Norfolk Tides
The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's location on the Chesapeake Bay. The team plays their home games at Harbor Park, which opened in 1993. The Tides previously played at High Rock Park in 1961 and 1962, Frank D. Lawrence Stadium from 1961 to 1969, and at Met Park from its opening in 1970 until the end of the 1992 season.
Norfolk Tides
Triple-A (1969–present)
Class A (1961–1968)
International League (1969–present)
East Division
- Carolina League (1963–1968)
- South Atlantic League (1961–1962)
Baltimore Orioles (2007–present)
- New York Mets (1969–2006)
- Philadelphia Phillies (1966–1968)
- Chicago White Sox (1964–1965)
- Unaffiliated (1963)
- St. Louis Cardinals (1962)
- Kansas City A's (1961)
- 1983
- 2023
- 1965
- 1972
- 1975
- 1982
- 1983
- 1985
- 2023
- 1988
- 1995
- 2001
- 2005
- 2015
2023
Norfolk Tides (1993–present)
- Tidewater Tides (1963–1992)
- Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides (1961–1962)
Green, black, orange, gray, sea foam
Rip Tide and Triton[1]
Harbor Park (1993–present)
- Met Park (1970–1992)
- Frank D. Lawrence Stadium (1961–1969)
- High Rock Park (1961–1962)
Ken Young[3]
Joe Gregory[3]
Buck Britton
Originally known as the Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides, the team began play in 1961 as members of the Class A South Atlantic League. In 1963, they joined the Class A Carolina League and became known as the Tidewater Tides, taking their geographic identifier from the Tidewater region. The Tides were replaced by a Triple-A International League team in 1969. The Triple-A Tides carried on the history of the Class A team that preceded them. The club rebranded as the Norfolk Tides in 1993. In conjunction with Major League Baseball's reorganization of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Tides were placed in the Triple-A East, which was renamed the International League in 2022.
The team has won seven league championships in its history. They won the Carolina League championship in 1965 as the Class A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. During their 38-year Triple-A affiliation with the New York Mets from 1969 to 2006, they won the Governors' Cup, the championship of the International League, on five occasions (1972, 1975, 1982, 1983, and 1985) and won the Triple-A World Series in 1983. As an affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, they won another International League championship and the Triple-A championship in 2023.
History[edit]
Before the Tides[edit]
Both Norfolk and Portsmouth, Virginia, first hosted professional baseball teams in the late 19th century.[4][5] Among the clubs to hail from these neighboring cities were the Norfolk Tars, which played on and off from 1906 to 1955 primarily in the Virginia League and Piedmont League; the Portsmouth Truckers, which played at intervals from 1895 to 1935 mostly in the Virginia League; the Portsmouth Cubs of the Piedmont League from 1936 to 1952; and the Portsmouth Merrimacs also of the Piedmont League from 1953 to 1955.[4][5] The Tars folded in July 1955 due to low attendance and steep financial losses.[6] Fiscal problems also caused the Merrimacs to cease operations after the 1955 campaign.[7][8]
South Atlantic League (1961–1962)[edit]
Six years after the loss of the Tars and Merrimacs, the Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides were established as members of the Class A South Atlantic League.[5] They played some home games at Frank D. Lawrence Stadium in Portsmouth and some at High Rock Park in Norfolk.[9][10] The Tides had a limited affiliation with Major League Baseball's Kansas City Athletics.[11] Their inaugural season opener was a 7–4 victory in Portsmouth over the Charlotte Hornets with 3,158 people in attendance on April 17, 1961.[12] In 1962, they became an affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals.[13] The Tides dropped out of the Sally League after losing their working agreement with St. Louis and following what Tides general manager Marshall Fox called "unfair treatment" by the league.[14]
Carolina League (1963–1968)[edit]
The Carolina League, a Class A circuit, accepted the Tides as members for 1963.[15] At this point, the team became known as the Tidewater Tides, taking their geographic identifier from the Tidewater region, and began playing their home games exclusively at Lawrence Stadium in Portsmouth.[5][9] They were not affiliated with any Major League Baseball team in their first Carolina League season.[16]
Radio and television[edit]
All Tides home and road games are broadcast on ESPN 94.1 WVSP-FM.[154] Live audio broadcasts are also available online through the station's website as well as on the team's website and the MiLB First Pitch app. Games can be viewed through the MiLB.TV subscription feature of the official website of Minor League Baseball, with audio provided by a radio simulcast.[155]
As of 2021, Pete Michaud is the play-by-play announcer. Several former Tides broadcasters have gone on to work in Major League Baseball or other major league sports, including: Ford C. Frick Award winner Marty Brennaman (1970–1973), Pete Van Wieren (1974–1975), Larry Matson (1976), Bob Rathbun (1980–1985, 1990), Charlie Slowes (1986, 1991–1992), Ken Levine (1989–1990), and Bob Socci (2006–2011).[154]