Hickory Crawdads

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title: "Hickory Crawdads" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1993-establishments-in-north-carolina", "baseball-teams-established-in-1993", "carolina-league-teams", "chicago-white-sox-minor-league-affiliates", "hickory,-north-carolina", "pittsburgh-pirates-minor-league-affiliates", "professional-baseball-teams-in-north-carolina", "texas-rangers-minor-league-affiliates", "diamond-baseball-holdings"] topic_path: "sports" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hickory_Crawdads" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox Minor League Baseball"]

Field	Value
name	Hickory Crawdads
founded	1993
city	Hickory, North Carolina
logo	HickoryCrawdads.png
uniformlogo	HickoryCrawdadscap.png
class level	Single-A (2025–present)
past class level	{{plainlist
current league	Carolina League (2025–present)
division	South Division
past league	South Atlantic League (1993–2024)
majorleague	Texas Rangers (2009–present)
pastmajorleague	{{plainlist
nickname	Hickory Crawdads (1993–present)
colors	Red, black, Crawdad blue, white

|

| ballpark | L. P. Frans Stadium (1993–present) | | leaguenum | 3 | | leaguechamps | | | divnum | 4 | | divisionchamps | | | firsthalfnum | 4 | | firsthalfchamps | | | secondhalfnum | 5 | | secondhalfchamps | | | owner | Diamond Baseball Holdings | | gm | Douglas Locascio | | manager | Carlos Maldonado | | website | | ::

| name = Hickory Crawdads | founded = 1993 | city = Hickory, North Carolina | misc = | logo = HickoryCrawdads.png | uniformlogo = HickoryCrawdadscap.png | class level = Single-A (2025–present) | past class level = {{plainlist|

• High-A (2021–2024)
• Class A (1993–2020) | current league = Carolina League (2025–present) | conference = | division = South Division | past league = South Atlantic League (1993–2024) | majorleague = Texas Rangers (2009–present) | pastmajorleague = {{plainlist|
• Pittsburgh Pirates (1999–2008)
• Chicago White Sox (1993–1998) | nickname = Hickory Crawdads (1993–present) | pastnames = | colors = Red, black, Crawdad blue, white

| ballpark = L. P. Frans Stadium (1993–present) | pastparks = | leaguenum = 3 | leaguechamps = | divnum = 4 | divisionchamps = | firsthalfnum = 4 | firsthalfchamps= | secondhalfnum = 5 | secondhalfchamps= | owner = Diamond Baseball Holdings | gm = Douglas Locascio | manager = Carlos Maldonado | website = The Hickory Crawdads are a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. They are located in Hickory, North Carolina, and play their home games at L. P. Frans Stadium, which opened in 1993 and has roughly 4,000 fixed seats.

Established in 1993 as members of the South Atlantic League (SAL), the Crawdads were affiliated with the Chicago White Sox through 1998. They became a farm club of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1999 and won the South Atlantic League championship in 2002 and 2004. Hickory has been affiliated with the Texas Rangers since 2009. The Crawdads won a third SAL championship in 2015. They moved to the High-A East in 2021, but this was renamed the South Atlantic League in 2022. They joined the Carolina League in 2025.

History

Several Minor League Baseball (MiLB) teams known as the Hickory Rebels played in Hickory, North Carolina, intermittently from 1936 to 1960. Local businessman Don Beaver purchased the Gastonia Rangers and relocated them from Gastonia, North Carolina, to Hickory for the 1993 season. Prior to the move, the Gastonia team had served as a minor-league affiliate of both the Rangers and the Montreal Expos.

Fans were invited to submit suggestions for the team's name. Among the finalists were "Woodchucks", "River Rats", "Valley Cats", and "Hound Dogs". The chosen name, "Crawdads", was selected because of the animals' strength and presence in local waterways.

The Crawdads played in the South Atlantic League (SAL) as the Class A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox in their inaugural 1993 season. The six-year affiliation regularly had Hickory at or near the bottom of the standings, though they did qualify for the playoffs twice. On both occasions, however, they were eliminated without winning any games. The affiliation ended after the 1998 season with team accumulating a 374–464 record over that period.

Hickory entered into a new affiliation with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1999. The Crawdads reached the postseason in five of ten seasons with Pittsburgh. They won two South Atlantic League championships, the first in 2002 and the second in 2004. The affiliation ended after the 2008 season with Hickory going 705–677 over a span of 10 years.

The Crawdads became an affiliate of the Texas Rangers in 2009. Since then, they reached the SAL finals on two occasions and won the championship in 2015. Following the 2017 season, the Rangers purchased the team from Beaver.

