Bristol Pirates
The Bristol Pirates were a Minor League Baseball team in Bristol, Virginia, United States. They are a Rookie-level team in the Appalachian League.
| Bristol Pirates 1969–2020 Bristol, Virginia | |||||
| |||||
| Minor league affiliations | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class | Rookie (1969–2020) | ||||
| League | Appalachian League (1969–2020) | ||||
| Major league affiliations | |||||
| Team |
| ||||
| Minor league titles | |||||
| League titles (6) |
| ||||
| Division titles (3) |
| ||||
| Team data | |||||
| Name |
| ||||
| Ballpark | Boyce Cox Field at DeVault Memorial Stadium (1969–2020) | ||||
The team played home games at DeVault Memorial Stadium. Opened in 1969, Devault Memorial Stadium held 2,000 fans. The team was previously affiliated with the Detroit Tigers, and a previous manager was retired Tigers manager Jim Leyland. They were a farm team of the Chicago White Sox from 1995 to 2013 as the Bristol White Sox.
The team was operated by a non-profit organization, Bristol Baseball, Incorporated (BBI). BBI had no full-time paid staff, instead relying on a volunteer board and general manager to keep and promote professional baseball in Bristol.
The start of the 2020 season was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic before ultimately being cancelled on June 30.[1][2] In conjunction with a contraction of Minor League Baseball beginning with the 2021 season, the Appalachian League was reorganized as a collegiate summer baseball league, and the Pirates were replaced by a new franchise in the revamped league designed for rising college freshmen and sophomores.[3]
Season-by-season records
| Bristol Tigers (Appalachian League) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | ||||||||
| Record | Win % | Finish* | Manager | Playoffs | ||||
| 1969 | 34-34 | .500 | 3rd South | Bill Lajoie | none | |||
| 1970 | 26-31 | .464 | 5th AL | Al Lakeman | none | |||
| 1971 | 31-35 | .470 | 3rd South | Jim Leyland | none | |||
| 1972 | 40-28 | .588 | 1st AL | Joe Lewis | League Champs No playoffs | |||
| 1973 | 24-45 | .348 | 7th AL | Joe Lewis | none | |||
| 1974 | 52-17 | .754 | 1st North | Joe Lewis | League Champs No playoffs | |||
| 1975 | 37-31 | .544 | 3rd South | Joe Lewis | none | |||
| 1976 | 35-32 | .522 | 2nd South | Joe Lewis | none | |||
| 1977 | 43-26 | .614 | 2nd AL | Joe Lewis | League Champs No playoffs | |||
| 1978 | 35-34 | .507 | 3rd AL | Joe Lewis | none | |||
| 1979 | 19-50 | .275 | 6th AL | Joe Lewis | none | |||
| 1980 | 36-33 | .522 | 2nd AL | Tom Kotchman | none | |||
| 1981 | 29-41 | .414 | 5th AL | Joe Lewis | none | |||
| 1982 | 28-36 | .438 | 3rd South | Boots Day | none | |||
| 1983 | 34-38 | .472 | 3rd AL | Boots Day | none | |||
| 1984 | 37-33 | .529 | 2nd South | Hal Dyer | none | |||
| 1985 | 44-25 | .638 | 1st AL | Tom Burgess | League Champs No playoffs | |||
| 1986 | 35-34 | .507 | 3rd South | Tom Gamboa | ||||
| 1987 | 20-49 | .290 | 4th South | Rick Magnante | ||||
| 1988 | 46-27 | .630 | 2nd South | Rick Magnante | Lost 1 game playoff | |||
| 1989 | 28-39 | .418 | 5th South | Rubén Amaro, Sr. | ||||
