Collegiate summer baseball team
Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks
|
---|
|
|
Location
| Fairbanks, Alaska
|
---|
Ballpark
| Growden Memorial Park
|
---|
Founded
| 1960
|
---|
Nickname(s)
| 'Panners
|
---|
League championships
| NBC
(1972?1974, 1976, 1980, 2002)
Alaska (1961?1968, 1970, 1972?1975, 1978?1984, 1986, 1991, 1994?1995, 2002?2003, 2005, 2013?2014)
|
---|
Former league(s)
| Western Baseball Association
(1967)
Big West Conference
(1970?1971)
Alaska Baseball League
(1974?2015)
|
---|
Colors
| Blue, Gold, Red
|
---|
Ownership
| Alaska Goldpanner Baseball, Inc (non-profit)
|
---|
Manager
| Miles Kizer
|
---|
General Manager
| John Lohrke
|
---|
President
| Abram Siddall
|
---|
Website
| http://www.goldpanners.com
|
---|
The
Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks
are a
collegiate summer baseball
team which was founded in 1960 as an
independent
barnstorming
team. The Goldpanners were charter members of the
Alaska Baseball League
at the league's inception in 1974. The Goldpanners play their home games at
Growden Memorial Park
in
Fairbanks
,
Alaska
, United States. They also host the annual
Midnight Sun Game
at their home venue.
Like other
amateur
collegiate summer baseball
teams, the Goldpanners operate in a similar manner to professional
minor league
organizations: playing a nightly schedule, using wooden bats, and with lengthy road trips facing advanced competition. Facing a unique challenge due to Fairbanks' isolated location, the Goldpanners often play teams from the rest of Alaska and the West Coast of the Lower 48.
History
[
edit
]
Founded by
H. A. Boucher
in 1960, Fairbanks' baseball team first made national news when the Pan-Alaska Gold Panners appeared in the 1962
National Baseball Congress
championship game. Following a business re-organization led by W.G. Stroecker in 1963, the team changed was renamed the Alaska Goldpanners.
From 1970 to 1972, the Goldpanners were a member of the
Big West Conference
, along with the
Anchorage Glacier Pilots
,
Humboldt Crabs
,
Grand Junction Eagles
, and
Bellingham Bells
. In 1967, the Goldpanners were in the inaugural Western Baseball Association with Humboldt, Grand Junction, Bellingham, and the Santa Rosa Rosebuds.
In 1974, the Goldpanners were founding members of the
Alaska Baseball League
.
[1]
In 2008, former Goldpanner
Bill "Spaceman" Lee
returned to Fairbanks as an alumnus of the
Midnight Sun Game
. During his time with the club, which included a win for Lee in the Midnight Sun Game, Bill declared that the Goldpanners were "the number one amateur baseball organization in history."
[
citation needed
]
The Goldpanners played the 2011 season with a shortened independent schedule due to financial difficulties.
[2]
The Goldpanners announced in September 2015 that they were leaving the league and would instead play a barnstorming schedule so that they would be available to play in the National Baseball Congress championship game which is held before the end of the ABL season; this decision angered representatives of the ABL, who threatened not to let the team back into the league.
[2]
[1]
Alaska baseball writer Rick Boots attempted to mediate an agreement twice to reconcile the Goldpanners and the ABL in 2018 and 2019, but at least one team refused to consider the notion and three others raised multiple concerns about readmitting the team, among them travel expenses.
[3]
In 2020, they applied to rejoin the league for the 2021 season and were denied, as the league was not in the financial position to take on the extra expense at the time, with the ABL stating the team would be welcome to reapply in 2022.
[1]
The team again applied for re-entry into the ABL in 2023 but were rejected for unclear reasons.