In conjunction with Major League Baseball's restructuring of MiLB in 2021, the Crawdads were organized into the High-A East. In 2022, the High-A East became known as the South Atlantic League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.

In July 2024, MiLB announced that the Crawdads, while remaining an affiliate of the Texas Rangers, were to be demoted to class Single-A and join the Carolina League in 2025.

Season-by-season results

::data[format=table]

Season	Regular season	Postseason	MLB affiliate	Ref.	Record	Win %	League	Division	GB	Record	Win %	Result	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025	Totals	2,210–2,165	—	—	—	23–22	3 league titles, 4 division titles, 9 half division titles	—	–
52–88	.371	13th	6th		—	—	—	Chicago White Sox
86–54	.614	2nd	1st	—	0–2	.000	Won Second Half Northern Division title
Lost Northern Division title vs. Hagerstown Suns, 2–0	Chicago White Sox
49–89	.355	14th	7th		—	—	—	Chicago White Sox
55–85	.393	14th	6th	31	—	—	—	Chicago White Sox
76–64	.543	4th	2nd	1	0–2	.000	Lost quarterfinals vs. Delmarva Shorebirds, 2–0	Chicago White Sox
56–84	.400	13th	6th		—	—	—	Chicago White Sox
70–70	.500	6th	3rd		3–2	.600	Won quarterfinals vs. Macon Braves, 2–0
Lost semifinals vs. Augusta GreenJackets, 2–1	Pittsburgh Pirates
75–66	.532	4th (tie)	3rd	17	—	—	—	Pittsburgh Pirates
67–73	.479	10th	5th	25	—	—	—	Pittsburgh Pirates
83–56	.597	1st	1st	—	5–2	.714	Won First Half Northern Division title
Won Northern Division title vs. Delmarva Shorebirds, 2–0
Won SAL championship vs. Columbus RedStixx, 3–2	Pittsburgh Pirates
82–54	.603	2nd	1st	—	1–2	.333	Won First Half Southern Division title
Lost Southern Division title vs. Rome Braves, 2–1	Pittsburgh Pirates
85–55	.607	2nd	1st	—	5–0	1.000	Won Second Half Northern Division title
Won Northern Division title vs. Charleston Alley Cats, 2–0
Won SAL championship vs. Capital City Bombers, 3–0	Pittsburgh Pirates
54–80	.403	15th (tie)	7th (tie)		—	—	—	Pittsburgh Pirates
67–70	.489	10th	5th	16	—	—	—	Pittsburgh Pirates
70–66	.515	6th	2nd	12	1–2	.333	Won Second Half Northern Division title
Lost Northern Division title vs. West Virginia Power, 2–1	Pittsburgh Pirates
52–87	.374	15th	7th		—	—	—	Pittsburgh Pirates
63–76	.453	15th	7th	19	—	—	—	Texas Rangers
75–64	.540	4th (tie)	2nd	9	0–2	.000	Lost Northern Division title vs. Lakewood BlueClaws, 2–0	Texas Rangers
79–58	.577	1st	1st	—	0–2	.000	Won First Half Northern Division title
Lost Northern Division title vs. Greensboro Grasshoppers, 2–0	Texas Rangers
74–65	.532	5th	3rd	9	—	—	—	Texas Rangers
76–63	.547	5th	3rd		—	—	—	Texas Rangers
80–59	.576	5th	3rd		—	—	—	Texas Rangers
81–57	.587	3rd	2nd		5–1	.833	Won First Half Northern Division title
Won Northern Division title vs. West Virginia Power, 2–1
Won SAL championship vs. Asheville Tourists, 3–0	Texas Rangers
74–66	.529	5th	3rd	9	—	—	—	Texas Rangers
64–76	.457	11th	6th	13	—	—	—	Texas Rangers
70–68	.507	6th (tie)	4th (tie)	17	—	—	—	Texas Rangers
83–52	.615	2nd	2nd		3–3	.500	Won Second Half Northern Division title
Won Northern Division title vs. Delmarva Shorebirds, 2–0
Lost SAL championship vs. Lexington Legends, 3–1	Texas Rangers
Season cancelled (COVID-19 pandemic)	Texas Rangers
46–68	.404	11th	6th	34	—	—	—	Texas Rangers
66–65	.504	6th	3rd		—	—	—	Texas Rangers
70–55	.560	2nd	1st	—	0–2	.000	Won Second Half Southern Division title	Texas Rangers
62	70	9th	4th		—	—	—	Texas Rangers
68	62	4th	3rd	1	—	—	—	Texas Rangers
::

