Waterbury, Connecticut, minor league baseball


Several different Minor League Baseball teams have been located in the city of Waterbury, Connecticut since 1884.

Teams

Connecticut State League teams

The earliest Waterbury teams played in the Connecticut State League between 1884 and 1912. These teams went by several different nicknames during this period, including the Brassmen, Brass City, Indians, Pirates, Rough Riders, Authors, Invisibles, Finnegans, Champs and Spuds.

Waterbury Brasscos

The Waterbury Brasscos played in the Eastern League from 1918-1928. They won two league titles in 1924 and 1925.

Waterbury Timers

The Waterbury Timers played in the Colonial League between 1947 and 1950.

Eastern League MLB affiliate

Waterbury became home to professional baseball again in 1966 when the Waterbury Giants, an affiliate of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants came to town. From 1966-1986, the Waterbury team played in the Eastern League as an affiliate of the Giants, Cleveland Indians, Los Angeles Dodgers, Oakland Athletics, Cincinnati Reds and California Angels. The team name changed every time the affiliation agreement changed hands. Waterbury did not have an Eastern League team at the start of the 1972 season. However, in the middle of the season, flooding made the ballpark in Elmira, New York unusable, and so the Elmira Pioneers played their "home games" in the second half of the 1972 season in Waterbury.

Waterbury Spirit

The Independent Northeast League chose to place a team in Waterbury in 1997 as the Waterbury Spirit, but they moved after the 2000 season to become the North Shore Spirit.