The Rockford Aviators were a professional baseball team based in
Rockford, Illinois that played in the independent
Frontier League
The Frontier League is a professional independent baseball league with teams in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Eastern Canada. Formed in 1993, it is the oldest currently running independent league in the United States. The le ...
. Rockford previously had a team in the Frontier League called the RiverHawks (2002-2009). There was no Rockford team in the Frontier League in 2010 as the team played in the independent
Northern League. A separate RiverHawks franchise then returned to the Frontier League in 2011 and changed the team name to Aviators 2013. The RiverHawks began play at
Marinelli Field
Marinelli Field is a stadium in Rockford, Illinois located in Blackhawk Park and is overseen by the Rockford Park District. It is primarily used for baseball.
The ball field is in the north end of Blackhawk Park and is bounded by 15th Avenue (n ...
. In 2006, Rockford moved to RiverHawks Stadium, now known as
Rivets Stadium, located in
Loves Park, Illinois.
History
The Aviators Frontier League franchise was relocated from
Springfield, Illinois, where the franchise played as the
Springfield Capitals. The team moved to Rockford for the 2002 season. The RiverHawks franchise moved to the Northern League in 2010, but stayed for one season before a Rockford team returned to the Frontier League in 2011 when the Northern League folded. The team changed the name to the Aviators for 2013. The Aviators folded following the 2015 season.
The highlight for Rockford was the stellar 2004 Frontier League season with manager Bob Koopmann, winning the West division with a 59-37 (.615) record, advancing to the playoffs where they edged the
Windy City Thunderbolts 3-2 in the best of five series to advance to the league championship series. Rockford would then sweep the
Evansville Otters
The Evansville Otters are a professional baseball team based in Evansville, Indiana. They compete in the West Division of the independent Frontier League. Since their establishment in 1995, the Otters have played at historic Bosse Field, which o ...
3-0 to win the Frontier League title. The team was led by pitcher Josh Tomsu (10-3, 2.64 ERA), closer Josh Latimer (3-3, 15 saves, 2.47 ERA), Aaron McEachran (.332 BA, 11 HR, 62 RBI), Rico Santana (.284 BA, 5 HR, 65 RBI, 27 SB), Doug Schutt (.286 BA, 3 HR, 32 RBI, 39 SB) and Frontier League MVP Rich Austin (.359 BA, 15 HR, 77 RBI, 22 SB).
The franchise hit instability in 2012 when the RiverHawks ballpark went through foreclosure. The stadium ultimately was sold through auction in 2015. The league had taken over management of the Aviators franchise late in the 2015 season, and with financial instability, the team disbanded.
Rockford is represented in the Frontier League Hall of Fame by outfielders Stephen Holdren, Jason James and Richard Austin.
Seasons
Notable alumni
*
Drew Rucinski (2011–13)
*
José Martínez (2014)
*
Josh Smoker
Joshua Michael Smoker (born November 26, 1988) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He previously played for the New York Mets, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Early life
Smoker was born in ...
(2014)
*
Nick Anderson (2012–13)
References
{{Reflist
External links
Frontier LeagueAviators page at OurSports Central
Frontier League teams
Professional baseball teams in Illinois
Defunct Frontier League teams
Defunct baseball teams in Illinois
Aviators
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they ar ...
Baseball teams established in 2013
Baseball teams disestablished in 2015
Defunct independent baseball league teams
2013 establishments in Illinois
Baseball teams established in 2002