Editing Portland Sea Dogs

{{Short description|Minor League Baseball team in Maine}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2019}}
{{Infobox Minor League Baseball
|name            = Portland Sea Dogs
|founded         = 1994
|city            = Portland, Maine
|misc            =
|logo            = Portland Sea Dogs.svg 
|uniformlogo     = SeaDogsCapLogo.PNG
|class level     = Double-A (1994–present)
|past class level=
|current league  = [[Eastern League (1938–present)|Eastern League]] (1994–present)
|past league     =
|conference      = 
|division        = Northeast Division
|majorleague     = [[Boston Red Sox]] (2003–present)
|pastmajorleague = [[Florida Marlins]] (1994–2002)
|nickname        = Portland Sea Dogs (1994–present)
|pastnames       = 
|mascot          = Slugger
|colors          = Navy, red, gray<br>{{Color box|#002A5C}} {{Color box|#E31837}} {{Color box|#CFD4D8}} 
|ballpark        = [[Hadlock Field|Delta Dental Park at Hadlock Field]] (1994–present)
|pastparks       = 
|leaguenum       = 1
|leaguechamps    = 2006
|divnum          = 6
|divisionchamps  = {{hlist|1995|1996|1997|2005|2014|2024}}
|firsthalfnum    = 
|firsthalfchamps = 
|secondhalfnum   = 1
|secondhalfchamps= {{hlist|2022}}
|owner           = [[Diamond Baseball Holdings]]<ref>{{cite web |agency=Associated Press |title=Portland Sea Dogs are being sold, but sticking with Red Sox |url=https://www.boston.com/sports/boston-red-sox/2022/12/06/portland-sea-dogs-are-being-sold-but-sticking-with-red-sox/ |website=www.boston.com |access-date=2 September 2023}}</ref>
|gm              = Geoff Iacuessa
|manager         = Chad Epperson
|firstseason=
|website         = {{URL|https://www.milb.com/portland|milb.com/portland}}
}}
[[File:Portland Sea Dogs Uniform.png|thumb|Portland Sea Dogs Uniform]]
The '''Portland Sea Dogs''' are a [[Minor League Baseball]] team based in [[Portland, Maine]], playing in the [[Eastern League (1938–present)|Eastern League]].{{Efn|Portland is {{convert|107|mi|km}} from [[Fenway Park]] in Boston.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.milb.com/news/major-league-affiliate-overview-american-league-east |title=MLB affiliate overview: American League East |website=[[Minor League Baseball]] |date=February 12, 2021 |access-date=February 15, 2021}}</ref>}} Established in 1994, the Sea Dogs are the [[Double-A (baseball)|Double-A]] affiliate of the [[Boston Red Sox]].

Originally affiliated with the [[Florida Marlins]], the Sea Dogs became part of the Red Sox system for the 2003 season. The team went to the Eastern League championship series in 2005, losing to the [[Akron Aeros]]; and again in 2006, when they defeated the Aeros to win the first Double-A championship for a Red Sox [[farm team]] since the [[New Britain Red Sox]] in 1983.

All games are carried on a network of radio stations with [[Emma Tiedemann]] providing the play-by-play,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.milb.com/news/emma-tiedemann-hired-as-new-voice-of-the-sea-dogs |title=Emma Tiedemann hired as new 'Voice of the Sea Dogs' |website=[[Minor League Baseball]] |date=March 16, 2020 |access-date=April 2, 2023}}</ref> with the flagship [[WPEI]] doing both home and away games.

==History==
[[Image:Slugger Sea Dogs mascot.jpg|thumb|Slugger the Sea Dog, the team mascot]]
Minor league baseball returned to Maine on October 4, 1992, when Portland was awarded one of two [[Eastern League (1938–2020)|Eastern League]] expansion franchises (the other being the [[New Hampshire Fisher Cats|New Haven Ravens]]) to begin play in April 1994. The Sea Dogs signed an affiliation agreement with the [[Florida Marlins]] on May 3, 1993, beginning a nine-season relationship.<ref>[https://www.milb.com/news/gcs-507502 Sea Dogs Time Line (Franchise History) – Portland Sea Dogs.]</ref> The city renovated [[Hadlock Field]], transforming a high-school stadium into a professional ballpark. City manager [[Bob Ganley (city administrator)|Robert Ganley]] led efforts to renovate Hadlock Field and return professional baseball to Portland.

