South Bend Silver Hawks

South Bend Silver Hawks Founded in 1988 South Bend, Indiana
Team logo Cap insignia
Class-level
Single-A (1988-present)
Minor league affiliations
Midwest League (1988-present) Eastern Division
Major league affiliations
Arizona Diamondbacks (1997-present) Chicago White Sox (1988-1996)
Name
South Bend Silver Hawks (1994-present) South Bend White Sox (1988-1993)
Colors
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Ballpark
Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium (1988-present)
Minor league titles
League titles	1989, 1993, 1991, 1997, 2001 (co-champions with Kane County), 2005
Division titles	1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2006, and 2008
Owner(s)/Operated by: Andrew T. Berlin
Manager: Mark Haley
General Manager: Joe Hart, President & GM

The South Bend Silver Hawks are a U.S. Class A minor league baseball team, affiliated with the Arizona Diamondbacks, that plays in the Midwest League. They are based in South Bend, Indiana.

History

"The Cove" in South Bend.

South Bend, Indiana was awarded a Midwest League franchise in 1988. Originally affiliated with the Chicago White Sox and bearing the name of the parent club, the team was renamed in 1994. The name "Silver Hawks" was chosen as an homage to the once popular Studebaker Silver Hawk automobile, which was manufactured in South Bend. In 1997 the team switched affiliations to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Reid Mahon with the Silver Hawks in 2007

Notable former players include Mark Reynolds, Brandon Webb, Emilio Bonifacio and Justin Upton (the #1 overall draft pick in 2005).

The team's home park is Coveleski Stadium, built in 1987 and named for Stanley Coveleski, the Hall of Fame pitcher who retired to South Bend after a career in major league baseball that included pitching an amazing 3 complete games to help the Cleveland Indians win the 1920 World Series.

Despite playing through rumors of sale and relocation in the near future to Marion, Illinois, the Silver Hawks managed a championship season in 2005, beating the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers three games to two and winning the 2005 Midwest League Championship. The team also won league titles in 1989 and 1993.

Former Indiana Governor (and former South Bend Mayor) Joe Kernan formed an investment group to purchase the Silver Hawks in 2005. At the time, Kernan made it clear that a principal objective of the group was to keep the team from leaving South Bend.

In November 2011, Kernan reached an agreement with a new owner of the team who would keep the team in South Bend for at least the next twenty years. That agreement was with Andrew T. Berlin of Chicago, Illinois. Berlin, a limited partner of the Chicago White Sox and Chairman/CEO of Chicago-based, Berlin Packaging, ensured his commitment to the city of South Bend by signing a twenty-year cumulative lease agreement for the use of Coveleski Stadium and then added a public commitment to the citizens of the region that he would invest two and a half million dollars of his own money to make upgrades to the city-owned stadium.

The team has one mascot, Swoop. Professional wrestler Brian Costello often MCs various contests between innings.

References

• Dinda, J. (2003), "South Bend, Indiana, in the Midwest League," http://www.mwlguide.com/cities/southbend/index.html

External links

• Silver Hawks website
• FutureBacks - In-depth Silver Hawks coverage
• DiamondbacksBullpen - Coverage of the Arizona Diamondbacks at all levels