Salem-Keizer Volcanoes

From BR Bullpen

SalemKeizerVolcanoes.JPG
SalemKeizerVolcanoes97.jpg

team History[edit]

The Salem-Keizer Volcanoes began play in the Northwest League in 1997 when the Bellingham Giants relocated to Keizer, Oregon. The Volcanoes captured league titles in 1998, 2001, 2006, 2007 and 2009.

On August 21, 2017, the Volcanoes scheduled a home game against the Hillsboro Hops for 9:35 a.m. that Monday morning. This was no mistake, as the game was scheduled to fall directly during the total solar eclipse passing over the Willamette Valley as part of its path over much of the United States that day. The ballpark was in the narrow band that would experience a couple of minutes of total darkness that day, and the game, dubbed the "Eclipse Game", was scheduled to take full advantage of this, with a built-in "eclipse delay" at approximately 10:17 am. The game was to be preceded with breakfast served to fans from 6 to 9 a.m. With all the associated merchandise linked to the game, it turned out to be the biggest promotion in team history.

Salem-Keizer was one of the cities to lose its affiliation in the minor league re-alignment after the 2020 season. Without a league to begin 2021, the team's ownership formed its own independent circuit, the Mavericks Independent Baseball League. In December 2021, the Volcanoes and three other dropped teams jointly filed a lawsuit against MLB. Two of the others, the Staten Island Yankees and the Tri-City ValleyCats, also have pending suits against their former parents; the Norwich Sea Unicorns are taking their first legal action. [1]

Year-by-Year Record[edit]

Year Record Finish Manager Playoffs Hitting coach Pitching coach Coach
1997 40-36 5th Shane Turner Shawn Barton
1998 43-33 3rd (t) Keith Comstock League Champs Bert Hunter
1999 37-39 6th Frank Reberger Bert Hunter Gabriel Luckert
2000 36-40 7th Fred Stanley Bert Hunter Trevor Wilson
2001 51-25 2nd Fred Stanley League Champs Steve Decker Trevor Wilson
2002 41-35 3rd Fred Stanley Steve Decker Trevor Wilson
2003 43-33 3rd Joe Strain Lost League Finals Trevor Wilson
2004 37-39 6th Joe Strain Jerry Cram
2005 45-31 2nd Steve Decker Jerry Cram
2006 55-21 1st Steve Decker League Champs Ricky Ward Jerry Cram
2007 57-19 1st Steve Decker League Champs Ricky Ward Jerry Cram
2008 40-36 3rd (t) Tom Trebelhorn Lost League Finals Ricky Ward Jerry Cram
2009 49-27 1st Tom Trebelhorn League Champs Ricky Ward Brian Cooper
2010 31-45 7th Tom Trebelhorn Ricky Ward Brian Cooper
2011 34-42 7th Tom Trebelhorn Ricky Ward Jerry Cram
2012 32-44 6th (t) Tom Trebelhorn Ricky Ward Jerry Cram Hector Borg
2013 47-29 1st Gary Davenport Lost in 1st round Ricky Ward Jerry Cram Matt Yourkin
2014 38-38 5th Gary Davenport Ricky Ward Matt Yourkin
2015 39-37 4th Kyle Haines Lost in 1st Round Ricky Ward Matt Yourkin
2016 32-42 6th Kyle Haines Ricky Ward Matt Yourkin
2017 29-47 8th Jolbert Cabrera Ricky Ward Matt Yourkin & Jerry Cram Thomas Neal
2018 36-40 5th Hector Borg Jake Fox Dwight Bernard
2019 46-30 2nd Mark Hallberg Lost in 1st round Doug Clark Dwight Bernard Nestor Rojas , Victor Cairo
2020 Season cancelled

Further Reading[edit]

  • Gary Horowitz: "Salem-Keizer Volcanoes ready for historic Eclipse Game", The Statesman Journal, Salem, OR, August 15, 2017. [2]

External Link[edit]

Salem-Keizer Volcanoes