Daytona Tortugas

The Daytona Tortugas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Daytona Beach, Florida, and play their home games at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. Opened in 1914, the park seats 4,200 people.

The club was previously known as the Daytona Cubs from 1993 to 2014 when they were an affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The team has won six Florida State League championships: in 1995, 2000, 2004 (co-champions with the Tampa Yankees), 2008, 2011, and 2013.

History

Daytona Beach Admirals

The last Florida State League (FSL) baseball team to play in Daytona Beach, was known as the Daytona Beach Admirals, the Class A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. In September 1987, the White Sox decided to move their Class A affiliate to Sarasota. This left Daytona without a major league player development contract, resulting in the Admirals' owner selling the team to the New York Mets. The Mets moved the team to Port St. Lucie to become the St. Lucie Mets. Daytona did not have professional baseball for five years after the move.

Chicago Cubs

Prior to 1993, the Chicago Cubs were affiliated with the Winston Salem Warthogs, a Class A team that played in the Carolina League. At the end of the 1992 season, the Cubs decided to move their Class A affiliate to Florida. The Florida State League originally assigned the transplanted Cubs team to play at Baseball City Stadium in Davenport. However, Jordan Kobritz, the new owner and general manager of the minor league franchise, wanted the team to play in Daytona Beach instead. Negotiations to bring the Cubs to Daytona Beach went on for a couple of months and were completed just in time to start the new season.

The Daytona Cubs opened their first season on the road, sweeping the Vero Beach Dodgers, two games to zero. The home opener was scheduled for April 12. Jackie Robinson Ballpark was sold out on opening night. The young Ms. Clinton could not attend due to a family medical emergency, and Daytona Beach Mayor Larry Kelly and FSL President Chuck Murphy threw the ceremonial opening pitches instead. Daytona reached an agreement with the Cincinnati Reds following the 2014 season, and announced the team would be rebranded with a new name with a "local angle" in 2015. They chose the name "Tortugas", Spanish for "turtles".

On June 3, 2015, Big Game Florida, LLC, headed by Andy Rayburn, sold the team to Tortugas Baseball Club, LLC, headed by Reese Smith III with partners Bob Fregolle and Rick French. Smith plans to keep the team in Daytona.

In conjunction with Major League Baseball's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Tortugas were organized into the Low-A Southeast at the Low-A classification, though they remained affiliated with the Reds. In 2022, the Low-A Southeast became known as the Florida State League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization, and was reclassified as a Single-A circuit.

Season-by-season results

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center;"

|align="center" bgcolor="#FFE6BD"|Division and League Champions †

|align="center" bgcolor="#FFCCCC"|Division Champions ‡

|align="center" bgcolor="#D0E7FF"|Post-season Berth *

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center;"

! Year !! Record !! Win % !! League !! Division !! GB !! Post-season record !! Post-season win % !! class="unsortable"|Result

| 1993 || 57–76 || .429 || || || || || ||

| 1994 || 61–73 || .455 || || || || || ||

| bgcolor="#FFE6BD"|1995 † || 87–48 || .644 || || || || 3–2 || .600 || bgcolor="#FFE6BD"|Clinched Eastern Division title Won FSL Championship vs Fort Myers Miracle, 3–2

| 1996 || 71–66 || .518 || || || || || ||

| 1997 || 65–73 || .471 || || || || || ||

| 1998 || 67–73 || .479 || || || || || ||

| 1999 || 63–75 || .457 || || || || || ||

| bgcolor="#FFE6BD"|2000 † || 76–63 || .547 || || || || 5–0 || 1.000 || bgcolor="#FFE6BD"|Won Eastern Division title vs St. Lucie Mets, 2–0 Won FSL Championship vs St. Lucie Mets, 3–0 Won FSL Championship vs Charlotte Stone Crabs, 3–1 Lost FSL Championship vs Fort Myers Miracle, 3–1 Lost FSL Championship vs Charlotte Stone Crabs, 3–1 Lost FSL Championship vs Fort Myers Miracle, 3–1

|bgcolor="#FFCCCC"|2025 ‡

|65–66

|.496

|5th

|2nd

|12.5

| 2–3

| .400

| bgcolor="#FFCCCC"|Won East Division title vs Palm Beach Cardinals, 2–1 Lost FSL Championship vs Lakeland Flying Tigers, 2–0 In August 2004, the D-Cubs had to move several games to Melching Field, due to damage to Jackie Robinson Ballpark, caused by Hurricane Charley. The Cubs paid another visit to Melching Field on June 20, 2007, when they played a double-header against the Palm Beach Cardinals. The game was moved this time to benefit a local charity in DeLand, as well as provide another opportunity to showcase the Daytona Cubs to fans in DeLand.

