Lakeland Flying Tigers Founded in 1960 Lakeland, Florida |
|||||
|
|||||
Class-level | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Current | Advanced-A (1990–present) | ||||
Previous |
Class A (1962–1989) |
||||
Minor league affiliations | |||||
League | Florida State League (1960–present) | ||||
Division | North Division | ||||
Major league affiliations | |||||
Current | Detroit Tigers (1963–present) | ||||
Previous |
San Francisco Giants (1962) Cleveland Indians (1960) |
||||
Minor league titles | |||||
League titles (4) |
|
||||
Team data | |||||
Nickname | Lakeland Flying Tigers (2007–present) | ||||
Previous names
|
Lakeland Tigers (1963–2006) |
||||
Ballpark | Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium (1966–2001, 2003–2015, 2017–) | ||||
Previous parks
|
Henley Field (1960, 1962–1965, 2002, 2016) | ||||
Owner(s)/
Operator(s) |
Detroit Tigers, Inc. | ||||
Manager | Dave Huppert | ||||
General Manager | Zach Burek |
Class A (1962–1989)
San Francisco Giants (1962)
Lakeland Tigers (1963–2006)
Lakeland Giants (1962)
The Lakeland Flying Tigers are a minor league baseball team based in Lakeland, Florida.
Home games are played at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium; opened in 1966 and renovated in 2002–03. The park, which also doubles as the Detroit Tigers spring training home, seats 8,500 fans. Renovations are set to be completed in the spring of 2017. It plays in the Florida State League and has been the High-A affiliate of the Tigers since 1963, one of the two longest unbroken affiliate relationships currently existing. Until November 2006, the team was known as the Lakeland Tigers, with branding similar to the parent club. However the team originated in 1960 as the Lakeland Indians, an affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. After a one-year hiatus, the team was restarted in 1962 as the Lakeland Giants, and an affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.
In 2012, the Flying Tigers won their first FSL title in twenty years by defeating the Jupiter Hammerheads, three games to two. It was the fourth league title in club history.
In 2006, the team introduced a new name and colors to pay homage to the Lakeland School of Aeronautics, later the Lodwick School of Aeronautics. The school trained over 8,000 pilots between 1940 and 1945, some of whom later flew with the Flying Tigers in China during World War II, and was actually located at the current site of Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium.