Connecticut Defenders Tickets

The Connecticut Defenders are a minor league baseball team based in Norwich, Connecticut. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants major-league club. The Defenders play in Thomas J. Dodd Memorial Stadium, located in Norwich; opened in 1995, it seats 6,275 fans. The Defenders were known as the Norwich Navigators from 1995 until October 2005. Prior to the 2003 season, the Navigators were an affiliate of the New York Yankees.

The Defenders are currently managed by Dave Machemer.

The Defenders will host the Eastern League All-Star Game at Dodd Stadium on July 11, 2007.

On June 3, 1994, the Yankees announced they would move their double-A franchise from Albany, New York, where it had been known as the Albany-Colonie Yankees since 1985. Ground was broken for a new stadium in Norwich on November 3 of that year, and the team began play on April 6, 1995, with a win over Bowie. The home opener occurred Connecticut Defenders tickets 11 days later and was another Navigators victory (this time over Reading).

Norwich reached the Eastern League playoffs four times in six Connecticut Defenders Tickets years, with many current or former Connecticut Defenders tickets New York Yankees leading the way. On September 14, 2002, the Navigators won their first and only Eastern League championship with a five-game series victory at home over Harrisburg, under the direction of rookie manager Luis Sojo.

Within weeks, the Yankees announced that they were Connecticut Defenders Tickets ending their affiliation with the Navigators and beginning one with the Trenton Thunder Connecticut Defenders Tickets. Later that fall, the Giants signed on as the new parent club, effective for the 2003 season.

In 2005, the team was bought by a group led by boxing promoter Lou DiBella. With attendance figures Connecticut Defenders tickets declining, management announced an overhaul of the franchise's image and held a contest during the Connecticut Defenders tickets season allowing the public to select a new name and logo for the franchise. These were unveiled on November 14, and a new mascot (a bald eagle) debuted eight Connecticut Defenders tickets days later. Another contest was held to name the mascot, and on February 11, 2006, "Cutter" was christened.

The "Defenders" name, and the bald eagle mascot, are a reference to the United States Coast Guard Connecticut Defenders tickets Academy located a short drive away in New London, and also to the U.S. submarine base also located nearby in Groton. In 2005, Connecticut Defenders tickets the team sponsored several rallies Connecticut Defenders Tickets in support of the sub base after it was placed on the Base Realignment and Closure list. The base was eventually removed from the list.

As part of the ownership and name changes, the Defenders also signed a lease extension on Dodd Stadium that will keep the franchise in place through at least the Connecticut Defenders Tickets 2009 season. The team holds Connecticut Defenders Tickets an option for an additional three-year extension after that.