The Sarasota Reds were a professional minor league baseball team, located in Sarasota, Florida , as a member of the Florida State League . The team originally started play in Sarasota as the Sarasota White Sox in 1989. They remained in the city for the next 21 seasons, going through a series of name changes due to their affiliation changes. They were known as the White Sox from 1989–1993, as the Sarasota Red Sox from 1994–2004, and the Reds from 2004–2009. In Sarasota, the team played in Payne Park (1989) and then Ed Smith Stadium (1990–2009). They won two division championships, in 1989 and 1992, and made playoff appearances in 1989, 1991, 1992, 1994, and 2007.
18-731: The roots of the Reds, however, can be traced back even further to the Tampa Tarpons . In the 1980s, rumors arose that a major league team would come to Tampa, which would threaten the viability of the Tarpons and other minor league teams in the Tampa Bay Area . In 1988, the Chicago White Sox replaced Cincinnati as the Tarpons' affiliate, causing speculation that the White Sox would themselves relocate to
36-1024: A baseball capacity of about 11,000 and is located across Dale Mabry Highway from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ' home of Raymond James Stadium . The facility has an adjacent parking lot that is sufficient for most minor league crowds, and a pedestrian bridge allows for spring training attendees to park at the football stadium's much larger parking area and safely cross the busy highway to Steinbrenner Field. Pitchers Catchers Infielders Outfielders Manager Coaches [REDACTED] 7-day injured list * On New York Yankees 40-man roster ~ Development list # Rehab assignment ∞ Reserve list ‡ Restricted list § Suspended list † Temporarily inactive list Roster updated November 18, 2024 Transactions → More rosters: MiLB • Florida State League → New York Yankees minor league players Note : Years indicate service time with
54-601: A best-of-five series to determine a league champion. Since 1979, the winner of the League Championship Series has become the holder—until the following season's championship—of the Watson Spoelstra Florida State League Championship Trophy. As of 2022, the winners of each division from both the first and second halves of the season meet in a best-of-three division series, with the winners of the two division series meeting in
72-651: A deal with the city of Tampa, the Tampa Sports Authority agreed to publicly finance a new ballpark for the New York Yankees to use during spring training and the Tampa Yankees to use during the summer. Legends Field has the same dimensions as Yankee Stadium and includes some design elements of the previous ballpark in the Bronx. The Tampa Yankees played their first two seasons (1994 and 1995) at Red McEwen Field on
90-778: A lease of 40 years, with an option for another 40 years. On November 10, 2009, baseball officials voted to allow the Pirates to purchase and uproot the Sarasota Reds. The Pirates moved the team to Bradenton, where they were renamed the Bradenton Marauders . The Marauders became the first Florida State League team located in Bradenton since the Bradenton Growers folded in 1926. The Sarasota teams' names, logos and team colors were all closely associated with each's parent club. For example,
108-514: The Bronx , including identical field dimensions. They competed at the Class A-Advanced level from 1994 to 2020 before being reclassified Low Single-A in 2021. Since their inception, the club has won five league championships , in 1994, 2001, 2004, 2009, and 2010. The club was established in 1994 as the Tampa Yankees and played for 24 seasons under that name. Before the 2018 season, the team
126-648: The FSL relocated in 1988 and Al Lopez Field was demolished soon thereafter. However, the expected franchise was eventually awarded to nearby St. Petersburg , leaving Tampa without a professional baseball team or venue. In 1994, the New York Yankees established a new Class A-Advanced FSL team and placed them in Tampa, replacing their previous Class-A Advanced affiliate, the Prince William Cannons . After operating as
144-634: The Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates did an "affiliate-swap". The Pirates took over the Sarasota Reds, while the Reds became the parent club of the Pirates' former Class A-Advanced affiliate, the Lynchburg Hillcats of the Carolina League . The Pittsburgh Pirates have had their spring training facilities based in Bradenton, Florida since in 1969, when the city met with Pirates' general manager Joe Brown and owner John W. Galbreath and both sides agreed to
