The Pawtucket Red Sox (known colloquially as the PawSox) are the minor league baseball Triple-A affiliates of the Boston Red Sox and belong to the International League. They play their home games at McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket, Rhode Island (in the Providence market).

Team history

Eastern League franchise (1970-72)

The first team to be dubbed the Pawtucket Red Sox debuted at McCoy Stadium in 1970 as a member of the Double-A Eastern League. After three seasons as a Double-A Boston affiliate, this franchise moved to Bristol, Connecticut, in 1973 to make room for the Triple-A PawSox. The Bristol franchise moved to New Britain, Connecticut, in 1983 and now plays as the New Britain Rock Cats, an affiliate of the Minnesota Twins since 1995.

The Cleveland Indians had also placed an Eastern League club in Pawtucket, in 1966-67. The Pawtucket Indians moved to Waterbury, Connecticut, in 1968. The Pawtucket Slaters, a Boston Braves farm club in the Class B New England League, represented the city in the late 1940s.

Roots in Toronto and Louisville

The Triple-A team that is now the Pawtucket Red Sox was long ago the International League franchise Toronto Maple Leafs. After the American Association and its Louisville Colonels franchise folded in 1962 and the American League owners voted down Charlie O. Finley's agreement to move the Kansas City A's to Louisville in 1964, Louisville was ready for the return of baseball. In 1968 the Maple Leafs, the Red Sox' top minor league club since 1965, were bought by Walter J. Dilbeck and moved to Louisville where they became the new Louisville Colonels, the Triple-A franchise of the Boston Red Sox. While in Louisville, star players included Carlton Fisk (1971), Dwight Evans (1972) and Cecil Cooper (1972). The Louisville Colonels made the International League playoffs in 1969 and 1972. However, in 1972 the Kentucky State Fair Board, which operated the stadium where the Colonels played, decided to convert the facility to primary use for football.

Early struggles and bankruptcy (1973-76)

Following the 1972 season the Louisville Colonels moved to Pawtucket and became the Pawtucket Red Sox. The team was an instant success on the field, led by future major leaguers Cecil Cooper and Dick Pole, winning the 1973 Governors' Cup Championship in their inaugural year in the league over the Charleston Charlies. The following season the team finished 30 games below .500 and in 1975, while the parent club was on their way to the World Series, the PawSox finished with a miserable 53-87. Following another sub-.500 season in 1976 the franchise went bankrupt, unable to pay off $2 million worth of debt.

The Ben Mondor Era (since 1977)

Although it appeared the Red Sox's brief flirtation with the Pawtucket area was about to come to an end, retired businessman Ben Mondor stepped in and made sure the team would remain entrenched in the city. What Mondor wanted, and got, was a new franchise; although to outsiders it would appear as if nothing had changed since the team name remained the same. So it was really in 1977 that the current Pawtucket Red Sox, and PawSox, were born. To his credit, Mondor has turned Pawtucket into a viable baseball market, where so many others had failed before. In his 25 years at the helm of the PawSox, Mondor has seen the average attendance for Pawtucket games go from barely 1,000 fans per game in 1977 to nearly 9,000 in 2000. Mondor has been part of the management that has overseen the transformation of McCoy Stadium from an aging 1942 relic into its currently renovated form. And while keeping the price of tickets at $6 and $10, parking has always been free. The PawSox usually lead the league in attendance, and in 2005 set a franchise record with 688,421 tickets sold during the year. Kevin Youkilis played for the team in 2003, and managed to complete a streak he started while in Portland: he reached base in 71 consecutive games, tying future teammate Kevin Millar's minor-league record for consecutive games reaching base.

In addition to their success at the box office, the PawSox have excelled in the field. In 2000, Pawtucket set an all-time franchise record for victories with 82, as the team completed their 5th straight winning season. Three years later the PawSox would top their own record by winning 83 games. Pawtucket has fielded a winning team in 13 seasons since 1983, a span that includes 4 first place IL finishes and the 1984 team that defeated the now-defunct Maine Guides 3-2 to win the 1984 Governors' Cup trophy for the second championship in Pawtucket Red Sox history.

