| Helena Brewers | |
|---|---|
| π Image | |
| Minor league affiliations | |
| Class | Rookie (1978β2000, 2003β2018) |
| League | Pioneer League (1978β2000, 2003β2018) |
| Major league affiliations | |
| Team |
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| Minor league titles | |
| League titles (4) |
|
| Division titles (10) |
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| Team data | |
Previous names |
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| Colors | Blue, gold, white, wheat, ivory |
| Mascot | Wally the Mammoth (2015β2018) Lewis the Lion and Clark the Cougar (2003β2015)[1] Brewinkle (1996-2000) |
| Ballpark | Kindrick Legion Field (1978β2000, 2003β2018) |
The Helena Brewers were a Minor League Baseball team in the Pioneer League located in Helena, Montana, from 1978 to 2018. The team played their home games at Kindrick Legion Field, which was built in 1939. They were affiliated with the Milwaukee Brewers (1985β2000, 2003β2018) and Philadelphia Phillies (1978β1983).
Among the best-known players to play in Helena are Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg, who started his career with the Phillies in Helena, Gary Sheffield, who started his career with the Helena Gold Sox in 1986, Jeff Cirillo and Mark Loretta who began their careers with the 1991 and 1993 Helena Brewers, respectively; and Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun.
History
[edit]The Helena Phillies joined the Pioneer League in 1978, giving Helena a professional baseball team for the first time in 64 years. In 1984, the Helena Gold Sox won the Pioneer League Championship, a rarity for an independent club. The team hooked on with the Milwaukee Brewers in 1985 and changed its name to the Helena Brewers in 1987. Helena won the league championship in back-to-back seasons in 1995 and 1996. The franchise moved to Provo, Utah, as the Provo Angels after the 2000 season. In 2003, the Medicine Hat Blue Jays moved to Helena, and the team once again became a Brewers affiliate, called the Helena Brewers.
In 2015, David Denson, while playing for the Helena Brewers, which were then affiliated with the Milwaukee Brewers, became the first active player in affiliated professional baseball to come out as gay.[2][3]
The franchise left Helena for Colorado Springs, Colorado, after the 2018 season, where it would play as the Rocky Mountain Vibes.[4]
Season-by-season record
[edit]| Helena Brewers | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Regular Season | Postseason | ||||||
| Record | Win % | Finish* | Record | Win % | Result | |||
| 1978 | 30β38 | .441 | 6th | β | β | β | ||
| 1979 | 43β26 | .623 | 2nd | 0β2 | .000 | Lost PL Championship vs Lethbridge Dodgers, 0β2 | ||
| 1980 | 32β38 | .457 | 3rd | β | β | β | ||
| 1981 | 22β44 | .371 | 4th | β | β | β | ||
| 1982 | 29β41 | .414 | 4th | β | β | β | ||
| 1983 | 16β54 | .229 | 4th | β | β | β | ||
| 1984 | 44β24 | .647 | 1st | 3β1 | .750 | Won PL Championship vs Billings Mustangs, 3β1 | ||
| 1985 | 42β26 | .618 | 2nd | β | β | β | ||
| 1986 | 38β32 | .543 | 3rd | β | β | β | ||
| 1987 | 46β24 | .657 | 1st | 1β3 | .250 | Lost PL Championship vs Salt Lake City Trappers, 1β3 | ||
| 1988 | 41β29 | .586 | 2nd | β | β | β | ||
| 1989 | 38β30 | .559 | 2nd | β | β | β | ||
| 1990 | 37β28 | .569 | 3rd | β | β | β | ||
| 1991 | 44β26 | .629 | 2nd | β | β | β | ||
| 1992 | 50β26 | .658 | 2nd | β | β | β | ||
| 1993 | 43β30 | .589 | 1st | 1β2 | .333 | Lost PL Championship vs Billings Mustangs, 1β2 | ||
| 1994 | 44β28 | .611 | 1st | 2β3 | .400 | Lost PL Championship vs Billings Mustangs, 2β3 | ||
| 1995 | 49β22 | .690 | 1st | 4β1 | .800 | Won Northern Division Championship vs Idaho Falls Braves, 2β1 Won PL Championship vs Medicine Hat Blue Jays, 2β0 | ||
| 1996 | 43β29 | .597 | 2nd | 4β1 | .800 | Won Northern Division Championship vs Lethbridge Black Diamonds, 2β1 Won PL Championship vs Ogden Raptors, 2β0 | ||
| 1997 | 37β34 | .521 | 5th | β | β | β | ||
| 1998 | 21β55 | .276 | 4th | β | β | β | ||
| 1999 | 47β28 | .627 | 1st | 0β2 | .000 | Lost Northern Division Championship vs Missoula Osprey, 0β2 | ||
| 2000 | 26β50 | .342 | 4th | β | β | β | ||
| 2003 | 48β28 | .632 | 2nd | 1β2 | .333 | Lost Northern Division Championship vs Billings Mustangs, 1β2 | ||
| 2004 | 39β37 | .513 | 2nd | β | β | β | ||
| 2005 | 46β30 | .605 | 1st | 2β2 | .500 | Won Northern Division Championship vs Billings Mustangs, 2β0 Lost PL Championship vs Orem Owlz, 0β2 | ||
| 2006 | 34β42 | .447 | 3rd | β | β | β | ||
| 2007 | 48β28 | .632 | 2nd | 1β2 | .333 | Lost Northern Division Championship vs Great Falls White Sox, 1β2 | ||
