War of the Roses (Pennsylvania)

The South Central Pennsylvania cities of Lancaster and York have a historical rivalry in all sporting events from the high-school level to the professional. Since both cities are named after the English cities of Lancaster and York, the 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 Barnstormers continue the Red Roses' tradition as they battle the York Revolution for lower Susquehanna supremacy.

The "War of the Roses" was rekindled with the sound of notional 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 Barnstormers in the 2007 season, though the Revolution avenged them by winning it in 2008.[1] The clubs also competed in the Route 30 Showdown in 2009–2011, an annual cross-county doubleheader inadvertently created at the conclusion of the 2008 season by a rain-delay.[2]

Community Cup Record[3]
Year Series Winner Barnstormers W Revolution W Notes
2007 Barnstormers 10 8 first Community Cup
2008 Revolution 9 11  
2009 Barnstormers 14 6  
2010 Revolution 4 16 the earliest Cup win; July 24
2011 Barnstormers 10 8  
2012 Barnstormers 10 10 Lancaster retains cup in tie
2013 Revolution 8 12  
2014 Revolution 7 13 first consecutive Cup win
2015 Barnstormers 15 11
Overall Barnstormers (5–4) 87 95


  1. ↑ "Revs uniforms". York Revolution. Retrieved May 5, 2007.
  2. ↑ "Route 30 Showdown". Lancaster Barnstormers. Retrieved November 13, 2008.
  3. ↑ Community Cup
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