As for the name PawSox, the origins are traced back to the first season in which Mondor owned the club. Three weeks before the 1977 season began the team lacked uniforms, despite having been rescued from bankruptcy. Former Boston GM Haywood Sullivan stepped in and sent Pawtucket 48 sets of old home and away uniforms from the parent club. Although the home uniforms were fine for the team to use, the road uniforms had "Boston" stitched across the chest, which was a problem. Then Pawtucket GM Mike Tamburro, who is currently the organization's President, suggested using the moniker "PawSox" across the front, with each unstitched "Boston" letter replaced with one that spelled "PawSox." Thus, the PawSox name was born out of the necessity of a uniform crisis, not a clever focus group-based marketing campaign.

As a man who made a career of buying and selling bankrupt business, Mondor has turned around the fortunes of Pawtucket baseball, instituting an affordable and friendly atmosphere, and giving Pawtucket a baseball tradition in line with what one would expect from an affiliate of the storied Boston Red Sox.

"The Longest Game"

The PawSox played in and won the longest game in professional baseball history, a 33 inning affair against the Rochester Red Wings at McCoy Stadium. The game started on April 18, 1981. Play was suspended at 4:07 AM at the end of the 32nd inning. The game did not resume again until June 23 when the Red Wings returned to Pawtucket. Only one inning was needed, with the PawSox winning 3-2 in the bottom of the 33rd when first baseman Dave Koza drove in second baseman Marty Barrett with a bases loaded single off of Cliff Speck. Future Major League Baseball stars Cal Ripken Jr. and Wade Boggs played in the game.

On June 23, 2006, the PawSox celebrated the 25th anniversary of "The Longest Game" with events and festivities when they played the Columbus Clippers.

Perfect games

• Tomokazu Ohka pitched a nine-inning perfect game for the Pawtucket Red Sox on June 1, 2000. Ohka retired all 27 batters he faced in a 2-0 win over the Charlotte Knights, and he needed just 76 pitches to toss the first nine-inning perfect game in the International League since 1952.

• On August 10, 2003, Bronson Arroyo pitched the fourth nine-inning perfect game in the 121-year history of the International League as the PawSox beat the Buffalo Bisons 7–0 at McCoy Stadium. He needed 101 pitches to throw his masterpiece (73 strikes), struck out nine, and got 10 fly outs and eight ground balls from the Buffalo 27 batters. He went to a three-ball count to just three hitters all game. At the end of the month, he was with the big league club until the 2005 offseason, when the Red Sox traded him to the Cincinnati Reds.

Titles

The PawSox have won the Governors' Cup, the championship of the IL, 2 times, and played in the championship series 6 times.

• 1973 Defeated Charleston
• 1977 Lost to Charleston
• 1978 Lost to Richmond
• 1984 Defeated Maine
• 1991 Lost to Columbus
• 2003 Lost to Durham

