Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp

The first team known as the Jacksonville Suns began play in the Triple-A International League in 1962. The franchise had been founded in Havana, Cuba, where they were known as the Havana Sugar Kings. Following the Cuban Revolution in 1959, the team relocated to Jersey City, New Jersey, but soon folded; the franchise was bought by the Cleveland Indians, who moved it to Jacksonville as the Suns in 1962.[2] The president was local baseball fixture Sam W. Wolfson, previously the owner of the Jacksonville Braves; the Suns replaced the Jacksonville Jets Sally League club. During this period, a number of later Major League Baseball stars played for the Suns, including Tommy John, Nolan Ryan, and Tom Seaver, and the team won the International League championship in 1968. Following that season, the team's parent club, the New York Mets, decided to relocate the team to Virginia, where they became the Norfolk Tides.[3]

Wolfson Park in 2002

Jacksonville was without baseball in 1969, but a new Suns team began play in the Double-A Southern League in 1970. The team was affiliated with both the Montreal Expos and the Milwaukee Brewers in their inaugural season, with the Cleveland Indians in 1971, and then with the Kansas City Royals from 1972 to 1984. Affiliation switched back to the Expos from 1985 to 1990, during which period the team was known as the Jacksonville Expos. Since then, it has been affiliated with the Seattle Mariners (1991–1994), Detroit Tigers (1995–2000), Los Angeles Dodgers (2001–2008), and most recently the Miami Marlins (2009–present).[4] The Suns have appeared in the Southern League playoffs 15 times, and won the league's championship in 1996, 2001, 2005, 2009, 2010, and 2014. After winning the title in 2009 and defending it in 2010, the Suns became the third team in Southern League history to successfully defend a championship.[5]

In 1998, Suns outfielder Gabe Kapler won the Southern League Most Valuable Player Award after leading the league in home runs (28), hits (176), runs (113), doubles (47), RBI (146; most in the minors in 1998 and most ever in the league), extra-base hits (81; a league record), total bases (319; a league record), and sacrifice flies (11).[6][7]

Jumbo Shrimp game at then-named Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville in 2017

In 2014, the Suns finished the regular season on a ten-game winning streak, edging out the Mississippi Braves by one game to win the second-half South Division title. Including the playoffs, the 2014 Suns won 16 of their final 17 games on the year en route to the franchise's sixth Southern League title. The Suns have played in the Southern League longer than any other team, and their 41-year period in Jacksonville has become the longest continuous association between any city and a class Double-A team.[1][3]

The Suns played at Wolfson Park from 1962 until it was demolished in 2002. Since 2003, they have played at 121 Financial Ballpark (formerly called Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville), an 11,000 seat, US$34 million field created as part of the Better Jacksonville Plan. Since the move, the Suns have consistently been at or near the top of the Southern League in attendance, drawing over one million fans in their first four years.[3] The Suns' success has led to speculation that the team could move to the Triple-A level in the future.[1]

In November 2016, the Suns were renamed the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp.[8]

In conjunction with Major League Baseball's reorganization of the minor leagues after the 2020 season, the Jumbo Shrimp were selected to move up to the Triple-A classification and continue as affiliates of the Miami Marlins in 2021.[9]