Clinton LumberKings

For the 1937–1941 Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League team known as the Clinton Giants and Clinton Owls, see Clinton Owls.

The Clinton LumberKings are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Clinton, Iowa, and play their home games at NelsonCorp Field. From 1956 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's Midwest League. With Major League Baseball's reorganization of the minor leagues after the 2020 season, Clinton was not selected to continue in affiliated baseball.

Clinton LumberKings
Team logo Cap insignia
Information
League	Prospect League (2021–present) (Western Conference - Great River Division)
Location	Clinton, Iowa
Ballpark	NelsonCorp Field (1937–present)
Year founded	1954
Nickname(s)	Clinton LumberKings (1994–present)
League championships	2 (1963, 1991)
Division championships	6 (1991, 1993, 2010, 2016, 2019, 2021)
Former name(s)	Clinton Giants (1939–1941; 1980–1993) Clinton Dodgers (1977–1979) Clinton Pilots (1914–1916; 1966–1976) Clinton C-Sox (1960–1965) Clinton White Sox (1959) Clinton Pirates (1954–1958) Clinton Steers (1949) Clinton Cubs (1947–1948) Clinton Owls (1937–1938) Clinton Champs (1910–1912) Clinton Teddies (1910) Clinton Infants (1907–1908) Clinton Minors (1906) Clinton Bridegrooms (1895)
Former league(s)	Midwest League (1956–2020)^[1] Mississippi–Ohio Valley League (1954–1955) Central Association (1947–1949) Three-I League (1937–1941; 1907–1908) Illinois-Missouri League (1910–1912) Northern Association (1910) Iowa League of Professional Baseball Clubs (1904–1907) Eastern Iowa League (1895)
Mascot	Louie the Lumberking
Ownership	Community owned^[2]
Manager	Jack Dahm
General Manager	Ted Tornow^[3]

Clinton baseball history

After beginning play in 1895, Clinton had sporadic teams in various leagues over the next few decades, as the Great Depression, World War I and World War II affected many baseball franchises. However, Clinton joined the Midwest League in 1956 and is now the oldest franchise in the league.^[1] The team has had several different major league affiliations: the Brooklyn Dodgers (1937–38), New York Giants (1939–41), Chicago Cubs (1947–49), Pirates (1954–58 and 1966–68), White Sox (1959–65), Pilots/Brewers (1969–70), Tigers (1971–75), Tigers/White Sox co-op (1976), Dodgers (1977–79), Giants (1980–94), Padres (1995–98), Reds (1999–2000), Expos (2001–02), and Rangers (2003–08), and Mariners (2009–18). In September 2018, they entered into a two-year player development contract with the Miami Marlins.^[4]

Aside from its time as the C-Sox (1960–65) and the Pilots (1966–76), the team used the parent major league team's nickname before adopting the LumberKings name for the 1994 season.

The 2010 LumberKings season is the subject of the 2013 book "Class A: Baseball in the Middle of Everywhere" by Lucas Mann.^[5][6]

In 2016, led by first year manager Mitch Canham, the LumberKings won 86 games to set the mark for most in a regular season by any team in Clinton franchise history. The squad went on to sweep the Peoria Chiefs in the first round of the playoffs before defeating the Cedar Rapids Kernels in a thrilling three-game series. Game three of the Western Division final ended with a Ricky Eusebio walk off hit to win 1–0 in extra innings. The LumberKings would fall, however, in the Midwest League Championship in four games to the Great Lakes Loons.

In addition to playing host to the franchise record setting LumberKings (86-54), the LumberKings transformed their ballpark overnight following game two of the Midwest League Championship to become a football field. The LumberKings played host to Camanche High School Football in the inaugural "LumberBowl." Camanche hosted Williamsburg High School in the game on September 16, 2016. The Raiders of Williamsburg defeated the Indians 55–7.

Following the 2020 season, the LumberKings were cut from the Midwest League and affiliated baseball as part of Major League Baseball's reorganization of the minor leagues.^[7] They later joined the Prospect League, a collegiate summer baseball league, for 2021.^[8]

NelsonCorp Field

 

Ashford Field. Formerly Alliant Energy Field and Riverview Stadium

The home park for the LumberKings is NelsonCorp Field in Clinton, Iowa. The stadium was built in 1937 as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project^[9] and named Riverview Stadium, due to its location on the banks of the Mississippi River. It was renamed Alliant Energy Field in 2002 and renovated in 2005–2006 to a capacity of 4,000. It was renamed to Ashford University Field in 2011 and NelsonCorp Field in 2019. The Dimensions are: LF – 330, CF – 401, RF – 325.^{[10][11][12][13]}

No-hitters

Clinton has tossed 25 no-hitters. The list includes the following no-hitters:^[14]

