Iowa Cubs

Franchise history

Triple-A baseball came to Iowa's capital city in 1969, as the Iowa Oaks of the American Association began play. The Oaks were affiliates of the Oakland Athletics (1969–1973), the Chicago White Sox (1973–1974 and 1976–1980), and the Houston Astros (1975). In 1981, the team affiliated with the Chicago Cubs and adopted the nickname of the parent team, although it is often shortened to "I-Cubs" by fans and media to avoid confusion with the major league team. The team became part of the Pacific Coast League in 1998 after the dissolution of the American Association. The current Player Development Contract (PDC) with the Chicago Cubs runs through 2016. The Iowa Cubs are one of only four Triple-A (baseball) clubs who bear the name of their parent club. Most minor league teams have moved towards a nickname representative of their local community in order to provide consistent marketing regardless of what major league club their PDC is with.

Their home ballpark is Principal Park (formerly Sec Taylor Stadium), located at the confluence of the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers. The franchise attendance record of 576,310 was set in 2007. As of 2008, the I-Cubs are owned by Raccoon Baseball, Inc., an ownership group led by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Michael Gartner. Sam Bernabe serves as the team's president and general manager.

The mascot of the Iowa Cubs is "Cubbie Bear," a brown bear, who is often the Iowa Cubs' unofficial ambassador to schools and charitable events throughout central Iowa.

Notable former players/broadcasters

Many future Cubs stars have played in Des Moines before they were called up to Wrigley Field. Some notable I-Cubs alumni include Greg Maddux, Rafael Palmeiro, Mark Grace, Doug Glanville, Joe Carter, Corey Patterson, Carlos Zambrano, Kyle Farnsworth, Kerry Wood, Steve Trachsel, Tuffy Rhodes, Bruce Kimm, Shawon Dunston, Héctor Villanueva, Mark Prior, Sam Fuld, John Grabow, and Rod Beck. Wood and Prior both made rehabilitation starts for the I-Cubs in 2004 and 2005 before returning to the Chicago Cubs' active roster, and many Cubs players such as Derrek Lee, Daryle Ward, Alfonso Soriano, and Ryan Dempster have also made stops in Des Moines for rehab purposes. Even today many Cubs stars such as Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, Anthony Rizzo, and Javier Baez made stops in Iowa. The Iowa Oaks hosted many future Major League Baseball stars such as sluggers Bill McNulty, Harold Baines, Pat Tabler, and 1971 Cy Young and MVP Award winning left-handed pitcher Vida Blue.

Rod Beck gained national attention while pitching for Iowa during his comeback for living in a mobile home behind the team's Sec Taylor Stadium (now Principal Park) in Des Moines. Beck warmly welcomed fans to drop by and visit, use his restroom, and have some Coors Light from his refrigerator.

In 1993, Tuffy Rhodes hit an extra-inning home run to win the American Association championship for the Iowa Cubs. After failing to latch on to a major league team, in 1995, Rhodes went on to a successful career playing in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan, where he currently is the career NPB home run leader by a non-Japanese player with 430 home runs.

In addition to these players, Mike Quade, a former manager of the Chicago Cubs, managed the Iowa Cubs from 2003 to 2006. Another former Chicago Cubs manager Bruce Kimm is an Iowa native who managed the Iowa Cubs from 2001 to 2002. In 2010, the I-Cubs had one of their best seasons ever with manager Ryne Sandberg named Pacific Coast League 2010 Manager of the Year. Former St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa managed the Iowa Oaks in 1979 prior to becoming manager for the Chicago White Sox. In May 2014, Manny Ramirez signed a contract as a part-time player/coach for the I-Cubs.

Former Iowa Cubs broadcasters include: Vince Cotroneo (Oakland A's broadcaster) Brett Dolan (Houston Astros broadcaster) Dave Raymond (Houston Astros broadcaster)