Peoria Chiefs
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Peoria Chiefs Founded in 1983 Peoria, Illinois (1883–present) |
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| Class-level | |||||
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| Current | Class-A (1983–present) | ||||
| Previous | Class B (1953–1957, 1937, 1919–1935, 1904–1917, 1895–1898) Class A (1894, 1902–1903) |
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| Minor league affiliations | |||||
| League | Midwest League (1983–present) | ||||
| Division | Western Division | ||||
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Previous leagues
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Three-I League (1953–1957, 1935, 1937, 1917, 1919–1932, 1905–1916) Central League (1937, 1914, 1904, 1900) Mississippi Valley League (1933) Western League (1902–1903) Western Association 1894–1898) Iowa-Illinois League (1892) Northwestern League (1891, 1883–1884) Central Interstate League (1888–1890) |
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| Major league affiliations | |||||
| Current | St. Louis Cardinals (1995–2004, 2013–present) | ||||
| Previous |
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| Minor league titles | |||||
| League titles (1) | 2002 | ||||
| Team data | |||||
| Nickname | Peoria Chiefs (1984–present) | ||||
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Previous names
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Peoria Suns (1983) | ||||
| Colors | Red, navy, white |
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| Ballpark | Dozer Park (2002–present) | ||||
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Previous parks
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Pete Vonachen Stadium at Meinen Field (1983–2001) Woodruff Field (1925-1957) Grant Park Stadium (1922-24) Lakeview Park (1883-1921) |
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Owner(s)/
Operator(s) |
Peoria Chiefs Baseball LLC | ||||
| Manager | Chris Swauger | ||||
| President | Rocky Vonachen | ||||
The Peoria Chiefs are a Class A minor league baseball team, affiliated with the St. Louis Cardinals, from Peoria, Illinois. They play in the Western Division of the Midwest League.
After beginning play in 1983, there was strong baseball history when the franchise restarted in 1983, as the Peoria Suns, a California Angels farm team that relocated the Angels' previous Midwest League farm team in Danville. The following year, the team was given the more traditional name "Chiefs", in reference to the Peoria Indian tribe for which the city was named.
In 1984, Joe Maddon, current manager of the Chicago Cubs, managed the Chiefs.
The Chiefs' first home park was Meinen Field near the Bradley University campus, built in 1968; it was renovated before the 1992 season and renamed Pete Vonachen Stadium in honor of the Chiefs' owner. The team moved to a new park in downtown Peoria, O'Brien Field, on May 24, 2002; they set a franchise attendance record of 254,407 in the new park's first year and also won the midwest league championship. The team then broke the attendance record in 2005, drawing 256,612 fans in their first season as a Cubs affiliate since 1994.
Peoria Franchise Alumni include: Baseball Hall of Fame members Tony Lazzeri, Ryne Sandberg and Greg Maddux; Major League Most Valuable Players:Bob O'Farrell, Phil Cavarretta, Ryne Sandberg, Albert Pujols and Josh Donaldson ; Cy Young Award Winners: Greg Maddux and Rick Sutcliffe; Rookie of the Year award winners: Rick Sutcliffe, Jerome Walton, Kerry Wood, Nomar Garciaparra, Scott Williamson and Albert Pujols. Other players of note include: Devon White, Mark Grace, Joe Girardi, Plácido Polanco, Coco Crisp, Rafael Palmeiro, Dan Haren and Yadier Molina. In addition, there are numerous other Major League All-Star players with Peoria Roots. Former Cubs catcher, Jody Davis, managed the 2006 team.
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