| 2008 | 35β41 | .461 | 6th | β | β | β | ||
| 2009 | 32β44 | .421 | 6th | β | β | β | ||
| 2010 | 41β34 | .421 | 3rd | 4β1 | .800 | Won North Division Championship vs Great Falls Voyagers, 2β1 Won PL Championship vs Ogden Raptors, 2β0 | ||
| 2011 | 30β46 | .395 | 7th | β | β | β | ||
| 2012 | 24β52 | .316 | 8th | β | β | β | ||
| 2013 | 43β33 | .566 | 2nd | 3-2 | .600 | Won North Division Championship vs Great Falls Voyagers, 2β0 Lost PL Championship vs Idaho Falls Chukars, 1β2 | ||
| 2014 | 27β49 | .355 | 8th | β | β | β | ||
| 2015 | 32β42 | .432 | 8th | β | β | β | ||
| 2016 | 28β46 | .378 | 8th | β | β | β | ||
| 2017 | 28β48 | .368 | 8th | β | β | β | ||
| 2018 | 36β40 | .474 | 6th | β | β | β | ||
| Totals | 1,433β1,402 | .505 | β | 29β26 | .509 | 4 League Championships | ||
| Note: * Finish denotes overall position in the league standings. | ||||||||
Major leaguers
[edit]The following is a list of Helena players by year that later played in Major League Baseball:
- 1978: George Bell, Carmelo Castillo, Wil Culmer, Bob Dernier, Ed Hearn, Alejandro SΓ‘nchez, Ryne Sandberg
- 1979: Jay Baller, Roy Smith
- 1980: Rocky Childress, Darren Daulton, Marty Decker, Ken Dowell, Tony Ghelfi
- 1981: Johnny Abrego, Charles Hudson, Jim Olander, Jose Segura
- 1982: Ken Jackson, Lance McCullers, Johnny Paredes, Wilfredo Tejada
- 1983: Ricky Jordan, Tom Magrann, Tom Newell
- 1984: Jack Daugherty, John Trautwein
- 1985: John Jaha, Russ McGinnis, Randy Veres
- 1986: George Canale, Brian Drahman, Darryl Hamilton, Gary Sheffield, Greg Vaughn
- 1987: Frank Bolick, Oreste Marrero, Γngel Miranda, Charlie Montoyo, Jaime Navarro, Dave Nilsson, Troy O'Leary, Steve Sparks, Bill Spiers
- 1988: Bert Heffernan, Mike Ignasiak, Mark Kiefer
- 1991: Jeff Cirillo, Mike Matheny, Marshall Boze
- 1992: Bobby Hughes, Danny Perez, Tim Unroe; Danan Hughes played minor league baseball for the 1992 and 1993 seasons in the Pioneer League for the Helena Brewers. He decided to make football his full-time profession when the Kansas City Chiefs selected him in the 7th round of the 1993 NFL Draft. Hughes played for the Chiefs from 1993 to 1998 as a wide receiver and special teams player.
- 1993: Brian Banks, Todd Dunn, Danny Klassen, Mark Loretta, Sean Maloney, Greg Martinez
- 1994: Antone Williamson, Kelly Wunsch
- 1995: Robinson Cancel, Geoff Jenkins, Mike Kinkade, Mickey Lopez, Greg Mullins
- 1996: Allen Levrault, Mark Watson
- 1997: Jason Childers, Brian Mallette
- 1998: Matt Childers, Bill Hall, Luis Martinez
- 2003: Drew Anderson, Carlos CorporΓ‘n, Tim Dillard, Dana Eveland, Vinny Rottino, Mitch Stetter, Ty Taubenheim
- 2004: Alcides Escobar
- 2005: Michael Brantley, Ryan Braun, Lorenzo Cain, Darren Ford, Matt Gamel, Γngel SalomΓ©, Joe Thatcher
- 2006: Zach Braddock, Cole Gillespie, Taylor Green, Mike McClendon
- 2007: Dane De La Rosa, Eric Farris, Eric Fryer, Caleb Gindl, Donovan Hand, Matt LaPorta, Jonathan Lucroy, Zelous Wheeler
- 2008: Erik Komatsu, Lucas Luetge, Wily Peralta, Logan Schafer, Rob Wooten
- 2009: Chris Capuano, Khristopher Davis, Michael Fiers, Sean Halton, Jake Odorizzi, Josh Prince
- 2010: Hiram Burgos, Jimmy Nelson, Caleb Thielbar, Tyler Thornburg
- 2011: Tyler Cravy, David Goforth, Yadiel Rivera, Jason Rodgers
- 2012: Michael Reed, Tyler Wagner
- 2018: Max Lazar
References
[edit]- ^ Shockley, Troy (May 19, 2015). "Brewers introduce team's newest addition". Independent Record. Helena, Montana. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
farewell to old mascots Lewis the lion and Clark the cougar.
- ^ Tom Haudricourt. "Brewers minor-leaguer makes baseball history by coming out publicly as gay". jsonline.com. Archived from the original on August 16, 2015. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
- ^ Daniel, Victor (August 17, 2015). "David Denson, Gay Minor Leaguer, Has Power but Faces Long Odds". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 21, 2015.
- ^ Hill, Benjamin (November 19, 2018). "Colorado Springs feels the Vibes". MILB.com. Retrieved November 19, 2018.
External links
[edit]- Defunct Pioneer League (baseball) teams
- Baseball teams established in 1978
- Baseball teams disestablished in 2000
- Baseball teams established in 2003
- Baseball teams disestablished in 2018
- Sports in Helena, Montana
- Professional baseball teams in Montana
- Milwaukee Brewers minor league affiliates
- Philadelphia Phillies minor league affiliates
- 1978 establishments in Montana
- 2000 disestablishments in Montana
- 2003 establishments in Montana
- 2018 disestablishments in Montana
- Defunct baseball teams in Montana
