Bellingham Mariners
|
Bellingham Mariners 1973–1996 Bellingham, Washington | |
| Class-level | |
|---|---|
| Previous | Class A-Short Season |
| Minor league affiliations | |
| League | Northwest League |
| Major league affiliations | |
| Previous |
|
| Minor league titles | |
| League titles | 3 (1977, 1980, 1986) |
| Team data | |
Previous names |
|
Previous parks | Joe Martin Field (1973–1996) |
The Bellingham Mariners were a minor league baseball team in the Class A-Short Season Northwest League, based in Bellingham, Washington.
The franchise arrived in 1973 as the Bellingham Dodgers, affiliated with the Los Angeles Dodgers for four seasons. They changed to the expansion Seattle Mariners in 1977 (Bellingham Mariners, or the "Baby M's" as they were popularly known), which lasted for 18 seasons, through 1994. The final two seasons in 1995 and 1996 were as the Bellingham Giants, the affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.
After three seasons in Medford and one season in Spokane in 1972, the Dodgers moved their NWL affiliate to Bellingham for 1973. The 1975 team gained unwanted national notoriety when it went winless for the first 25 games.[1][2][3] They ended the season at 17–61.
In 1987, 17-year-old Ken Griffey, Jr. hit his first professional home run while on the road at Everett Memorial Stadium. A plaque was placed on the sidewalk outside the stadium where the ball landed.[4]
The Bellingham franchise played at Joe Martin Field, a venue with a seating capacity near 1,600. The park is currently the home of the Bellingham Bells of the West Coast Collegiate Baseball League.[5]
Following the 1994 season, the Bellingham Mariners and Everett Giants swapped cities and the M's affiliate became the Everett AquaSox. After the 1996 season, the Bellingham Giants moved south to Keizer, Oregon, and became the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes.
Yearly record
| Year | MLB Club | Record | Finish | Manager | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Dodgers (4 yrs.) | 42–37 | 3rd | Bill Berrier | |
| 1974 | 52–32 | 1st | Bill Berrier | League Finals | |
| 1975 | 17–61 | 6th | Bill Berrier | ||
| 1976 | 30–42 | 6th | Bill Berrier | ||
| 1977 | Mariners (18 yrs.) | 42–26 | 2nd | Bobby Floyd | League Champs[6][7][8] |
| 1978 | 41–30 | 3rd | Bob Didier | ||
| 1979 | 41–31 | 3rd (t) | Jeff Scott | ||
| 1980 | 45–25 | 1st | Jeff Scott | Co-Champs w/ Eugene | |
| 1981 | 39–31 | 2nd | Jeff Scott | Playoffs | |
| 1982 | 33–37 | 3rd | Jeff Scott | ||
| 1983 | 40–28 | 2nd | Jeff Scott | Playoffs | |
| 1984 | 42–32 | 3rd | Gary Pellant | ||
| 1985 | 39–35 | 3rd (t) | Gary Pellant | ||
| 1986 | 45–29 | 1st (t) | Sal Rende | League Champs | |
| 1987 | 30–46 | 7th | Rick Sweet | ||
| 1988 | 25–51 | 8th | P. J. Carey | ||
| 1989 | 32–43 | 7th | P. J. Carey | ||
| 1990 | 32–44 | 6th | P. J. Carey | ||
| 1991 | 37–39 | 5th (t) | Dave Myers | ||
| 1992 | 43–33 | 1st (t) | Dave Myers | League Champs | |
| 1993 | 44–32 | 1st | Mike Goff | Playoffs | |
| 1994 | 42–34 | 3rd | Mike Goff | ||
| 1995 | Giants (2 yrs.) | 43–33 | 2nd | Glenn Tufts | League Finals |
| 1996 | 39–36 | 4th | Ozzie Virgil, Jr. / Shane Turner | ||
Notable players
(Dodgers, Mariners, and Giants)
See also
- Bellingham Dodgers players (1973–1976)
- Bellingham Mariners players (1977–1994)
- Bellingham Giants players (1995–1996)
See also
References
- ↑ Hopper, Betty (July 13, 1975). "Bellingham Dodgers: maybe you can lose 'em all....". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. p. D1.
- ↑ "Northwest League standings". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. July 13, 1975. p. D2.
- ↑ "Bellingham ends string, starts over". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. July 14, 1975. p. 10.
- ↑ Baker, Geoff (August 29, 2008). "Fun is No. 1 at Everett AquaSox games". Seattle Times. Archived from the original on 2008-09-02. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
- 1 2 "Joe Martin Field". Bellingham Bells. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
- ↑ "Bellingham wins first playoff game". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. August 29, 1977. p. 5D.
- ↑ "NWL crown up for grabs". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. August 31, 1977. p. 5C.
- ↑ "Bellingham wins title". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. Associated Press. September 1, 1977. p. 22.
- ↑ http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/about/page.jsp?ymd=20061214&content_id=148662&vkey=about_l126&fext=.jsp&sid=l126
- ↑ http://minors.baseball-reference.com/
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2008-12-15. Retrieved 2008-11-08.
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2008-11-23. Retrieved 2009-03-12.
External links
Coordinates: 48°44′49″N 122°27′36″W / 48.747°N 122.46°W