The Eastern Association was a minor league baseball league. The first version of the league appeared in 1882, followed by similar one season leagues in 1891 and 1909 with teams in Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. The league was a Class B level league in the 1913 and 1914 seasons, with teams based in Connecticut and Massachusetts.
| Formerly | Connecticut League |
|---|---|
| Classification | Class A (1891) Class D (1909) Class B (1913-1914) |
| Sport | Minor League Baseball |
| First season | 1891 |
| Ceased | 1914 |
| President | Charles D. White (1891) Fred Paige (1909) Jim O'Rourke (1913-1914) |
| No. of teams | 25 |
| Country | United States of America |
| Last champion(s) | Unknown |
| Most titles | 1 Buffalo Bisons (1891) Newburgh Colts (1909) Hartford Senators (1913) New London Planters (1914) |
| Related competitions | Eastern League |
History
editThe 1891 Eastern Association played as a Class A level league and the president was Charles D. White. the 1891 league members were the Albany Senators, Buffalo Bisons, Lebanon Cedars, New Haven Nutmegs, Providence Clamdiggers, Rochester Hop Bitters, Syracuse Stars and Troy Trojans.[1][2][3]
In 1909, the Eastern Association played for eleven days before folding under league president Jim Paige. The 1909 league comprised Amsterdam, Gloversville, Johnstown, Kingston Colonials, Middletown Orange Blossoms, Newburgh Colts, Poughkeepsie Students and Schenectady.[4]
The 1913 Eastern Association was an eight-team league that featured the Bridgeport Crossmen, Hartford Senators, Holyoke Papermakers, Meriden Hopes, New Haven White Wings, New London Planters, Pittsfield Electrics, Springfield Ponies and Waterbury Contenders. The league president was Baseball Hall of Fame member Jim O'Rourke. The Holyoke Papermakers moved to Meriden on July 11, 1913.[5][1][4][6]
In their final season of play, the 1914 Eastern Association was an eight-team league, as Jim O'Rourke continued as president. The 1914 Eastern Association comprised the Bridgeport Crossmen, Hartford Senators, New Britain Sinks, New Haven White Wings, New London Planters, Pittsfield Electrics, Springfield Ponies and Waterbury Contenders.[1][7][4][8]
Cities represented
edit- Albany, New York: Albany Senators 1891
- Amsterdam, New York: Amsterdam 1909
- Bridgeport, Connecticut: Bridgeport Crossmen 1913; Bridgeport Bolts 1914
- Buffalo, New York: Buffalo Bisons 1891
- Gloversville, New York: Gloversville 1909
- Hartford, Connecticut: Hartford Senators 1913–1914
- Holyoke, Massachusetts: Holyoke Papermakers 1913
- Johnstown, New York: Johnstown 1909
- Kingston, New York: Kingston Colonials 1909
- Lebanon, Pennsylvania: Lebanon Cedars 1891
- Meriden, Connecticut: Meriden Hopes 1913
- Middletown, New York: Middletown Orange Blossoms 1909
- New Britain, Connecticut: New Britain Sinks 1914
- New Haven, Connecticut: New Haven Nutmegs 1891; New Haven White Wings 1913–1914
- New London, Connecticut: New London Planters 1913–1914
- Newburgh, New York: Newburgh Colts 1909
- Pittsfield, Massachusetts: Pittsfield Electrics 1913–1914
- Poughkeepsie, New York: Poughkeepsie Students 1909
- Providence, Rhode Island: Providence Clamdiggers 1891
- Rochester, New York: Rochester Hop Bitters 1891
- Schenectady, New York: Schenectady Electricians 1909
- Springfield, Massachusetts: Springfield Ponies 1913–1914
- Syracuse, New York: Syracuse Stars 1891
- Troy, New York: Troy Trojans 1891
- Waterbury, Connecticut: Waterbury Contenders 1913; Waterbury Frolickers 1914
Standings & statistics
edit1891 Eastern Association
edit| Team | W | L | GB | Pct. | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Bisons | 89 | 35 | .718 | – | Patrick Powers |
| Albany Senators | 72 | 49 | .595 | 15.5 | Joe Gerhardt |
| Troy Trojans | 51 | 77 | .398 | 36.5 | David Mahoney |
| Lebanon Cedars | 48 | 73 | .397 | 37.0 | James Randall |
| Syracuse Stars | 56 | 42 | .571 | NA | George Frazer |
| New Haven Nutmegs | 48 | 39 | .552 | NA | Walt Burnham |
| Rochester Hop Bitters | 36 | 60 | .375 | NA | Tom Power / Lew Kerstein |
