Evansville Otters

The Evansville Otters are a professional baseball team based in Evansville, Indiana. They compete in the Frontier League (FL) as a member of the West Division. Since their establishment in 1995, the Otters have played at historic Bosse Field, which originally opened in 1915.^[1] The Otters are the oldest current team in the Frontier League and have won two championships (2006 and 2016).

Evansville Otters
Team logo Cap insignia
Information
League	Frontier League (West Division)
Location	Evansville, Indiana
Ballpark	Bosse Field
Founded	1995
League championships	2 (2006, 2016)
Division championships	3 (1997, 2000, 2019)
Colors	Navy blue, red, blue, white
Ownership	Wilfred “Bill” Bussing III
Manager	Andy McCauley
Media	Evansville Courier & Press
Website	www.evansvilleotters.com

History

When the Otters began play in 1995, they returned baseball to Evansville for the first time in a decade. The city had been without a team since the Evansville Triplets relocated following the 1984 season.

The Otters have been a success on the field and off since their first season of play in Evansville. On the field the Otters have reached the playoffs in 9 seasons, including six Frontier League Championship series with FLCS wins in 2006 and 2016.

Off the field, the Otters set numerous league attendance records in their early seasons. The Otters drew 90,000 fans in their first season, more than the entire Frontier League had in its inaugural season two years earlier.^[2] The Otters have averaged over 2,500 fans per game since they started playing at Bosse Field in Evansville, most recently setting a 2013 league best with 3,200 fans per game.

The first Evansville Otters game was played on June 15, 1995. The Otters were awarded the Frontier League Organization of the Year Award in 1997, and the Commissioner's Award of Excellence in 2004. They earned their 689th win, a league record, on August 18, 2011. The team hosted the largest crowd ever at Bosse Field on July 24, 2013, with 8,253 fans in attendance. The Otters welcomed their 2,000,000th fan to the ballpark on August 18, 2013.

The Otters have promoted over 50 of their players to Major League Baseball franchises. Four Otters have gone on to careers at the major league level including George Sherrill, Andrew Werner, Brandyn Sittinger, and Randy Wynne.^[3]

The success of the Otters in Evansville led to the move of more Frontier League teams to larger cities, many of which have built new ballparks, leading to the increased stability and success of the league in recent years.

On May 27, 2014, the Otters became the first team in the Frontier League to reach 800 wins.^[4]

The Otters reached the Frontier League Championship Series in 2023 for the first time since 2016 but lost in five games to the Quebec Capitales.^[5]

