CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- The Appalachian League announced the Burlington Sock Puppets as the 2025 Organization of the Year. The award is given to the club that exemplifies the standards of the complete baseball franchise based upon franchise stability, contributions to the league stability, contributions to baseball in the community and promotion of the baseball industry.
“We are incredibly honored to be named the 2025 Appalachian League Organization of the Year,” Burlington Sock Puppets president and general manager Anderson Rathbun said. “The hard work and dedication that our staff put in, along with the energy and support our community showed us this year was truly special and this recognition is a reflection of that.”
The Sock Puppets delivered record-breaking attendance numbers to Burlington Athletic Stadium in 2025. Burlington welcomed 47,504 fans over 23 games, a 19% increase from 2024 and their second highest attendance total as the Sock Puppets, behind only 2022 when the team played 29 home games. The Sock Puppets averaged 2,065 fans a game, their highest total since at least 2003. The club set a new franchise single-game attendance record with 4,711 fans on July 4.
The Sock Puppets have participated in or partnered with more than 100 community events by the end of July. Burlington has raised more than $15,000 in direct cash donations for nonprofit organizations this year, along with tens of thousands more in in-kind donations. Burlington partnered with the local school system for the Summer Reading Program where students were encouraged to read 90 minutes for each base and a total of 360 minutes for a home run. Students who completed the challenge celebrated at the Sock Puppets game on July 29. The Sock Puppets also released a children’s book written by a local third grader and served as a flagship venue for major Alamance County networking events.
The Sock Puppets have continued to grow their brand with creative, fan-focused marketing leading to strong digital growth. To date, the Sock Puppets have amassed 2.4 million Twitter/X impressions in 2025, 2.2 million video views and 297.4K accounts reached on Facebook, and 946.1K video views and 136.9K accounts reached on Instagram.
On the field, Burlington reached the playoffs for the fourth straight season, won 29 games and won the Appy League East Division for the third time in four years while contributing to baseball in the community. The Sock Puppets hosted two free youth baseball clinics this summer with more than 150 kids per event and continued their annual Little League Takeover night, where players attend and support local youth games.
The Sock Puppets also won the Organization of the Year in 2022.
About the Appalachian League
Founded in 1911, the Appalachian League is one of the longest-running baseball leagues in history. The Appy League is the only collegiate summer league under MLB and USA Baseball’s Prospect Development Pipeline (“PDP”) and is an integral part of the identification and development process for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Teams and other future National teams.
For more information about the Appalachian League, visit appyleague.com or follow @appyleague and @appyleaguedata on X, and @appyleague on Instagram.