Uniforms

Current

thumb|A picture of the different Daytona Tortugas uniforms: Home, Road & Alternate

The team's color scheme consists of blue and green. Jerseys and pants for home games are made of white fabric with green trim, while those for road games are made of gray fabric with blue trim. On home jerseys, the word "Tortugas" is scripted across the chest in green. On road jerseys, the word "Daytona" is written across the chest in blue script. The player's number is written on the back in large green characters surrounded by blue.

The team's batting practice uniforms, which double as alternate uniforms, are made of green fabric. "Tortugas" is written across the chest in white script, trimmed in blue. There is a Daytona Tortugas logo on the right shoulder. Numbers, in white surrounded by blue, are sewn on the back in block characters.

The official home and road caps were green with Daytona Tortugas logo centered on the front. The batting practice/alternate caps are blue in color, with a white front and blue brim. The alternate Shelldon head logo is in the center of the cap. A green belt is typically worn.

Past

From 1993 to 2014 as the Cubs, the team's color scheme consisted of red, white, and blue, the same colors used by the Chicago Cubs. The uniforms of the Daytona Cubs were descendants of the Chicago Cubs' uniforms. Jerseys and pants for home games were made of white fabric with blue pinstripes, while those for road games were made of gray fabric with blue pinstripes. On home jerseys, the Chicago Cubs logo was located on the left chest, and a Daytona Cubs logo was located on the left sleeve. On road jerseys, the word "Daytona" was written across the chest in red script, and a Daytona Cubs logo was present on the left shoulder. The player's number was written on the back in large blue characters surrounded by red. Blue T-shirts of varying sleeve lengths were worn underneath the jerseys. The team's batting practice uniforms, which doubled as alternate uniforms, were made of light blue fabric with white pinstripes. "Daytona" was written across the chest in red script. There was a Daytona Cubs logo on the left shoulder. Numbers, in blue surrounded by red, were sewn on the back in block characters. The official home and road caps were blue with either the Chicago Cubs or Daytona Cubs logo centered on the front. A blue belt was worn on all the different uniforms along with blue ankle-length socks.

Mascot

thumb|Shelldon, the mascot of MiLB's Daytona Tortugas, on the shores of Daytona Beach

thumb|Shelldon, the Daytona Tortugas mascot, with his signature headstand

The team's mascot is an anthropomorphic turtle ("Tortuga") named Shelldon. Since his first season in 2015, "Daytona's favorite party animal" acts as the team's Goodwill Ambassador, visiting local schools and charity events when he is not performing at home games.

Shelldon is a green and white sea turtle with a blue shell on his back, dark green spots, and an occasional backwards cap. He sports his white Tortuga jersey almost daily but changes into elaborate costumes for on-field skits and performances. Daytona Tortuga fans have learned to not get attached to any particular players, since the reward for superior play is to be taken away from Daytona and sent up to a higher farm team. Shelldon has been an adequate substitute to represent the team to the public and can constantly be seen tumbling, breakdancing, and generating fun around Daytona.

Shelldon was also named the #1 Florida State League Mascot by The Athletic.

He is also joined by Shelly, a female turtle who supports the Tortugas' involvement in the community and is Shelldon's girlfriend. She debuted as the second team mascot in 2018.

Past

Prior to becoming the Tortugas, the Daytona Cubs originally used a version of the Chicago Cubs emblem. In 1994, the Cubs hired Benedict Advertising, a local marketing firm, to develop a new logo. Benedict's design department created a bear cub wearing sunglasses and a backwards baseball cap.

As a mascot, Cubby first appeared on the field on May 27, 1994. He had brown fur and wore the same style of uniform as the team, but wearing his hat backwards.

Media

Radio

Justin Rocke, the Tortugas Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations, provided the play-by-play coverage until leaving in the 2023 Season.

On April 1, 2023, Brennan Mense took over the role of Tortugas Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations, and provides the play-by-play coverage currently.

Print

Local newspaper coverage of the team is provided by The Daytona Beach News-Journal.

Memorable events and records

Four home runs in a game

Ryan Harvey, July 28, 2006, game vs. Clearwater Threshers (Daytona won, 10–9), hit four home runs in one game.
Javier Báez, June 10, 2013, game vs. Fort Myers Miracle (Daytona won 9–6), hit four home runs in one game.

