Schaumburg Boomers

Schaumburg Boomers
Team logo Cap insignia
League	Frontier League (2012–present) (West Division)
Location	Schaumburg, Illinois
Ballpark	Schaumburg Boomers Stadium (2012–present)
Year founded	2011
League championships	2013, 2014
Division championships	2013, 2014
Colors	Black, orange, white
Ownership	Salvi Sports Enterprises
Manager	Jamie Bennett
General Manager	Pete Leven
Media	Daily Herald
Website	www.boomersbaseball.com

2012 Schaumburg Boomers All-Stars

The Schaumburg Boomers are a professional baseball team, based in Schaumburg, Illinois, that began play in the independent Frontier League on May 18, 2012 with their first home game coming a week later on May 25. Home games are played at Schaumburg Baseball Stadium. The Boomers replaced the now defunct Schaumburg Flyers of the Northern League after the franchise was evicted for not paying almost $1 million in back rent.^[1]

The "Boomers" nickname comes from a common nickname for males of the greater prairie chicken species, a bird which was once abundant in the Midwest but is now a vulnerable species. That bird's nickname comes from the dance these males do in order to attract females for mating purposes. The Boomers carry on the mascot's tradition by performing a reenactment of the prairie chicken's dance in between innings during games.

History

Originally, the team was set to play in the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball under the ownership of Joliet Slammers principal owner Alan Oremus; however, Oremus sold the team to Gary SouthShore RailCats owner Pat Salvi, who moved the team to the Frontier League because of his loyalty to the RailCats and lack of interest in setting up a conflict should the two teams play against each other.^[2] Under Oremus's ownership, the team had held a name-the-team contest, with the winner selecting "Mallers". After the ownership change, however, the Boomers name, logo, and colors were unveiled on October 18, 2011.^[3]

The games are broadcast on WRMN (1410 AM, Elgin, Illinois) by Boomers broadcaster Tim Calderwood.^[4][5]

Shortstop Gerard Hall recorded the first hit in Boomers history in a 4-0 shutout against the Lake Erie Crushers in Avon, Ohio in the franchise's first-ever regular season game. Outfielder Jereme Milons had the first extra-base hit in team history with a double to centerfield in the same game.

The Boomers won their home debut with a 5-2 victory over the Florence Freedom in front of 6,067 fans at Boomers Stadium. Outfielder Nate Baumann hit the first home run at Boomers Stadium with a two-run blast to left in the five-run sixth inning.

The Schaumburg Boomers won the 2013 Frontier League Championship in September 2013, becoming the first team in Frontier League history to finish the playoffs undefeated (in this case 6-0 as they won two best-of-5 series). They defeated the Lake Erie Crushers in the championship final.

The Boomers again won the 2014 Frontier League Championship, winning back-to-back titles. They beat the Southern Illinois Miners 2 games to 1 in the Divisional round, and beat the River City Rascals 3 games to 1 to win the Title.

Inaugural season

The Boomers finished the first half of their inaugural season as the Frontier League West Division Leaders with a record of 29-19. The team had a total of 10 representatives appear in the 2012 Frontier League All-Star game in Normal, Illinois. Manager Jamie Bennett managed the West Division squad and was joined by his coaching staff, Mike Kashirsky, Paul Kubon, C.J. Thieleke, and team trainer Scott Waehler. Schaumburg's Frank Pfister was selected as the West Division's starting third-baseman, and was joined by outfielders Sean Mahley and Chad Mozingo and pitchers Cameron Roth and Patrick Mincey.^[6]

Mascot

Coop, the mascot of the Schaumburg Boomers

The mascot of the Schaumburg Boomers is Coop the boomer. Coop is portrayed by a person dressed in a prairie chicken costume.^[7][8]

Current roster

Schaumburg Boomers roster
Active (24-man) roster				Coaches/Other
Pitchers 14 Brandon Bargas 18 Edwin Carl 41 Eddie Cody 29 Anthony Gomez 26 Jake Joyce 10 Clark Labitan 22 Brett Mabry 16 Hideyoshi Otake 38 Scott Plaza 37 Dexter Price 25 Zach Wendorf		Catchers 24 Chris Matthews  7 Michael Valadez Infielders 17 Evan Boyd 30 Jordan Dean 12 Joel Hutter 11 Craig Massey 20 Mark Nelson 19 Mike Schulze 21 Cam Sherrer  9 Ryan Tuntland Outfielders  5 Alex Colon 15 Tillman Pugh 23 Justin Vasquez		Manager 27 Jamie Bennett Coaches 36 Bill Fratto (assistant) 22 T. J. Nall (pitching) 55 Cameron Roth (hitting) 45 Derek Shoman (bullpen) Disabled list ‡ Inactive list § Suspended list Roster updated May 15, 2015 Transactions

References

1. Jaworski, Jim (January 11, 2012). "After Flyers, Schaumburg Boomers Get Ready to Play Ball". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
2. http://m.nwitimes.com/mobile/article_ed674485-4bbb-539d-bbc1-346fcef8c177.html
3. Peterson, Eric (October 3, 2011). "Schaumburg Baseball Team to Be Named Oct. 18". Daily Herald. Arlington Heights. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
4. "Sports Schedule". WRMN 1410. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
5. "Tim Calderwood".
6. "Boomers All-Stars".
7. Reichard, Kevin (February 10, 2012). "Boomers Unveil New Mascot in Time for Valentine's Day: Coop". Ballpark Digest. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
8. "Fan Zone – Coop the Boomer". Schaumburg Boomers. Retrieved October 7, 2016.

External links

• Schaumburg Boomers official website