Amarillo Sod Poodles

The Amarillo Sod Poodles, nicknamed the Soddies, are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League based in Amarillo, Texas. They are the Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres.[3] Their home games are played at Hodgetown in downtown Amarillo.[4]

Amarillo Sod Poodles
Founded in 2019
Amarillo, Texas
Team logoCap insignia
Minor league affiliations
ClassDouble-A (2019–present)
LeagueTexas League (2019–present)
DivisionSouth[1]
Major league affiliations
TeamSan Diego Padres (2019–present)
Minor league titles
League titles (1)2019
Division titles (1)2019
First half titles (1)2019
Team data
NicknameAmarillo Sod Poodles (2019–present)
ColorsTexas Blue, Amarillo Yellow, Route 66 Retro Blue, Texas Red, white[2]
                        
BallparkHodgetown (2019–present)
Owner(s)/
Operator(s)
Elmore Sports Group
ManagerPhillip Wellman
General ManagerTony Ensor[1]

History

On June 21, 2017, David G. Elmore, president of Elmore Sports Group, announced the relocation of the San Antonio Missions Double-A franchise to Amarillo in 2019, with the team set to compete in the Texas League under a new nickname.[5] This move was part of a larger relocation wherein the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the Pacific Coast League relocated to San Antonio in 2019, continuing the use of the Missions nickname at the Triple-A level, and the Helena Brewers of the rookie level Pioneer League moved to Colorado Springs.[6]

The organization officially states that team's name was decided in a name-the-team contest.[7] Five finalists were selected: "Boot Scooters," "Bronc Busters," "Jerky," "Long Haulers," and "Sod Poodles."[8] The names received negative feedback from locals over their absurd nature, but the team indicated their intention to adopt an unusual, family-friendly name.[9] Brandiose, a branding firm in San Diego, were asked to create a new identity for the team. Their staff selected the Sod Poodles name after visiting Amarillo and researching its history.[10] The name is in reference to the prevalence of prairie dogs in West Texas.[11] The name was meant to convey the values of sticking together, being family oriented, and self sufficient.[10]

Amarillo's home ballpark was named Hodgetown in honor of Amarillo pharmacist, businessman, philanthropist, and 26th Mayor of Amarillo Jerry Hodge.[12]

The Sod Poodles played their first game, a 5–2 loss, on April 4, 2019, against the Corpus Christi Hooks at Whataburger Field in Corpus Christi.[13] Their first win came the next evening when they defeated the Hooks, 7–5. The winning run was scored in the top of the seventh inning when Matthew Batten tripled and later scored on a Buddy Reed single.[14] In their inaugural home opener on April 8, the Sod Poodles lost to the Midland RockHounds, 9–4 in 10 innings.[15] The opener was attended by 7,175 people.[16]

In the 2019 Texas League South Series, the Sod Poodles fell behind 2 games to none against the Midland RockHounds, before winning 3 straight games in Midland to advance to the Championship Series against the Tulsa Drillers, who defeated the Arkansas Travelers 3 games to 2.

In the 2019 Championship Series, Amarillo won game 1 by a score of 13-6 at Hodgetown, while falling 18-9 in game 2. As the series shifted to Tulsa, the Drillers took a 2 games to 1 in game 3 with a 2-0 win. The Sod Poodles battled back with a game 4 victory by a score of 3-0. In game 5, the Sod Poodles were down 3-1 in the top of the ninth before Taylor Trammell hit a grand slam to take a lead that the Sod Poodles would never relinquish, en route to a Texas League championship in their inaugural season.

Roster
Amarillo Sod Poodles roster
Players Coaches/Other

Pitchers

  • 28 Elliot Ashbeck
  • 33 Lake Bachar
  • -- Jean Cosme
  • 40 Jordan Guerrero
  • -- Reggie Lawson
  • 32 Aaron Leasher
  • 17 Evan Miller
  • -- Luis Patiño
  • 27 Travis Radke
  • 26 Emmanuel Ramirez
  • 25 Blake Rogers
  • 38 Jesse Scholtens
  • 22 Dauris Valdez
  • 20 Sam Williams

Catchers

  •  8 A. J. Kennedy

Infielders

  •  2 Ivan Castillo
  •  9 Rudy Giron
  • 14 Owen Miller
  •  3 Kyle Overstreet
  • 10 Hudson Potts
  •  5 Peter Van Gansen
  • 41 Brad Zunica

Outfielders

Manager

Coaches

  •  4 Freddy Flores (fielding)
  • 45 Jimmy Jones (pitching)
  • 23 Raul Padron (hitting)


7-day injured list
* On San Diego Padres 40-man roster
# Rehab assignment
∞ Reserve list
‡ Restricted list
§ Suspended list
† Temporary inactive list
Roster updated November 20, 2019
 Transactions
→ More rosters: MiLB • Texas League
 → San Diego Padres minor league players

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References
  1. "Opening Date for New Amarillo Ballpark: April 8". Ballpark Digest. August Publications. August 24, 2018. Retrieved August 24, 2018.
  2. "The Sod Poodles Dig Their Way Into Amarillo". MiLB.com.
  3. "Padres, Amarillo Agree to Affiliation". Ballpark Digest. October 1, 2018. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  4. Clark, Douglas (February 1, 2018). "Stepping up to the plate: Officials break ground on downtown ballpark project". Amarillo Globe-News. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  5. Reichard, Kevin (June 21, 2017). "Elmore Sports Group: Three Franchise Shifts in 2019". Ballpark Digest. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  6. "San Antonio to join PCL beginning in 2019". Pacific Coast League. June 21, 2017. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  7. Lahnert, Lance (February 1, 2018). "Residents to pick new Elmore Sports Group team name in April, MLB affiliation to be announced in fall". Amarillo Globe-News. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  8. "Finalists Unveiled for Amarillo Texas League Team Name". Ballpark Digest. May 30, 2018. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  9. Alewel, Madison (May 30, 2018). "Baseball team names strike out with Amarillo community". News Channel 10. Retrieved May 31, 2018.
  10. "How the Amarillo Sod Poodles got their logo & mascot | Inside San Diego Sports". Fox Sports San Diego. 18 April 2019. Retrieved June 7, 2019 – via YouTube.
  11. Hill, Benjamin (November 13, 2018). "Sod Poodles burrow into Texas Panhandle". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  12. "Amarillo Sod Poodles Name Downtown Ballpark "Hodgetown"". Amarillo Sod Poodles. Minor League Baseball. January 17, 2019. Retrieved January 17, 2019.
  13. "Sod Poodles Drop Historic Season Opener". Amarillo Sod Poodles. Minor League Baseball. April 4, 2019. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  14. "Sod Poodles Secure First Win in Team History". Amarillo Sod Poodles. Minor League Baseball. April 6, 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  15. "Sod Poodles Fall To RockHounds In Inaugural Home Opener". Amarillo Sod Poodles. Minor League Baseball. April 9, 2019. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  16. "RockHounds vs. Sod Poodles Box Score - 04/08/19". Minor League Baseball. April 8, 2019. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
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