The Stockton Ports are a

Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

team of the

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leagu ...

and the

Single-A Single-A, formerly known as Class A and sometimes as Low-A, is the fourth-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States, below Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A, Double-A (baseball), Double-A, and High-A. There are 30 teams cl ...

affiliate of the Athletics. They are located in

Stockton, California Stockton is a city in and the county seat of San Joaquin County, California, San Joaquin County in the Central Valley (California), Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. It is the most populous city in the county, the List of municipal ...

, and are named for the city's

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manc ...

. The team plays its home games at Banner Island Ballpark which opened in 2005 and seats over 5,000 people. The Ports were established in 1941 as members of the California League and have won the California League championship 11 times.

History

Baseball first came to Stockton in the 1860s. At the time, Stockton fielded a team in an earlier incarnation of the California League. In 1888, the Stockton team won the California League pennant with a record of 41–12. That same team also gained a bit of notoriety as a possible inspiration for "

Casey at the Bat Casey may refer to: Places Antarctica * Casey Station * Casey Range Australia * Casey, Australian Capital Territory * City of Casey, Melbourne * Division of Casey, electoral district for the House of Representatives Canada * Casey, Ontari ...

", a famous baseball poem by Ernest Thayer. Thayer was a journalist for the ''

San Francisco Examiner The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is a newspaper distributed in and around San Francisco, California, and has been published since 1863. Once self-dubbed the "Monarch of the Dailies" by then-owner William Randolph Hearst and the flagship of the He ...

'' at the time and the games were hosted in a ballpark on Banner Island, a place once known as Mudville. The Stockton Flyers were established as a charter member of the California League in 1941. The league suspended operations in June 1942 due to World War II. The Flyers were rechristened as the Stockton Ports to recognize Stockton's status as an inland port city when the league resumed operations in 1946. That season, the Ports went on to win their first California League pennant. In 1947, the Ports won the California League title again without a major league affiliation (they had a limited working agreement with the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

's Oakland Oaks). After going 24–18 through June 4, they went on a 26-game winning streak and took first place, never to relinquish again in that season. The win streak is one of the longest in professional baseball and is still a California League record. The Ports finished that season with a record of 95–45 and 16 games ahead of the two teams tied for second place. During Minor League Baseball's centennial celebration in 2001, baseball historians Bill Weiss and Marshall Wright rated the 1947 Ports as one of the 100 greatest minor league teams of all time, ranked at number 98. Owned by Stockton local Carl W. Thompson, Sr. (1971–1973), the Ports disbanded after the 1972 season, coming back as an affiliate of the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

in 1978. The Ports began a long affiliation with the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

the following year. The Ports had the best winning percentage in Minor League Baseball in the 1980s. In an homage to the team in the Ernest Thayer poem, the Ports were renamed the Mudville Nine in 2000 and 2001, then returned to the Ports name in 2002. In 2005, the Ports moved to the newly built Banner Island Ballpark and became affiliates of the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

. The team won its 11th California League championship in 2008 with a 9–3 victory over the

Lancaster JetHawks The Lancaster JetHawks were a baseball team located in Lancaster, California. They were named for the city's association with the aerospace industry and played their home games at The Hangar. From 1996 to 2020, they were members of Minor League B ...

on September 14. In conjunction with

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Ports were organized into the Low-A West at the Low-A classification. In 2022, the Low-A West became known as the California League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to 2021, and was reclassified as a

league.

Major league affiliations

*1941:

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...

, PCL *1946: Independent *1947–1948: Oakland Oaks, PCL *1949:

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

, AL *1950–1951: Independent *1952: St. Louis Browns, AL *1953–1954:

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

, NL *1955: Oakland Oaks, PCL *1956–1957:

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

, AL *1958: St. Louis Cardinals, NL *1959–1971:

, AL *1972:

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...

, AL *1978:

, AL *1979–2000:

, AL (1979–1997)/NL (1998–2000) *2001–2002:

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

, NL *2003–2004: Texas Rangers, AL *2005–present

/ Athletics, AL

Roster

Notable Ports alumni

;

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...

alumni * Pat Gillick (1959) inducted 2011 * Mike Piazza (2007) inducted 2016 ;Notable alumni *

Joe Altobelli Joseph Salvatore Altobelli (May 26, 1932 – March 3, 2021) was an American professional baseball first baseman and outfielder who played for the Cleveland Indians and Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball. He was also a manager for the San F ...

(1969, manager) nanager of 1983 World Champion Baltimore Orioles * Don Baylor (1968) MLB All-Star; 1995 NL Manager of the Year; 1979 AL

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

* Bo Belinsky (1959) pitched a

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...

in 1962. * Paul Blair (1963) 2-time MLB All-Star; 8-time Gold Glove winner * Bruce Bochte (1972) MLB All-Star * Dallas Braden (2005) Threw a perfect game in 2010. * Milton Bradley (2005) MLB All-Star * Al Bumbry (1969) MLB All-Star; 1973 AL Rookie of the Year *

Trevor Cahill Trevor John Cahill (born March 1, 1988) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Kansas City Roy ...

(2008) MLB All-Star * Coco Crisp (2015) 2011 AL stolen base champion * Bobby Crosby (2005) 2004 AL Rookie of the Year * Vince DiMaggio (1948) 2 x MLB All-Star * Josh Donaldson 3 x MLB All-Star; 2015 AL Most Valuable Player * Sean Doolittle (2008, 2012, 2015, 2017) MLB All-Star *

Keith Foulke Keith Charles Foulke ( ; born October 19, 1972) is an American former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. A graduate of Hargrave High School in Huffman, Texas, Foulke attended Galveston College and Lewis–Clark State College. Between 1997 an ...

(2008) MLB All-Star and Rolaids Relief Man award winner * Sonny Gray (2017) 3 x MLB All-Star * Bobby Grich (1968) 6 x MLB All-Star * Dave Henderson (1978) MLB All-Star * Geoff Jenkins (1995) MLB All-Star * Davey Johnson (1962) 4 x MLB All-Star; 2 x MLB Manager of the Year; Manager of 1986 World Series Champion New York Mets * Doug Jones (1979) MLB All-Star * Darold Knowles (1962) MLB All-Star * Dave May (1963) MLB All-Star * Jim Morris (1987) Subject of the movie The Rookie * Juan Nieves (1982) pitched a no-hitter in 1987 *

Jerry Remy Gerald Peter Remy (November 8, 1952 – October 30, 2021) was an American professional baseball player and sports broadcaster. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a second baseman for ten seasons—three with the California Angels (1975� ...

(1972) MLB All-Star * Addison Russell (2013–2014) MLB All-Star * Ben Sheets (1999) 4 x MLB All-Star * Gary Sheffield (1987) 9 x MLB All Star; 1992 NL batting champion * Kurt Suzuki (2005) MLB All-Star * Fernando Vina (1997) MLB All-Star, 2 x Gold Glove winner * Edison Volquez (2004) MLB All-Star, pitched a no-hitter in 2016 * Ben Zobrist (2015) 3 x MLB All-Star; 2016 World Series Most Valuable Player

References