2008
For the American Association’s third season, the league underwent a shakeup for the first time. First would be the demise of the Coastal Bend Aviators, who set up shop in Robstown, Texas (just outside Corpus Christi) in 2003, which was fine…until the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks arrived in town just two years later. The Aviators struggled after that and called it quits after 2007. Meanwhile, the St. Joe Blacksnakes were never intended to be part of the league. St. Joseph was the backup plan when the AA needed a 10th team for 2006 and was the only expansion team to start with the rest of the league. The franchise was never on solid footing with a substandard stadium and terrible fan support, lasting just two years before folding unceremoniously.
In their places, the AA welcomed two teams who were instant upgrades and also helped bridge the gap between the South and the Upper Midwest. First, the Grand Prairie AirHogs set up shop just 23 miles away from LaGrave Field, giving the Fort Worth Cats an instant local rival. Second was the Wichita Wingnuts, moving in after affiliated ball left town and becoming a perfect in-between of Lincoln and the two Metroplex teams.
Once things got underway, the Sioux Falls Canaries raced out of the gate and won the first half by 4.5 games over upstart Wichita to clinch just their second playoff berth in their 16-year history. The Birds posted a strong second half as well, finishing a close second behind rival Sioux City, who went worst-to-first to win the North’s second-half crown. The South was pretty clear-cut from the start: Fort Worth won both halves, both by two games over Grand Prairie, with no other teams over .500, allowing Grand Prairie to cruise into the postseason, becoming the first of two AA teams (2012 Laredo being the other) to reach the postseason in their inaugural season. Of note, after challenging in the first half, Wichita faded in the second, finishing at 45-50, which wound up being the only losing record the team would post in their impressive 11-year history.
With probably the easiest first-round travel in league history, the Canaries dominated on the hill, allowing just three runs in a first round sweep of the X’s. In the Metroplex commuter series, Grand Prairie pulled off a feat that no one had been able to do in the past three seasons: knock off Fort Worth in the postseason. The AirHogs topped the Cats in four games, ending Fort Worth’s run at three straight championships (the final Central League crown in 2005, and the first two AA titles). In an incredible feat, AirHogs reliever Geivy Garcia (who won two games all season), was the winning pitcher in all three Grand Prairie victories.
In a Finals matchup of a first-year franchise and a success-starved charter Northern League member, Sioux Falls put an end to Grand Prairie’s impressive run, splitting the first two games in Grand Prairie, then winning two one-run games at The Birdcage. Patrick Reilly stroked a 12th-inning walk-off single in Game 4 to send the Canaries to their first (and to date, only) championship.
Final Standings
North Division
| Team | W | L | Win Pct. | GB | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed | Attend. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sioux Falls Canaries-y | 60 | 36 | .625 | — | 540 | 428 | 150,837 |
| Sioux City Explorers-x | 52 | 44 | .541 | 8.0 | 431 | 400 | 87,616 |
| Lincoln Saltdogs | 50 | 45 | .526 | 9.5 | 475 | 445 | 182,852 |
| Wichita Wingnuts | 45 | 50 | .474 | 14.5 | 438 | 450 | 146,408 |
| St. Paul Saints | 42 | 54 | .438 | 18.0 | 450 | 483 | 286,796 |
South Division