The team won its first game, defeating the [[Reading Phillies]] on the road 2–1, with the help of a 14th-inning home run by future major league catcher [[Charles Johnson (catcher)|Charles Johnson]]. The team opened Hadlock Field on April 18, 1994, losing 7–6 to the [[Connecticut Defenders|Albany-Colonie Yankees]].

Cartoonist [[Guy Gilchrist]] designed the team's logo.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/local/morning-report/theres-a-story-behind-the-sea-dogs-name-and-logo/97-429098196 |title=There's a story behind the Sea Dogs name and logo |first1=Johnny |last1=Mehler |first2=Bailey |last2=Neel |website=newscentermaine.com |date=April 6, 2017 |accessdate=April 2, 2023}}</ref> His comic strip ''[[Mudpie (comic strip)|Mudpie]]'' had a series of strips in which the young cat's family visit the Portland area and attend a Sea Dogs game.{{citation needed|date=April 2023}}

The team won its sole league title on September 17, 2006, defeating the [[Akron Aeros]] 8–5, in a rematch of the series from the previous year.

When [[Major League Baseball]] restructured Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Sea Dogs were organized into the [[Double-A Northeast]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Mayo|first=Jonathan|title=MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/new-minor-league-baseball-structure|website=Major League Baseball|date=February 12, 2021|access-date=February 12, 2021}}</ref> In 2022, the division was renamed the Eastern League, the name used by the regional circuit before the 2021 reorganization.<ref name=ELrename>{{cite web|url=https://www.milb.com/news/minor-league-baseball-historical-league-names-to-return-in-2022|title=Historical League Names to Return in 2022|website=Minor League Baseball|date=March 16, 2022|access-date=March 16, 2022}}</ref>

Ahead of the 2023 season, the Sea Dogs' longtime owners, the Burke family, sold the team to [[Diamond Baseball Holdings]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-12-06 |title=Portland Sea Dogs sold to group that has gone on minor league baseball buying spree |url=https://www.pressherald.com/2022/12/06/burke-family-sells-portland-sea-dogs-to-group-that-owns-several-minor-league-teams/ |access-date=2024-03-19 |website=Press Herald}}</ref>

In August 2024, Portland cartoonist [[Lincoln Peirce]] featured the team in his comic strip [[Big Nate]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Peirce |first=Lincoln |date=2024-07-29 |title=Big Nate by Lincoln Peirce for July 29, 2024 {{!}} GoComics.com |url=https://www.gocomics.com/bignate/2024/07/29 |access-date=2024-08-13 |website=GoComics |language=en}}</ref>

==Stadium==
[[File:Portland Sea Dogs, April 2016.jpg|thumb|250px|right|The Sea Dogs hosting the [[Hartford Yard Goats]] during the 2016 season]]

The Sea Dogs' home stadium is [[Hadlock Field|Delta Dental Park at Hadlock Field]], named after longtime Portland High School baseball coach Edson Hadlock.<ref name=Hadlock>{{Cite web|url=https://www.portlandmaine.gov/572/Hadlock-Field|title=Hadlock Field {{!}} Portland, ME|website=www.portlandmaine.gov|language=en|access-date=August 18, 2018}}</ref>  It has a [[seating capacity]] of 7,368.<ref name=Hadlock/> Hadlock Field is often visited by vacationing celebrities, such as former [[National Football League|NFL]] coach [[Bill Parcells]], former U.S. President [[George H. W. Bush]], and his wife [[Barbara Bush (First Lady)|Barbara]]. In [[left fielder|left field]] stands the [[Maine Monster]], a {{convert|37|ft|adj=on}} replica of [[Fenway Park]]'s [[Green Monster]], complete with [[Coca-Cola|Coke]] bottle and [[Citgo]] sign.<ref name=Hadlock/> Along the [[right fielder|right-field]] foul line just beyond first base, a picnic pavilion is available for group outings from 20 up to 300 people. In 2006, a new pavilion opened above the right-field wall over the Sea Dogs bullpen. Modeled after the Green Monster seats at Fenway Park in Boston, it seats up to 393 people and gives fans an opportunity to catch a home run ball. After the 2024 season, construction began on a new locker room facility behind the left field grandstand.<ref>{{cite web |title=With season over, construction begins at Hadlock Field
|url=https://wgme.com/sports/content/with-season-over-construction-begins-at-hadlock-field |website=WGME13 News |access-date=26 April 2025}}</ref>

