Tampa Tarpons

The Tampa Tarpons are a Minor League Baseball team based in Tampa, Florida. They are members of the Florida State League (FSL) and are the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the New York Yankees Major League Baseball team. Home games are played 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 the Bronx.

For the previous Tampa Tarpons, see Tampa Tarpons (1957–1988).
Tampa Tarpons
Founded in 1994
Tampa, Florida
Team logo
Minor league affiliations
ClassAdvanced-A (1994–present)
LeagueFlorida State League (1994–present)
DivisionNorth Division
Major league affiliations
TeamNew York Yankees (1994–present)
Minor league titles
League titles (5)
  • 1994
  • 2001*
  • 2004**
  • 2009
  • 2010
*Co-champions with Brevard County Manatees
**Co-champions with Daytona Cubs
Division titles (6)
  • 1994
  • 2001
  • 2004
  • 2009
  • 2010
  • 2016
Team data
NicknameTampa Tarpons (2018–present)
Previous names
Tampa Yankees (1994–2017)
ColorsLegends navy, Tarpon silver, Gulf blue, white[1]
                   
MascotBlue (2003-present)
BallparkGeorge M. Steinbrenner Field (1996–present)
Previous parks
Red McEwen Field (1994–1995)
Owner(s)/
Operator(s)
New York Yankees & Armando Gutierrez
ManagerAaron Holbert
General ManagerMatt Gess

The team was established in 1994 as the Tampa Yankees and played for 24 seasons under that name. Before the 2018 season, the team was rebranded as the "Tampa Tarpons", reviving a name that had been used by an earlier FSL franchise for over 30 years.[2] Since their inception, the club has won five league championships, in 1994, 2001, 2004, 2009, and 2010.

History

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 Florida State League (FSL) in 1919. However, when the original Tampa Tarpons of the FSL were sold and relocated in 1988 and Al Lopez Field was demolished soon thereafter, Tampa was left 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. as the Tampa Yankees. The team was rebranded as the Tarpons before the 2018 season, reviving the name of Tampa's longest-lasting minor league ballclub.[3]

Notable major league players to once play for the Tampa Yankees / Tarpons include Derek Jeter, Rubén Rivera, Mariano Rivera, David Robertson, Joba Chamberlain, Ian Kennedy, Phil Hughes, Ramiro Mendoza, Tim Raines, Eric Milton, and Luis Sojo.

Playing field

As part of a deal with the city of Tampa, the Tampa Sports Authority agreed to finance and built a new baseball park for the New York Yankees to use during spring training and the Tampa Yankees to use during the summer. The Tampa Yankees played their first two seasons (1994 and 1995) at Red McEwen Field on the campus of the University of South Florida while their permanent home was under construction. In 1996, they moved to Legends Field, where the playing field had the same dimensions as the major league Yankee's then-home of Yankee Stadium and included some design elements of the ballpark in the Bronx. In 2008, Legends Field was renamed George M. Steinbrenner Field in honor of ailing long-time Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who lived in Tampa.

Steinbrenner Field seats 10,000 fans, and sits across Dale Mabry Highway from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' home of Raymond James Stadium. A pedestrian bridge allows for baseball attendees to easily use the football stadium's much larger parking lot.

Playoffs
  • 2017: Lost to Dunedin 2-1 in semifinals.
  • 2016: Lost to Bradenton 3-1 in the FSL finals.
  • 2010: Defeated Dunedin 2-0 in semifinals; defeated Charlotte 3-1 to win championship.
  • 2009: Defeated Brevard County 2-0 in semifinals; defeated Charlotte 3-2 to win championship.
  • 2004: Defeated Dunedin 2-0 in semifinals; declared co-champions with Daytona.
  • 2002: Lost to Charlotte 2-0 in semifinals.
  • 2001: Defeated Charlotte 2-0 in semifinals; declared co-champions with Brevard County.
  • 1998: Defeated Charlotte 2-0 in semifinals; lost to St. Lucie 3-2 in finals.
  • 1996: Lost to Clearwater 2-0 in semifinals.
  • 1995: Lost to Fort Myers 2-1 in semifinals.
  • 1994: Defeated Sarasota 2-1 in semifinals; defeated Brevard County 3-1 to win championship.

Roster
Tampa Tarpons roster
Players Coaches/Other

Pitchers

  • 45 Daniel Bies
  • -- Austin DeCarr
  • 30 Frank German
  • -- Nick Green
  • 14 Hobie Harris
  • 15 Janson Junk
  • -- Josh Maciejewski
  • 35 Aaron McGarity
  • 22 Jio Orozco
  • 21 Glenn Otto
  • -- Freicer Perez
  • -- JP Sears
  • 20 Anderson Severino
  • 17 Alexander Vizcaino
  • -- Matt Wivinis
  • 25 Kyle Zurak

Catchers

  • -- Jason Lopez
  • 10 Hemmanuel Rosario
  • 33 Donny Sands

Infielders

  • -- Oswaldo Cabrera
  • -- Diego Castillo
  • -- Dermis Garcia
  • 27 Wilkerman Garcia
  •  6 Mickey Gasper
  •  4 Kyle Gray
  • -- Cristian Perez
  •  5 Steven Sensley

Outfielders

  • 24 Leonardo Molina
  •  7 Pablo Olivares

Manager

Coaches


7-day injured list
* On New York Yankees 40-man roster
# Rehab assignment
∞ Reserve list
‡ Restricted list
§ Suspended list
† Temporary inactive list
Roster updated February 16, 2020
 Transactions
→ More rosters: MiLB • Florida State League
 → New York Yankees minor league players

Notable alumni

Hall of Fame alumni

  • Tim Raines (1996-1997) Inducted, 2017
  • Mariano Rivera (1994) 13 x MLB All-Star; 1999 World Series Most Valuable Player; All-Time MLB Saves Leader, Inducted 2019 With 100% of votes
  • Derek Jeter (1994, 2000) 14 x MLB All-Star; 1996 AL Rookie of the Year; 2000 World Series Most Valuable Player, Inducted 2020

Notable alumni

References
  1. "Splash from the past". Minor League Baseball. December 11, 2017. Retrieved December 15, 2017.
  2. Norris, Josh. "Tampa Yankees Announce Name Change". Baseball America. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  3. Hill, Benjamin (December 11, 2017). "With Tarpons, Tampa throws back to the future". milb.com. Retrieved December 11, 2017.
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