| Team | W | L | Win Pct. | GB | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed | Attend. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Worth Cats-yx | 60 | 46 | .625 | — | 534 | 398 | 185,380 |
| Grand Prairie AirHogs-z | 56 | 40 | .583 | — | 503 | 420 | 141,132 |
| El Paso Diablos | 43 | 51 | .457 | 16.0 | 465 | 567 | 182,380 |
| Pensacola Pelicans | 43 | 53 | .448 | 17.0 | 468 | 545 | 82,999 |
| Shreveport Sports | 26 | 68 | .277 | 33.0 | 377 | 545 | 57,975 |
y-First half winner x-Second half winner z-Wild card winner
Playoffs
First Round — SIOUX FALLS WINS 3-0
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 8/25/08 | Sioux City 1 at Sioux Falls 3 | P. Mahomes | C. Cheek | K. Regas | 2,238 |
| 8/26/08 | Sioux City 1 at Sioux Falls 7 | R. Ford | R. Francisco | – | 1,948 |
| 8/28/08 | Sioux Falls 2 at Sioux City 1 | T. Kane | P. Dumont | K. Regas | 1,071 |
First Round — GRAND PRAIRIE WINS 3-1
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 8/25/08 | Grand Prairie 6 at Fort Worth 5 | G. Garcia | B. Martin | J. Morrison | 3,011 |
| 8/26/08 | Grand Prairie 4 at Fort Worth 2 | G. Garcia | J. Hunton | J. Morrison | 2,051 |
| 8/28/08 | Fort Worth 1 at Grand Prairie 0 | D. Grybash | J. Jamnik | J. Hunton | 3,028 |
| 8/29/08 | Fort Worth 3 at Grand Prairie 7 | G. Garcia | P. Flores | – | 1,824 |
American Association Finals — SIOUX FALLS WINS 3-1
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/1/08 | Sioux Falls 4 at Grand Prairie 2 | P. Mahomes | J. Cordero | K. Regas | 1,005 |
| 9/2/08 | Sioux Falls 3 at Grand Prairie 6 | A. Jenkins | R. Ford | – | 255 |
| 9/4/08 | Grand Prairie 1 at Sioux Falls 2 | B. Moore | J. Wesley | K. Regas | 2,029 |
| 9/5/08 | Grand Prairie 4 at Sioux Falls 5 (12 innings | M. Roberts | J. Wesley | – | 2,139 |
Award Winners
| Player of the Year | Beau Torbert (Sioux Falls) 90 G, .324/.382/.568, 110 H, 65 R, 20 2B, 19 HR, 71 RBI, 14 SB |
| Right-Handed Pitcher of the Year | Nick Singleton (Sioux City) 8-4, 2.24 ERA, 17 G, 112.2 IP, 82 K, 1.189 WHIP |
| Left-Handed Pitcher of the Year | Joel Kirsten (Fort Worth) 8-3, 2.69 ERA, 20 G, 137.1 IP, 89 K, 1.201 WHIP |
| Manager of the Year | Steve Shirley (Sioux Falls) 60-36 record, Won Miles Wolff Cup |
Postseason All-Stars
| Catcher | JB Tucker (Grand Prairie) 95 G, .295/.398/.486, 94 H, 62 R, 24 2B, 11 HR, 47 RBI |
| First Base | Brandon Sing (Pensacola) 92 G, .278/.409/.553, 89 H, 56 R, 22 2B, 22 HR, 86 RBI |
| Second Base | Brenan Herrera (Wichita) 93 G, .317/.347/.459, 116 H, 44 R, 27 2B, 5 3B, 5 HR, 51 RBI |
| Third Base | Grant Richardson (Sioux Falls) 96 G, .322/.435/.534, 114 H, 88 R, 25 2B, 16 HR, 71 RBI, 66 BB |
| Shortstop | Kevin Hooper (Wichita) 88 G, .373/.431/.440, 133 H, 73 R, 15 2B, 1 HR, 26 RBI, 34 SB |
| Outfield | Brent Krause (St. Paul) 93 G, .317/.398/.555, 112 H, 71 R, 25 2B, 19 HR, 56 RBI, 15 SB |
| Outfield | Brian Fryer (Fort Worth) 95 G, .319/.367/.424, 133 H, 81 R, 21 2B, 5 HR, 42 RBI, 50 SB |
| Outfield | Beau Torbert (Sioux Falls) 90 G, .324/.382/.568, 110 H, 65 R, 20 2B, 19 HR, 71 RBI, 14 SB |
| Designated Hitter | John Allen (Fort Worth) 96 G, .327/.389/.559, 123 H, 61 R, 23 2B, 20 HR, 65 RBI |
| Right-Handed Pitcher | Nick Singleton (Sioux City) 8-4, 2.24 ERA, 17 G, 112.2 IP, 82 K, 1.189 WHIP |
| Left-Handed Pitcher | Joel Kirsten (Fort Worth) 8-3, 2.69 ERA, 20 G, 137.1 IP, 89 K, 1.201 WHIP |
| Relief Pitcher | Kris Regas (Sioux Falls) 1-0, 1.29 ERA, 41 G, 30 SV, 42.0 IP, 72 K, 0.810 WHIP |
All-Star Game
July 22, 2008 at Midway Stadium – St. Paul, MN
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
| South | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 9 | 3 |
| North | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 1 |
Attendance: 6,330 Box Score
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