Slugger the Sea Dog has been the Sea Dogs' mascot since May 6, 1994.<ref>{{cite web |title=Slugger the Sea Dog |url=https://www.milb.com/portland/fans/mascots |website=[[Minor League Baseball]] |access-date=13 April 2020}}</ref>

==Season records==
The team was a member of the Northeast division of the [[Eastern League (1938–present)|Eastern League]] from 1994 to 2020 and the Northeast division of [[Double-A Northeast]] in 2021. They have been members of the Eastern League's Northeast division since 2022.

In the below table, "Place" represents finish within the team's division for the overall regular reason. Note that in 2019 and 2022, the Eastern League played a split-season schedule, with first-half and second-half winners advancing to the postseason.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size: 95%;"
|+ Legend
|-
! Place !! &nbsp; !! Playoffs
|-
|bgcolor="#D0E7FF"|'''Division champions''' || &nbsp; || bgcolor="#ffcccc"|'''Won championship series'''
|-
|bgcolor="#96CDCD"|Made playoffs || &nbsp; || bgcolor="#ddffdd"|Lost championship series
|}

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left; font-size: 95%;"
|+ Results by season
|-
! scope="col" |Year
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|W–L
! scope="col" |[[Winning percentage|Pct.]]
! scope="col" |Place
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|Manager
! scope="col" class="unsortable"|Playoffs
|-
| 1994 || 60–81 || {{Winning percentage|60|81}} || 4th || rowspan=3|[[Carlos Tosca]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 1995 || 86–56 || {{Winning percentage|86|56}} || bgcolor="#D0E7FF"|'''1st''' || Lost to [[New Hampshire Fisher Cats|New Haven]], 3–2 in semifinals
|-
| 1996 || 83–58 || {{Winning percentage|83|58}} || bgcolor="#D0E7FF"|'''1st''' || bgcolor="#ddffdd"|Defeated [[Binghamton Mets|Binghamton]], 3–2 in semifinals<br>Lost to [[Harrisburg Senators|Harrisburg]], 3–2 in championship
|-
| 1997 || 79–63 || {{Winning percentage|79|63}} || bgcolor="#D0E7FF"|'''1st''' || [[Fredi González]] || bgcolor="#ddffdd"|Defeated [[Connecticut Defenders|Norwich]], 3–2 in semifinals<br>Lost to [[Harrisburg Senators|Harrisburg]], 3–1 in championship
|-
| 1998 || 66–75 || {{Winning percentage|66|75}} || 3rd || [[Lynn Jones]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 1999 || 65–77 || {{Winning percentage|65|77}} || 3rd || [[Frank Cacciatore]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2000 || 71–70 || {{Winning percentage|71|70}} || 4th || rowspan=2|[[Rick Renteria]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2001 || 77–65 || {{Winning percentage|77|65}} || 3rd || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2002 || 63–77 || {{Winning percentage|63|77}} || 5th || [[Eric Fox]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2003 || 72–70 || {{Winning percentage|72|70}} || 3rd || rowspan=2|[[Ron Johnson (baseball)|Ron Johnson]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2004 || 69–73 || {{Winning percentage|69|73}} || 4th || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2005 || 76–66 || {{Winning percentage|76|66}} || bgcolor="#D0E7FF"|'''1st''' || rowspan=2|[[Todd Claus]] || bgcolor="#ddffdd"|Defeated [[Trenton Thunder|Trenton]], 3–2 in semifinals<br>Lost to [[Akron Aeros|Akron]], 3–1 in championship
|-
| 2006 || 72–67 || {{Winning percentage|72|67}} || bgcolor="#96CDCD"|2nd || bgcolor="#ffcccc"|Defeated [[Trenton Thunder|Trenton]], 3–1 in semifinals<br>'''Defeated [[Akron Aeros|Akron]], 3–2 in championship'''
|-
| 2007 || 71–72 || {{Winning percentage|71|72}} || bgcolor="#96CDCD"|2nd || rowspan=4|[[Arnie Beyeler]] || Lost to [[Trenton Thunder|Trenton]], 3–1 in semifinals
|-
| 2008 || 74–66 || {{Winning percentage|74|66}} || bgcolor="#96CDCD"|2nd || Lost to [[Trenton Thunder|Trenton]], 3–0 in semifinals
|-
| 2009 || 67–74 || {{Winning percentage|67|74}} || 4th || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2010 || 70–71 || {{Winning percentage|70|71}} || 3rd || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2011 || 59–83 || {{Winning percentage|59|83}} || 6th || rowspan=3|[[Kevin Boles]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2012 || 68–73 || {{Winning percentage|68|73}} || 4th || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2013 || 68–73 || {{Winning percentage|68|73}} || 4th || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2014 || 88–54 || {{Winning percentage|88|54}} || bgcolor="#D0E7FF"|'''1st''' || rowspan=2|[[Billy McMillon]] || Lost to [[Binghamton Mets|Binghamton]], 3–2 in semifinals
|-
| 2015 || 53–89 || {{Winning percentage|53|89}} || 6th || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2016 || 55–84 || {{Winning percentage|55|84}} || 6th || rowspan=2|[[Carlos Febles]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2017 || 65–74 || {{Winning percentage|65|74}} || 4th || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2018 || 63–76 || {{Winning percentage|63|76}} || 6th || [[Darren Fenster]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2019 || 62–77 || {{Winning percentage|62|77}} || 6th || rowspan=2|[[Joe Oliver (baseball)|Joe Oliver]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2020 || — || — || — || bgcolor=lightgrey|''Season cancelled due to [[COVID-19 pandemic]]''
|-
| 2021 || 67–47 || {{Winning percentage|67|47}} || 2nd || [[Corey Wimberly]] || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2022 || 75–63 || {{Winning percentage|75|63}} || bgcolor="#96CDCD"|3rd || rowspan=3| [[Chad Epperson]] || Lost to [[Somerset Patriots|Somerset]], 2–0 in semifinals
|-
| 2023 || 73–63 || {{Winning percentage|73|63}} || 3rd || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|-
| 2024 || 78–60 || {{Winning percentage|78|60}} || 1st || bgcolor=lightgrey|&nbsp;
|}

