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Minor League Baseball will be back in the Hudson Valley as the New York Yankees restructured their affiliates due to the expiration of the Professional Baseball Agreement with Major League Baseball.
Beginning in 2021, the Yankee’s High Single-A team will represent the region as the Hudson Valley Renegades, playing at Dutchess Stadium in Wappinger Falls.
The team is operated by the Goldklang Group, which also owns Charleston, the Yankees’ former Single-A affiliate. With the transition to a High Single-A schedule, it will be the first time Hudson Valley has embarked on a full-season schedule.
“The determination was made that Hudson Valley would be best for our players, especially given the long term and the tremendously beneficial relationship we have had with Marvin Goldklang, who is a longstanding partner and associate of the Steinbrenner family and the Yankees,” the team announced.
Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro said that he’s ready to welcome the Yankees to the Hudson Valley next year, noting that local baseball fans may also get to sneak a peek at some of the Yankees’ top stars if they need to rehab from injuries.
“The next generation of Yankee stars — ballplayers who will look to etch their names in Yankees history alongside legends like Ruth, DiMaggio, Mantle, and Jeter — will take the field as professionals right here in Dutchess County,” he said.
“Local Yankee fans will have the unique opportunity to watch the next Aaron Judge or Gleyber Torres hone their skills right at Dutchess Stadium, on their way to the Big Ballyard in the Bronx,” he added. “And just a few MTA stops from the stadium, we can expect to see big-league stars on rehab assignments.
“Borrowing from the great John Sterling,” Molinaro mused. “Dutchess Wins and Theeeeee Yankees Win!”
Due to the expiration of the Professional Baseball Agreement, the number of affiliated minor league teams is being contracted from 160 to 120, with most short-season and Rookie Level minor league teams being absorbed into the newly formed Prospect Development Pipeline, a collaboration between MLB and USA Baseball.
As part of the restructuring, the Yankees announced they are also moving their Double-A team from Trenton to Somerset, N.J. after 18 years, and the Staten Island affiliate has been dissolved. The minor league teams in Charleston and Pulaski also no longer fall under the Yankees’ minor league umbrella.
The Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, which also served as the team’s “Alternate Site” during the 2020 season will remain there unchanged.
Officials said the Yankees’ Tampa affiliate will shift from a High Single-A designation to Low Single-A. Additionally, the Yankees will continue with short-season teams in the Gulf Coast League (based at the Yankees Player Development Complex in Tampa) and Dominican Summer League (located at the Yankees Latin Béisbol Academy in Boca Chica).
Team officials noted that each of the top three levels of our newly configured minor league system will be located within close proximity to Yankee Stadium.
“Restructuring our minor league affiliations — especially with the additions of Somerset and Hudson Valley — gives us greater continuity to streamline and improve the development of our minor league system,” Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman said in a statement.
“The relationships we have formed with all of our teams will allow for a more consistent application of training with similarly aligned facilities in terms of structure, quality, and ease of travel,” Cashman continued. “We are confident that these changes will greatly benefit our players and Yankees fans for many years to come."
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