Columbia Fireflies

Columbia Fireflies Founded in 2016 Columbia, South Carolina
Team logo Cap insignia
Class-level
Current	Class A
Minor league affiliations
League	South Atlantic League (1984–present)
Division	Southern Division
Major league affiliations
Current	New York Mets (2007–present) Washington Nationals (2003–2006) Montreal Expos (2003–2004) Texas Rangers (1998–2002) Los Angeles Dodgers (1996–1997) St. Louis Cardinals (1984–1995)
Team data
Nickname	Columbia Fireflies (2016–present) Savannah Sand Gnats (1996–2016) Savannah Cardinals (1984–1995)
Colors	Navy blue, neon green, silver, white
Ballpark	Spirit Communications Park (2016–present)
Previous parks	Grayson Stadium (1984–2015)
Owner(s)/ Operator(s)	Hardball Capital LLC
Manager	Jose Leger

The Columbia Fireflies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Columbia, South Carolina. The team plays in the Class A South Atlantic League and is an affiliate of the New York Mets of the National League in Major League Baseball. The home stadium is Spirit Communications Park. The team was formerly known as the Savannah Sand Gnats (1995–2015); they relocated from Savannah, Georgia, after the 2015 season. It is the only professional baseball team in Columbia, and the first since the Capital City Bombers moved to Greenville, South Carolina, after the 2004 season.

Team history

The Capital City Bombers moved from Columbia, South Carolina, to Greenville, South Carolina, after the 2004 season. The city of Columbia approved plans to build a new stadium in 2014, with the goal of attracting a new Minor League Baseball team. Spirit Communications, a local telecommunications company, purchased the naming rights for the stadium. In May 2015, the Savannah Sand Gnats of the Class A South Atlantic League, an affiliate of the New York Mets, announced that they would move to Columbia in time for the 2016 season.

After receiving over 2,300 submissions in a public contest to name the team, they chose to call themselves the "Columbia Fireflies". The name was inspired by an article in The State, the local newspaper. Portions of the team's uniforms glow in the dark as a tribute to the team's name.

Columbia earned their first ever victory as the Fireflies on April 9, 2016. In the game, three pitchers (Thomas McIlraith, Alex Palsha, and Johnny Magliozzi) combined to throw a no-hitter in a 9–0 shutout victory over the Charleston RiverDogs. The no-hitter was the Fireflies' third game. In their first ever home game, on April 14, 2016, the Fireflies defeated the Greenville Drive, 4–1, infront of 9,077 people.

Roster

Columbia Fireflies roster
Players				Coaches/Other
Pitchers 16 Tyler Badamo 11 Tyler Bashlor  3 Kevin Canelon 30 Andrew Church 33 P.J. Conlon 23 Seth Davis -- Cameron Griffin 10px 17 Witt Haggard  6 Chase Ingram 45 Johnny Magliozzi 20 Thomas McIlraith 10px 25 Craig Missigman 32 Christian Montgomery 15 Alex Palsha 28 Joe Shaw		Catchers -- Adrian Abreu 10px  4 Jose Garcia 36 Patrick Mazeika 21 Tyler Moore 10px 40 Nathanael Ramos 10px Infielders 24 Jeff Diehl -- Eudor Garcia ‡ 35 Luis Ortega  7 Milton Ramos 13 Jean Rodriguez  9 Vinny Siena  8 David Thompson 34 Dash Winningham Outfielders 10 Kevin Kaczmarski  5 Tucker Tharp 10px 22 Joe Tuschak 18 Ivan Wilson		Manager 19 Jose Leger Coaches 12 Joel Fuentes (hitting) 48 Jonathan Hurst (pitching) 10px 7-day disabled list * On New York Mets 40-man roster # Rehab assignment ∞ Reserve list ‡ Restricted list § Suspended list † Temporary inactive list Roster updated May 31, 2016 Transactions → More MiLB rosters → New York Mets minor league players

External links

• Columbia Fireflies website