Wingnuts are a model franchise

It’s time to give a standing ovation to the Wichita Wingnuts, who have been so dominant in the American Association that they’ve made regular-season competition a farce.

The Wingnuts have are 200-100 over the past three seasons. As a point of reference, the powerful New York Yankees have eclipsed that winning percentage only five times in their history. Just call the Wingnuts the ICT Bombers. On second thought, don’t.

The only thing missing for the Wingnuts, who have had one losing season in their seven years of existence, is a league championship. They’ll try to correct that starting Wednesday night, when the American Association championship series begins in Lincoln against the Saltdogs.

This shouldn’t be close. Lincoln was 54-46 during the regular season; the Wingnuts were an astounding 73-27 (the Yankees were never that good). The Saltdogs did, though, win 2 of 3 against Wichita this season in Lincoln. And the Wingnuts have reached the AA championship series the past two years only to come up empty against Winnipeg and Gary.

The consistency of this franchise since Kevin Hooper became its manager in 2009 is remarkable. The Wingnuts are 134 games over .500 in those six seasons and have won the past three regular season division championships by 8, 9.5 and 15 games.

I’m a proponent for affiliated minor-league baseball in Wichita, like the city has had for most of its professional baseball history. But when the Texas League’s Wichita Wranglers slunk out of town after the 2007 season for Northwest Arkansas, they took the affiliation with them.

My preference is seeing up-and-coming players rise through the ranks of the minor leagues. Wichita had that with affiliated baseball. Most of the players who have worn a Wingnuts uniform over the years have been released from major-league organizations and are just trying to hang on in pro ball, hopeful for another opportunity.

Even so, Wichita was fortunate to land an independent league team after the Wranglers left town and the Wingnuts have been one of the most successful organizations in the minors since.

On the field.

Off the field – specifically getting people to games – remains a challenge.

Even though the Wingnuts have been a powerful team this season, destructing any team in its path, the average attendance at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium has been about what it’s been for the past five seasons. Since 2010, the Wingnuts have averaged 2,930, 3,185, 3,055, 3,065 and, this season, 3,014 fans. Those numbers have ranked fifth, eighth, ninth, ninth and seventh in the American Association.

I don’t blame ownership or the front office for so-so attendance numbers, which by the way are higher than what the Wranglers drew in their final eight seasons. I blame baseball apathy and a deteriorating facility. Historic Lawrence-Dumont Stadium is showing a bit too much of her history these days. It’s a facility with so much potential, yet there’s so little public will to give the place the sprucing up it needs.

Makes me wish this front office and local ownership, along with Hooper, had a chance at reviving affiliated baseball in this town.

For now, though, it’s appropriate to revel in the success of the Wingnuts. Hooper and general manager Josh Robertson have consistently lured the best talent independent baseball has to offer to Wichita. They work hard to stay connected. And if anyone believes it’s easy to scour the waiver wires and track players who are on the outskirts of professional baseball, it’s definitely not.

Hooper is dedicated to winning and doing so in first-class fashion. The Wingnuts exemplify his professionalism and class.

The goal set forth when the Wingnuts became a franchise here in 2008 was to put a winning team on the field. It didn’t happen that season as the Wingnuts were 45-50 while being managed by Kash Beauchamp.

But it’s happened every season since. The Wingnuts have missed the four-team American Association playoffs once in the past six seasons.

The Wingnuts had the best record in the minor leagues this season. The team’s .730 winning percentage eked out the DSL Tigers, who were 51-19 (.729) in the Dominican Summer League, a short-season league.

So, as football kicks into high gear, let’s take some time to celebrate the Wingnuts – maybe even get out to L-D this weekend when the American Association championship series switches to Wichita.

What this franchise has been able to accomplish is worthy of a celebration. The team would surely like to have one in its locker room at the end of this series with lots of bubbly.

This story was originally published September 9, 2014 at 4:35 PM with the headline "Wingnuts are a model franchise."