162-711: The Sarasota White Sox. Meanwhile, Stan Belinda , David Eckstein , Nomar Garciaparra , Byung-hyun Kim , Jeff Suppan , Dustin Pedroia , Jonathan Papelbon , and Kevin Youkilis were alumni of the Sarasota Red Sox. The Sarasota Reds also produced many notable major league players such as Jay Bruce , Johnny Cueto , Joey Votto , Chris Heisey , and Drew Stubbs . After the Reds' spring-training departure from Florida's Grapefruit League to Arizona 's Cactus League in 2009,
180-507: The Tampa Yankees / Tarpons, either as a minor leaguer or on an injury rehabilitation assignment Hall of Fame alumni Notable alumni List of Florida State League champions The Florida State League of Minor League Baseball is a Single-A baseball league in the United States. The league was founded in 1919. A league champion is determined at the end of each season. Champions have been determined by postseason playoffs, winning
198-596: The Tampa Yankees for 24 seasons, the club was rebranded as the Tarpons in 2018, reviving the name of Tampa's longest-lasting minor league ballclub. For the 2021 season, the FSL was reconfigured as a Low-A circuit, and the Florida State League name was retired, with the circuit being called the Low-A Southeast . In 2022, the Low-A Southeast became known as the Florida State League, the name historically used by
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#1732870142717216-402: The area. Fearing his team would soon be displaced, in 1989, Tarpons owner Mitchell Mick sold his franchise to the White Sox, who moved it to Sarasota, Florida and renamed it as the Sarasota White Sox. The team's Sarasota era produced many notable player who would go on to play in majors. Bo Jackson , Mike LaValliere , Dave Stieb , Hall of Famer Frank Thomas and Bob Wickman all played for
234-511: The campus of the University of South Florida while their permanent home was under construction. In 1996, the New York Yankees held spring training at newly completed Legends Field, moving from their long-time spring facilities at Fort Lauderdale , and the Tampa Yankees played at the new ballpark that summer. In 2008, Legends Field was renamed in honor of ailing long-time Yankees owner George Steinbrenner , who lived in Tampa. Steinbrenner Field has
252-524: The logos for Sarasota White Sox, Red Sox and Reds were just slightly altered versions of the parent club logos. However, there were attempts to allow some of these teams to find their own unique identities. In 2000, the Sarasota Red Sox introduced their mascot Gordy the Gecko. The Red Sox front office felt that since the team was based in Florida, its mascot should be reflective to the area. Soon Gordy found his way on to
270-642: The regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization, and was reclassified as a Single-A circuit. On January 9, 2022, the Yankees announced that Rachel Balkovec has been hired to manage the Tarpons. She is the first woman to manage a minor league team affiliated with Major League Baseball. Notable major league players to once play for the Tampa Yankees / Tarpons include Aaron Judge , Derek Jeter , Rubén Rivera , Mariano Rivera , David Robertson , Joba Chamberlain , Ian Kennedy , Phil Hughes , Ramiro Mendoza , Tim Raines , Eric Milton , and Luis Sojo . As part of
288-451: The regular season pennant, or being declared champion by the league office. Off and on (1919–28, 1936–41, and 1946–68), the league recognized pennant winners and/or playoff winners as league champions. In 2019, the first-half and second-half winners in each division (North and South) competed in a best-of-three series to determine division champions. Then, the North and South division winners played
306-600: The team's caps as an alternate logo. Tampa Tarpons The Tampa Tarpons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the New York Yankees . They are located in Tampa, Florida . The Tarpons play their home games at George M. Steinbrenner Field , which is also the spring training home of the New York Yankees and incorporates design elements from old Yankee Stadium in
324-478: Was rebranded as the "Tampa Tarpons", reviving a name that had been used by an earlier franchise in the FSL for over 30 years. Tampa has a long history of amateur and organized baseball, with the first spring training held in the city in 1913 and the Tampa Smokers founded as charter members of the FSL in 1919. In anticipation of a potential Major League Baseball expansion team, the original Tampa Tarpons of
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