New Hopes in Season Three
After two disappointing seasons on the field, the Boxcars move forward with optimism and solid fan supports
By Charles Jeffries / Photography by Bill Kamenjar
The Hagerstown Flying Boxcars soar into their third season with a new manager, a new schedule structure, and new hopes to shed the expansion team label and offer fans a competitive team in the Atlantic League.
The Boxcars struggled on the field their first two seasons, but local support has remained high, largely due to the excellent experience fans encounter at Meritus Park. As minor league ballparks go, Meritus ranks among the best, having been given the Atlantic League’s Ballpark of the Year award in both 2024 and 2025.
“Our goal from day one was to make Meritus Park feel like home to as many people as possible, whether they are baseball fans or not,” says Boxcars general manager David Blenckstone. “Our staff has done an amazing job of attracting many community events beyond baseball that positively impact the community. From high school and college baseball games, the Donut Drop, charity running events, and many more, the impact of a new downtown ballpark has been significant.”
But the team’s struggles on the field have been apparent. Last year, the Boxcars finished the first half at 14-49, 25 games behind the York Revolution in the North Division. They fared only marginally better in the second half, winning 17 games but finishing 23 games behind the Lancaster Stormers. Their overall 31-95 record was more than 40 games out of first place and 21 losses more than the next-worst team.
The Flying Boxcars scored the fewest runs (497) in the 10-team Atlantic League, a whopping 147 runs behind ninth-place Charleston Dirty Birds (644) and were one of only two teams to give up more than 800 runs (861).
Suffice it to say the 2026 version of the Boxcars needs improvement offensively and defensively. That task falls to new manager Mark Minicozzi, a five-year veteran of the Atlantic League. He managed the Charleston Dirty Birds in 2021, the Lexington, Kentucky team in 2022 and the Frederick Spire City team in 2023 before leading the Staten Island Ferry Hawks for the last two years.
“I’m beyond excited to join the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars,” Minicozzi said upon taking the job. “Having visited as an opponent, I’ve seen firsthand the beautiful ballpark, met so many incredible fans, and witnesses an organization that takes great pride everything it does on and off the field.”
Minicozzi’s right-hand-man will be bench coach Shane Turner, who stepped in last year mid-season to manage the team after Mark Mason was let go. Turner has three World Series rings (2010, 2012, and 2014) as a member of the San Francisco Giants front office. After being drafted by the New York Yankees in 1985, Shane spent time in the Major Leagues with the Phillies, Orioles, and Mariners.
“Mark knows Hagerstown and Meritus Park well, and he’s very excited about the opportunity to lead the Flying Boxcars,” Blenckstone says. “Potential players have heard great things about playing in Hagerstown, from the facility to the great fan base, so we are optimistic that our roster will be very competitive on ‘26.”
The Boxcars roster won’t be filled out until Major League spring training gets underway in March, but typically the quality of baseball across the league is high. More than 1,400 players from the league have gone on to play in the Major Leagues, and about 40 percent of players in the league have MLB experience.
Hagerstown will open its season away with a three-game set against the Long Island Ducks and then will come home for three games against the York Revolution. But then the league’s new schedule format kicks in and the rest of the season will be six-game series. The Boxcars will play at home Tuesday through Sunday against one team and then go away for a six-game series against another team.
“Our clubs favored six-game series due to the benefits of reduced travel and less player fatigue throughout the season,” says Atlantic League president Rick White.
With an expansive footprint, the Atlantic League reaches from Long Island to Kentucky and south into North Carolina. The new format will result in nearly 20 percent less travel for clubs in 2026.
“Each team will average about a 1,600-mile savings in travel next year,” White says.
The six-game home stands mean the weekly promotions will happen on a regular schedule. Tuesdays will feature LIFE Financial Baseball Bingo where fans match plays on the field to a bingo card and Homewood Living Williamsport Silver Slugger night. Wednesday is Hearty Pet Bark in the Park and CNB Bank Community Heroes Night. The return of the popular Central City Liquors Thirsty Thursdays with deals that include draft beer specials and Friday Fireworks will again be fan favorites. And the Friday pregame happy hour at the Mich Ultra Power Alley Pub returns.
On Saturdays and Sundays, the Boxcars will offer premium giveaways and appearances, with Sunday also boasting Sunday Funday promos like pregame catch on the field, players signing autographs, kids running the bases, and YMCA of Hagerstown Boxcar Buddy days. Boxcar Buddy plans are available to kids aged 12 and under and offer one ticket to each Sunday home game.
There will also be three Antietam Broadband weekends during which verified Antietam customers can purchase tickets to Sunday home games for $6.
“Our season ticket base and groups sales increased from 2024, so that was very telling,” Blenckstone says. “People enjoyed their ballpark experience year one and we were excited to come back year two. We look forward to building on that excitement this season.”