# What are your local minor league teams? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [June 19, 2010, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754 "2010-06-19T05:24:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/1 "2010-06-19T05:24:43Z")
Rochester Americans - American Hockey League Rochester Knighthawks - National Lacrosse League Batavia Muckdogs - New York-Penn League baseball Rochester Raiders - Indoor Football League Rochester Razorsharks - Premier Basketball League Rochester Red Wings - International League baseball Rochester Rhinos - United Soccer Leagues First Division Empire State Roar - Women’s Football Alliance ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/2 "2010-06-19T05:28:13Z")
All I can think of off the top of my head are the River City Rascals and the Gateway Grizzlies, both independent minor league baseball teams in the Frontier League. I’m in St. Louis. ---
**Author:** ![Enginerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@Enginerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enginerd)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/3 "2010-06-19T05:55:05Z")
Reno Aces - Pacific Coast League (Arizona Diamondbacks AAA team) Reno Bighorns - NBA D-League (Sacramento Kings/Orlando Magic affiliate) That’s it, as far as I know. We’re supposed to have an ECHL hockey team (the Reno Raiders), but the team owner apparently doesn’t have a place for them to play. He wanted to be up and running last year, but wasn’t - who knows when (if?) they’ll get off the ground. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/4 "2010-06-19T06:31:47Z")
The Arizona Rattlers, Arena football. There used to be a minor league hockey team here, but the recession killed them. Phoenix Roadrunners, I think. Not sure if the WNBA is minor league, but we have the Phoenix Mercury. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/5 "2010-06-19T07:24:53Z")
The Rancho Cucamonga Quakes and the Inland Empire 66ers are the closest minor league teams I’m aware of. Both are single-A baseball clubs. I no longer know who the Quakes are an affiliate of (was the Mariners, then the Angels – someone else, now), and the 66ers are the Dodgers’ farm club. ---
**Author:** ![MannyL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@MannyL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MannyL)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/6 "2010-06-19T22:14:59Z")
Lakewood Blueclaws ---
**Author:** ![duality72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duality72/32/3910_2.png) [@duality72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duality72)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/7 "2010-06-19T22:25:49Z")
Austin Aztex- USSF Division 2 ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/8 "2010-06-19T22:36:26Z")
Lancaster Barnstormers. They’re Atlantic League, unaffiliated with MLB. The Altoona Curve. My hometown team. The website says they’re the Pirates’ EAS AA team, whatever EAS means. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/9 "2010-06-19T22:48:57Z")
The Chicago Cubs. (I’ll be here all week. Remember to tip your waitress.) ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/10 "2010-06-19T23:19:51Z")
Sacramento Rivercats (Oakland A’s AAA affiliate) Sacramento Mountain Lions (United Football League) ---
**Author:** ![KennerTheGreat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a8b319/32.png) [@KennerTheGreat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KennerTheGreat)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/11 "2010-06-19T23:23:21Z")
Not minor pro, but within an hour from me is the Sudbury Wolves OHL junior team, and the North Bay Trappers (Tier 2 junior hockey). And at the college/university level, there’s the Nipissing Lakers in North Bay. Oddly, Laurentian in Sudbury, a bigger university than Nipissing, doesn’t compete in CIS hockey. ---
**Author:** ![Ichbin\_Dubist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ichbin\_Dubist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichbin_Dubist)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/12 "2010-06-19T23:35:58Z")
As far as I know, the only team within an hour of here is the Hudson Valley Renegades, a single-A affiliate of the Rays. I’ve watched them play the Brooklyn Cyclone a few times. There are a scattering of independent league teams but all more than an hour away, mostly in Massachusetts and Jersey. Research into this question has caused me to discover that the American Defenders of New Hampshire, a team in the Can-Am League, has folded. New Hampshire now stands undefended, by baseball anyway. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2010, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/13 "2010-06-20T00:41:37Z")
