Michigan Battle Cats

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

• Location: Battle Creek, MI
• League: Midwest League 1995-2002
• Affiliation: Boston Red Sox 1995-1998; Houston Astros 1999-2002
• Ballpark: C.O. Brown Stadium

The Michigan Battle Cats began playing in the Midwest League in 1995 and called C.O. Brown Stadium in Battle Creek, Michigan home. It was the first team from the Midwest League to play in Michigan. The franchise had previously been located in Madison, Wisconsin in 1994 where they were called the Madison Hatters. Prior to that the team was located in Springfield, Illinois and was known as the Springfield Cardinals. Upon moving to Battle Creek the team initially sought the name Battle Creek Golden Kazoos to help create a regional tie-in with the city of Kalamazoo, Michigan, but legal disputes led to the adoption of the Battle Cats moniker. The team became known as the Battle Creek Yankees beginning with their affiliation in 2003 with the New York Yankees, and again changed names and affiliations in 2005 and became the Southwest Michigan Devil Rays. In 2007, citing declining attendance, the team moved to Midland, Michigan and became the Great Lakes Loons.

Some notable alumni include David Eckstein, Shea Hillenbrand, Roy Oswalt, Carl Pavano, and Johan Santana.

[edit] Year-by-Year Record

Year	Record	Finish	Manager	Playoffs
1995	75-62	4th	DeMarlo Hale	Lost League Finals
1996	60-78	13th	Tom Barrett
1997	70-67	4th	Billy Gardner Jr.	Lost in 1st round
1998	79-61	2nd (t)	Billy Gardner Jr.	Lost in 1st round
1999	76-62	3rd	Al Pedrique	Lost in 1st round
2000	82-56	2nd	Al Pedrique	League Champs
2001	82-55	3rd	John Massarelli	Lost in 1st round
2002	79-61	4th	John Massarelli	Lost in 1st round