Lincoln Saltdogs

In 1993, Lincoln mayor Mike Johanns proposed a $2.24 million renovation of Sherman Field, located at 225 South Street, in conjunction with the submission of an application to the Northern League for an expansion team. However, projections for keno revenues intended to fund the stadium fell short and the city council withdrew its support, ending the project.{{cite news|date=July 16, 1999|title=Northern League executive encouraged by Lincoln plan|work=Lincoln Journal Star|location=Lincoln, NE}} In mid-1999, year-long negotiations between Lincoln mayors Coleen Seng and Don Wesely, University of Nebraska-Lincoln chancellor James Moeser, and local businessman Jim Abel to replace the baseball team's aging Buck Beltzer Stadium as part of a new joint baseball-softball complex were finalized and announced to the public, and it was intended that the baseball stadium would also host a professional team.{{cite news |date=July 10, 1999|title=Husker coaches eager to hype their new homes|work=Lincoln Journal Star|location=Lincoln, NE}}{{cite news |date=July 31, 1999|title=New Stadium For Lincoln, UNL Closer To Reality|work=Lincoln Journal Star|location=Lincoln, NE}}

Lincoln's second proposal for a Northern League team received preliminary approval from the league's other team owners at a meeting on August 2, 1999, in Fargo, North Dakota, and final approval on October 8 at another meeting held in Schaumburg, Illinois.{{cite news |date=August 4, 1999|title=Northern League Approval|work=Lincoln Journal Star|location=Lincoln, NE}}{{cite news |date=October 10, 1999|title=Northern League says yes to Lincoln|work=Lincoln Journal Star|location=Lincoln, NE}} On August 30, 2000, the name of the new Lincoln team was revealed to the public as the "Saltdogs," referencing the fact the team's new stadium would be located between Salt Creek and Interstate 180, to the west of the University of Nebraska's main campus.{{cite news |date=January 16, 2000|title=Dog days are here|work=Lincoln Journal Star|location=Lincoln, NE}} The Northern League's Madison Black Wolf chose to cease operations after the 2000 season because of a history of poor attendance that caused the team to lose money in each of its five seasons and a failed relocation proposal to the Madison suburb of Fitchburg; the rights to the contracts of seven former Black Wolf players were acquired by the Saltdogs.{{cite news |date=September 1, 2000|title=Black Wolf all but gone|work=Wisconsin State Journal|location=Madison, WI}}{{cite news|date=October 10, 2000|title=Black Wolf call it quits after 5 years|work=Wisconsin State Journal|location=Madison, WI}}{{cite news |date=October 18, 2000|title=Saltdogs plotting future|work=Lincoln Journal Star|location=Lincoln, NE}}

The Saltdogs were members of the Northern League from 2001 to 2005, compiling a regular-season record of 249–214 (a .538 winning percentage) and a 7–10 record in the playoffs. After the 2005 season, the Saltdogs, along with the St. Paul Saints, Sioux City Explorers, and Sioux Falls Canaries, left the Northern League to form the American Association.

The Saltdogs claimed their first league title in 2009, winning the American Association championship. Their overall regular-season record was 49–47, but they went 27–21 in the second half of the season to claim the second-half North Division title, and advanced to the championship by defeating the first-half North Division champion Wichita Wingnuts in the division series, three games to two. The Saltdogs then claimed the title by defeating the South Division champion Pensacola Pelicans three games to two, with game five decided by a 2–1 score at Pelican Park in Pensacola.

Lincoln celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2010, and the team secured its fourth berth in the playoffs over the prior five seasons. The Saltdogs finished with a 51–45 overall record, the seventh time in ten years Lincoln reached the 50-win plateau, and the ninth time in ten seasons that the team finished above the .500 mark. Although the Saltdogs did not win a division title in 2010, their overall record was still good enough for them to qualify for the postseason via a wild card berth. Lincoln has earned four wild-card playoff berths in its history, with the first three (2001, 2002, and 2005) coming during the team's Northern League days.

