Rocky Mountain Vibes Still Recording Stellar Season
Trevor Phipps
For 20-plus years, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox prevailed as a commonly spoken baseball name around the Pikes Peak region, especially during their bout as the Colorado Rockies’ Triple-A farm team.
They also did bouts with the Milwaukee Brewers and earlier with the Cleveland Indians, but these stints didn’t create the same local popularity that the team gained during their time with the Rocks.
Then in 2019, it appeared that the Sky Sox may become a thing of the past when the team’s owner decided to relocate the minor league team to San Antonio, Texas.
However, in an announcement that has taken many insiders by surprise, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox are now making a grand return to the Olympic City.
The Sky Sox are back for the 2025 season, and they will be playing in the same stadium as they once did, which is now called Blocktickets Park, home to the Pioneer League’s Rocky Mountain Vibes
The news that Colorado Springs would suddenly be gaining a second Pioneer (rookie) League baseball team came as the league’s Northern Colorado Owlz team, based out of the Fort Collins/Loveland area, announced that they had folded and were officially resigning.
According to the Coloradoan newspaper based in Fort Collins, the team struggled to find a place to play home games after the town of Windsor shut down the Future Legends complex that housed the Owlz, as well as a few other well-known sports teams. The town officials stated that the closure of the facility was due to the owners not addressing health and safety issues.
Throughout the season, hail storms and rain forced the Owlz to move around different fields after recreation staff from Fort Collins, Greeley and Johnstown all said that they were contacted to late in the season to accommodate the team. In fact, the Owlz only hosted two matches all year that were held at Fort Collins’ City Park Field.
Therefore, in order to allow the team’s players the chance to finish the 2025 season, the 6-29 Owlz opted to move to the Pikes Peak area and bring new life into the once retired Colorado Springs Sky Sox name, at least for 2025. The team will finish the season playing all of their home games in Blocktickets Park in Colorado Springs. The Sky Sox played their first game under their new name last Tuesday, as they played on the road against the Grand Junction Jackalopes.
The Sky Sox first launched in Colorado Springs in 1950 as a Class A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. The team left in 1958 before the Hawaii Islanders Triple-A team moved to town and took the name over in 1988.
The Sky Sox were the Triple-A farm team for the Cleveland Indians from 1998 to 1992. Then once the Colorado Rockies joined the Major League Baseball in 1993, the Sky Sox became the Colorado Rockies’ top farm team. The SkySox then became part of the Milwaukee Brewers’ organization, when the Rockies decided to move their triple-A operations to Albuquerque, New Mexico. The minor league team then left Colorado Springs altogether in 2019 for San Antonio. The Rookie Helena Brewers headed to town and rebranded as the Rocky Mountain Vibes.
A Sizzling Hot Season
Even with speculation about a rebound of the glory days of the Colorado Springs’ Sky Sox, the Rocky Mountain Vibes are sizzling hot and putting many rumors about their unsteady future to rest.
After having their best start in franchise history, the Vibes have steadily stayed in the top five in the league. At press time, the Vibes were 21-14 and sitting in fifth place overall in the Pioneer League. And they were only four and a half games away from snagging the league’s top spot.
After only losing one match in the whole month of May, the team started to struggle just a bit. The Vibes started June winning a series against the Yuba-Sutter High Wheelers and then tying in one against the Billings Mustangs. The Vibes then lost a series to the Grand Junction Jackalopes and the High Wheelers.
Although several players have recently made their way up the Pioneer League’s stats board, the Vibes still have two stars in the top 10 in hitting in the league. Vibes outfielder Kellum Clark currently leads the team in hitting and he is in third place league-wide.
Out of the 19 games he has played, Clark has a .463 batting average with a total of 38 hits, 34 RBIs and 30 runs. He has also already slammed seven home runs away and has stolen two bases.
The Vibes second-best hitter Sam Linscott is currently ranked 10th in the league. Linscott has racked up six home runs, 24 RBIs, 37 runs and three stolen bases out of the 31 games he has played.
This Tuesday, the Vibes head west to the San Francisco Bay Area to challenge the 26-10 Oakland Ballers on the road for six matches. Next week, the team stays on the road to take on the 14-22 Billings Mustangs. The Vibes play at home from July 22-27 when they battle the 24-12 Yuba-Sutter High Wheelers.
The Sky Sox on the other hand, play their first home series in the Springs this week against the 20-16 Boise Hawks. Next week, the Sky Sox play another series against the Hawks on the road.
