Schaumburg Flyers

Independent baseball team
name = Schaumburg Flyers
founded = 1993
city = Schaumburg, Illinois

cap
current league = Northern League
current division=
past league =
currentname = Schaumburg Flyers (1999-present)
* Thunder Bay Whiskey Jacks (1993-1998)
colors = Navy Blue, Orange, White, Khaki
ballpark = Alexian Field
pastparks =
leaguechamps =
divisionchamps = 3 (1999, 2004, 2006)
owner = Richard Ehrenreich, John E. Hughes, Mike Conley
manager =
gm = Ben Burke
media = Schaumburg Review
* "Arlington Heights Daily Herald"
website = http://www.flyersbaseball.com/ www.flyersbaseball.com

The Schaumburg Flyers are a professional baseball team based in Schaumburg, Illinois, in the United States. The Flyers are a member of the Northern League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. From the 1999 season to the present, the Flyers have played their home games at Alexian Field, near the Elgin O'Hare Expressway. The teamformerly played in Thunder Bay, Ontario, where they were known as the Thunder Bay Whiskey Jacks.

In 1999, the Flyers hired their first manager, Ron Kittle. Kittle is most famous for his playing days with the White Sox, and former Cub Greg Hibbard was the pitching coach. During the early years of the franchise, Kittle did a series of TV commercials to promote the team, using the gimmick "Ma Kittle." where he played both himself and his "Ma." The ads were successful at sparking some initial interest in the team as the Flyers hoped to steal away fans from the nearby Kane County Cougars. The ad mimmicked the highly successful Nike ads where Larry Johnson starred as both himself and "Gramama." At the end of the 2001 season, however, Kittle resigned from his managerial position, and Jim Boynewicz was hired to replace him.

In 2004, the Flyers made it to the Northern League Championship Series against the St. Paul Saints. Despite leading the five-game series 2-1, Schaumburg eventually lost the series. In Game 5, Flyers relief pitcher Lyle Prempas allowed a game winning grand slam by St. Paul infielder Marc Mirizzi in the ninth inning.

The Flyers have appeared in the Northern League Playoffs four times (1999, 2003, 2004, 2006) but have never won the championship. Some famous players who have played for the Flyers are former Oakland A's outfielder Ozzie Canseco and former Chicago Cubs outfielder Dwight Smith.

Year-by-year record

				First Half			Second Half			Overall
Season		Division		W-L	Finish		W-L	Finish		W-L	Win%		Playoffs
1999		East		19-24	1st		25-18	1st		44-42	.512		Lost Central semi-final
2000		East		18-25	4th		20-23	4th		38-48	.442		Did not qualify
2001		North		18-27	3rd		19-26	3rd		37-53	.411		Did not qualify
2002		South		19-24	4th		16-29	5th		35-53	.398		Did not qualify
2003		East		25-19	3rd		22-22	2nd		47-41	.534		Lost semi-final
2004		South		31-17	1st		27-21	2nd		58-38	.604		Lost championship series
2005		South		16-32	6th		22-26	4th		38-58	.396		Did not qualify
2006		South		31-17	1st		15-33	4th		46-50	.479		Lost division final
2007		South		20-28	3rd		19-29	4th		39-57	.406		Did not qualify

"Leon" is a Flyer

The actor who plays "Leon" in a Budweiser advertising campaign, Nigel Thatch, became a Flyer in 2005. This brought national attention to the Flyers, with mentions on ESPN's Pardon the Interruption and SportsCenter. Nigel brought many fans to Alexian Field, but on May 1st, 2006 Nigel was traded to Fullerton of the Golden League for 60 cases of Budweiser beer.

2006 and 2007 seasons

For the second half of the 2006 season, the Flyers and MSN partnered to let fans choose the Flyers lineups online. This program is called "Fan Club: Reality Baseball" [http://fanclub.msn.com/] . The program also included online video segments that took fans through the season alongside the team with behind-the-scenes access.
The 2007 season saw the Flyers undergo some changes, most notably with the departure of '06 manager Andy McCauley to the Kansas City T-Bones. Steve Maddock became the fourth manager in Flyers history after McCauley left for Kansas City, and he quickly worked to build a team that had only one member carry over from the 2006 campaign. The road for Schaumburg that year proved to be difficult, as the Flyers could manage no more than 20 wins in either half of the season and failed to make the playoffs.

2008 Season

The '08 season looks promising as the Flyers have acquired many new players with some major league experience, such as Bo Hart. Hart was a fan favorite with the St.Louis Cardinals when he batted well in 2003 and 2004, and his hustling style of play impressed many Redbirds fans. Most recently, Bo played AAA ball with the Iowa Cubs, which might make him even more familiar to fans in Chicagoland.
Other stars like Peanut Williams - the 2006 Golden League MVP - and Jermaine Allensworth (with over 1,000 MLB at-bats) should help provide some excitement for the Flyers in 2008. Schaumburg has also reached for some star power on its coaching staff, bringing in former MLB All-Star Jim Gentile as the hitting coach. Gentile had his greatest major-league season in 1961, finishing third behind Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris in MVP voting that year. The Schaumburg Flyers recently appeared in a story involving their cash flow problems which appeared on page four of the Daily Herald on October 10, 2008.

External links

* [http://www.flyersbaseball.com/ Official Flyers Website]
* [http://www.nlfan.com/schaumburg/ nlfan.com Schaumburg Flyers Guide]
* [http://www.nlfan.com/thunderbay/ nlfan.com Thunder Bay Whiskey Jacks Guide]
* [http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=241803/ Daily Herald Revealing Story]

References

* [http://www.nlfan.com/league/ nlfan.com] - yearly league standings & awards
* [http://www.goldeyes.com Goldeyes official website]