Frederick Keys

The Frederick Keys are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. The Keys play in Frederick, Maryland. The team is named for the "Star-Spangled Banner" writer Francis Scott Key. He was born in Frederick County.  The Keys were bought from Maryland Baseball Holding, LLC by Attain Sports and Entertainment in January 2022. Home games are played at Harry Grove Stadium.

Before Major League Baseball's reorganization of the minor leagues following the 2020 season, the Keys were a Minor League Baseball team that was part of the Baltimore Orioles' organization from 1989 to 2020. On August 1, 2025, the team announced that it would once again serve as the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles starting in 2026, replacing the Aberdeen IronBirds.

 History 

 Early professional baseball in Frederick 
Frederick was one of the first teams in the Blue Ridge League, which existed from 1915 to 1930. The team, which went by the names of Hustlers, Champs and Warriors, won league championships in 1915 and 1921. Games were played at the Frederick Fairgrounds until 1924 when McCurdy Field was built.  The Blue Ridge League closed in 1931. 

 Frederick players from these years who became major leaguers:
 Clyde Barnhart: 1915, 1916, 1917
 Tom Connolly: 1915
 Bill Lamar: 1915
 Leo Meyer: 1916
 Tom Crooke: 1917
 Clarence Blethen: 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923
 Ray Gardner: 1920, 1922, 1923, 1925
 Ray Hartranft: 1920
 Duke Sedgwick: 1922
 Jim Keesey: 1923
 Norm McNeil: 1923
 Bobby Schang: 1923
 Chick Fullis: 1924, 1925, 1926
 Karl Kolseth: 1924
 Bill Hohman: 1924
 Rollie Hemsley: 1925, 1926, 1927
 Larry Boerner:1926
 Jimmie DeShong:1928
 Joe Vosmik:  1929
 Milt Galatzer: 1930
 Bill Perrin: 1930

 Minor League Baseball (1989–2020) 
The team was started in 1989 when the Baltimore Orioles decided to move their Class A Carolina League team from Hagerstown, Maryland. The city of Frederick got the owners of the then-Hagerstown Suns to move the team to Frederick.  They promised a 4,000-seat stadium to be built for the 1990 season. For the 1989 season, the Keys played at McCurdy Field while waiting for the construction of the new stadium to be completed. The Keys opened by losing both games of a doubleheader (including a seven-inning perfect game by Dennis Burlingame) against the Durham Bulls. Their first win came on April 11, 1989, with a 3–1 victory over the Kinston Indians in the Keys' first-ever home game.

Only two players in Keys history have been transferred directly from Frederick to the Baltimore Orioles (not counting players who played for the Keys during rehab assignments). On September 3, 1996, Eugene Kingsale's contract was purchased by the Orioles. On June 11, 2005, Jeff Fiorentino's contract was purchased by the Orioles in order to replace the injured Luis Matos.

The 2020 Minor League Baseball season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Keys were not invited to stay in affiliated baseball as part of the 2021 reorganization of Minor League Baseball. They instead joined the newly-formed MLB Draft League.

 Playoff history 

 Carolina League 

 1990: Defeated Kinston 3–2 to win championship.
 1993: Lost to Wilmington 2–0 in semifinals.
 1997: Lost to Lynchburg 2–0 in semifinals.
 2000: Lost to Lynchburg 2–0 in semifinals.
 2001: Lost to Wilmington 2–0 in semifinals.
 2005: Defeated Lynchburg 2–0 in semifinals; defeated Kinston 3–2 to win championship.
 2006: Defeated Wilmington 2–1 in semifinals; lost to Kinston 3–0 in finals.
 2007: Defeated Wilmington 2–0 in semifinals; defeated Salem 3–1 to win championship.
 2010: Lost to Potomac 3–1 in semifinals.
 2011: Defeated Potomac 3–2 in semifinals; defeated Kinston 3–1 to win championship.
 2017: Lost to Lynchburg 2–1 in semifinals.

 Notable former Keys 
Several Keys alumni have gone on to play in the major leagues. In their first season, the opening day team included several future major leaguers: David Segui, Francisco de la Rosa, Luis Mercedes, Jack Voigt, and Pete Rose Jr.

Other Keys alumni include:

 Andy Van Slyke: 1995
 Arthur Rhodes: 1989, 1990
 Joe Borowski: 1989, 1990
 Rocky Coppinger: 1995
 Sidney Ponson: 1996
 Brian Roberts: 2000
 Larry Bigbie: 2000
 Tim Raines Jr.: 2000
 Eli Whiteside: 2002
 Nick Markakis: 2005
 Adam Loewen: 2005
 Nolan Reimold: 2006
 Matt Wieters: 2008
 Brad Bergesen: 2009
 Manny Machado: 2011
 Dylan Bundy: 2012
 Nicky Delmonico: 2012
 Ty Kelly: 2012
 Jason Hammel: 2012
 Kevin Gausman: 2012
 Steve Pearce: 2013
 Josh Stinson: 2013
 Ashur Tolliver: 2013
 Wilson Betemit: 2013
 Ryan Flaherty: 2013
 Zach Davies: 2013
 Mike Yastrzemski: 2014
 Jimmy Yacabonis: 2014
 Austin Wynns: 2014
 Trey Mancini: 2014
 Parker Bridwell: 2014
 Steven Brault: 2014
 Mychal Givens: 2014
 Chance Sisco: 2015
 Jonathan Schoop: 2015
 John Means: 2015
 Stefan Crichton: 2015
 Wei-Yin Chen: 2015
 David Lough: 2015
 David Hess: 2015
 Ryan Mountcastle: 2017

 References 

 Other websites 


 Statistics from Baseball-Reference
Category:Baseball teams in the United States