Danville Braves
The Danville Braves are a minor league baseball team in Danville, Virginia. They are an Advanced Rookie-level team in the Appalachian League and have been a farm team of the Atlanta Braves since 1982. Since 1993, the Braves have played home games at American Legion Post 325 Field. Opened in 1993, Legion Field seats 2,588 fans. Previously, they played at Calfee Park in Pulaski.
Danville Braves Founded in 1993 Danville, Virginia | |||||
| |||||
Minor league affiliations | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Class | Rookie (1982–present) | ||||
League | Appalachian League | ||||
Major league affiliations | |||||
Team | Atlanta Braves | ||||
Minor league titles | |||||
League titles (4) |
| ||||
Division titles (10) |
| ||||
Team data | |||||
Nickname | Danville Braves (1993–present) | ||||
Previous names | Pulaski Braves (1982–1992) | ||||
Mascot | Blooper (1999-present) | ||||
Ballpark | American Legion Field (1993–present) | ||||
Previous parks | Calfee Park (1982–1992) | ||||
Owner(s)/ Operator(s) | Liberty Media | ||||
Manager | Anthony Nunez | ||||
General Manager | Brandon Bennett[1] |
On September 3, 2006, Danville won their first ever Appalachian League championship, defeating the Elizabethton Twins 2 games to 1, in a best of three series. On September 3, 2009, Danville won their second Appalachian League championship, again defeating the Elizabethton Twins, this time two games to zero.
The Danville Braves mascot is a large, green bird named Blooper.
In 2019 it had attendance of 30,000.[2]
In late 2019 it was reported that the team is among a number of minor league teams that might face restructuring following the 2020 season that would strip the team of its major league affiliation.[3][4] All baseball activities were delayed in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On June 30, 2020, the Minor League Baseball season was officially cancelled.
Notable players
Notable players who have played for Danville include:
- Manny Acosta (2005)
- Ian Anderson (2016)
- Elvis Andrus (2005)
- Wilson Betemit (1999)
- Kyle Davies (2002)
- Jermaine Dye (1993)
- Jeff Francoeur (2002)
- Rafael Furcal (1998)
- Evan Gattis (2010)
- Marcus Giles (1997)
- Tommy Hanson (2006)
- Matt Harrison (2004)
- Jason Heyward (2007)
- Andruw Jones (1994)
- Craig Kimbrel (2008)
- Adam LaRoche (2000)
- Jason Marquis (1996)
- Andy Marte (2001)
- Kris Medlen (2006)
- Kevin Millwood (1994)
- John Rocker (1994)
- Andrelton Simmons (2010)
- Randall Simon (1993)
- Julio Teherán (2008)
- Joey Terdoslavich (2010)
- Adam Wainwright (2000)
- Esteban Yan (1993)
Playoffs
- 2014: Defeated Princeton 2-0 in semifinals; lost to Johnson City 2-1 in finals.
- 2012: Lost to Elizabethton 2-1 in semifinals.
- 2011: Lost to Johnson City 2-1 in semifinals.
- 2009: Defeated Elizabethton 2-0 to win championship.
- 2007: Lost to Elizabethton 2-0 in finals.
- 2006: Defeated Elizabethton 2-1 to win championship.
- 2005: Lost to Elizabethton 2-1 in finals.
- 2004: Lost to Greeneville 2-1 in finals.
- 2000: Lost to Elizabethton 2-0 in finals.
Roster
Players | Coaches/Other | |||
Pitchers
|
Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
|
Manager Coaches
|
References
- "Contact the Danville Braves". Danville Braves. Minor League Baseball. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- "Appalachian League Attendance | Appalachian League Stats". Milb.com. 2017-02-28. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
- Cotton, Parker (2019-12-03). "Danville Braves threatened by proposed MLB restructuring; 2020 season still on, but future is uncertain | Danville Braves". godanriver.com. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
- "Virginia minor league teams may lose MLB ties". Newsleader.com. 2019-11-18. Retrieved 2020-01-03.