Aberdeen IronBirds: The City of Aberdeen has officially hired an outside firm to manage non-baseball events at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium. Under the terms of the previous agreement, Tufton Baseball LLC managed non-IronBird events at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium, while keeping revenues and paying the city an annual license fee. The lease agreement that keeps the IronBirds committed to playing at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium expires in 2022.
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Kevin Bradshaw returns for his third season as manager of the Aberdeen IronBirds. Mark Hendrickson (pitching coach), Tim Raines, Jr. (hitting coach) and Ramon Sambo (field coach) all return for their second seasons with the IronBirds. Gary Smith was named as Athletic Trainer.
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Auburn Doubledays: Jerad Head returns to Auburn for his third season as manager. Mark Bird returns as hitting coach and Tim Reading takes over as pitching coach. Kirby Craft will serve as athletic trainer and Will Lindholm will be the team's strength and conditioning coach.
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The Doubledays held their Hot Stove Dinner on January 26, 2018. Former manager Dennis Holmberg attended and spoke about the Doubledays’ 2007 New York-Penn League Championship.
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Batavia Muckdogs: The situation regarding the future of minor league baseball in Batavia is settled for the time being. The New York-Penn League will operate the team during the 2018 and have named longtime baseball man Dave Chase as general manager.
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Mike Jacobs returns for his second season as manager of the Muckdogs. Other field staff will include pitching coach Jason Erickson, hitting coach Jesus Merchan, and defensive coach Ronnie Richardson.
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Brooklyn Cyclones: The Cyclones have announced their Jersey Giveaway Promotion for the 2018 season. This year, rather than the traditional Jersday Thursday, the dates have been spread out across the days of the week. Fans can guarantee themselves each of the jersey giveaways and avoid long lines with the purchase of a Jersey Plan (7 games) or a season membership.
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Connecticut Tigers: The Connecticut Tigers and Detroit Tigers announced a two-year extension to their Player Development Contract (PDC) in January. The extension guarantees the agreement through the end of the 2020 season.
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Gerald Laird will return to Norwich in 2018 as manager of the Tigers. Returning to the Connecticut staff for his third season is pitching coach Ace Adams. Hitting Coach Rafael Martinez will return to the Tigers staff for his second season. Joining the staff for the first time will be athletic trainer Sean McFarland.
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Hudson Valley Renegades: The defending New York-Penn League Champions have introduced a new series of team logos and uniform designs for the upcoming 2018 season. In addition, the Renegades have unveiled a 25th year logo which ties in the team's past look with its new identity, including three different versions honoring the previous and present team colors.
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Following the 2017 season, the Renegades and Tampa Bay Rays extended their Player Development Contract through the 2020 season.
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Craig Albernaz is returning as manager of the Renegades for the 2018 season. Others on the staff include pitching coach Jose Gonzalez, coaches Alejandro Freire and Rafael Valenzuela, athletic trainer Tsutomu Kamiya and conditioning coach Dan Rousseau.
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Lowell Spinners: Lowell extended their player development contract with the Boston Red Sox thru the 2020 season.
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The Spinners coaching staff for the 2018 season includes manager Corey Wimberly, pitching coach Nick Green, hitting coach Nate Spears, and athletic trainer Joel Harris.
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Mahoning Valley Scrappers: A multi-million dollar restoration project is under consideration for Eastwood Field including field, clubhouse, lighting and scoreboard improvements.
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Jim Pankovits will manage the Scrappers this season. He joins the Indians organization after seven years with the Seattle Mariners and 16 years with the Houston Astros. Joining Pankovits on the Mahoning Valley staff are pitching coach Jason Blanton, bench coach Omir Santos, strength and conditioning coach Moises Cuevas and athletic trainer Gabriel Garcia.
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State College Spikes: Joe Kruzel returns for his second year as State College Spikes manager. Roger LaFrancois returns as hitting coach and the new pitching coach will be Adrian Martin. Strength and conditioning coach Don Trapp joins Spikes' 2018 coaching staff.
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SpikesFest 2018, presented by Mount Nittany Health and media sponsors WTAJ-TV and BIG Froggy 101 is scheduled for Sunday, March 4 from 11:00am to 2:00pm.at the Penn State Indoor Multi-Sport Facility in State College.
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The 2018 New York-Penn League All Star will be played at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park on August 14.
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Staten Island Yankees: Lino Diaz has been named manager of the Yankees for the 2018 season. Ken Joyce will serve as hitting coach and Travis Phelps returns as pitching coach.
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The Yankees fireworks schedule has been set for the 2018 season.
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The 2018 ticket plans will include an “all you can eat” option.
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Tri-City ValleyCats: The ValleyCats 2018 coaching staff was announced in January. Jason Bell was named manager. Erick Abreu will be the pitching coach, and Jeremy Barnes returns for his second season as hitting coach.
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The ValleyCats announced that their 2018 bobblehead giveaways will pay tribute to American League MVP Jose Altuve and World Series MVP George Springer. Altuve and Springer are both former ValleyCats that played in Troy in 2009 and 2011 respectively.
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Vermont Lake Monsters: Aaron Nieckula returns for his fourth season as manager. Also returning to the Lake Monsters field staff for the 2018 season is hitting coach Lloyd Turner, pitching coach Carlos Chavez and athletic trainer Toshi Nagahara.
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West Virginia Black Bears: Kieran Mattison has been named as the Manager of the Black Bears for the 2018 season. Other field staff from the 2017 season will remain the same for 2018. Pitching coach Tom Filer will return for his third season and Jonathan Prieto will return for his fourth season as the hitting coach.
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The Black Bears will hold a job fair on Monday, April 2nd at the
Monongalia County Ballpark to fill game day staff positions for the 2018
season.
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Williamsport Crosscutters: Pat Borders will return for his fourth season as manager. Joining Borders will be pitching coach Hector Berrios and coaches Christian Marrero and Greg Brodzinski.
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The Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Mets will play in the second "MLB Little League Classic" at BBT Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field on Sunday, August 19th, with the game airing nationally on ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball" and ESPN Radio at 7:00 p.m. (ET).
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Team Logo credits: MiLB.com
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