The Madison Muskies were a Class A

Class A

Class A may refer to:* Class A airfield, a standardised design for military airfields built throughout Britain from 1942* Class A airspace, an airspace class defined by the ICAO* class A amplifier, a category of electronic amplifier...

 minor league baseball

Minor league baseball

Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...

 team that played in the Midwest League

Midwest League

The Midwest League is a Class-A minor league baseball league which operates in the Midwestern United States.-History:Six teams – the Belleville Stags, the Centralia Cubs, the Marion Indians, the Mattoon Indians or East Frankfort White Sox, the Mount Vernon Braves, and the West Frankfort...

 from 1982

1982 in sports

1982 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup:** Men's overall season champion: Phil Mahre, United States** Women's overall season champion: Erika Hess, Switzerland-American football:...

 to 1993

1993 in sports

1993 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Marc Girardelli, Luxembourg** Women's overall season champion: Anita Wachter, Austria-American football:...

 in Madison, Wisconsin

Madison, Wisconsin

Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....

. They were an affiliate of the Oakland Athletics

Oakland Athletics

The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....

. The team, which was started by Madison entrepreneur Ed Janus

Ed Janus

Ed Janus is a writer, independent audio journalist and oral historian. He has lived in Madison, Wisconsin for over 40 years where he is well known for having brought baseball and world-renowned beers to that city....

, played at Warner Park

Warner Park

Warner Park is a community park on the northeast side of Madison, Wisconsin near Lake Mendota. It is the annual home for the largest fireworks show in the Midwest, Rhythm and Booms....

.

José Canseco

José Canseco

José Canseco Capas, Jr. is a Cuban-American professional baseball manager, outfielder, and designated hitter for the Yuma Scorpions of the North American League and former Major League Baseball player. He is the identical twin brother of former major league player and current teammate Ozzie Canseco...

, Tim Belcher

Tim Belcher

Timothy Wayne Belcher is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He won the Sporting News Rookie Pitcher of the Year Award in for the National League...

, Terry Steinbach

Terry Steinbach

Terry Lee Steinbach is a former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for 14 years from to . He was drafted in 1980 out of New Ulm High School by the Cleveland Indians. He was the starting catcher for Oakland Athletics teams that won three straight American League pennants from 1988 to...

, Ozzie Canseco

Ozzie Canseco

Osvaldo "Ozzie" Canseco Capas is a former Major League Baseball player and the identical twin brother of former Major League Baseball player José Canseco....

, Tanyon Sturtze

Tanyon Sturtze

Tanyon James Sturtze is a former Major League Baseball pitcher.He attended Saint Peter-Marian High School then Quinsigamond Community College and was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 1990 Major League Baseball Draft. In , he was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the minor league portion of...

, Luis Polonia

Luis Polonia

Luis Andrew Polonia Almonte was a Major League Baseball outfielder and designated hitter....

, Walt Weiss

Walt Weiss

Walter William Weiss is a former shortstop in Major League Baseball.Weiss was a member of the National League All-Star Team...

, Todd Van Poppel

Todd Van Poppel

Todd Matthew Van Poppel is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Oakland Athletics , Detroit Tigers , Texas Rangers , Pittsburgh Pirates , Chicago Cubs , and Cincinnati Reds...

, Rick Honeycutt

Rick Honeycutt

Frederick Wayne "Rick" Honeycutt is the current pitching coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Honeycutt was a left-handed pitcher for 21 years from 1977 to 1997. He played with the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees, and the St. Louis Cardinals...

, Miguel Jiminez, Tom Romano

Tom Romano

Thomas Michael Romano is an American former Major League Baseball player. In 1983 Romano hit 24 home runs with a .320 average and 89 RBIs for the Albany-Colonie A's, the AA affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. An outfielder, Romano played for the Montreal Expos in .He attended Coastal Carolina...

, Steve Kiefer

Steve Kiefer

Steven George Kiefer is a former Major League Baseball third baseman. He played in parts of six seasons in the major leagues from until . Most of his career-best totals were set in while playing for the Milwaukee Brewers....

, Ron Coomer

Ron Coomer

Ronald "Coom Dawg" Coomer is a former first baseman and third baseman in Major League Baseball who had a 9-year career from to . He played for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers...

, Tommy John

Tommy John

Thomas Edward John Jr. is a former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball whose 288 career victories rank as the seventh highest total among left-handers in major league history...

 and Scott Brosius

Scott Brosius

Scott David Brosius is a former Major League Baseball third baseman for the Oakland Athletics and the New York Yankees . Brosius is currently the head baseball coach at Linfield College, his alma mater....

 are among former Muskies who have played at the major league level. The Muskies' original manager, Brad Fischer, is now the third base coach for the Milwaukee Brewers

Milwaukee Brewers

The Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

http://milwaukee.brewers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081104&content_id=3663692&vkey=news_mil&fext=.jsp&c_id=mil.

The debut Muskies team lost the Midwest League

Midwest League

The Midwest League is a Class-A minor league baseball league which operates in the Midwestern United States.-History:Six teams – the Belleville Stags, the Centralia Cubs, the Marion Indians, the Mattoon Indians or East Frankfort White Sox, the Mount Vernon Braves, and the West Frankfort...

 championship to the Appleton Foxes 2 games to 1. Romano, a Muskies outfielder, was the Midwest League Most Valuable Player in 1982.

The Muskies played their last home game in Madison against the Foxes in 1993. In a driving rainstorm, with Appleton leading 5-3 in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Foxes' pitcher slipped on the mound and his manager requested that the game be called. After a second slip, the umpire called the game, ending the Muskies' Madison tenure in anticlimactic fashion: Madison's final home game ended with one out in the bottom of the ninth, with the potential tying run coming to bat.

In 1993

1993 in sports

1993 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Marc Girardelli, Luxembourg** Women's overall season champion: Anita Wachter, Austria-American football:...

, the team relocated to Comstock Park, Michigan

Comstock Park, Michigan

Comstock Park is a prosperous suburban community in the northern part of Metropolitan Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States, that comprises parts of three neighboring townships:* Plainfield Township* Alpine Township* Algoma Township...

. It was renamed the West Michigan Whitecaps

West Michigan Whitecaps

The West Michigan Whitecaps are a Class A minor league baseball team, affiliated with the Detroit Tigers, that plays in the Midwest League. Their home games are played in Comstock Park, Michigan, a suburb of Grand Rapids.-Franchise history:...

 and has since become an affiliate of the Detroit Tigers

Detroit Tigers

The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...

.