The Saltdogs made the playoffs in each of their first two years in the American Association. In both 2006 and 2007, they finished with the league's best overall regular-season record, winning three of the four North Division titles (both the first-half and second-half titles in 2006, and the first-half title in 2007). Their 14-game winning streak in 2007 is the longest in team history. The Saltdogs had the best overall record (272–204) of any team in the first five years of the American Association.

Kash Beauchamp was the first manager in Saltdogs history, although his tenure lasted just 42 games into the 2001 season, during which the team went 21–21 (.500). Pitcher Les Lancaster replaced Beauchamp, guiding Lincoln to playoff berths in both 2001 and 2002. Lancaster served as a player-manager for the first ten days of his managing tenure before moving exclusively to the bench. He led the team to a regular-season record of 86–53 (.619) and a postseason record of 6–7. After the 2002 season, Lancaster departed and was replaced by former Toronto Blue Jays manager Tim Johnson. Johnson spent six seasons with the Saltdogs, compiling a 314–252 (.555) regular-season record and a 2–9 postseason record. Lincoln made the playoffs three times under Johnson (2005, 2006, and 2007) and won three division championships (American Association 2006 first-half and second-half North Division titles, 2007 first-half North Division title). Johnson resigned as manager at the end of the 2008 season, and was replaced by Marty Scott, who had managed the Triple-A New Orleans Zephyrs during the 2008 season. Scott won two championships between 1995 and 2000 as the manager of the St. Paul Saints and guided Lincoln to the 2009 championship, his fourth overall as a manager. Over two seasons in Lincoln, Scott compiled a 100–92 (.521) regular-season record and a 6–7 postseason record. Brett Jodie became the ninth Saltdogs manager in franchise history after the club announced his hiring in April 2021.{{Cite web |last=Star |first=Lincoln Journal |title=Saltdogs needed little time in finding new manager, hire Brett Jodie from Atlantic League |url=https://journalstar.com/sports/saltdogs-baseball/saltdogs-needed-little-time-in-finding-new-manager-hire-brett-jodie-from-atlantic-league/article_bcf9be3c-6d64-5c27-9f5b-34624ebb05ec.html |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=JournalStar.com |language=en}} Jodie filled the vacancy left by James Frisbie after he was hired to join the Detroit Tigers.{{Cite web |last=admin |date=2021-03-31 |title=MANAGER JAMES FRISBIE HIRED BY DETROIT TIGERS {{!}} IndependentBaseball.net |url=https://www.independentbaseball.net/news/american-association-news/manager-james-frisbie-hired-by-detroit-tigers/,%20https://www.independentbaseball.net/news/american-association-news/manager-james-frisbie-hired-by-detroit-tigers/ |access-date=2022-05-02 |language=en-US}}

In 2020, the league announced that the Saltdogs were not selected as one of six teams to participate in a condensed season as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.{{cite web|url=https://www.americanassociationbaseball.com/american-association-unveils-plans-for-2020-season/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613193801/https://www.americanassociationbaseball.com/american-association-unveils-plans-for-2020-season/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=June 13, 2020|title=American Association unveils plans for 2020 season|work=americanassociationbaseball.com|accessdate=June 13, 2020}} They went on hiatus for the season, then returned to play in 2021 when they celebrated their 20th Season.