Season-by-season records

Lancaster Scouts (Frontier League)
Year	Division	W–L	Win %	Place	Postseason
1993	West	22–33	.400	3rd	Did not qualify
1994	West	25–39	.391	2nd	Won 1st Round Playoff vs. Chillicothe Paints 2–1. Lost Frontier League Championship vs. Erie Sailors 2–0.
Total	—	47–72	.395	—	—
Playoffs	—	2–3	—	.400	1 Playoff appearance, 0 Championships
Evansville Otters (Frontier League)
1995	—	31-38	.449	6th	Did not qualify
1996	West	34–40	.459	3rd	Did not qualify
1997	West	46–33	.582	1st	Won 1st Round Playoff vs. Richmond Roosters 2–1. Lost Frontier League Championship vs. Canton Crocodiles 2–0.
1998	West	43–36	.544	3rd	Lost 1st Round Playoff vs. Springfield Capitals 2–1.
1999	West	43–41	.512	1st	Lost 1st Round Playoff vs. Chillicothe Paints 2–0.
2000	West	45–38	.616	2nd	Won 1st Round Playoff vs. River City Rascals 2-0. Lost Frontier League Championship vs. Johnstown Johnnies 3-1.
2001	West	44–40	.524	4th	Did not qualify
2002	West	33–51	.393	6th	Did not qualify
2003	East	51–37	.580	3rd	Won 1st Round Playoff vs. Chillicothe Paints 2–1. Lost Frontier League Championship vs. Gateway Grizzlies 3–0.
2004	East	54–42	.562	2nd	Won 1st Round Playoff vs. Washington Wild Things 3–0. Lost Frontier League Championship vs. Rockford Riverhawks 3–0.
2005	East	52–43	.547	4th	Did not qualify
2006	West	46–50	.479	2nd	Won 1st Round Playoff vs. Rockford Riverhawks 3–2. Won Frontier League Championship vs. Chillicothe Paints 3–0.
2007	West	34–62	.354	4th	Did not qualify
2008	West	39–57	.406	6th	Did not qualify
2009	West	28–66	.298	6th	Did not qualify
2010	West	35–59	.372	6th	Did not qualify
2011	West	39–57	.406	T-5th	Did not qualify
2012	East	45–50	.474	5th	Did not qualify
2013	East	51–45	.531	4th	Did not qualify
2014	East	57–37	.606	2nd	Lost East Division Wild Card Game vs. Washington Wild Things.
2015	East	48–48	.500	4th	Did not qualify
2016	West	55–40	.579	2nd	Won 1st Round Playoff vs. Joliet Slammers 3–1. Won Frontier League Championship vs. River City Rascals 3–2.
2017	West	52–44	.542	2nd	Lost 1st Round Playoff vs. Schaumburg Boomers 3–1.
2018	West	51–45	.531	2nd	Lost 1st Round Playoff vs. Washington Wild Things 3–1.
2019	West	57–39	.531	T-1st	Lost 1st Round Playoff vs. River City Rascals 2–0.
2020	West	-	-	-	Season not played due to COVID-19
2021	West	57–39	.594	2nd	Did not qualify
2022	West	52–44	.542	3rd	Lost Wild Card Game to Schaumburg Boomers 5–1.
2023	West	52–44	.542	3rd	Won Wild Card Game over Schaumburg Boomers 4–3 Won 1st Round Playoff over Gateway Grizzlies 2–1 Lost Championship vs. Québec Capitales 3–2
Total	—	1,217–1,226	.494	—	—
Playoffs	—	24–28	.462	—	14 Playoff appearances, 2 Championships

Current roster

Evansville Otters roster

• v
• t
• e

Active (24-man) roster				Coaches/Other
Pitchers 18 Jon Beymer 13 Parker Brahms -- Johan Castillo 66 Kevin Davis 29 Leoni De La Cruz -- Tyler Driver -- Neil Freeman 50 Tim Holdgrafer 35 Hunter Kloke 21 James Krick -- Kade Lancour 34 Braden Scott -- Adam Smith 24 Zach Smith 20 Justin Watland		Catchers -- Mitchell Balint -- Logan Brown  5 Justin Felix 10 Jake Green Infielders 11 Austin Bost  6 George Callil -- David Mendham 28 Jomar Reyes Outfielders 33 Jeffrey Baez -- Mauro Bonifacio -- Chris Davis -- Clayton Keyes 12 Bryan Rosario		Manager -- Andy McCauley Coaches -- Phil Britton (assistant) -- Billy Easley (assistant) -- Ben Garrett (clubhouse manager) -- Max Peterson (pitching) -- Bobby Segal (hitting) -- Rob Watson (assistant)   Disabled list ‡ Inactive list § Suspended list  updated March 17, 2024 Transactions

Notable alumni

• George Sherrill (1999–2000)
• Andrew Werner (2009–2010)
• Brett Marshall (2015)
• Ty Hensley (2018)
• Brandyn Sittinger (2019)

See also

•  Indiana portal

• Sports in Evansville

References

1. . Evansville Otters. Archived from the original on 2008-07-05. Retrieved 2008-12-01.
2. . Frontier Professional Baseball. Archived from the original on 2010-01-02. Retrieved 2008-12-06.
3. "Former Otter Randy Wynne makes MLB Debut with Cincinnati Reds". 26 June 2023.
4. "EVANSVILLE OTTERS FIRST IN FRONTIER LEAGUE HISTORY TO 800 WINS". Frontierleague.com. 2014-05-27. Retrieved 2015-04-25.
5. Napier, Briar (2023-09-18). "Le Québec est Magnifique Again With Repeat Frontier League Title". FloBaseball. Retrieved 2024-04-01.

External links

• Evansville Otters
• Otters page at OurSports Central