Lakewood BlueClaws
- Location: Lakewood, NJ
- League: South Atlantic League 2001-2019
- Affiliation: Philadelphia Phillies 2001-2019
- Ballpark: FirstEnergy Park
- Famous Alumni: Gavin Floyd, Cole Hamels, J.A. Happ, Ryan Howard
Team History[edit]
The Lakewood BlueClaws began play in the South Atlantic League in 2001, lasting until the league's final season in 2019. The team was the relocation of the Fayetteville, NC-based Cape Fear Crocs. They were a Philadelphia Phillies farm club for their entire existence. The team captured the league championship in 2006. The BlueClaws played their home games at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, New Jersey. They led the league in attendance in their first 16 seasons. The BlueClaws outdrew 15 other teams their first nine seasons and 13 the last seven. They hosted more than 8,000 well over 100 times, reaching the million attendance increments faster than any SAL team.
In 2010 the BlueClaws became the first South Atlantic League team to win its division in both halves of the season and win the league championship.
Like all minor league teams, they did not play the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After the season, the team announced a name change to reflect the team's region, becoming the Jersey Shore BlueClaws [1].
2005 NL Rookie of the Year and 2006 NL MVP Ryan Howard is a former BlueClaws player, along with Phillies teammate and All-Star pitcher Cole Hamels.
We're Social...for Statheads
Every Sports Reference Social Media Account
Site Last Updated:
Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction?
Subscribe to our Free Email Newsletter
Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE
Your All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database
Do you have a sports website? Or write about sports? We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Find out more.