Fredericksburg Nationals Explained

Fredericksburg Nationals
Founded:1984
Misc:Based in Fredericksburg, Virginia, since 2020
Uniformlogo:FredNats cap.PNG
Class Level:Single-A (2021–present)
Past Class Level:Class A-Advanced (2020)
Current League:Carolina League (2020–present)
Division:North Division
Majorleague:Washington Nationals (2005–present)
Leaguenum:4
Divnum:9
Secondhalfnum:1
Nickname:FredNats
Colors:Red, white, blue
Mascot:Gus
Ballpark:Virginia Credit Union Stadium
Pastparks:Northwest Federal Field at Pfitzner Stadium (1984–2019)
Owner:Art Silber[1]
Gm:Robert Perry
President:Lani Silber Weiss
Manager:Jake Lowery[2]

The Fredericksburg Nationals are a Minor League Baseball team that is the Single-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and play their home games at Virginia Credit Union Stadium, with a capacity of 5,000 people.

History

In June 2018, Potomac Nationals owner Art Silber announced that he had signed a letter of intent to build a new stadium in Fredericksburg, Virginia, that would open in April 2020.[3] The 5,000-seat multi-purpose stadium, as then planned, would include a 300-seat club facility and 13 suites.[4] In November 2018 the Fredericksburg city council unanimously gave final approval for the Silber family to finance, build and maintain the $35 million stadium with the city as an "anchor tenant" making an annual payment to the club of $1.05 million for 30 years.[5]

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on February 24, 2019,[6] but construction work did not begin until July[7] or August 2019.[8] On September 25, 2019, general manager Nick Hall said, "We're 100 percent planning on opening April 23."[9] MASN reported on January 13, 2020, that Hall had said that construction was on schedule and that he was confident the venue will be ready for the 2020 season.[10] With the 2020 season start postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Nationals held a virtual opening day on April 23, 2020. Hall said that the stadium was baseball-ready though construction was not yet complete, even though, with construction deemed as essential business, "The construction progress has gone off without a hitch."[11] [12] Construction was continuing at the start of June 2020.[13] Since its inaugural 2021 season the team has used the stadium, which in 2022 was renamed the Virginia Credit Union Stadium, under a 10-year naming rights deal.[14] [15] [16]

As part of a process to give the team a new name that included Fredericksburg, a "Name the Team" contest that began in April 2019 received more than 2,400 responses on the team name, colors, mascots, and ways to incorporate local history and culture. On October 5, 2019, the team announced that it had changed its name to the Fredericksburg Nationals for the 2020 season and that its marketing nickname for the team – "P-Nats" when the team was the Potomac Nationals – would change to "FredNats."[17] [18] [19]

The teams uniforms were revealed on November 16, 2019, along with a Mary Washington logo at an event on Mary Washington's 311th birthday.[20]

In March 2020, the team unveiled their new mascot, Gus, described as "fat and fluffy" with purple fur and bright green eyebrows.[21]

2020 season

The 2020 minor league baseball season was initially postponed, and ultimately cancelled altogether, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[22] [23] With no minor league season to play, Fredericksburg became the alternate training site for the Washington Nationals, hosting players who were not on the active roster, as well as a number of minor league players and instructors, during the 2020 season.[24]

2021 season

Before the Fredericksburg Nationals could play a game at the Class A-Advanced level, the team was notified in December 2020 that it would need to accept relegation to the Low-A level to continue play as an affiliate of the Washington Nationals. Silber confirmed the Fredericksburg Nationals would continue their affiliation with Washington at the new level for 2021 and beyond.[25] They were organized into a newly named league, the Low-A East.[26]

Fredericksburg began competition on May 4, 2021, with a 16–3 loss to the Lynchburg Hillcats at Bank of the James Stadium in Lynchburg, Virginia.[27] The Nationals played their first home game at FredNats Ballpark on May 11, 2021, losing to the Delmarva Shorebirds, 7–5, with 2,065 people in attendance.[28] [29]

The team finished its inaugural 2021 season with a 44-76 win-loss record, ending in fourth (last) place in the North Division of the Low-A East League. However, the team's total attendance of 199,071 was the highest in its division.[30]

2022 season

In 2022, the Low-A East renamed itself as the Carolina League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization, and was reclassified as a Single-A circuit. The League also changed its structure, from three four-team divisions to two six-team divisions.[31]

