Sox season was the 111th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. Before the season, the Red Sox were favored to win the American League East and reach the World Series, with some comparing the team to the 1927 New York Yankees. With a record of 90 wins and 72 losses, the Red Sox finished third in their division, seven games behind the Yankees.
The 2013 Minnesota Twins season was the 53rd season for the franchise in Minnesota, and the 113th overall in the American League.
The 2014 Baltimore Orioles season was the 114th season in franchise history, the 61st in Baltimore, and the 23rd at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The Birds would finish in first place in the American League East Division and return to the playoffs for the second time in three seasons, claiming their first division championship since 1997. The Orioles swept the Detroit Tigers in the Division Series and advanced to the AL Championship Series, where they were swept by the Kansas City Royals.
The 2015 Baltimore Orioles season was the 115th season in franchise history, the 62nd in Baltimore, and the 24th at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. They were attempting to defend their 2014 AL East title, but were eliminated from the division title race on September 23, 11+1⁄2 games back from Toronto. They were eliminated from the postseason on September 28, 6+1⁄2 games back from Houston for the second AL wild card spot. They finished the season .500 (81-81), their fourth straight non-losing season under manager Buck Showalter.
The 2016 Baltimore Orioles season was the 116th season in franchise history, the 63rd in Baltimore, and the 25th at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. They improved on their 2015 record of 81–81, finishing 89–73. and advanced to the playoffs on the last day of the season, October 2, where they lost to the Blue Jays in the American League Wild Card Game 5–2 in 11 innings; this was the Orioles' third postseason appearance in five years.
The 2018 San Francisco Giants season was the Giants' 136th year in Major League Baseball, their 60th year in San Francisco since their move from New York following the 1957 season, and their 19th at AT&T Park.
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With a sweep of the Lancaster Stormers last week, York secured the Community Cup trophy at the earliest date in rivalry history.
York finishes the season a combined 18–4 against Lancaster.
Each time a player on our York, Pa., ballclub scored a run in 2007, Columbia Gas donated $50 to the York Red Cross, raising more than $15,000 in just the program's first year.
Achievements | ||
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Preceded by Sugar Land Skeeters 2016 | Freedom Division champions York Revolution 2017 | Succeeded by Sugar Land Skeeters 2018 |
Preceded by Somerset Patriots 2009 | Freedom Division champions York Revolution 2010, 2011 | Succeeded by |