Full steam ahead for these Captains

Good afternoon fitted fans, feast your eyes on one of my favorite logos in all of minor league baseball; that is up until this season. The cap shown above is the previous home cap of the Lake County Captains of the Midwest League of Minor League Baseball. The captains sail the high waters of the Eastern Division along with such previously featured teams here on TFD as the Fort Wayne TinCaps. The captains are the A ball affiliate of the neighboring Cleveland Indians, and have been since way back when the team was known as the Columbus RedStixx from 1992-2002. If you aren't aware, in A ball, titles are awarded by division for first and second half divisions of the season. Since the franchises creation and humble beginnings in the early 90's, the club has attained 7 first half division titles, 4 second half division titles, and even a league title in last years 2010 campaign. Despite the constant flow of talent on its roster, being that it is a minor league club, they always seem to play into contention, which can only mean great management. In the clubs first year in Lake County, the team managed to make it to the league finals. Although falling short, the franchice set a season attendance record by drawing 458,533 fans despite the cozy confines of their ballpark. That season, the Captains played to a 97-43 record including playoff games. To this day, the leaders of the ship play at Classic Park, a 7,273 seat facility which has seen some of the more incredible seasons in minor league history. Some of todays more noted and accomplished players, that once donned a Captains hat are: Fausto Carmona, Jhonny Peralta, Victor Martinez, and outfielder Ben Francisco. The cap shown, which is still on sale on lids website, features a navy blue crown and brim, with a slightly cartoonistic captain with a bat on his shoulder. Let's hope that with the new logo designs for this season that the magic isn't lost, and the club can continue to turnout successful baseball for years to come. Their season begins tonight a 7p.m. vs the Dayton Dragons; will we see a ship begin to sink, or the powerful engine churn forward into the dog days of summer? The journey begins now, hope they're ready.