::data[format=table title="Franchise totals by affiliation"]

Affiliation	Regular season	Postseason	Composite	Record	Win %	Apps.	Record	Win %	Record	Win %	Chicago White Sox (1993–1999)	Pittsburgh Pirates (1999–2008)	Texas Rangers (2009–present)	All-time	2,210–2,165	11	23–22	2,103–2,055
374–464	.446	2		.000	374–468	.444
705–677	.510	5		.652	720–685	.512
1,131–1024		5			1,009–902
::

Mascot

Conrad the Crawdad has been the official mascot of the Crawdads since 1993. Conrad, along with his wife Candy, entertain fans during games. The two got engaged on Mother's Day weekend in 2018 and were married in an on-field ceremony on June 24, 2018.

Roster

Awards

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Jurickson_Profar_on_April_12,_2016.jpg" caption="[[Jurickson Profar]] won the SAL Most Valuable Player Award in 2011." alt="A man wearing blue baseball jersey and gray pants after swinging at a ball stands at home plate"] ::

Four players and two managers have won South Atlantic League awards in recognition for their performance with the Crawdads. ::data[format=table]

Award	Recipient	Season	Ref.
Most Valuable Player	2000	last=Parker	first=Mark
Most Valuable Player	2002	last=Cichalski	first=Dan
Most Valuable Player	2003
Most Valuable Player	2011	{{cite web	url=https://www.milb.com/hickory/news/gcs-23941504
Most Outstanding Prospect	2002
Manager of the Year	1994
Manager of the Year	2002
::

Notable alumni

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Joey_Gallo_2013.jpg" caption="Joey Gallo]] batting for the Crawdads in 2013"] ::

• Jim Abbott
• Jorge Alfaro
• José Bautista
• Joe Beimel
• Matt Capps
• Joe Crede
• Rajai Davis
• Zach Duke
• Jerad Eickhoff
• Joey Gallo
• John Grabow
• Odubel Herrera
• Luke Jackson
• Carlos Lee
• Nomar Mazara
• Andrew McCutchen
• Nate McLouth
• Nyjer Morgan
• Rougned Odor
• Magglio Ordóñez
• Steve Pearce
• Martín Pérez
• Jurickson Profar
• Aaron Rowand
• Neil Walker
• Chris Young

References

References

1. "Hickory, North Carolina Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com.
2. (January 2006). "Conrad & The Hickory Crawdads". At the Yard.
3. Pollack, Lisa. (December 3, 1992). "Fans Cheer, Cry Foul Over Baseball Team's Name". The Charlotte Observer.
4. "Playoff Champions". Minor League Baseball.
5. Mayo, Jonathan. (February 12, 2021). "MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues".
6. (March 16, 2022). "Historical League Names to Return in 2022".
7. (July 23, 2024). "South Atlantic, Carolina Leagues to realign in 2025". Minor League Baseball.
8. "1993 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
9. "1994 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
10. "1994 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
11. "1995 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
12. "1996 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
13. "1997 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
14. "1997 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
15. "1998 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
16. "1999 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
17. "1999 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
18. "2000 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
19. "2001 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
20. "2002 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
21. "2002 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
22. "2003 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
23. "2003 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
24. "2004 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
25. "2004 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
26. "2005 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
27. "2006 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
28. "2007 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
29. "2007 South Atlantic League (A)". The Baseball Cube.
30. "2008 South Atlantic League (A)". The Baseball Cube.
31. "2009 South Atlantic League (A)". The Baseball Cube.
32. "2010 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
33. "2010 South Atlantic League (A)". The Baseball Cube.
34. "2011 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
35. "2011 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
36. "2012 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
37. "2013 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
38. "2014 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
39. "2015 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
40. "2015 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
41. "2016 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
42. "2017 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
43. "2018 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
44. "2019 South Atlantic League (SAL) Standings". Stats Crew.
45. "2019 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
46. (June 30, 2020). "2020 Minor League Baseball Season Shelved".
47. "2020 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
48. "2021 High-A East". Sports Reference.
49. "2022 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
50. "2023 South Atlantic League (SAL) Minor League Baseball Standings on StatsCrew.com".
51. "2023 South Atlantic League". Sports Reference.
52. "2024 South Atlantic League".
53. "2025 Carolina League".
54. Parker, Mark. (June 27, 2017). "25th Anniversary All-Crawdads Team: A Look Back at Players' Success in Hickory".
55. Cichalski, Dan. (August 24, 2002). "Righty Floyd Left Off All-Star Team". Asbury Park Press.
56. (January 29, 2013). "Crawdads Alumni Report February 4". Minor League Baseball.

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