| Fresno Grizzlies | |
|---|---|
| |
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| Minor league affiliations | |
| Class | Single-A (2021–present) |
| Previous classes | Triple-A (1998–2020) |
| League | California League (2021–present) |
| Division | North Division |
Previous leagues | Pacific Coast League (1998–2020) |
| Major league affiliations | |
| Team | Colorado Rockies (2021–present) |
| Previous teams |
|
| Minor league titles | |
| Class titles(1) | 2015 |
| League titles(1) | 2015 |
| Conference titles(2) |
|
| Division titles(5) |
|
| First-half titles(1) |
|
| Second-half titles(1) |
|
| Team data | |
| Name | Fresno Grizzlies (1998–present) |
| Colors | Scarlet, black, beige, brown[1][2] |
| Mascot | Parker T. Bear |
| Ballpark | Chukchansi Park (2002–present) |
Previous parks | Pete Beiden Field (1998–2001) |
Owner(s)/ Operator(s) | Diamond Baseball Holdings |
| General manager | Derek Franks |
| Manager | Steve Soliz |
| Website | milb.com/fresno |
TheFresno Grizzlies are aMinor League Baseball team of theCalifornia League and theSingle-A affiliate of theColorado Rockies. They are located inFresno, California, and play their home games atChukchansi Park, which was opened in 2002 in downtown Fresno. They previously played atFresno State'sPete Beiden Field from 1998 to 2001.
The Grizzlies were established in 1998 as members of theTriple-APacific Coast League (PCL). They won thePCL championship in 2015, making it the only league title in franchise history. Fresno was transferred to the Low-A West in 2021, but this was renamed the California League in 2022.
Professional baseball first came to Fresno in 1898 when it had a team in the originalCalifornia League. The team dropped out of the league after that year but returned in 1905. In 1906, theTacoma Tigers of the Pacific Coast League moved to Fresno, playing as theFresno Raisin Eaters for one season before moving toSacramento for the 1907 season. In the intervening years before the arrival of the Grizzlies, Fresno fielded teams in the California State League in 1910 and 1913, and in the current California League from 1941 through 1988, including theFresno Cardinals (1941–1956), Fresno Sun Sox (1957), Fresno Giants (1958–1987), and Fresno Suns (1988).
WhenMajor League Baseball awarded an expansion team (theArizona Diamondbacks) toPhoenix, Arizona, that would begin playing in 1998, thePhoenix Firebirds of thePacific Coast League (theSan Francisco Giants'Triple-A affiliate) were forced to move. The Firebirds moved toTucson, Arizona and changed their name to theTucson Sidewinders while changing their affiliation to the Diamondbacks. That prompted theTucson Toros to move to Fresno, giving Fresno its first PCL team since 1906. The Toros were renamed the Grizzlies and became the Giants' new Triple-A affiliate.[3]
From 1998 through 2001, the Grizzlies played atPete Beiden Field atCalifornia State University, Fresno, before moving to Chukchansi Park.
During the team's 11-year history in Fresno, it has had several different owners. In October 2005, the team was sold again, this time to Fresno Baseball Club LLC, headquartered inDelaware.
The team hosted such promotions asK-Fed Night and Second Chance Night in 2006;The Price Is Right Night in 2007; and Totally Rad 80s Night featuringThe Karate Kid starBilly Zabka in May 2008.
Parker, the Grizzliesmascot, was named Best Mascot of 2007 by GameOps, beating out all other major and minor league mascots. The Grizzlies former mascot, Wild Thing, "retired" in 2006 after eight years as the team's mascot.[4] Chukchansi Park is also home to the Drag Kings, the Grizzlies' dancing grounds crew who were given an honorable mention by GameOps as Best Entertainment act. The Grizzlies won the Minor League Baseball Promotion of the Year award in 2008 for their "Mascot Showdown" featuring Parker and thePhillie Phanatic. The team's opening day catcher in 2010,Buster Posey, would be theSan Francisco Giants' starting catcher for theWorld Series six months later (the Giants' starting catcher for most oftheir World Championship season,Bengie Molina, would start for their opponents, theTexas Rangers), resulting in hisNational League Rookie of the Year award that year.
In 2015, Fresno became an affiliate of theHouston Astros.[5]That season, they won theTriple-A Baseball National Championship Game by defeating theColumbus Clippers, 7–0, inEl Paso, Texas.
