Northwest Arkansas Naturals

• Location: Springdale, AR
• League: Texas League 2008-2019; Double-A Central 2021-
• Affiliation: Kansas City Royals 2008-present
• Ballpark: Arvest Ballpark 2008-present

Team History

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals, formerly of the Texas League and now in Double-A Central, adopted a 6-foot-9 Sasquatch named Strike as their mascot upon arriving from Wichita, KS. The Kansas City Royals farmhands play their home games at Arvest Ballpark in Springdale, AR.

The team was named "Naturals" to honor the area's natural beauty. The logo includes a waterfall, as Arkansas is home to over 100 waterfalls. Their nickname also honors the Arkansas slogan "The Natural State" and the movie The Natural (1984) - which was shot mostly at the first home of the Nats' corporate sibling, the Buffalo Bisons - once the Wichita Aeros.

For years, the Nats' pocket schedules identified the Arkansas Travelers as "NLR" (for North Little Rock, AR) instead of "ARK" - which a staffer confirmed was a dig at the Travs for "claiming" the whole state as their own.

Two Nats pitchers combined on a no-hitter while their defense turned a triple play in the same July 19, 2011, game.

The Nats play Copa de la Diversión Hispanic engagement campaign games as Naturales del Noroeste de Arkansas (a straightforward translation of their name, although "Naturales" can also mean "Natives").

Year-by-Year Record

Year	Record	Finish	Manager	Playoffs	Hitting Coach	Pitching Coach	Coach
2008	75-65	3rd (t)	Brian Poldberg	Lost in 1st round	Tommy Gregg	Larry Carter
2009	73-67	3rd	Brian Poldberg	Lost League Finals	Terry Bradshaw	Larry Carter
2010	86-54	1st	Brian Poldberg	League Champs	Terry Bradshaw	Larry Carter
2011	73-64	3rd	Brian Poldberg	Lost in 1st round	Terry Bradshaw	Larry Carter
2012	58-81	8th	Brian Poldberg		Terry Bradshaw	Larry Carter
2013	59-81	8th	Brian Poldberg		Nelson Liriano	Jim Brower
2014	53-87	8th	Vance Wilson		Andre David	Jim Brower
2015	69-70	4th	Vance Wilson	Lost League Finals	Brandon Moore	Jim Brower
2016	65-75	6th	Vance Wilson	Lost League Finals	Brian Buchanan	Steve Luebber
2017	76-73	6th	Vance Wilson	Lost in 1st round	Leon Roberts	Steve Luebber
2018	70-70	5th	Mike Rojas		Leon Roberts	Steve Luebber	Chris Nelson
2019	57-81	8th	Darryl Kennedy		Abraham O. Nunez	Doug Henry	Nelson Liriano
2020	Season cancelled
2021	64-55	2nd (t)	Scott Thorman	League Champs	Abraham O. Nunez	Derrick Lewis

Related Sites

• Official site