The team finished the 2022 regular season with a 75-55 overall win-loss record, first in the Carolina League's North Division. More specifically, Fredericksburg finished fifth in its division in the season's first half, with a 33-33 record, and first in the second half with a 42-22 record. In the first round of Carolina League playoffs, the FredNats fell in 3 games to Lynchburg in the best-of-three game series, as the North Division's first-place teams in the two halves of the season.[32] [33] [34]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Front Office . . Fredericksburg Nationals . April 20, 2020 . en.
  2. Web site: Field Staff . milb.com . December 6, 2022.
  3. News: Potomac Nationals announce plans for Fredericksburg stadium. Greg. Hambrick. InsideNoVa.com. June 27, 2018. June 26, 2018. en.
  4. News: P-Nats Announce First Fredericksburg Ballpark Founding Partnership . July 10, 2018 . Ballpark Digest . July 9, 2018.
  5. News: Jett . Cathy . Fredericksburg finalizes $35 million stadium deal with Potomac Nationals' owners . January 31, 2019 . . November 13, 2018 . en.
  6. News: Spedden . Zach . New Fredericksburg Ballpark Breaks Ground . May 20, 2019 . Ballpark Digest . August Publications . February 26, 2019.
  7. News: Fredericksburg Ballpark Site Work to Start Next Month . June 26, 2019 . Ballpark Digest . August Publications . June 25, 2019.
  8. Web site: Moving dirt at the baseball stadium site in Fredericksburg . Fredericksburg Today . August 31, 2019 . August 17, 2019.
  9. News: LoMonaco . Joey . Fredericksburg Baseball confident in being ready for 2020 season . September 27, 2019 . . September 25, 2019 . en.
  10. News: Kerr . Byron . FredNats on schedule for new stadium opening April 23 . January 13, 2020 . . January 13, 2020 . en.
  11. News: Kerr . Byron . Fredericksburg stadium baseball-ready for today's virtual opening day . June 13, 2020 . MASN . April 23, 2020 . en.
  12. News: LoMonaco . Joey . FredNats dealing with 'hodgepodge' during COVID-19 . June 13, 2020 . The Free Lance–Star . April 21, 2020 . en.
  13. News: Nawrotzky . Kirk . With inaugural season on hold, Fredericksburg Nationals can't wait to take the field . June 13, 2020 . . June 9, 2020.
  14. News: March 6, 2022 . FredNats sell stadium naming rights to credit union . August 17, 2022 . Potomac Local News . en.
  15. News: LoMonaco . Joey . Fredericksburg Nationals and Virginia Credit Union announce naming rights deal . August 17, 2022 . . March 5, 2022 . en.
  16. News: Griffin . Liam . FredNats Ballpark Renamed Virginia Credit Union Stadium . August 17, 2022 . . March 7, 2022 . en.
  17. News: Introducing the FredNats, by George! . Caputo . Phil . . October 5, 2019 . October 5, 2019.
  18. News: LoMonaco . Joey . Fredericksburg minor league baseball team unveils new name . October 6, 2019 . . October 5, 2019 . en.
  19. News: Hill . Benjamin . Fredericksburg makes Nationals news . October 6, 2019 . MiLB.com . Minor League Baseball . October 5, 2019 . en.
  20. Fredericksburg Nationals Unveil Team Jerseys and Mary Washington Logo . November 19, 2019 . . Fredericksburg Nationals . November 18, 2019 . en.
  21. News: LoMonaco . Joey . Fredericksburg Nationals unveil new mascot: Gus . April 20, 2020 . . April 6, 2020 . en.
  22. News: A Message From Pat O'Conner. Minor League Baseball. March 13, 2020. May 5, 2020.
  23. News: 2020 Minor League Baseball Season Shelved. Minor League Baseball. June 30, 2020. July 1, 2020.
  24. Web site: Washington Nationals' Alternate Training Site in Fredericksburg Nationals' new home... . Federal Baseball . . Patrick . Reddington . July 8, 2020 . December 20, 2020.
  25. News: FredNats to be the new Low-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals . Fredericksburg Today . December 9, 2020 . December 20, 2020.
  26. Web site: Mayo. Jonathan. MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues. Major League Baseball. February 12, 2021. February 12, 2021.
  27. Web site: Nationals vs. Hillcats Box Score 05/04/21. Minor League Baseball. May 4, 2021. May 13, 2021.
  28. Web site: Shorebirds vs. Nationals Box Score 05/11/21. Minor League Baseball. May 11, 2021. May 13, 2021.
  29. News: Svrluga . Barry . Fredericksburg had to wait for its minor league debut, but it’s time to play ball at last . May 18, 2021 . . May 12, 2021.
  30. Web site: 2021 Low-A East League Standings . Stats Crew . 18 August 2022 . en.
  31. Web site: Historical League Names to Return in 2022. Minor League Baseball. March 16, 2022. March 16, 2022.
  32. Web site: Standings, Carolina League . MiLB.com . 13 September 2022 . en.
  33. News: LoMONACO . JOEY . FredNats expect a big crowd for their first playoff game . 13 September 2022 . Fredericksburg.com (The Free Lance-Star) . 12 September 2022 . en.
  34. News: Hillcats looking for much-needed momentum heading into final regular-season series . 13 September 2022 . The News & Advance . 5 September 2022 . en.