We’ve a number of them here in the Cleveland area (Tom Scud beat me to the obvious joke): baseball’s Akron Aeros, Lake County Captains and Lorain County Crushers (Frontier League) and indoor football’s Cleveland Gladiators. We have minor league - excuse me, mid-major- college basketball from Cleveland State, Kent State and Akron U. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2010, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/14 "2010-06-20T07:26:01Z")
> [@Tom\_Scud](#): > > The Chicago Cubs. > > (I’ll be here all week. Remember to tip your waitress.) Fucker… ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2010, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/15 "2010-06-20T17:56:08Z")
> [@zamboniracer](#): > > We’ve a number of them here in the Cleveland area (Tom Scud beat me to the obvious joke): baseball’s Akron Aeros, Lake County Captains and Lorain County Crushers (Frontier League) and indoor football’s Cleveland Gladiators. We have minor league - excuse me, mid-major- college basketball from Cleveland State, Kent State and Akron U. Oops, I overlooked Cleveland minor league hockey team, the AHL’s Lake Erie Monsters. My apologies. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2010, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/16 "2010-06-20T19:46:18Z")
Baseball: Vermont Lake Monsters, Single A affiliate of the Washington Nationals (this might be their last season if they can’t find a way to raise money for a new ballpark/get _even more_ extensions for the outdated and not up to code one they have now) Football: Vermont Ice Storm (member of the Empire Football League, so I think it’s like the minor leagues of the minor leagues, or something.) Basketball: Vermont Frost Heaves (used to be a member of the new American Basketball Association (and were the 2007 and 2008 champs,) now a member of the Premiere Basketball League. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2010, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/17 "2010-06-20T20:20:47Z")
[Wenatchee Applesox](http://www.applesox.com/) - West Coast League baseball [Wenatchee Wild](http://wenatcheewild.pointstreaksites.com/view/wenatcheewild/headlines)- NAHL hockey [Wenatchee Valley Venom](http://www.wenatcheevenom.com/) - AIFA indoor football ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2010, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/18 "2010-06-21T15:02:05Z")
I’m going to a Nashville Sounds game this weekend (Triple A). I think we have minor league basketball and arena football teams too, but I’m not sure. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2010, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/19 "2010-06-21T15:32:42Z")
Cubs and White Sox aside, the Chicago area is practically littered with Minor League teams. The [Kane County Cougars](http://www.kccougars.com/) are an A-level affiliate of the Oakland A’s. They’re about 20 minutes from my house and I go there often, always a good time. And then there are no fewer than four non-affiliated independent pro teams in the area: The [Windy City Thunderbolts](http://www.wcthunderbolts.com/), in Crestwood, of the Frontier League; and the [Scaumburg Flyers](http://www.flyersbaseball.com/), [Joliet Jackhammers](http://www.jackhammerbaseball.com/news/league/), and [Lake County Fielders](http://lakecountybaseball.com/) (owned by Kevin Costner) in the Northern League. And if you consider Gary, Indiana to be part of the Chicago area, there’s the [Railcats](http://www.railcatsbaseball.com/) too. ---
**Author:** ![Spit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/76d3ee/32.png) [@Spit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spit)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754/20 "2010-06-22T16:29:50Z")
> [@bouv](#): > > Baseball: Vermont Lake Monsters, Single A affiliate of the Washington Nationals (this might be their last season if they can’t find a way to raise money for a new ballpark/get _even more_ extensions for the outdated and not up to code one they have now) Yeah, we were hoping to grab them from you guys being as the Nationals are right up the street. Instead, we ended up with the G-D _Flying Squirrels_ here in Richmond. WTF does a flying squirrel have to do with my fair city?!? The name is stupid, the mascot looks like something out of a Rob Zombie hallucination, and we still have to watch them play in the hellhole that is, “The Diamond”. And no, it has not, and will not, “Grow on me”. /rant **Richmond Kickers** (Soccer) **Richmond Kickers Destiny** (Women’s Soccer) **Richmond Revolution** (Indoor Football) And you know what else? I am damned tired of hearing all of the stupid puns that go along with that stupid name in every commercial on the radio that has even the smallest of sponsorships. “You’ll go _nuts_ over our selection!”. “We are positively _squirrelly_ here at…” /Rant. Again. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-local-minor-league-teams/543754.md?page=2)