Yearly Results

Year	W	L	.PCT	Finish	GA/GB	Manager
1970	68	70	.493	4th Eastern League	-9.5	Matt Sczesny
1971	63	76	.453	7th Eastern League	-16	Billy Gardner
1972	61	79	.436	7th Eastern League	-23	Don Lock
1973	78	68	.534	2nd International League	-1	Darrell Johnson
1974	57	87	.396	4th International League	-31	Joe Morgan
1975	53	87	.379	8th International League	-32.5	Joe Morgan
1976	68	70	.493	5th International League	-20	Joe Morgan
1977	80	60	.571	1st International League	+2	Joe Morgan
1978	81	59	.579	2nd International League	-4	Joe Morgan
1979	66	74	.471	5th International League	-19.5	Joe Morgan
1980	62	77	.446	7th International League	-20.5	Joe Morgan
1981	67	73	.479	6th International League	-21.5	Joe Morgan
1982	67	71	.489	5th International League	-14.5	Joe Morgan
1983	56	83	.403	8th International League	-26.5	Tony Torchia
1984	75	65	.536	4th International League	-7.5	Tony Torchia
1985	48	91	.345	8th International League	-30.5	Rac Slider
1986	74	65	.532	3rd International League	-5.5	Ed Nottle
1987	73	67	.521	4th International League	-8	Ed Nottle
1988	63	79	.444	6th International League	-14.5	Ed Nottle
1989	62	84	.425	8th International League	-21.5	Ed Nottle
1990	62	84	.425	7th International League	-27.5	Ed Nottle (through 6/26)Johnny Pesky (from 6/27)
1991	79	64	.552	1st International League	+3.5	Butch Hobson
1992	71	72	.497	2nd IL North	-13.5	Rico Petrocelli
1993	60	82	.423	4th IL North	-14.5	Buddy Bailey
1994	78	64	.549	1st IL North	+7	Buddy Bailey
1995	70	71	.492	3rd IL North	-2.5	Buddy Bailey
1996	78	64	.549	1st IL North	+5.5	Buddy Bailey
1997	81	60	.574	2nd IL North	-2	Ken Macha
1998	77	64	.546	3rd IL North	-3	Ken Macha
1999	76	68	.528	2nd IL North	-2	Gary Jones
2000	82	61	.573	3rd IL North	-3	Gary Jones
2001	60	82	.423	5th IL North	-31	Gary Jones
2002	60	84	.417	5th IL North	-31	Buddy Bailey
2003	83	61	.576	1st IL North	+4	Buddy Bailey
2004	73	71	.507	2nd IL North	-10	Buddy Bailey
2005	75	69	.521	2nd IL North	-7	Ron Johnson
2006	69	75	.479	5th IL North	-16	Ron Johnson
2007	67	75	.	4th IL North		Ron Johnson
Totals	2364	2456	.490	Playoff History Year W L Result Round W L Result Round 1977 3 1 Beat Richmond 1st round of playoffs 0 4 Lost to Charleston Governors' Cup championship 1978 3 2 Beat Toledo 1st round of playoffs 3 4 Lost to Richmond Governors' Cup championship 1984 3 1 Beat Columbus 1st round of playoffs 3 2 Beat Maine Governors' Cup championship 1986 1 3 Lost to Rochester 1st round of playoffs - - - - 1987 1 3 Lost to Tidewater 1st round of playoffs - - - - 1991 0 3 Lost to Columbus Governors' Cup championship - - - - 1992 1 3 Lost to Scranton IL East championship - - - - 1994 1 3 Lost to Syracuse IL East championship - - - - 1996 1 3 Lost to Rochester IL East championship - - - - 1997 1 3 Lost to Rochester IL East championship - - - - 2003 3 2 Beat Ottawa 1st round of playoffs 0 3 Lost to Durham Governors' Cup championship 2008 3 1 Lost to Scranton 1st round of playoffs - - - - Totals 27 41 - - - - - - Current roster AAA Managerial History Name Record Win Pct. Duration Darrell Johnson 78-68 .534 1973 Joe Morgan 601-658 .477 1974-82 Tony Torchia 131-148 .470 1983-84 Rac Slider 48-91 .345 1985 Ed Nottle 302-338 .472 1986-90 (June 26) Johnny Pesky 32-41 .438 1990 (June 27-Sept. 3) Butch Hobson 79-64 .552 1991 Rico Petrocelli 71-72 .497 1992 Buddy Bailey 502-497 .503 1993-96,2002-04 Ken Macha 158-124 .560 1997-98 Gary Jones 218-211 .508 1999-2001 Ron Johnson 144-144 .500 2005-present Totals 2364-2456 .490 1973-2006 Broadcasters Pawtucket is noted as being a springboard for Major League baseball broadcasters. As of 2008, there are five former PawSox radio and one television announcer curretly broadcasting for major league teams. Gary Cohen (New York Mets) Dave Flemming (San Francisco Giants) Andy Freed (Tampa Bay Rays) Dave Jageler (Washington Nationals) Don Orsillo (Boston Red Sox) Glenn Geffner (Florida Marlins) The current announcers for the Pawsox Radio Network are Dan Hoard and & Steve Hyder. Select games are broadcasted on NESN by Eric Frede and Ken Ryan and on Cox Sports by Dan Hoard and Bob Montgomery. Other former Pawtucket announcers include Dave Shea, Bob Rodgers, Bob Kurtz, Jack LeFaivre, Matt Pinto, and Mike Stenhouse. See also Pawtucket Red Sox Alumni Pawsox Radio Network References External links Pawtucket Red Sox official website Minor League Baseball.com PawSox team site Boston Red Sox prospects Roster, Splits, and Situational Stats PawSox all-time roster Pawtucket Red Sox at SoSH Wiki