Date	Pitcher(s)	Opponent	Score
August 20, 1957	Dick Lines	Decatur	6–0 (7 innings)
June 2, 1959	Thomas Fisher	Paris	1–0
June 19, 1960	Scott Seger	Quincy	3–0 (7 innings)
May 23, 1963	Bill Dawson	Fox Cities	10–0 (7 innings)
June 23, 1964	Norbert Rodgers	Quincy	2–0 (7 innings)
June 11, 1967	John Lamb	Quad City	3–0 (7 innings)
June 19, 1967	Joe Barnett	Quincy	2–0 (7 innings)
August 25, 1967	Bill Laxton	Waterloo	2–1 (7 innings)
August 7, 1970	John Conzatti	Quad Cities	2–0 (6 innings)
May 3, 1972	Larry Bracco	Waterloo	0–1 (7 innings)
May 15, 1978	Russell McDonald	Wausau	1–0 (7 innings)
July 16, 1978	Jim Nobles	Wisconsin Rapids	7–1 (7 innings)
June 4, 1980	Jerry Stovall	Wausau	2–0 (7 innings)
April 20, 1981	Greg Bangert	Burlington	4–1 (7 innings)
August 12, 1981	Mark Grant	Danville	9–0
May 9, 1983	Ramon Bautista	Appleton	2–0 (7 innings)
June 6, 1989	Chris Hancock, Chris Fye	Burlington	11–0^[15]
May 14, 1992	Chuck Wanke	Peoria	5–3
August 4, 1996	Jim Sak, Todd Bussa	Burlington	3–0
August 3, 2000	Scott Dunn	Lansing	7–0 (Perfect Game)
July 9, 2003	Domingo Valdez	Kane County	4–0 (7 innings - G2)
July 11, 2012	Jordan Shipers	West Michigan	10–0^[16]
July 17, 2013	Víctor Sánchez	Lansing	1–0 ^[17]
May 1, 2015	Daniel Missaki, Kody Kerski, Troy Scott	Cedar Rapids	1–0^[18]
August 9, 2016	Pedro Vasquez, Joey Strain, Lukas Schiraldi, Matt Walker	Beloit	2–0

Playoffs

Clinton LumberKings of the Midwest League
Season	Quarterfinals	Semifinals	Finals
1987	-	L, 2–1, Springfield	-
1991	-	W, 2–0, Burlington	W, 3–0, Madison
1993	-	W, 2–0, Springfield	L, 3–1, South Bend
1998	W, 2–1, Quad Cities	L, 2–0, West Michigan	-
1999	L, 2–1, Burlington	-	-
2000	L, 2–1, Beloit	-	-
2003	W, 2–1, Kane County	L, 2–1, Beloit	-
2004	W, 2–0, Cedar Rapids	L, 2–0, Kane County	-
2005	W, 2–0, Quad Cities	L, 2–0, Wisconsin	-
2007	W, 2–1, Cedar Rapids	L, 2–0, Beloit	-
2008	L, 2–0, Cedar Rapids	-	-
2010	W, 2–1, Cedar Rapids	W, 2–1, Kane County	L, 3–2, Lake County
2011	L, 2–0, Quad Cities	-	-
2012	W, 2–1, Beloit	L, 2–0, Wisconsin	-
2013	L, 2–0, Beloit	-	-
2016	W, 2–0, Peoria	W, 2–1, Cedar Rapids	L, 3–1, Great Lakes
2019	W, 2–0, Kane County	W, 2–1, Cedar Rapids	L, 3–0, South Bend

Clinton LumberKings of the Prospect League
Season	Divisional Championship	Conference Championship	Prospect League Championship Series
2021	W, 4–3, Normal	L, 3–7, Cape	-

Roster

Clinton LumberKings roster v t e
Active roster				Coaches/Other
Pitchers 22 Chase Becker 27 Ben Beutel 14 Brody Brecht 17 Seth Clausen  2 Cole Conner 11 Nolan Frey 18 Blake Gaskey 26 Jackson Kent  4 Jacob Norris 32 Kale Orman 13 Logan Romasanta 35 Nick Scanlon 37 Jared Simpson 39 Trevor Sorensen 45 Tyler Stern  7 Jack Young		Catchers 31 Cade Moss 20 Casey Sole 40 Donnie Weaver Infielders 36 Jeremy Conforti 16 Tyler Dahm  3 Nick Fleckenstein  8 Connor Giusti 37 Taeg Gollert 29 Luke Ira  9 Rayth Peterson 12 Matt Scherrman Outfielders 33 Trevor Burkhart 15 Joe Simpson 28 Tommy Specht  1 Isaiah Thompson 23 Adam Weed		Manager 10 Jack Dahm Coaches 49 John Hendry (pitching) 44 Tom Moreau (assistant)  5 Jake Petersen (third base)   Disabled list ‡ Inactive list § Suspended list Roster updated June 22, 2022