Hitting for the cycle

Five Daytona players have hit for the cycle to date:

Adam Greenberg, August 17, 2002, game vs. St. Lucie Mets (Daytona won, 17–1)
Félix Pie, June 27, 2004, game vs. Fort Myers Miracle (Daytona won, 15–14, 10 innings)
Albert Almora, July 14, 2014, game vs. Jupiter Hammerheads (Daytona won, 13–8, 13 innings)
Carlos Jorge, July 21, 2023 vs. Jupiter Hammerheads (Daytona lost, 16–4) First Cycle by a Daytona Tortuga

No-hitters

Matt Loosen, July 8, 2013, at Dunedin Blue Jays (Daytona won 7–0). Loosen allowed no hits over a full nine innings of work, while walking two and striking out nine.
Ben Wells, Kyler Burke, Zach Cates; Wednesday, August 21 at Dunedin Blue Jays and Tuesday, August 27, 2013, vs. Dunedin Blue Jays (Daytona won 1–0). Ben Wells pitched a hitless first inning in the first game of a scheduled doubleheader on August 21 at Dunedin, until a rainstorm caused the game to be suspended and eventually completed on August 27 at Daytona (where the Cubs were still the road team, despite playing in their home ballpark). In the resumption of the game on August 27, Kyler Burke didn't allow a hit in five innings of work and Zach Cates closed the game out with a 1–2–3 seventh inning. The game is more than a baseball rarity, considering the no-hitter was technically thrown in two cities, separated by 163 miles of driving distance.
Tyler Mahle, June 13, 2016, at Jupiter Hammerheads (Daytona won 4–0). Mahle became the first FSL pitcher to toss a nine-inning solo no-hitter since Loosen did it for Daytona almost three years earlier. The only baserunner was a hit batter in the second inning, as Mahle faced the minimum (due to a doubleplay) and struck out six.
James Proctor, Vin Timpanelli, Ricky Karcher, Nick Hanson and Carson Spiers combined for a 1–0 no-hitter on May 22, 2021 at home against the Jupiter Hammerheads.

Roster

Notable alumni

Florida State League

Some Daytona players have distinguished themselves in the Florida State League

Matt Craig, 2006 FSL All-Star First Baseman
Jake Fox, 2006 FSL All-Star Catcher
Tyler Colvin, 2007 FSL All-Star outfielder
Starlin Castro, 2009 FSL All-Star infielder
Brett Jackson, 2010 FSL All-Star outfielder
Justin Bour, 2011 FSL All-Star first baseman
John Andreoli, 2012–2013 FSL All-Star outfielder

| 2 || || 1994 || 134 || 61 || 73 || .455 || – || – || – || – ||

| 3 || || 1995–1996 || 272 || 158 || 114 || .581 || 1 || 3 || 2 || .600 ||

| 4 || || 1997–1998 || 278 || 132 || 146 || .475 || – || – || – || – ||

| 5 || || 1999 || 138 || 63 || 75 || .457 || – || – || – || – ||

| 6 || || 2000 || 139 || 76 || 63 || .547 || 1 || 5 || 0 || 1.000 ||

| || || 2001–2002 || 273 || 132 || 141 || .484 || – || – || – || – ||

| 8 || || 2004 || 126 || 70 || 56 || .556 || 1 || 2 || 0 || 1.000 ||

| || || 2005 || 134 || 69 || 65 || .515 || – || – || – || – ||

| || || 2009–2011 || 274 || 215 || 196 || .523 || 1 || 5 || 1 || .833 ||

| 10 || || 2012 || 133 || 59 || 74 || .444 || – || – || – || – ||

| 11 || || 2013–2014 || 274 || 149 || 125 || .544 || 2 || 8 || 4 || .667 ||

| 12 || || 2015–2017 || 278 || 156 || 122 || .561 || 1 || 3 || 3 || .500 ||

| 13 || || 2018–2019 || 269 || 135 || 134 || .502 || 1 || 3 || 7 || .300 ||

|14

|Travis Dawkins

|2021–

2022

| 248

| 114

| 134

| .460

| –

|<blockquote></blockquote>

|15

|Julio Morillo

|2023-2024

| 85

| 39

| 46

| .459

| –

|16

|Willie Harris

|2025-

|- class="sortbottom"

!colspan="3"| Totals !! 3850 !! 1942 !! 1908 !! .504 !! 9 !! 34 !! 19 !! .642 !! —

Photos

Image:JackieRobinsonBallpark-0730.JPG|The outside of Radiology Associates Field at Jackie Robinson Ballpark

File:Crowd media wall.jpg|Daytona Tortugas fans taking in a game at The Jack from the Bud Bullpen

</gallery>

Notes

The Record column indicates wins and losses during the regular season and excludes any post-season play.
This column indicates position in the overall league standings.
This column indicates position in the overall divisional standings.
The GB column indicates "Games Behind" the team that finished in first place in the division that season. It is determined by finding the difference in wins plus the difference in losses divided by two.
The Record column indicates wins and losses during the post-season.

References

External links

Daytona Tortugas statistics at Baseball-Reference