This was expected: The Hagerstown Suns (Low Class A; Sally League) and the Washington Nationals announced a two-year player development contract running through the end of the 2016 season.
The agreement on a player development contract means the Suns affiliation with the Nationals will stretch at least 10 years. The Suns and Nationals began their affiliation prior to the 2007 season, and since that time the Suns have seen tremendous success on the field, including playoff appearances in three consecutive seasons (2012-2014). The 10 years of affiliation with the Nationals will be the longest tenure of affiliation with one team for the Suns since they were a member of the Baltimore Orioles farm system for a 12-year stretch from 1981-1992.
“We are in the baseball business because we love the game, have a great relationship with the Washington Nationals and respect their young kids in the minor league system very much,” comments Suns owner Bruce Quinn. “We want to thank the Nationals for extending our player development contract and want to ensure everyone that we are working diligently to provide the stars of the future a world class stadium and training facility.”
“We are happy to extend our player development contract with the Hagerstown Suns, continuing our seven-plus year relationship with them,” Nationals President & General Manager Mike Rizzo said. “Some of the organization’s brightest talents have spent significant time learning the game with Hagerstown, before advancing further through our system. We’re glad to continue our working relationship.
“Hagerstown has been a great partner of ours,” Assistant General Manager & Vice President of Player Development Doug Harris added. “From Jordan Zimmermann through Bryce Harper and Steven Souza Jr., we’ve been honored to have our players work their way through the South Atlantic League with the Suns.”
Here’s a look at the current affiliate status in Minor League Baseball.
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