Tombstone
Born: October 1982 – The Bristol Red Sox relocate to New Britain, CT
Re-Branded: November 15, 1994 (Hardware City Rock Cats)1Doyle, Paul. “Rock Cats are ready to play”. The Courant (Hartford, CT). November 17, 1994
First Game: April 22, 1983 (L 6-4 @ Waterbury Reds)
Last Game: September 5, 1994 (L 11-1 vs. Binghamton Mets)
Eastern League Champions: 1983
Stadium
Beehive Field (4,700)21993 New Britain Red Sox Program
Opened: 1983
Marketing
Radio:
- 1993: WBIS (1120 AM)
Radio Broadcasters:
- Jim Lucas (play-by-play) & Don Wardlow (color)
Ownership & Affiliation
Owner: Joe Buzas
Major League Affiliation: Boston Red Sox
Background
The New Britain Red Sox were the Class AA farm club of the Boston Red Sox for most of the 1980’s and into the early 90’s. The ball club was owned by veteran minor league operator Joe Buzas. Buzas owned at least one Red Sox farm team (and sometimes as many as three) in every summer from 1957 through the end of New Britain’s partnership with Boston in 1994.
Key players to come through New Britain during the Red Sox era included:
- Roger Clemens (New Britain ’83)
- Outfielder Ellis Burks New Britain (’85-’86)
- Outfielder Brady Anderson (New Britain ’87)
- 2004 Boston Red Sox postseason hero Curt Schilling (New Britain ’88)
- 1995 American League MVP Mo Vaughn (’89)
- Future Hall-of-Fame first basemen Jeff Bagwell (New Britain ’90).
Red Sox To Rock Cats
At the end of the 1994 season, the Boston Red Sox pulled their Eastern League farm club out of New Britain and moved it to Trenton, New Jersey. Buzas quickly struck a new affiliation agreement with the Minnesota Twins. As part of the changeover from the Red Sox to the Twins, the team was re-branded as the Hardware City Rock Cats for the 1995 season.
New Britain will lose affiliated professional baseball after 33 seasons at the end of the 2015 season. Nearby Hartford, Connecticut lured the team away from the promise of a new $56 million ballpark. The former New Britain Red Sox/Rock Cats will be known as the Hartford Yard Goats beginning in April 2016.
New Britain Red Sox Shop
Links
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2 Responses
Andy, I was @ a DH @ Beehive Field in 1989 the same weekend Yaz was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. It was a Friday DH vs Williamsport (yes, with me working for the Bills @ the time as official scorer and having to take a bag up to our manager that he forgot in Williamsport, we were put on the pass list) and a Saturday game @ Fenway vs the White Sox. Hot and humid weekend.
I can still recall Britsox/Rock Cats owner Joe Buzas helping out behind the counter with refreshments, tickets, or anywhere in Beehive Field that needed a hand. He was always ready with conversation and a kind word.
Thanks for the memories and God Bless you Joe. It was fun for the 32 years that it lasted.