| 1990 | 22-46 | .324 | 10th AL | Ken Cunningham | ||||
| 1991 | 22-44 | .333 | 5th South | Juan Lopez | ||||
| 1992 | 33-35 | .485 | 3rd South | Mark Wagner | ||||
| 1993 | 28-39 | .418 | 4th South | Ruben Amaro, Sr. | ||||
| 1994 | 27-36 | .429 | 4th South | Kevin Bradshaw | ||||
| Bristol White Sox (Appalachian League) | ||||||||
| 1995 | 28-39 | .418 | 4th South | Chris Cron | ||||
| 1996 | 17-51 | .450 | 4th South | Nick Capra | ||||
| 1997 | 30-38 | .441 | 4th West | Nick Capra | ||||
| 1998 | 42-24 | .636 | 1st West | Nick Capra | League Champs | |||
| 1999 | 45-24 | .652 | 2nd West | Gary Pellant | ||||
| 2000 | 34-33 | .507 | 4th South | R.J. Reynolds | ||||
| 2001 | 38-26 | .594 | 2nd South | John Orton | ||||
| 2002 | 43-25 | .632 | 1st South | Nick Leyva | League Champs | |||
| 2003 | 33-33 | .500 | 6th AL | Jerry Hairston, Sr. | ||||
| 2004 | 27-38 | .415 | 5th West | Jerry Hairston, Sr. | ||||
| 2005 | 30-36 | .455 | 2nd West | Jerry Hairston, Sr. | ||||
| 2006 | 22-42 | .344 | 5th West | Nick Leyva | ||||
| 2007 | 25-43 | .368 | 4th West | Bobby Thigpen | ||||
| 2008 | 34-30 | .531 | 3rd West | Bobby Thigpen | ||||
| 2009 | 27-39 | .409 | 4th West | Ryan Newman | ||||
| 2010 | 32-36 | .471 | 3rd West | Ryan Newman | ||||
| 2011 | 24-44 | .353 | 5th West | Pete Rose Jr. | ||||
| 2012 | 19-46 | .292 | 5th West | Pete Rose Jr. | ||||
| 2013 | 20-45 | .308 | 5th West | Mike Gellinger | ||||
| Bristol Pirates (Appalachian League) | ||||||||
| 2014 | 22-46 | .324 | 5th West | Edgar Varela | ||||
| 2015 | 29-36 | .446 | 4th West | Edgar Varela | ||||
| 2016 | 25-43 | .368 | 5th West | Kory DeHaan | ||||
| 2017 | 17-49 | .258 | 5th West | Miguel Perez | ||||
Playoffs
- 2019: Lost to Johnson City 2–1 in semifinals.
- 2002: Defeated Bluefield 2–1 to win championship.
- 1998: Defeated Princeton 2–0 to win championship.
Notable alumni
- Chris Carter (2005)
- Frank Catalanotto (1992-1993)
- Tony Clark (1990) MLB All-Star
- Juan Encarnacion (1994)
- Mark Fidrych (1974) 2 x MLB All-Star; 1976 AL ERA Leader; 1976 AL Rookie of the Year
- Travis Fryman (1987) 5 x MLB All-Star
- Freddy Garcia (2009) 2 x MLB All-Star; 2001 AL ERA Leader
- Gio Gonzalez (2004) 2 x MLB All-Star
- Jerry Hairston Sr. (2004, MGR)
- Chris Hoiles (1986)
- Carlos Lee (1995)
- Jose Lima (1990) MLB All-Star
- Jerry Manual (1972)
- Lance Parrish (1974) 8 x MLB All-Star
- Jon Rauch (1999)
- Vern Ruhle (1972)
- Bobby Thigpen (2007-2008, MGR) MLB All-Star
- Justin Thompson (1991) MLB All-Star
- Alan Trammel (1976) 6 x MLB All-Star; 1984 World Series Most Valuable Player; 2018 Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame
- Tom Veryzer (1971)
- Lou Whitaker (1975) 5 x MLB All-Star; 1978 AL Rookie of the Year
References
- "A Message From Pat O'Conner". Minor League Baseball. March 13, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
- "2020 Minor League Baseball Season Shelved". Minor League Baseball. June 30, 2020. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- "MLB, USA Baseball Announce New Format for Appalachian League". Major League Baseball. September 29, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.