==Roster==
{{Portland Sea Dogs roster}}

==Broadcasts==

Sea Dogs games can be heard on the following radio stations: 95.5 [[WPPI]] [[Topsham, Maine]], 95.9 [[WPEI]]: [[Saco, Maine]], 780 [[WEZR (AM)|WEZR]]: [[Rumford, Maine]], and 1450 [[WPNO]]: [[South Paris, Maine]].  Game audio is also streamed for free on MiLB.com

Games can be watched for free using the Bally Live app, or with a paid subscription to MiLB.TV, though Black Out Restrictions may apply.

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website|https://www.milb.com/portland}}
* [https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi?city=Portland&state=ME&country=US Statistics from Baseball-Reference]
* [https://issuu.com/seadogs/docs/2021_media_guide 2021 Media Guide]

{{s-start}}
{{succession box
| before = [[Trenton Thunder]]
| title  = [[Boston Red Sox]]<br>Double-A affiliate
| after  = current
| years  = 2003–present}}
{{s-end}}

{{Boston Red Sox}}
{{US Eastern League}}
{{Diamond Baseball Holdings}}
{{Maine Sports}}
{{Portland, Maine}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Portland Sea Dogs| ]]
[[Category:Baseball teams established in 1994]]
[[Category:Baseball in Portland, Maine]]
[[Category:Eastern League (1938–present) teams]]
[[Category:Professional baseball teams in Maine]]
[[Category:Boston Red Sox minor league affiliates]]
[[Category:Miami Marlins minor league affiliates]]
[[Category:1994 establishments in Maine]]
[[Category:Double-A Northeast teams]]
[[Category:20th century in Portland, Maine]]
[[Category:21st century in Portland, Maine]]