Winnipesaukee Muskrats

Winnipesaukee Muskrats

Team logo

Cap insignia
League NECBL (Northern Division)
Location Laconia, NH (2010-present)
Manchester, CT (2000-2009)
Ballpark Robbie Mills Field (2010-present)
Year founded 2000
League championships 0
Former name(s) Laconia Muskrats (2010-2016)
Manchester Silkworms (2000-2009)
Former league(s)
  • NECBL
    • Southern Division (2004-2008)
    • Western Division (2002)
    • American Division (2001)
Former ballparks Northwest Park (2000-2009)
Colors Light Blue, Brown, Gold
              
Mascot Marko the Muskrat
Ownership Todd Hewett
Manager Kristian Svindland
Media Radio: Patrick Cavanaugh ()
Website winnipesaukeemuskrats.com

The Winnipesaukee Muskrats are an amateur baseball team located in Laconia, New Hampshire, playing in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, a wood bat collegiate summer baseball league operating in the northeastern United States region of New England. The team's home field is Robbie Mills Field in Laconia.

The franchise was an expansion franchise that was formed in 1999 and began play as the Manchester Silkworms of Manchester, Connecticut, in the 2000 season. The team moved to Laconia for the 2010 season. The NECBL announced in November 2015 that the team would be called the Winnipesaukee Muskrats (named after the region's Lake Winnipesaukee) in 2016.

History

Manchester Silkworms

Manchester Silkworms logo (2000-2009)
Main article: Manchester Silkworms

The Manchester Silkworms began play in 2000 as the third Connecticut-based NECBL team. The Silkworms' high water mark occurred from 2004 to 2008 when they recorded five consecutive playoff appearances. The team hosted the 2004 NECBL All-Star Game and achieved a franchise best 24-17 record in the same season.

Laconia Muskrats

Left field wall prior to renovations.

After the 2009 season, Silkworms owner Ed Slegeski sold the team to a team of partners led by Jonathan and Noah Crane.[1] The Muskrats name was selected from a Name-the-Team contest.[2]

Laconia Muskrats logo (2009-2016)

In February 2012, the Laconia Parks and Recreation Commission approved a plan of the Muskrats to sell alcohol in a pavilion beyond left field at Robbie Mills Field that would be separate from general seating.[3] On April 30, the club announced the construction of a manual scoreboard patterned after the Green Monster at Fenway Park in Boston at the left-field fence.[4] The wall, 17 feet (5.2 m) tall and 88 feet (27 m) in length, was built during the 2012 season, and painted green by the end of the season, but the party deck was not finished.

Winnipesaukee Muskrats

After the 2015 season, new General Manager Kristian Svindland changed the name of the team from Laconia to Winnipesaukee, the name of Laconia's "Big Lake", to appeal to the entire region.[5]


Postseason appearances

Third baseman Danny Collins, who in 2012 set an NECBL single-season home run record.
Year Division Semi-Finals Division Finals NECBL Championship Series
Manchester Silkworms
2004 Riverpoint Royals L (1-2)
2005 North Adams SteepleCats L (1-2)
2006 Newport Gulls L (1-2)
2007 Torrington Twisters L (0-2)
2008 Newport Gulls L (0-2)
Laconia Muskrats
2010 Newport Gulls L (0-2)
2011 Newport Gulls W (2-0) Sanford Mainers W (2-0) Keene Swamp Bats L (0-2)
2012 New Bedford Bay Sox L (0-2)
2014 Vermont Mountaineers L (0-2)
2015 Vermont Mountaineers L (0-2)
Winnipesaukee Muskrats

See also

References

  1. "Manchester Silkworms are sold, moving to New Hampshire". Manchester Silkworms. 2009-10-18. Retrieved 2009-10-20.
  2. Gail Ober (2009-11-14). "The winner is...The Muskrats". Laconia Citizen. Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  3. Michael Kitch (2012-02-22). "Parks & Rec Commission decides to allow beer at Muskrats games". Laconia Daily Sun.
  4. "Monster News from the Muskrats". Laconia Muskrats. 2012-04-30.
  5. "Muskrats Announce Name Change". Winnipesaukee Muskrats. 2015-11-17. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
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