Happy Anniversary...BlueClaws!
The name "BlueClaws" was nominated by 49 different fans. Nine-year-old Matt Koscielski of West Belmar and Jan Gualtier of Ocean County were selected as the winners of the Name the Team contest. The announcement came at a press conference in downtown Lakewood, over a year before the team's first game in April of 2001.
Now, the team is preparing to kick off what will be a historic tenth season at FirstEnergy Park.
Last August, the BlueClaws unveiled the second logo in team history, replacing Pinchy, the crab that appeared on the original logo, with Clawd. The BlueClaws have a new 10th season logo and will have new uniforms for the first time.
"Ten years is pretty special," said BlueClaws General Manager Geoff Brown, who was named the team''s first GM in November of 1999. "It''s special to the five of us on the staff and the 50 gameday staff members that have been here since day one. It''s special to the community, and it''s special for the fans."
As part of the celebration, each issue of the Catch of the Day game program, distributed FREE to all fans at every game, will highlight one of the ten best BlueClaws in team history.
Players that have come through Lakewood on their way to the big leagues include Ryan Howard, the 2006 NL MVP, Cole Hamels, 2008 World Series MVP, JA Happ, 2009 Sporting News Rookie of the Year, and Carlos Ruiz, the starting catcher on the Phillies World Series Championship club from 2008. All told, 30 former BlueClaws have reached the Major Leagues, with Howard, a 2002 BlueClaw who debuted in 2004, being the first.
"That's been one of the true highlights of our time here so far," said Brown. "Our fans have gotten to see some great young players throughout our first nine years and that''s certainly going to continue."
2010 ticket packages are currently on sale and individual game tickets will go on sale at FanFest 2010 on Saturday, March 20th at FirstEnergy Park. For more information, call the BlueClaws at 732-901-7000.
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