A Professional baseball team playing in the West Division of MLB's National League, the Arizona Diamondbacks is based in Phoenix. Founded in 1998, the team has quickly expanded winning World Series in 2001 and National League Pennant the same year. The team has also astonished its fans and critics by winning five West Division titles in 1999, 2001, 2002, 2007 and 2011.
Franchise History:
Baseball has always had a rich tradition in Arizona as the city had been serving as a spring training site since 1946. Operated by National Basketball Association's Phoenix Suns, a franchise named Diamondbacks was voted into National League and was scheduled to play 1998 season. This is when the team came into being.
The Diamondbacks played their first major league game in 1998 against Colorado Rockies which the Rockies won. In their first five seasons, they won three division titles, one pennant and one World Series thus establishing themselves as a competitive and successful team. Upcoming seasons were rebuilding seasons for the team, when they struggled to reach that glory again fighting against the losing streak. The team made its comeback in 2007 winning West Division title. In 2011, they won another title making it their fourth title win since their first tournament.
Ballpark:
The team's home-ground is Chase Field, located in downtown Phoenix. Opened in 1998, the venue was previously known as Bank one ballpark. In 2005, it was renamed as Chase Field. It is recognized as the first stadium in the United States with a retractable roof that can be opened or closed depending on the temperature.
In 2001, an estimated crowd of more than 300,000 people celebrated Diamondbacks' victory in the Bank one ballpark with a parade in the stadium and the surrounding area.
Famous players of the team:
2001 was undoubtedly best season for Diamondbacks led by two most dominant pitchers of all times, Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling. Randy Johnson has won several Cy Young Awards and Major League Baseball Triple while Curt Schilling won Babe Ruth Award, Brach Rickey Award and Hutch Award among many others. Brandon Webb was also a distinguished player winning Cy Young Award.
Team Logo and Colors:
The team's first logo was an italicized block letter "A" having a diamond pattern with a snake's tongue. In second season, the team changed their logo to copper colored “D” representing a Snake.
Their original colors were turquoise, purple, black and copper. They changed their official color to Sedona Red in later seasons.