| Providence Clamdiggers | 29 | 54 | .349 | NA | Bill McGunnigle |
Providence disbanded August 13; New Haven disbanded August 14; Syracuse & Rochester disbanded August 25.[4]
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buck West | Syracuse | BA | .339 | Les German | Buffalo | W | 35 | |
| Ted Scheffler | Buffalo | Runs | 156 | Tony Von Fricken | Albany | SO | 197 | |
| Harry Lyons | Buffalo | Hits | 166 | L.A. Gilliland | New Haven | ERA | 0.89 | |
| Dan Lally | New Haven | HR | 5 | Les German | Buffalo | PCT | .761; 35–11 | |
| Pete Sweeney | Rochester | HR | 5 | |||||
| Art Bader | Albany | SB | 106 |
1909 Eastern Association
edit| Team | W | L | GB | Pct. | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newburgh Colts | 8 | 2 | .800 | – | William Landgraf |
| Amsterdam | 5 | 3 | .625 | 2.0 | NA |
| Johnstown | 4 | 3 | .571 | 2.5 | NA |
| Kingston Colonials | 4 | 3 | .571 | 2.5 | Hugh MacKinnon |
| Gloversville | 4 | 5 | .444 | 3.5 | Jacob Leist |
| Middletown Orange Blossoms | 2 | 6 | .250 | 5.0 | William K. Murray |
| Poughkeepsie Students | NA | NA | NA | NA | Fred Paige |
| Schenectady Electricians | NA | NA | NA | NA | Joseph Andries |
Poughkeepsie and Schenectady disbanded June 1
The league folded after eleven days on June 6.[4]
1913 Eastern Association
edit| Team | W | L | GB | Pct. | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford Senators | 83 | 48 | .634 | – | Simon McDonald |
| New Haven White Wings | 79 | 52 | .603 | 4.0 | Jerry O'Connell |
| Waterbury Contenders | 70 | 61 | .534 | 13.0 | Sam Kennedy |
| Bridgeport Crossmen | 69 | 63 | .523 | 14.5 | Gene McCann / John Freeman / Monte Cross |
| New London Planters | 65 | 66 | .496 | 18.0 | John Burns / Gene McCann |
| Springfield Ponies | 60 | 70 | .462 | 22.5 | Frank Corridon / Jack O'Hara |
| Pittsfield Electrics | 62 | 73 | .459 | 23.0 | John Zeller |
| Holyoke Papermakers / Meriden Hopes |
40 | 95 | .296 | 45.0 | Jim Garry |
Holyoke (24–52) moved to Meriden July 11.[4]
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benny Kauff | Hartford | BA | .345 | Bill Hopper | New Haven | W | 31 | |
| Bill Morley | Hartford | Runs | 103 | Wib Smith | Pittsfield | SO | 175 | |
| Benny Kauff | Hartford | Hits | 176 | Bill Hopper | New Haven | ERA | 2.03 | |
| Tom Stankard | Holy/Mer/Sprin | HR | 8 | Bill Hopper | New Haven | PCT | .795 31–8 |
1914 Eastern Association
edit| Team | W | L | GB | Pct. | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New London Planters | 81 | 35 | .698 | – | Gene McCann |
| Waterbury Frolickers | 69 | 51 | .575 | 14.0 | Lee Fohl |
| Bridgeport Bolts | 67 | 56 | .545 | 17.5 | Jake Boultes |
| Hartford Senators | 62 | 56 | .525 | 20.0 | Simon McDonald / Daniel O'Neill |
| Springfield Ponies | 63 | 61 | .508 | 22.0 | Billy Hamilton / Simon McDonald |
| Pittsfield Electrics | 60 | 63 | .488 | 24.5 | John Zeller |
| New Haven White Wings | 54 | 64 | .458 | 28.0 | Jerry O'Connell |
| New Britain Sinks | 27 | 97 | .218 | 58.0 | George Browne / Jim Garry |
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elmer Smith | Waterbury | BA | .332 | Willie Jensen | New Haven | W | 21 | |
| Marty Becker | New London | Runs | 90 | Bun Troy | Pittsfield | SO | 212 | |
| Ed Barney | Hartford | Hits | 140 | Doc Powers | New Haven | ERA | 2.03 | |
| Pete Shields | Waterbury | HR | 7 | Doc Powers | New Haven | PCT | .769 20–6 |
References
edit- ^ a b c "Eastern Association (B) Encyclopedia and History". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "1891 Eastern Association". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "1891 Eastern Association (EA) on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lloyd Johnson; Miles Wolff, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 978-1932391176.
- ^ "1913 Eastern Association". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "1913 Eastern Association (EA) on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
- ^ "1914 Eastern Association". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "1914 Eastern Association (EA) on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.