Potomac Nationals Founded in 1978 Woodbridge, Virginia |
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Class-level | |||||
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Current | A-Advanced | ||||
Minor league affiliations | |||||
League | Carolina League | ||||
Division | Northern Division | ||||
Major league affiliations | |||||
Current | Washington Nationals (2005–present) | ||||
Previous |
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Minor league titles | |||||
League titles (5) |
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Division titles (9) |
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Team data | |||||
Nickname |
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Mascot | Uncle Slam | ||||
Ballpark | G. Richard Pfitzner Stadium | ||||
Previous parks
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Municipal Stadium at Four Mile Run Park | ||||
Owner(s)/
Operator(s) |
Art Silber | ||||
Manager | Tripp Keister | ||||
General Manager | Bryan Holland & Aaron Johnson |
The Potomac Nationals are a Minor League Baseball team located in Woodbridge, Virginia. The Nationals play in the Class A Advanced Carolina League, and are an affiliate of the Washington Nationals.
The team began play in 1978 as the Alexandria Dukes. The Dukes moved from Alexandria, Virginia, for the 1984 season and were renamed the Prince William Pirates. Since then, the team has been named the Prince William Yankees, Prince William Cannons, Potomac Cannons, and now the Potomac Nationals.
The team has been affiliated with the Seattle Mariners, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, and now the Washington Nationals. Since moving to Woodbridge, the franchise has played all its home games at G. Richard Pfitzner Stadium, with an announced seating capacity of 6,000 people.
The team and Prince William County have been discussing a new ballpark since well before 2010. It was reported in December 2016 that they appear close to a deal to build a new stadium at a site on I-95 in Woodbridge that has been under discussion for four years. The proposal calls on the county to raise $35 million in municipal bonds, lease the site from its owner, pay for site preparation, construct the stadium, and lease it to the team for thirty years. The team would pay rent to cover the county's debt service and site lease costs. The proposed deal also requires the county to build a 1,400-space parking garage next to the stadium which would also be used for commuter parking. The county has been seeking state funding for the garage since 2012, but the extent and status of funding is unclear, as is the final cost of the garage. Two County Supervisors have said that team owner Art Silber told them Minor League Baseball is requiring the team to be out of Pfitzner Stadium by the end of the 2018 season.