File:Lincoln Saltdogs.PNG

{{IndyLB roster

| league =American Association

| TeamName=Lincoln Saltdogs

| RosterCode=11130

| BC1=#001D38

| FC1=#ffffff

| BC2=#B6A010

| FC2=#ffffff

| Date=May 27, 2025

| Pitchers=

{{MLBplayer|27|Dylan Beck}}

{{MLBplayer|38|Nate Blain}}

{{MLBplayer|36|Johnny Blake}}

{{MLBplayer|26|Dylan Castenada}}

{{MLBplayer|16|Franny Cobos}}

{{MLBplayer|20|Dutch Landis}}

{{MLBplayer| 9|Connor Langrell}}

{{MLBplayer|21|Greg Loukinen}}

{{MLBplayer|24|Matt Mullenbach}}

{{MLBplayer|25|Karan Patel}}

{{MLBplayer|13|Johnny Ray}}

{{MLBplayer| 3|Jacob Roberts}}

{{MLBplayer|12|Wyatt Sparks}} ‡

{{MLBplayer| 7|Gaylon Viney}}

| Catchers=

{{MLBplayer| 4|Griffin Everitt}}

{{MLBplayer|14|Matt Phipps|IL}}

{{MLBplayer| 2|Parker Stroh}}

| Infielders=

{{MLBplayer| 6|Connor Denning}}

{{MLBplayer|11|Jack Dragum}}

{{MLBplayer| 5|Rolando Espinosa}}

{{MLBplayer|39|Brody Fahr}}

{{MLBplayer|44|Spencer Henson}}

| Outfielders=

{{MLBplayer|22|Kyle Battle}}

{{MLBplayer|10|Neyfy Castillo}}

{{MLBplayer| 8|Jack Cone}}

{{MLBplayer|18|Yusniel Diaz}}

{{MLBplayer|19|Danny Bautista, Jr.}}

| DH=

| Utility=

| manager =

{{MLBplayer|29|Brett Jodie}}

| Coaches=

{{MLBplayer| 1|Joey Greer}}(bench)

{{MLBplayer|--|Matt Honerman}}(trainer)

{{MLBplayer|--|Camden Rine}}(clubhouse manager)

{{MLBplayer|--|Drew Ward}}(hitting)

}}

• Kash Beauchamp (2001)
• Les Lancaster (2001)
• Kevin Mitchell (2001)
• Clayton Andrews (2003)
• Bubba Carpenter (2003)
• Mike Figga (2003)
• Francisco Matos (2003)
• Kevin Roberson (2003)
• Peter Rasmusen (2003)
• Pete Rose Jr. (2004)
• Rodney Myers (2005)
• Luis Lopez (2006)
• Chris Jakubauskas (2007)
• Dan Reichert (2007)
• Dusty Bergman (2008)
• Félix José (2008)
• Kit Pellow (2008)
• Jose Rodriguez (2008)
• Carlos Guevara (2009)
• Chris Britton (2010)
• Ángel Castro (2010)
• Blake Gailen (2011)
• Alex Maestri (2011)
• Tim Adleman (2012)
• D'Angelo Jiménez (2012)
• Salomón Manríquez (2012)
• A. J. Miller (2012)
• Mike Burns (2013)
• Joe Bisenius (2013–2014)
• Evan Reed (2016)
• Casey Crosby (2017)
• Lo Kuo-hua (2016)
• Tommy Mendonca (2017)
• Dashenko Ricardo (2017–2018)
• Tyler Herron (2018)
• Dan Johnson (2018)
• Joey Wagman (2018)
• Shairon Martis (2015–2019)
• Randolph Oduber (2017–2019)
• Vicente Campos (2019)
• José Ortega (2019)
• Nick Tepesch (2019)
• Curt Smith (2011, 2013, 2015–2019, 2021)
• Johnny Barbato (2021)
• David Vidal (2021)
• Brandon Cunniff (2022)
• Buddy Baumann (2022)
• Jason Rogers (2022–2023)
• David Holmberg (2023)
• Ian Oxnevad (2024–present)

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.aabfan.com/league/ aabfan.com] - yearly league standings and awards (American Association)
• [http://www.nlfan.com/league/ nlfan.com] - yearly league standings and awards (Northern League)

• [http://www.saltdogs.com/ Lincoln Saltdogs official website]
• [http://www.nlfan.com/lincoln/ nlfan.com Lincoln Saltdogs' Guide] (Northern League 2001–2005)
• [http://www.aabfan.com/lincoln/ aabfan.com Lincoln Saltdogs' Guide] (American Association 2006–present)
• [http://www.nlfan.com/madison/ nlfan.com Madison Black Wolf Guide]

{{American Association}}

{{Nebraska Sports}}

Category:American Association of Professional Baseball teams

Category:Northern League (baseball, 1993–2010) teams

Category:Sports in Lincoln, Nebraska

Category:Professional baseball teams in Nebraska

Category:2001 establishments in Nebraska