Prince William Yankees

Carolina League (1987-1988)

Tombstone

Born: September 1986 – Affiliation change from Prince William Pirates¹
Re-Branded: 1988 (Prince William Cannons)

First Game: April 9, 1987 (L 5-4 @ Hagerstown Suns)
Last Game: August 31, 1988 (W 5-3 @ Hagerstown Suns)

Carolina League Championships: None

Stadium

Prince William County Stadium

Ownership & Affiliation

Owner: Alexandria Baseball Club, Inc. (Community Stockholders)

Major League Affiliation: New York Yankees

Attendance

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Source: The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (3rd ed.), Lloyd Johnson & Miles Wolff, 2007. Pages 620 – 624.

Background

The Prince Williams Yankees were the name the Woodbridge, Virginia’s Carolina League minor league baseball club played under during the 1987 and 1988 seasons. The franchise originally moved to town from Alexandria, Virginia in 1984 to play in the newly built Davis Ford Park Stadium. From 1984 to 1986 the team was known as the Prince William Pirates and helped develop talent for the Pittsburgh Pirates, including future superstars Barry Bonds and Bobby Bonilla.

In September 1986 the Pirates announced that they would shift their Carolina League farm operation to Salem, Virginia for 1987. The New York Yankees quickly swooped in with a one-year affiliation deal and the club took on the Prince William Yankees name. The Yankees renewed the deal in September 1987, but once again offered only a single-year commitment through the summer of 1988.

Future Major Leaguers who played for the Prince William Yankees in 1987 and 1988 included pitcher Scott Kamieniecki (Prince William ’87-’88) and slugging first baseman Kevin Maas (’88). Retired former St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Wally Moon managed Prince William in 1987 and returned in in 1988, but was fired midway through that season.

Yankees to Cannons & Beyond

Changes were afoot following Prince William’s last place divisional finish during the 1988 Carolina League season.

New York’s reluctance to commit to Woodbridge on a longer-term deal led the franchise to hold a Name The Team contest and re-brand itself as the Prince William Cannons shortly after the season.² At the time, it appeared the Yankees would leave town at the end of the year. Instead, the Yankees ended up renewing and serving as the Cannons’ parent club for five more seasons through 1993.

Meanwhile, the ball club changed hands as well. From its 1984 arrival through 1988, the club was owned by Alexandria Baseball Club, a group of around 300 community stockholders that collectively owned 150,000 shares in the franchise. During the 1988 season, a five-person group headed up 31-year old CPA Michael Caggiano, veteran minor league exec Jack Tracz and Jack’s brother Mark began to buy up shares for $4.33 a piece, ultimately amassing a controlling interest in the Cannons in the fall of 1988.³

The Carolina League franchise that started out as the Prince William Pirates in 1984 would ultimately stay in Woodbridge until the end of the 2019 season. The team underwent further name changes over the years becoming the “Potomac” Cannons in 1999 and the Potomac Nationals in 2005. In 2019, long-time owner Art Silber moved the team to Fredericksburg, Virginia where he built a new $35 million ballpark to house the ball club.