News
2008
Press Releases
Keep up to date with the 2008 Press Release Archive.
Gameday Stories
Check out the 2008 Gameday Story Archive.
2007
Relive the 2007 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
2006
Relive the 2006 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
The 2006 season presented fans with the opportunity to watch several of the game’s future stars along with a season for the ages by one of the veterans. The team finished a distant second to the Charlotte Knights in the South Division of the International League, but second to no one in terms of talent. Several of Baseball America’s Top 100 talents played for the Bulls in 2006, including top prospect Delmon Young, B.J. Upton, Shawn Riggans, Joel Guzman, Wes Bankston, Jason Hammel, Juan Salas and Edwin Jackson. Though none of their performances matched up to the season produced by veteran 1B/DH Kevin Witt. Witt swatted a Triple-A team record 36 home runs and 99 runs batted in to earn the International League MVP Award, the All-Star Game MVP, the Joe Baumann Trophy for most home runs in the minor leagues and a post-season all-star nod.
2005
Relive the 2005 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
After seven consecutive seasons of winning records to begin their tenure in the International League, the Bulls finally fell below the .500 mark in 2005, finishing 65-79, 14 games behind the division-winning Norfolk Tides. The Bulls were a powerful group, setting the team record for home runs with a league-leading 198 round-trippers. However, they struggled on the mound and in the field with a league-worst team ERA of 5.03 and a whopping 198 errors, the second highest total in all of minor league baseball. Several of the Tampa Bay Rays' key prospects passed through Durham this year, including slugger Jonny Gomes, shortstop B. J. Upton, and Baseball America's Minor League Player of the Year, Delmon Young.
Off the field, the Bulls shattered their paid attendance record with 520,371 tickets sold. The team was also honored to welcome ESPN's popular sports show SportsCenter to the Durham Bulls Athletic Park on August 1st. SportsCenter was in the midst of a tour across the country making a stop in all 50 states in only 50 days.
2004
Relive the 2004 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
In 2004, the Durham Bulls came up short in their bid to become only the second International League team ever to win three consecutive Governors' Cup crowns, but they did earn their sixth playoff bid in seven years. The Bulls started the playoffs against the league's best hitting team - Buffalo. After taking a 2-0 series lead, the Bulls seemed poised to return to the Governors' Cup Championship for the third straight year and fifth time in their seven International League seasons. However, Buffalo denied the Bulls their shot by sweeping all three games at Dunn Tire Park. The Bisons went on to capture the Governors' Cup Championship, defeating the Richmond Braves 3-games-to-1. 2004 was another memorable season in the exceptional career of Bulls Manager Bill Evers as he recorded his 500th win as Durham's skipper on June 8th with a 10-1 victory at Syracuse.
2003
Relive the 2003 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
In 2003, the Bulls became the first International League team to repeat as champions since the Columbus Clippers did it in 1991 and '92, and became the first Durham pro baseball team to repeat since the Bulls did it in 1940 and '41 in the old Piedmont League. They achieved a paid attendance of over 500,000 for the third consecutive season despite 50 rain-affected games. The Bulls won their fifth Southern Division Championship in six seasons in the IL, edging out Charlotte by one game.
2002
Relive the 2002 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
The 2002 season was very historic for the The Durham Bulls. All season long the Bulls celebrated their 100th Anniversary. The season culminated with the Bulls sweeping Toledo and Buffalo in the International League playoffs to win their first Governors' Cup title. Bill Evers broke the club record for managerial wins in April. He finished the season with 398 wins over five seasons. Luis De Los Santos captured the league ERA title (2.42). Carl Crawford was named the IL's Rookie of the Year and finished the season as the starting left fielder for the Rays. Rocco Baldelli finished the season with the Bulls, and as a result of his play at three different levels, was named the Minor League Player of the Year by Baseball America and SportsTicker. Lance Carter led the club with 12 wins, including winning seven straight starts in July and August before the Rays brought him to the majors. Lee Gardner saved 25 games for the Bulls and made his major league debut in May. In total, 22 Bulls players also appeared in the major leagues during the season.
2001
Relive the 2001 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
It was the youngest Durham team since the Class-A days. Eight players made their big league debuts after spending time in Durham, including second baseman Brent Abernathy, third baseman Jared Sandberg, right handers Jesus Colome and Victor Zambrano, lefty Joe Kennedy and catcher Toby Hall. Hall led the IL with a .335 average and won the league MVP award. Hall was also the first Bull to play in the Futures Game and ended up being the game’s most valuable player at the beginning of All-Star weekend in Seattle. With an ever changing roster, the Bulls missed the playoffs for the first time in Triple-A and finished 74-70.
2000
Relive the 2000 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
The year 2000 saw the first wave of home grown Rays in Durham. The first two years of Triple-A, the team was made up of mostly veterans, but the 2000 edition included youngsters Aubrey Huff, Toby Hall, Travis Harper, Travis Phelps and Victor Zambrano. Huff was the IL rookie of the year with a .316 average, 20 homers and 76 RBI in 108 games before his promotion. Veterans Ryan Jackson and Ozzie Timmons combined leadership with power as Jackson hit .311 while Timmons drove in 104 runs, scored 100 and hit .300. Second baseman Brent Abernathy and catcher Pat Borders were members of the gold medal winning Olympic team in Sydney, Austrailia. Durham lost to Indy in the first round of the IL playoffs.
1999
Relive the 1999 season by reading past:
Gameday Stories
Press Releases
The 1999 Durham Bulls featured the most fearsome offense the International League had seen in the past 50 years. The Bulls led the league with a .295 team average, 923 runs scored and 1460 hits. They averaged over six runs per game and became the first IL team since the 1950’s to average 10 hits a game. IL MVP Steve Cox led the attack on his way to a league leading .341 average, 107 runs scored and 127 RBI. He banged out an amazing 182 hits, including 49 doubles. The impressive offensive numbers did not translate into a championship, however. The Bulls lost in the championship series to the Charlotte Knights in four games. It was also the year of the oldest rookie. 36 year old Jim Morris made his Bulls debut after sitting out 10 years.