[3]
League and Tournament Wins
[
edit
]
- 1960
North of the Range League
- 1961
North of the Range League
- 1961
Alaska
Regional NBC Tournament
- 1962
North of the Range League
- 1962
Alaska
Regional NBC Tournament
- 1962
Alaska
Regional NBC Tournament
- 1964
Alaska
Regional NBC Tournament
- 1966
Hawaii International baseball tournament
- 1966
World baseball tournament
- 1970
Alaska Baseball League
- 1970
Big West Conference
Tournament
- 1972
Alaska Baseball League
- 1972
National Baseball Congress World Series
- 1973
Alaska World Series
- 1973
National Baseball Congress World Series
- 1974
Kamloops, B.C., International Baseball Tournament
- 1974
National Baseball Congress World Series
- 1974
Kamloops, B.C., International Baseball Tournament
- 1975
Kamloops, B.C., International Baseball Tournament
- 1976
National Baseball Congress World Series
- 1976
Kamloops, B.C., International Baseball Tournament
- 1977
Kamloops, B.C., International Baseball Tournament
- 1978
Alaska Baseball League
- 1979
Alaska Baseball League
- 1980
Alaska Baseball League
- 1980
National Baseball Congress World Series
- 1981
Alaska Baseball League
- 1982
Alaska Baseball League
- 1983
Alaska Baseball League
- 1984
Alaska Baseball League
- 1986
Alaska Baseball League Pacific Division
- 1988
U.S. Open Baseball Tournament - Tahoe
- 1990
U.S. Open Baseball Tournament - Ontario
- 1991
Alaska Baseball League
- 1993
Alaska Federation
- 1994
Alaska Baseball League
- 1994
Alaska baseball tournament
- 1995
Alaska Federation
- 1995
Alaska Baseball League
- 1996
Hawaii International Baseball Tournament
- 2001
Wood Bat Invitation Tournament
- 2002
Alaska Baseball League
- 2002
National Baseball Congress World Series
- 2003
Alaska Baseball League
- 2003
Wood Bat Invitation Tournament
- 2005
Alaska Baseball League
- 2009
Kamloops, B.C., International Baseball Tournament
- 2013
Barona Bash Invitational Tournament
- 2013
Alaska Baseball League
- 2014
Alaska Baseball League
- 2019
Grand Forks International Baseball Tournament
Notable alumni
[
edit
]
Midnight Sun game
[
edit
]
First held in 1906, the annual Midnight Sun Game is held yearly in Fairbanks, hosted by the Goldpanners. The game, which begins at 10:30 PM on the night of the summer solstice, has gained the attention of international media.
Baseball America
declared the game one of the "10 Must-See Baseball Events."
[
citation needed
]
In 2005,
ESPN
spotlighted the game during "50 States in 50 Days."
[
citation needed
]
ESPN The Magazine
called the event the "#8 Ultimate Baseball Experience."
[
citation needed
]
The Sporting News
declared that on the 21st of June, "Fairbanks is the Baseball Capitol of America".
[
citation needed
]
In 2012,
Yankees Magazine
declared the game "Baseball's Most Natural Promotion".
Quotes
[
edit
]
"I've been lucky enough to attend many
World Series
,
All-Star Games
and
Opening Days
but the Midnight Sun Game is in a league of its own." ?
Greg S. Harris
,
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
.
"Everybody should have an opportunity to come to Alaska and see the Midnight Sun Game." ?
Bobby Doerr
,
Boston Red Sox
alumnus and
Major League Baseball
Hall of Famer
2022 roster
[
edit
]
- Manager
: Mark Lindsay
- Assistant Coaches
: Ryan Handon, Marcus Mastrobuoni and Jake Taylor
- Pitchers
- RJ Aranda
- Ian Torpey
- Corey Braun
- Garrett Cooper
- Nolan Meredith
- Raymond Padilla
- Matthew Pinal
- Ethan Remmers
- Logan Smith
- Andrew Troppmann
- Steven Vazquez
- Kegan Wentz
- Catchers
- Rafael Flores
- Brock Rudy
- Issac Schuck
- Infielders
- Cole Alexander
- Alex Garcia
- Griffin Harrison
- Caleb Millikan
- Marty Munoz
- Tate Shimao
- Dalton Sloniger
- Outfielders
- Cayden Clark
- Dominic Hughes
- Brock Kleszcz
- Sean Rimmer
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]