Orlando Rays

Orlando Rays
Team logoCap insignia
Minor league affiliations
Class
  • Class AA (1973–2003)
LeagueSouthern League (1973–2003)
Major league affiliations
Team
Minor league titles
League titles (3)
  • 1981
  • 1991
  • 1999
Team data
Name
  • Orlando Rays (1997–2003)
  • Orlando Cubs (1993–1996)
  • Orlando Sun Rays (1990–1992)
  • Orlando Twins (1973–1989)
ColorsBlack, green, blue, white[1]    
Ballpark

The Orlando Rays were a Minor League baseball team that played in the Southern League from 1973–2003. They were located in Orlando, Florida, and played their home games at Tinker Field for most of their existence. They served as a farm club for four Major League Baseball teams: the Minnesota Twins (1973–1992), Chicago Cubs (1993–1997), Seattle Mariners (1998), and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (1999–2003).

They were known as the Orlando Twins from 1973–1989, the Orlando Sun Rays from 1990–1992, the Orlando Cubs from 1993–1996, and the Orlando Rays from 1997–2003.

After the 2003 season, the franchise moved to Montgomery, Alabama and became the Montgomery Biscuits.

History

After the 1972 season, the Minnesota Twins moved their Southern League affiliate, the Charlotte Hornets, to Orlando[2][3], calling them the Orlando Twins. The Twins played at Tinker Field in downtown Orlando, near the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium. In 1990, the team was renamed the Orlando Sun Rays. In 1993, the Chicago Cubs became the team's new major-league affiliate, and the team was renamed the Orlando Cubs. While still a Chicago Cubs affiliate, the team renamed itself once again in 1997 and became the Orlando Rays. The following year, for one season only, the Seattle Mariners were the Rays' major-league affiliate. The Tampa Bay Rays (then the Devil Rays), an American League expansion team in 1998, assumed the Orlando Rays' major-league affiliation the following year.

The Orlando Rays' last season at Tinker Field was 1999. From 2000 to 2003, the Orlando Rays played in Kissimmee, Florida, in Champion Stadium at Walt Disney World Resort. Despite the fact that the team played in a state-of-the-art stadium that was built in 1997 and used during spring training by the Atlanta Braves, attendance did not meet expectations; after trailing the Southern League in attendance in multiple years, the Rays' owners announced the team would move to Montgomery, Alabama in 2004 (terminating their 10-year lease with Disney after four seasons). The team is now known as the Montgomery Biscuits.[4]

Post franchise events

On June 17, 2016 as part of a charity appeal following the Orlando nightclub shooting, the Tampa Bay Rays wore Orlando Rays caps during their game against the San Francisco Giants.[5] The team also wore Orlando Rays caps in a spring training game on February 28, 2023, while playing home games at the Disney World's ESPN Wide World of Sports.[6]

Notable Orlando alumni

References

  1. ^"Southern League Official Colors (1972 through present)". TruColor.net. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  2. ^"Charlotte Hornets To Move To Orlando". Hickory Daily Record. AP. December 2, 1972. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  3. ^"Orlando Joins Southern League". Tampa Bay Times. UPI. December 1, 1972. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  4. ^"The History of the Orlando Rays". DRaysBay. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  5. ^"Rays' Pride Night raises more than $300K for Pulse Victims Fund". ESPN.com. June 18, 2016. Retrieved June 18, 2016.
  6. ^"Tampa Bay Rays Wearing "O" Cap for Orlando on Tuesday". SportsLogos.net. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
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