Arkansas Travelers

The Arkansas Travelers are the Double-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, playing in the Texas League at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock, Arkansas. One of the most storied franchises in minor league baseball, the Travelers have been fielding teams in the Little Rock area since 1901, making them a charter member of the old Southern Association and one of the longest continuously operating teams in the minors. The franchise has survived world wars, the Great Depression, and multiple league reorganizations, enduring as a bedrock of Arkansas sports culture.

Dickey-Stephens Park, which opened in 2007, is named in honor of Bill Dickey and George "Dizzy" Stephens—two baseball legends with deep Arkansas ties. Dickey, a Hall of Fame catcher for the New York Yankees, played for the Little Rock Travelers in 1925. The ballpark sits along the banks of the Arkansas River with views of the Little Rock skyline, providing one of the most scenic settings in minor league baseball.

The Travelers' alumni list reads like a Baseball Hall of Fame tour. Tris Speaker, Bill Dickey, Jim Bunning, Ferguson Jenkins, Keith Hernandez, and Dick Allen all wore Travelers uniforms at various points in their careers. In the modern era, the team has been affiliated with the Mariners since 2017, serving as a critical development stop for Seattle's top prospects. Julio Rodriguez, George Kirby, and Logan Gilbert are among recent Mariners stars who passed through North Little Rock.

After 64 years of community ownership through Arkansas Travelers Baseball, Inc.—a unique structure where fans owned stock at $5 per share—the franchise was sold to Diamond Baseball Holdings in 2024. The sale brought institutional resources to the franchise while preserving its front office leadership and deep community connections.