Gateway Grizzlies
| Gateway Grizzlies | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||
| Information | |||||
| League | Frontier League (West Division) | ||||
| Location | Sauget, Illinois | ||||
| Ballpark | Grizzlies Ballpark | ||||
| Founded | 2001 | ||||
| League championships | 1 (2003) | ||||
| Division championships | 4 (2003, 2007, 2012, 2023) | ||||
| Colors | Navy Blue, White, Green, Orange | ||||
| Playoff berths |
| ||||
| Ownership | Richard "Rich" Sauget | ||||
| Manager | Steve Brook | ||||
| General Manager | Kurt Ringkamp | ||||
| Media | Belleville News-Democrat | ||||
| Website | gatewaygrizzlies | ||||
The Gateway Grizzlies are a professional baseball team based in Sauget, Illinois. The Grizzlies compete in the Frontier League (FL) as a member of the West Division in the Midwest Conference. The franchise was founded in 2001 and they play their home games at the 6,000-seat Grizzlies Ballpark, just 8 miles southeast of Downtown St. Louis. Some of the defining features of Grizzlies Ballpark include lawn seats, bleacher seats, box seating, party suites, a hot tub suite, and more.[1]
The Grizzlies won the Frontier Cup in 2003, defeating the Evansville Otters 3 games to 0. The team have a rivalry with the Schaumburg Boomers, with whom they have shared a division since 2011.
Season-by-season record
[edit]| Gateway Grizzlies (Frontier League) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | W–L | Win % | Place | Postseason | Manager |
| 2001 | 37–44 | .457 | 5th in FL West | Did not qualify | Champ Summers |
| 2002 | 34–50 | .405 | 5th in FL West | Did not qualify | Rich Sauget |
| 2003 | 50–38 | .554 | 1st in FL West | Won 1st Rd. Playoff vs. Washington Wild Things 2–0. Won Frontier League Championship vs. Evansville Otters 3–0. | Danny Cox |
| 2004 | 56–38 | .588 | 2nd in FL West | Lost 1st Rd. Playoff vs. Rockford Riverhawks 3–2. | Danny Cox |
| 2005 | 49–47 | .442 | 3rd in FL West | Did not qualify | Danny Cox |
| 2006 | 42–52 | .512 | 3rd in FL West | Did not qualify | Danny Cox |
| 2007 | 64–29 | .688 | 1st in FL West | Lost 1st Rd. Playoff vs. Washington Wild Things 3–0. | Phil Warren |
| 2008 | 51–45 | .531 | 3rd in FL West | Lost 1st Rd. Playoff vs. Kalamazoo Kings 3–1. | Phil Warren |
| 2009 | 40–54 | .426 | 5th in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2010 | 54–40 | .574 | 3rd in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2011 | 39–56 | .411 | 4th in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2012 | 57–39 | .594 | 1st in FL West | Lost 1st Rd. Playoff vs. Florence Freedom 3–2. | Phil Warren |
| 2013 | 53–43 | .552 | 2nd in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2014 | 50–46 | .521 | 3rd in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2015 | 45–50 | .474 | 4th in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2016 | 44–51 | .463 | 6th in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2017 | 32–64 | .333 | 6th in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2018 | 38–58 | .396 | 6th in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2019 | 39-57 | .406 | 5th in FL West | Did not qualify | Phil Warren |
| 2020 | -- | -- | -- | Season cancelled due to coronavirus pandemic. | -- |
| 2021 | 38-57 | .400 | 4th in FL West | Did not qualify | Cameron Roth |
| 2022 | 47-49 | .490 | 6th in FL West | Did not qualify | Steve Brook |
| 2023 | 59-37 | .615 | 1st in FL West | Lost 1st Rd. Playoff vs. Evansville Otters 2-1 | Steve Brook |
| 2024 | 59-36 | .621 | 2nd in FL West | Lost East Division Wild Card Game to Lake Erie Crushers 10-8 | Steve Brook |
| Totals | 910–864 | .497 | — | — | — |
| Playoffs | 10–12 | .454 | — | 3 Division titles, 5 Playoff appearances, 1 championship | — |
Current roster
[edit]| Active roster | Coaches/Other | |||
| Pitchers
| Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
| Manager
Coaches
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"Baseball's Best Burger"
[edit]The team offers their own version of the Luther burger named "Baseball's Best Burger". Featured on ESPN,[2] Fortune,[3] and Man v. Food, the 1,000 calorie burger uses a deep-fried doughnut in place of a traditional bun.
Broadcasting
[edit]Grizzlies games are currently broadcast on Mixlr, and can be watched live on FloSports with a subscription. The team's current director of Broadcasting and Media Relations is Jason Guerette.
Notable alumni
[edit]- Scott Patterson (2002–2005), a retired pitcher, had his contract purchased by the New York Yankees in 2006. Patterson was called up to the majors for one game in 2008 before being sent back down, and was claimed three months later by the San Diego Padres. Following that year, he played for 8 more seasons between various minor league and international teams.[4] As a member of the 2011 United States National Baseball Team at the Pan American Games, Patterson won a silver medal.[citation needed] He later retired in 2016.
- Justin Erasmus (2013), pitcher, played in the Boston Red Sox organization and in the Australian Baseball League before joining the Grizzlies for the 2013 season. He went back to the AUBL afterwards, and is currently on the Canberra Cavalry.[5] Erasmus was a member of the 2009 South Africa roster and the 2017 Australia roster in the World Baseball Classic.[6][7]
- Trevor Richards (2015–2016), pitcher, was signed by the Miami Marlins in 2016, and called up to the majors in 2018. He has since pitched for the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers, and is currently on the Toronto Blue Jays.[8]
- Josh Lucas (2023), former major league pitcher who played with the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, and Baltimore Orioles from 2017 to 2019. Signed with the Grizzlies for the 2023 season where he made 21 appearances for the Grizzlies, recording a 2.84 ERA with 43 strikeouts and 4 saves across 31+2⁄3 innings pitched.
References
[edit]- ^ "Gateway Grizzlies".
- ^ "Illinois team counts on calories to draw attention". ESPN. March 10, 2006. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
- ^ "The 11 craziest foods sold at ballparks this year". Fortune. April 24, 2015. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
- ^ "Scott Patterson Stats | Baseball-Reference.com". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
- ^ "Justin Erasmus Minor & Independent Leagues Statistics & History | Baseball-Reference.com". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
- ^ "2009 World Baseball Classic - Provisional Roster" (PDF). MLB.com. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
- ^ Randhawa, Manny (January 14, 2017). "WBC 2017 preview: Breaking down Australia". MLB.com. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
- ^ "Trevor Richards Stats | Baseball-Reference.com". Baseball Reference. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
