Dodgers Sign Rancho Cucamonga To Two-Year PDC

Earlier today it was announced that Los Angeles signed Rancho Cucamonga to a player development contract through 2012. The Dodgers were previously partnered with Inland Empire from 2007-2010.

Rancho Cucamonga had been affiliated with Anaheim for the last 10 years. It was great stability for the franchise that has been affiliated with 14 different teams since 1946. The 10 years with the Angels were the longest the franchise has ever been with a parent club even though the partnership almost ended after the first two seasons. The Quakes went 658-742 in those 10 years with four playoff appearances. They made the postseason in their last two years with the Angels, including a thrilling championship series loss to San Jose in 2010. They did not win a championship as an Anaheim affiliate.

A number of Angels have made the majors after passing through Rancho Cucamonga. About 48 players have made appearances with the Quakes before beginning their major league careers including Mike Napoli, Jeff Mathis, Bobby Jenks, Casey Kotchman, Ervin Santana, Joe Saunders, Erick Aybar, Howie Kendrick, Kendry Morales and Jered Weaver. That includes a lot of players that only got a cup of coffee in the big leagues, but that's still an impressive number. The Angels have leaned on their farm system throughout the years, and it's led to consistent success over the past decade. The Quakes have also hosted some rehab appearances over the years including Torii Hunter, Scott Kazmir, Vlad Guerrero and Garret Anderson.

"The Dodgers are one of the most prestigious teams in all of sports and we are excited to begin our partnership with them in Rancho Cucamonga," said Quakes Managing Partner Bobby Brett.

"We feel like the move to Rancho Cucamonga not only brings our High-A partner closer to Dodger Stadium, but is a strong fit for our organizational goals," said Dodger Assistant General Manager De Jon Watson. "We're excited to partner with Brett Sports and look forward to a long-lasting relationship."

There's been buzz that this would happen lately, and today it became official. As De Jon Watson said, the Dodgers have something to gain from this change. The Epicenter is a little closer to Dodger Stadium, so it's pretty easy for the Dodgers' staff to travel and monitor players. It'll keep major leaguers in the area to rehab like they have with Inland Empire recently, and it's a very convenient situation for Los Angeles. Although Inland Empire's Arrowhead Credit Union Park was built later than Rancho Cucamonga's Epicenter, the Epicenter is generally considered to be a more desirable location.

The Quakes hope to benefit from the parent club switch too. As I talked about in an earlier post, attendance for Rancho Cucamonga has been down lately. According to Future Angels, the new ownership group changed how attendance is counted which has led to the decreased numbers. However, they still decided they needed a spark, and they hope the Dodgers affiliation will help. The effect this will have is debatable and remains to be seen, but they hope that local fans will be interested in seeing Los Angeles prospects.

This leaves two parent clubs needing High A affiliates and two Cal League teams with openings: Bakersfield and Inland Empire. It seems likely that Anaheim will sign on with the 66ers to complete an affiliate swap with Los Angeles. That means Cincinnati and Bakersfield will end up being paired together. This should all wrap up in the next few days, and we'll have a clear picture of what the Cal League will look like in 2011 and 2012.