Aberdeen IronBirds

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[edit] Team History

The Aberdeen IronBirds are the Baltimore Orioles farm club in the New York-Penn League. Previously the Utica Blue Sox, the club was purchased by a group headed by Cal Ripken, Jr. in 2002 and moved to Aberdeen, Maryland, his hometown. Ripken renamed them the "IronBirds" to honor his "Iron Man" streak and their connection with the Orioles. The team plays its home game at Ripken Stadium.

In their inaugural season of 2002, the IronBirds drew 231,935 (second in the New York-Penn) despite only posting a 31-45 record and being outscored 360-283. Neal Stephenson hit .310/.349/.459 with 3 homers and 40 RBIs for the club, and Val Majewski (the Orioles top pick in the 2002 amateur draft) hit .300/.376/.464 with 8 stolen bases. Reliever Jim Cooney went 3-1 with a 1.36 ERA and 4 saves in 25 appearances, and John Maine (1-1, 1.74) struck out 21 batters in just 10 1/3 innings with the Birds. In 2003, the club improved to post a .500 record while their attendance increased to 234,143 (again second-best). They were outscored 308-294. Outfielder Nick Markakis hit .283/.372/.359 with 28 RBIs and was named team MVP, while outfielder Jarod Rine (.252/.313/.357) displayed some speed, stealing 20 bases. Baseball America labeled Markakis the top prospect in the league. On the mound, top draft pick Adam Loewen (0-2) posted a 2.70 ERA and struck out 25 in 23 1/3 innings, and Zach Dixon went 4-3 with a 2.91 ERA and 70 strikeouts.

Former Oriole Don Buford took over as the IronBirds skipper in 2004, but the team fell back below .500. Attendance remained second-best (228,925). Despite the disappointing seasons, third baseman Rob Marconi hit .325/.406/.491 while showing impressive defensive skills, and closer David Haehnel went 3-1 with a 1.21 ERA and 16 saves as the team's first league All-Star, tying for the league lead in saves as well. The next season Andy Etchebarren became manager of the team, and despite more struggles on the field (a franchise-worst 27-48 mark), they drew 239,748 fans (second as usual to the Brooklyn Cyclones). Outscored 356-296, they had the weakest offense in the league. First baseman Mark Fleisher, the team MVP, hit .277/.356/.420 with 7 homers and 32 RBIs, and outfielder Nolan Reimold (.294/.392/.550) hit a club record 9 home runs. Reimold was named the league's top prospect by Baseball America. Radhames Liz anchored the pitching staff with 5 wins, a 1.77 ERA, and 82 strikeouts, and closer Blake Owen (1-2) posted a 1.57 ERA and notched 8 saves before a mid-season promotion. In 2006, the IronBirds bounced back to win 41 games, their most ever. First baseman Chris Vinyard hit .284/.366/.489 with 26 doubles, 8 homers and club-record 47 RBIs, and pitcher Luis Lebron (0-2, 1.17) saved a league-best 20 games.


[edit] Year-by-Year Record

Year Record Finish Manager Playoffs
2002 31-45 11th Joe Almaraz
2003 38-38 8th (t) Joe Almaraz
2004 35-40 8th Don Buford
2005 27-48 14th Andy Etchebarren
2006 41-34 5th Andy Etchebarren
2007 34-42 9th (t) Andy Etchebarren
2008 36-39 9th Gary Kendall
2009 30-44 12th Gary Kendall

[edit] Coaching Staffs

[edit] 2002 Coaches

[edit] 2003 Coaches

[edit] 2004 Coaches

  • Pitching Coach: [[]]
  • Field Coach: [[]]

[edit] 2005 Coaches

[edit] 2006 Coaches

[edit] 2007 Coaches

[edit] 2008 Coaches

[edit] 2009 Coaches

[edit] External Links

Retrieved from "http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Aberdeen_IronBirds"
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