Springfield-Ozark Mountain Ducks

For the Frontier League team of the same name, see Springfield-Ozark Ducks.

Baseball team in Ozark, Missouri

Springfield-Ozark Mountain Ducks

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Team logo | Cap insignia
Information
Location| Ozark, Missouri
Ballpark| Price Cutter Park
Founded| 1998
Disbanded| 2004
League championships| None
Division championships| None
Former name(s)| Ozark Mountain Ducks (1999-2000)
Former league(s)|

* Frontier League (2004)
* Central Baseball League (2001-03)
* Texas–Louisiana League (1999–2001)

Colors| Royal Blue, Yellow

Ownership| Horn Chen
($3 million purchase)[1]

The Springfield-Ozark Mountain Ducks was an unaffiliated minor league team that previously played in Ozark, Missouri, a suburb of Springfield. The team was a member of the Texas-Louisiana League, later named the Central Baseball League from 1999 to 2003. The team played in Price Cutter Park, now known as Ozark Mountain Sports Complex.

## History

[edit]

In April 1998, Texas-Louisiana League president and co-founder Byron Pierce announced that the league would put a new team in Ozark pending financing for a new ballpark. In August the funding was secured. Construction on the stadium started in late fall and took four months to complete.[2]

The peculiar team name and mascot was picked from a name-the-team contest in 1998. The winning entry—by Craig Cremer of Ozark—was picked out of 65,000 submissions. Cremer says the kid-friendly name was derived from a combination of the Ozark Mountains and the Ride the Ducks boat ride in Branson[3]

The Mountain Ducks played their inaugural game on May 27, 1999 on the road, a 7-4 loss to the Amarillo Dillas. Their first home game came two weeks later on June 10 in front of 4,764 people, a 5-2 loss, also against Amarillo.[4]

Success on the field was hard to come by for the team. The Mountain Ducks only made the postseason one time during its tenure, a first round exit in 2000.

Two players with Major League experience played for Springfield-Ozark: Outfielder Mel Hall (2002) played 13 seasons, mostly with the Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees and Pitcher Mike Smith (1999-2001). Smith played in 15 games over two seasons with the Baltimore Orioles.[5]

The team joined the Frontier League for one final season in 2004. They disbanded when hotel magnate John Q. Hammons brought the Springfield Cardinals of the Double-A Texas League from El Paso, Texas to downtown Springfield. The Mountain Ducks rights to the club's spot in the CBL were sold in 2004 to the Pensacola Pelicans[6] of the discontinued Southeastern League.

## Team Record

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The Mountain Ducks had a combined record of 261-312 over six seasons.[citation needed]

Season | Wins | Losses | Finish | Manager | Playoffs

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1999 | 32 | 50 | 5th | Barry Jones | Missed Playoffs
2000 | 59 | 53 | 4th | Barry Jones | Lost First Round
Amarillo 1–2
2001 | 33 | 58 | 6th | Barry Jones | Missed Playoffs
2002 | 45 | 51 | 6th (3rd, East) | Phil Wilson | Missed Playoffs
2003 | 40 | 56 | 8th (4th, East) | Phil Wilson | Missed Playoffs
2004 | 52 | 44 | 6th (4th, West) | Greg Tagert | Missed Playoffs

## All-Stars

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1999: Brent Bubela, C; Sergio Cairo, OF; Mike Smith, P

2000: Mike Smith, P; Jim Wollscheid, P
2001: Andre Johnson, OF; Mike Smith, P
2002: None
2003: None
2004: None

## References

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1. ^ https://sbj.net/stories/ducks-gm-wary-of-springfield-stadium,45578 [bare URL]
2. ^ Shirley, Traci. "Sight for Ozark Ballpark Announced". Springfield News-Leader.
3. ^ Puryear, Scott. "Mountain Ducks Make Nest in Ozark". Springfield News-Leader.
4. ^ Bailey, Eric. "Ducks Come Up Short". Springfield News-Leader.
5. ^ https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=smith-006mic [bare URL]
6. ^ Schott, Ron. "Horn Chen sells Ducks". Christian County Headliner News.

## External links

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* 1999 Ozark Mountain Ducks statistics
* 2000 Ozark Mountain Ducks statistics
* 2001 Springfield-Ozark Mountain Ducks statistics
* 2002 Springfield-Ozark Mountain Ducks statistics
* 2003 Springfield-Ozark Mountain Ducks statistics
* 2004 Springfield-Ozark Ducks statistics