Binghamton Franchise History While professional baseball in Binghamton, NY dates back to 1877, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies’ story begins in 1992. It was that year that the New York Mets organiza- tion moved their Double-A affiliate, the Bills, from Williamsport, Pennsylvania approxi - mately 125 miles northeast to Binghamton, New York.
The team was renamed the Binghamton Mets and welcomed with open arms by a city that had suffered 23 years without a professional baseball team to call their own. When tick- ets went on sale for the inaugural season, thousands of fans braved the rain and waited in a line that snaked for blocks through the city.”
Fans brave the rain for Binghamton Mets tickets in 1992.
Binghamton Municipal Stadium was constructed in nine months for $4.6 million and hosted its first B-Mets game on April 19, 1992 after three- straight postponed games. Binghamton’s house-warming party was a strong one as they defeated the Harrisburg Senators 1-0 in front of 5,126 fans.” “Led by Eastern League Manager of the Year, Steve Swisher, the B-Mets treated their fans to a stellar inaugural season. They went 79-59, finished 2nd in the Eastern League, and earned a trip to the postseason. The B-Mets dispatched the Harrisburg Senators in the semi-finals in four games, winning a 14-inning marathon to clinch the series. Trailing the Canton-Akron Indians 2-1 in the Eastern League Championship Series, the B-Mets rallied to take Game 4 and earned their first title with a 5-2 win in the deci - sive fifth game. Bobby J. Jones, the staff ace and Eastern League Pitcher of the Year, earned the win in the championship game.
In their first season, the B-Mets welcomed 278,492 fans to Municipal Stadium, the highest single-season attendance for any team to ever call Binghamton home. The record stands to this day.
During the winter after the 1993 season, a group of local businessmen teamed up to make the Binghamton Mets a truly local product. Mike & Chris Urda, George Scherer and David & William Maines purchased the team from the New York Mets in January 1994 . The 1994 season was another banner year for the B-Mets and the city. Binghamton became the center of the Double-A universe on July 11, 1994 when the team hosted the Double-A Association All-Star Game. 6,524 fans packed into Municipal Stadium and watched the American League defeat the National League 10-4. The All-Star Game would not be the only excitement Binghamton would see that sea- son. B-Mets celebrate 1992 title with Binghamton Mayor Juanita Crabb
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