Following the 2017 season, Grizzlies managerTony DeFrancesco announced he would not return to the Houston Astros organization for the 2018 season. DeFrancesco led Fresno to a winning record in each of his three seasons at the helm, his clubs compiling a record of 234–194 (.547) from 2015 to 2017. The run marked the first time in franchise history (since 1998) the Grizzlies completed three consecutive winning seasons.[6]
On January 19, 2018,Rodney Linares was named the 10th manager in Grizzlies history.[7] The team was sold to Fresno Sports and Events, a group led by Ray and Michael Baker, part owners of theColorado Rockies andGrand Junction Rockies, and Jim Coufos, a prior investor in theHigh Desert Mavericks, in a transaction that was made official on February 27, 2018.[8]
The Astros declined to renew their player-development contract with Fresno beyond the 2018 season.[9][5]
The team unveiled new logos, colors, and uniforms for the 2019 season. While retaining the Grizzlies name andgrizzly bear imagery, the team switched to a red, black, beige, and brown color scheme with logos and uniforms that resemble theflag of California.[1]
Fresno also gained a new major league affiliate for 2019. The Grizzlies andWashington Nationals agreed to a player development contract for the 2019 and 2020 seasons.[10] The start of the 2020 season was postponed due to theCOVID-19 pandemic before being cancelled on June 30.[11][12] In conjunction with Major League Baseball's reorganization of the minors after the 2020 season, the Washington Nationals opted to discontinue their affiliation with the Grizzlies, leaving them in need of a new affiliate.[13]
In conjunction withMajor League Baseball's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Grizzlies were transferred to theLow-A West as theLow-A classification affiliate of theColorado Rockies.[14][15] They won the 2021 Northern Division title with a 74–41 record.[16] In the best-of-five league championship series, Fresno was defeated by theSan Jose Giants, 3–0.[17]Zac Veen was selected as the league's Top MLB Prospect, andRobinson Cancel won its Manager of the Year Award.[18] In 2022, the Low-A West became known as the California League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization, and was reclassified as aSingle-A circuit.[19]
| League | The team's final position in the league standings |
|---|---|
| Division | The team's final position in the divisional standings |
| GB | Games behind the team that finished in first place in the division that season |
| ‡ | Class champions (1998–2020) |
| † | League champions (1998–present) |
| § | Conference champions (1998–2020) |
| * | Division champions (1998–present) |
| Season | League | Regular season | Postseason | MLB affiliate | Ref. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record | Win % | League | Division | GB | Record | Win % | Result | ||||
| 1998 * | PCL | 81–62 | .566 | 2nd (tie) | 1st | — | 2–3 | .400 | Won Pacific Conference Southern Division title Lost Pacific Conference title vs.Calgary Cannons, 3–2[20] | San Francisco Giants | [21] |
| 1999 | PCL | 73–69 | .514 | 7th | 2nd | 1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [22] |
| 2000 | PCL | 57–84 | .404 | 15th | 4th | 31+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [23] |
| 2001 | PCL | 68–71 | .489 | 9th | 2nd | 4+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [24] |
| 2002 | PCL | 57–87 | .396 | 16th | 4th | 28 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [25] |
| 2003 | PCL | 55–88 | .385 | 16th | 4th | 36+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [26] |
| 2004 | PCL | 62–82 | .431 | 15th | 4th | 17 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [27] |
| 2005 | PCL | 68–76 | .472 | 11th (tie) | 2nd (tie) | 12 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [28] |
| 2006 | PCL | 61–83 | .424 | 14th | 4th | 30 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [29] |
| 2007 | PCL | 77–67 | .535 | 4th | 2nd | 7 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [30] |
| 2008 | PCL | 67–76 | .469 | 11th | 3rd | 15+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [31] |
| 2009 | PCL | 71–73 | .493 | 10th (tie) | 3rd (tie) | 15+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [32] |
| 2010 | PCL | 75–69 | .521 | 6th | 2nd | 4 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [33] |
| 2011 | PCL | 65–79 | .451 | 13th (tie) | 3rd (tie) | 23 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [34] |
| 2012 | PCL | 74–70 | .514 | 9th | 3rd | 12 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [35] |
| 2013 | PCL | 68–75 | .476 | 12th | 4th | 12+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [36] |
| 2014 | PCL | 68–76 | .472 | 13th | 4th | 13 | — | — | — | San Francisco Giants | [37] |
| 2015 * § † ‡ | PCL | 84–59 | .587 | 2nd | 1st | — | 7–3 | .700 | Won Pacific Conference Northern Division title Won Pacific Conference title vs.El Paso Chihuahuas, 3–1 WonPCL championship vs.Round Rock Express, 3–2 WonTriple-A championship vs.Columbus Clippers | Houston Astros | [38] |
| 2016 | PCL | 73–70 | .510 | 5th (tie) | 3rd | 8 | — | — | — | Houston Astros | [39] |
| 2017 | PCL | 77–65 | .542 | 4th | 2nd | 3 | — | — | — | Houston Astros | [40] |
| 2018 * § | PCL | 82–57 | .590 | 2nd (tie) | 1st | — | 4–5 | .444 | Won Pacific Conference Northern Division title Won Pacific Conference title vs.El Paso Chihuahuas, 3–2 LostPCL championship vs.Memphis Redbirds, 3–1 | Houston Astros | [41] |
| 2019 | PCL | 65–75 | .464 | 11th | 3rd | 8 | — | — | — | Washington Nationals | [42] |
| 2020 | PCL | Season cancelled (COVID-19 pandemic)[12] | Washington Nationals | [43] | |||||||
| 2021 * | A-W | 74–41 | .643 | 1st | 1st | — | 0–3 | 000 | Lost Low-A West championship vs.San Jose Giants, 3–0.[17] | Colorado Rockies | [16] |
| 2022 * | CAL | 83–49 | .629 | 1st | 1st | – | 2–2 | .500 | Won North Division title Won Cal League semifinals vs. San Jose Giants 2–0 Lost Cal League championship to Lake Elsinore Storm 0–2 | Colorado Rockies | [44] |
| 2023 * | CAL | 78–54 | .591 | 1st | 1st | – | — | — | Won North Division title | Colorado Rockies | [45] |
| Totals | — | 1,763–1,757 | .501 | — | — | — | 15–16 | .484 | — | — | — |
The 2012 family filmParental Guidance featuresBilly Crystal as the radio voice of the Fresno Grizzlies. The Grizzlies gained national attention in summer 2015 for playing a game asThe Fresno Tacos, which was done to celebrate the city of Fresno's annualTaco Truck Throwdown and came complete with a specially designedtacos uniform.[46]
The main character of the 2023 sitcomNot Dead Yet, Nell Serrano, is a fan of the Fresno Grizzlies. The seventh episode of season one, Not Out of the Game Yet, involves her writing the obituary for the Grizzlies former color commentator.[47][48]
All games are broadcast on the Fresno Grizzlies website, with Stephen Rice handling the play-by-play.
| Players | Coaches/Other | |||
Pitchers
| Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
| Manager
Coaches
60-day injured list
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