Sugar Land Skeeters

In 2008, Sugar Land residents voted for the allocation of civic revenues toward the construction of a new baseball park.[2] Initially, the former Omaha Royals were interested in moving to the city, but eventually declined because of the construction of Werner Park in suburban Omaha.[3] City of Sugar Land officials contacted Opening Day Partners to build the ballpark in order to have the company's caliber of professional baseball in their region. The city knew that the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB) would not approve of an affiliated team in the Greater Houston area, so Sugar Land chose the independent circuit. The American Association and the United Baseball League were also considered since both organizations had teams located in Texas. The city decided on the Atlantic League mainly because Opening Day Partners' other teams were already members of that league. Sugar Land's entry in the Atlantic League was officially announced on May 18, 2010.[4]

The Skeeters began using a bullpen car in 2012.[5] On August 20, 2012, the Skeeters announced that they were signing former MLB pitcher Roger Clemens. They also announced that Clemens would be the starting pitcher for the Skeeters on August 25, 2012.[6] The Skeeters sold out the night of Clemens start, where Clemens pitched for 3⅓ innings and Skeeters won 1-0.[7]

The Sugar Land City Council approved an ownership change on October 28, 2014. The Council's action cleared the way for Houston-area residents Bob and Marcie Zlotnik, who have been one-third minority partners since the 2012 season, to assume 100% ownership of SL Baseball, LLC.[8]

Also in the 2014 season, the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball All Star Game was held at Constellation Field, Sugar Land, Texas; home of the Skeeters. Usually, in each annual All Star Game, the best players from the Freedom Division battle it out with the best players from the Liberty Division. However, in the 2014 All Star Game, the best players from all around the league faced the Sugar Land Skeeters team. Surprisingly, the Skeeters won on their home field and in front of their home crowd in a thriller with the score of 5-3. Nick Stavinoha was recognized with the MVP award for the game. The game attendance was 7,555 which was the fourth highest All Star Game attendance.

On September 17, 2015, the Sugar Land Skeeters announced their signing of former MLB All-Star Rafael Palmeiro. He had been in retirement for ten years. His son Patrick Palmeiro was also a member of the team that year. Shortly after signing with the Skeeters, Palmeiro said, "We discussed me playing earlier this year and it's something I've looked forward to since then. The chance to play with my son is an opportunity the Skeeters have offered me and I'm very excited to make it happen this weekend."[9] On September 18, 2015, Rafael Palmeiro debuted for the Skeeters batting third, which was the spot right after his son. The father-son duo combined for five RBIs to lead Sugar Land to a 10-4 victory over the Camden Riversharks.[10]

Shortly after the conclusion of the 2017 season, Skeeters manager Gary Gaetti stepped down from his position with the expiration of his contract. Gaetti, the only manager in franchise history at the time, was hired as the club's inaugural skipper in 2011 and managed the club for six seasons (2012–2017).[11]

In 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Skeeters organization announced they intend to launch their own 4-team independent league with play beginning on July 10, thereby going on hiatus for the 2020 ALPB season.[12] All games will be played at Constellation Field; rosters will be composed of former MLB players and other professionals who've previously played in minor-league or independent baseball. Current Skeeters skipper Pete Incaviglia will manage one of the teams, the father-son duo of Roger Clemens and Koby Clemens will manage another team, and former MLB pitchers Greg Swindell and Dave Eiland will each manage their own teams.

• Roger Clemens – former MLB player who signed with the team in 2012
• Rafael Palmeiro – former MLB player who signed with the team in 2015
• Tracy McGrady – former NBA player who became a professional pitcher for the Skeeters in 2014[13]
• Scott Kazmir – MLB pitcher before and after his 2012 stint with the Skeeters
• Delwyn Young – former MLB player who signed with the team in 2014
• Jason Lane – former MLB outfielder who pitched for the Skeeters in 2012–2013 and returned to MLB as a pitcher
• Ryan Langerhans
• Scott Elarton
• Daryle Ward
• Derek Norris
• James Loney
• Hector Olivera
• Willy Taveras

Swatson, one of the Skeeters mascots, during a July 2014 game

On April 24, 2014, the Sugar Land Skeeters announced a deal with ESPN that allowed for all home games at Constellation Field to be exclusively broadcast on the Internet channel ESPN3 for the 2014 season,[14] an agreement that was renewed for both the 2015 and 2016 seasons. Away games are heard on radio station KBRZ.

For the 2017 season, the Skeeters dropped their deals with both KBRZ and ESPN. Telecasts moved to the Skeeters' YouTube channel, while radio broadcasts moved to SB Nation Radio flagship station KGOW.

The official colors of the Sugar Land Skeeters are imperial blue, nighttime black, rawhide yellow, white, and refinery red. Aside from nighttime black, each color is a regional allusion: "imperial blue" for the Sugar Land–based Imperial Sugar company, "rawhide yellow" for the cattle industry, and "refinery red" for the area's oil refineries. The team's primary logo consists of a mosquito flying over a Texas contour with its proboscis marking Fort Bend County which is located in the Southeast Texas area. The "Skeeters" wordmark centered below is made up of sugarcane-inspired lettering – a reference to the industry's importance to the region. Centered to the right above the contour is "Sugar Land" in black letters with a "lone star."[15]

• Sugar Land Skeeters (official website)