Greenville Drive Founded in 1977 Greenville, South Carolina |
|||||
|
|||||
Class-level | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Current | A | ||||
Minor league affiliations | |||||
League | South Atlantic League | ||||
Division | Southern Division | ||||
Major league affiliations | |||||
Current | Boston Red Sox (2005–present) | ||||
Previous |
|
||||
Minor league titles | |||||
League titles (3) |
|
||||
Team data | |||||
Nickname | Greenville Drive (2006–present) | ||||
Previous names
|
|
||||
Ballpark | Fluor Field at the West End (2006–present) | ||||
Previous parks
|
|
||||
Owner(s)/
Operator(s) |
Craig Brown | ||||
Manager | Darren Fenster | ||||
General Manager | Eric Jarinko |
The Greenville Drive is a minor league baseball team that plays in Greenville, South Carolina. They are a Class A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox and a member of the South Atlantic League. Prior to the 2005 SAL season, the team played in Columbia, South Carolina, was affiliated with the New York Mets from 1983 to 1992, and was known as the Capital City Bombers. Their mascot is a frog named Reedy Rip'it.
The Drive began their history in 1977 in Shelby, North Carolina, as the Shelby Reds. In 1983, the team moved to Columbia, which had lacked a minor league team since the departure of the Columbia Reds in 1961. The team was originally known as the Columbia Mets and made their home at Capital City Stadium. In 1993, the team changed its name to the Bombers to honor members of the Doolittle Raiders, who had conducted their initial training in Columbia. The Bombers won the South Atlantic League championship in 1986, 1991, and 1998.
Following the 2004 season, the Bombers changed affiliations and became the affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, who had previously been affiliated with the Augusta GreenJackets, also of the South Atlantic League. On February 11, 2005, Minor League Baseball announced that the Bombers had been granted permission to move to Greenville, where a new park opened in 2006. The Bombers would play in Greenville Municipal Stadium in 2005.
On October 27, 2005, the Bombers announced the team's name would change to the Drive. The name was chosen due to the presence of BMW US Manufacturing and Michelin in the area and, more generally, due to Greenville's rich automotive past. An alternative name was chosen after Shoeless Joe Jackson called the Joes but Major League Baseball vetoed the name due to his role in the Black Sox Scandal in 1919.