Storm Baseball to celebrate 20th season
Lake Elsinore, CA--Baseball season is always an exciting time of the year and 2013 is a special one for the Lake Elsinore Storm as they celebrate their 20th season. For the last two decades, the Storm has enjoyed an impressive run in minor league baseball while entertaining fans of all ages. This list includes the Storm eyes logo, the two-time national mascot of the year, Thunder, and of course, multiple California League championship teams (1996, 2001, 2011).
In 1994 the team began its inaugural season in the California League moving from Palm Springs. The Storm's first Major League parent club was the California Angels, currently known as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The team then switched affiliations to the San Diego Padres in 2001, when the Storm earned Baseball America's Minor League Team of the Year award.
Storm baseball history includes 120 current or former big leaguers. Past stars like former Angels World Series Champions Darin Erstad (INF), Bengie Molina (C) and John Lackey (RHP, Boston) and current stars such as David Freese (3B, St.Louis), Chase Headley (3B, San Diego) and Jake Peavy (RHP, Chicago White Sox) have all called The Diamond home.
The Lake Elsinore Storm logo and uniform has seen a couple of evolutions from the original blue and black "LE" that debuted in 1994. From 1998-2000, players wore the Storm cloud, which introduced the new black and red color scheme currently used today. In 1998 the infamous "Storm eyes" were born. This logo is regarded as one of Minor League baseball's most popular logos. In 2001, the eyes were then used to create the primary logo that you see on the players' uniforms today.
The Storm has spent every season at The Diamond since its inception. Improvements such as the addition of outfield video boards, Diamond Club Restaurant refurbishments, suite renovations and upgraded sound systems have all helped this state-of-the-art facility to be recognized as one of the finest ballparks in all of Minor League baseball.
The Diamond can seat over 8,000 plus fans for baseball games with 6,066 fixed seats, 11 luxury suites, and a grass berm down the right field line. With additional on-field seating, the stadium can be transformed into a concert or boxing venue with a total seating capacity of 14,000. The Stadium has hosted numerous big-artist concerts such as the Beach Boys, ZZ Top, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp. Civic gatherings, festivals and special off-season community events are a regular occurrence, providing guests year-round entertainment at the ballpark.
"The Storm has seen tremendous growth since our inception here in Lake Elsinore," said Storm team President Dave Oster. "We work hard to maintain The Diamond as one of the best facilities in all of baseball and after 20 years it remains one of the most popular and current stadiums in the game. It's always fun to see former Storm players and fans return and talk about what an amazing place it is and how many great memories they have here. We are proud of our Storm team and the brand we've built not only here in this community but throughout the nation. Our goal is to continue to be a leader and contributor in our community as well as the baseball and entertainment industry for many more years to come. We really hope the fans enjoy this 20th season of Storm baseball at the Diamond."
To celebrate the 20th season, the Storm has created a commemorative logo that will be branded throughout the season. They will also be hosting numerous promotions and events throughout the year. These include an All-Time favorite Storm team as voted by fans, a Storm Alumni reunion on August 22 that will reunite former players and coaches and retro uniforms that will be worn by the current team and auctioned off to charity at the end of the season.