Notable alumni

• Kyle Seager (2009) MLB All-Star
• Mitch Moreland (2008)
• Justin Smoak (2008)
• Blake Beavan (2008)
• Neftalí Feliz (2008): 2010 AL Rookie of the Year
• Derek Holland (2008)
• Craig Gentry (2007)
• John Mayberry, Jr. (2006)
• John Danks (2004)
• Ian Kinsler (2004) 4x MLB All-Star
• Edinson Vólquez (2004) MLB All-Star
• Grady Sizemore (2001) 3x MLB All-Star
• Jason Bay (2001): 2004 NL Rookie of the Year
• Ben Broussard (1999)
• Matt Clement (1996) MLB All-Star
• Gary Matthews, Jr. (1995) MLB All-Star
• Bob Howry (1994)
• Mike Myers (1991–92)
• Salomón Torres (1991)
• Steve Reed (1989)
• Royce Clayton (1989) MLB All-Star
• Rod Beck (1988) 3x MLB All-Star
• Mike Remlinger (1987) MLB All-Star
• Matt Williams (1986) 4x GG; 5x MLB All-Star; 1994 NL Home Run Leader
• Dennis Cook (1985)
• Charlie Hayes (1984)
• John Burkett (1984) 2x MLB All-Star; 1993 NL Wins Leader
• Matt Nokes (1982) MLB All-Star
• Rob Deer (1980)
• Chris Brown (1980) MLB All-Star
• Scott Garrelts (1980) MLB All-Star; 1989 NL ERA Leader
• Orel Hershiser (1979): NLCS MVP (1988), WS MVP (1988), NL Cy Young Award (1988)
• Candy Maldonado (1979)
• Steve Sax (1979) 1982 NL Rookie of the Year
• Mitch Webster (1978–79)
• Ron Kittle (1977): 1983 AL Rookie of the Year
• Mike Scioscia (1977) 2x MLB All-Star; Manager: 2002 World Series Champion – California Angels
• Mickey Hatcher (1977)
• Dave Stewart (1977) MLB All-Star; 1987 AL Wins Leader; 1989 World Series MVP
• Dave Rozema (1975)
• Ron LeFlore (1973) MLB All-Star; 2x AL Stolen Base Leader (1978, 1980)
• Jim Leyland (MGR 1972–73) Manager: 1997 World Series Champion – Florida Marlins
• Bill Travers (1970) MLB All-Star
• Gorman Thomas (1970) MLB All-Star; 2x AL Home Run Leader (1979,1982)
• Darrell Porter (1970) 4x MLB All-Star; 1982 World Series MVP
• Tom Kelly (1969) Manager: 2x World Series Champion (1987,1991) – Minnesota Twins
• Jim Slaton (1969) MLB All-Star
• Frank Taveras (1968) 1977 NL Stolen Base Leader
• Don Money (1966) 4 x MLB All-Star
• Denny McLain (1962): 2x AL Cy Young Award (1968–1969), AL Most Valuable Player (1968)
• Ken Berry (1961) 2x GG; MLB All-Star
• Tommy McCraw (1960)
• Gerry Arrigo (1960) MLB All-Star
• Al McBean (1958)
• Lou Johnson (1955)
• Dean Stone (1949) MLB All-Star
• Sid Gordon (1939–40), 2x MLB All-Star
• Bing Miller (1914, 1916–17)

 

Ian Kinsler

 

Orel Hershiser

References

1. "Clinton, Iowa Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com.
2. "Board of Directors". Clinton LumberKings. milb.com. Retrieved July 7, 2017.
3. "Front Office". lumberkings.com. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
4. "Clinton, Miami Announce New Player Development Contract". Ballpark Digest. September 20, 2018. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
5. McAlpin, Heller (May 9, 2013). "Farm Team Saga 'Class A' Hits It Out Of The Park". NPR. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
6. "Class A".
7. "Full MLB Press Release: MLB cuts Clinton LumberKings". Clinton Herald. December 9, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
8. Reichard, Kevin (January 13, 2021). "Clinton LumberKings join Prospect League". Ballpark Digest. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
9. "Fund-raising campaign will support L-King efforts". Clinton Herald. 11 March 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
10. "General Information - Clinton LumberKings Ashford University Field". Clinton LumberKings.
11. "History - Clinton LumberKings Content". Clinton LumberKings.
12. "LumberKings to call NelsonCorp Field home". Clinton Herald. May 28, 2019. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
13. "New for 2019: NelsonCorp Field". Ballpark Digest. August Publications. May 27, 2019. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
14. "No Hitters". Midwest League Archives.
15. "Burlington Braves at Clinton Giants, June 6th, 1989". Midwest League Archives.
16. "Shipers hurls complete-game no-hitter". MiLB.com.
17. "Lansing vs. Clinton - July 17, 2013 - Midwest League Box". Midwest League.
18. Batterson, Steve. "Clinton pitcher goes from no-hitter to Tommy John in two weeks". The Quad-City Times.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Clinton LumberKings.

• Official website