Western League (1885–1900)

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Western League (1885–1899)
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Western League of Professional Baseball Clubs
Most recent season or competition:
1900
SportBaseball
FoundedFebruary 11, 1885
First season1885
Ceased1900
Replaced byAmerican League
CEOBan Johnson (1894–1900)
CountryUnited States
ContinentNorth America
Last
champion(s)
Chicago White Stockings
Most titlesIndianapolis (4)
Related
competitions
Western Association

The Western League was the name of several

minor league baseball leagues that operated between 1885 and 1900. These leagues were focused mainly in the Midwestern United States.[1]

The 1893 incarnation of the league hired Ban Johnson as president in 1894.[2] In 1900, Johnson renamed it the American League and declared that it was now a major league, intending to compete against the older National League of 1876, which was centered in the American Northeast states.

History

Before its incarnation in November 1893, the Western League existed in various forms. The League was formed as a minor league on February 11, 1885.

Omaha/Keokuk, Iowa.[5] The season began on April 18, 1885 with the Indianapolis Hoosiers winning the first title with a record of 27–4–1.[4] The league then folded on June 15, 1885.[6]

The league was reformed on January 18, 1886, to play an 80-game schedule.[1] Denver won the pennant on September 20, 1886 with a record of 54 wins and 26 losses.[7] In 1887, the league was dominated by Topeka's Golden Giants, a high-priced collection of major leaguers, including Bug Holliday, Jim Conway, Perry Werden and Jimmy Macullar, which won the title by 15½ games on October 2, 1887.[4] The league returned in February 1888, but dissolved after a partial season on June 21, 1888. Denver had finished first with a record of 18 wins and 6 losses.[8] The league was revived in 1892. Columbus won the title with a record of 46 wins and 26 losses. The league shut down on July 11, 1892.[9]

The league was revived on May 17, 1893 and had planned a schedule[10] before being shut down on June 20, 1893.[1]

Reorganization and conversion to American League

In a meeting in

Detroit, Michigan, on November 20, 1893, the Western League reorganized again. From this point forward, this version of the WL has continued in existence, eventually becoming the modern-day American League
.

In 1894,

Sioux City team and transferred it to Saint Paul, Minnesota
. These two men were among the cornerstones of the American League.

After the 1899 season, the National League announced it was dropping four of its franchises, reducing its membership from 12 to 8 teams. The franchises that were eliminated were

. This afforded an opportunity for the Western circuit to expand into those vacated cities.

In a meeting in

for the 1900 season.

After the 1900 season, the American League declined to renew its membership in the "National Agreement" and declared itself a "major league". It began raiding NL team rosters and attempting to compete directly against the NL. The franchises in the smaller cities of

Boston Braves to Milwaukee in 1952, the St. Louis Browns to Baltimore, becoming the new Baltimore Orioles in 1954, and the Philadelphia Athletics
to Kansas City in 1955.

The American League's claim to major league status was disputed, but had to be recognized after the Boston Red Sox defeated the NL champion Pittsburgh Pirates in the first World Series held in late 1903.

20th century Western League

When Ban Johnson changed his league's name to the American League before the 1900 season, another "Western League" was immediately formed to function on the supporting minor-league level.[1] This league operated from 1900 to 1937 and later from 1947 to 1958. Its franchises were located west of the Mississippi River, in the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains states, as in the early part of the 20th century it was difficult and time-consuming for teams to go on road trips to distant cities by the then-existing railroad passenger train systems.

In its post-World War II incarnation, the later Western League included clubs in

Omaha Royals, and Colorado Springs Sky Sox
, respectively).

Several other 20th century minor-league circuits have also used the same name.

Cities represented 1885–1888 1887, 1892

League members 1894–1900

Had transferred to St. Joseph, Missouri and Omaha, Nebraska in 1898, and Columbus, Ohio in 1899 before returning to Michigan in July 1899.

Pennant winners

* There were no seasons in 1889, 1890, 1891, and 1893

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Western League versus Western Association" (PDF), SABR Minor League Newsletter, June 2002, retrieved October 12, 2009
  2. ^ a b "What Every Fan Should Know: Ban Johnson and the Birth of the American League". At Home Plate. Archived from the original on June 17, 2008. Retrieved December 26, 2007.
  3. ^ "Baseball Chronology – 1885". TheBasebeballLibrary.com. Archived from the original on December 9, 2006. Retrieved October 12, 2009.
  4. ^ a b c Madden & Stewart 2002, p. [page needed].
  5. ^ "1885 Western League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  6. ^ Madden & Stewart 2002, p. 9.
  7. ^ Madden & Stewart 2002, p. 19.
  8. ^ Madden & Stewart 2002, p. 31.
  9. ^ Madden & Stewart 2002, p. 32.
  10. ^ "Scan of May 17, 1893 article from the Evening Kansan". The Evening Kansan. May 17, 1893. p. 1.
  11. ISBN 978-1932391176.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link
    )
  12. .
  13. ^ "The Official Site of Minor League Baseball | MiLB.com Homepage". MiLB.com.

Sources

  • The National League Story, Lee Allen, Putnam, 1961.
  • The American League Story, Lee Allen, Putnam, 1962.
  • On to Nicollet, Stew Thornley, Nodin Press, 1988.
  • Batter-Up!, Ross Bernstein, Nodin Press, 2002.
  • ProQuest Historical Newspapers
  • Total Baseball, 8th edition, John Thorn, Phil Birnbaum, Bill Deane, and Rob Neyer, SportClassic Press, 2004.
  • Madden, W.C; Stewart, Patrick J. (2002). The Western League: A Baseball History, 1885 through 1999. McFarland. .