Edmonton Cracker-Cats: All-Time Team

They may have seemed like a crude replacement, but the Cracker-Cats gave Edmonton baseball fans reason to gush for a number of years.

The pro team set up in the Alberta capital in 2005, replacing the void left by the Trappers of the Pacific Coast League (PCL), a Triple-A outfit that operated from 1981 through 2004.

The Cracker-Cats – who took their name from the energy industry term “fluid catalytic cracking,” which sees crude oil refined into gasoline – were an independent league team, meaning they were not affiliated with any Major League Baseball (MLB) franchises.

OPINION: The Nightmare in Calgary

You have to think that baseball people in Calgary look at Okotoks and wonder “what if?”

What if the city had backed the Dawgs instead of forcing them out?

With Foothills Stadium being torn down, it leaves a giant void in the city’s baseball landscape.

Bidding Farewell to Foothills Stadium

The demolition of Foothills Stadium has hit the baseball community like a wrecking ball.

Despite the inevitable end of the facility, which played home to Calgary’s highest levels of baseball for more than half a century, seeing the structure reduced to rubble has left many sports fans heartbroken, angry and despondent.

Edmonton Capitals: All-Time Team

A rundown of the top members of the indy league Edmonton Capitals, who played between 2009 and 2011.

Here are the selections for the Capitals All-Time Team …

Broken Bat

Sports transactions often have a lasting impact.

Edmonton Oilers fans still cringe at the thought of Wayne Gretzky being dealt to the Los Angeles Kings, while Calgary Flames fans recently witnessed the departure of star forward Matthew Tkachuk.

Baseball, though, has a history of gimmicky swaps, including the Calgary Vipers trading John Odom for 10 baseball bats in 2008.

Fisticuffs at Foothills

You can call it baseball’s Battle of Alberta, or the Fracas at Foothills Stadium, or the Cowtown Confrontation.

If you’re unfamiliar with the infamous 2006 brawl between the Calgary Vipers and Edmonton Cracker-Cats, this oral history of the event is a must read …

The Snake Who Could Rake

They call him “The Bat from The Hat.”

And while baseball eventually delivered Drew Miller to Medicine Hat, he actually grew up in Schuler, a small town about 60 kilometres northeast of The Gas City.

Baseball fans in Calgary, meanwhile, are more likely to recognize Miller from his time with the Vipers, an independent league team that played out of Foothills Stadium between 2005 and 2011.

Golden Moment

Theo Fleury will never be remembered for his baseball career, but a decade ago he proved he could go from gold-medal winning hockey player to Golden Baseball League outfielder with relative ease.

And looking back on the publicity stunt, the former Olympian has nothing but fond memories of his conversion from NHL sniper to Calgary Viper.