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Lafayette, Indiana minor league baseball history

Minor league baseball teams were based in Lafayette, Indiana in various seasons between 1909 and 1994. Lafayette teams played as members of the Northern State of Indiana League from 1909 to 1911, the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League in 1955, the Midwest League in 1956 and 1957 and 1994 Great Central League, winning two league championships. Lafayette was a minor league affiliate of the Cleveland Indians in 1955 and Boston Red Sox in 1956 and 1957.

Lafayette, Indiana
minor league baseball teams
Minor league affiliations
ClassClass D (1909–1911, 1955–1957)
Inddpendent (1994)
LeagueNorthern State of Indiana League (1909–1911)
Mississippi–Ohio Valley League (1955)
Midwest League (1956–1957)
Great Central League (1994)
Major league affiliations
TeamCleveland Indians (1955)
Boston Red Sox (1956–1957)
Minor league titles
League titles (2)
  • 1909
  • 1994
Wild card berths (1)1956
Team data
NameLafayette Maroons (1909)
Lafayette Farmers (1910–1911)
Lafayette Chiefs (1955)
Lafayette Red Sox (1956–1957)
Lafayette Leopards (1994)
BallparkLoeb Stadium (1955–1957)

History edit

Lafayette, Indiana first hosted minor league baseball with the 1909 Lafayette Maroons. The Lafayette Maroons were members of the six–team Class D level Northern State of Indiana League. The Maroons finished as co–league champions in their first season. The Bluffton Babes, Huntington Johnnies, Kokomo Wild Cats, Marion Boosters and Wabash Whitecaps joined Lafayette in league play. The Maroons finished the 1909 season with a record of 66–39, playing under manager Pete Driver. The Bluffton Babes with a 65–38 (.631) record and the Lafayette Maroons with a 66–39 record (.629) tied for first place in the standings, as no playoffs were held. The teams finished 6.0 games ahead of the third place Huntington Johnnies in the final standings.[1][2][3]

Continuing play in 1910, the Lafayette Farmers placed third in the Northern State of Indiana League final standings after the league realigned during the season.[4][5] The Farmers finished the season with a 39–30 record under managers Fred Payne and Carl Cominger. In 1910, the Northern State of Indiana League began the season with four teams. On July 2, 1910, the Bluffton Babes and Marion Booster franchises joined league play and games played prior to July 1, 1910, were not counted in the standings. The Wabash Rockeries won the league championship with a 46–25 record, finishing 3.5 games ahead of the second place Bluffton Babes and 6.0 games ahead of the third place Lafayette Farmers.[6][7][8][3]

The Lafayette Farmers continued play in 1911, as the Northern State of Indiana League folded during the season. Lafayette was in fourth place when the 1911 Northern State of Indiana League folded during the season. On July 29, 1911, the Farmers had a record of 28–37 under Carl Cominger when the league permanently folded. Lafayette finished 13.0 games behind the first place Marion Boosters in the final standings.[9][10][3]

Minor league play next returned to Lafayette, Indiana in 1955. The 1955 the Lafayette Chiefs began play in the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League, playing as an affiliate of the Cleveland Indians.[11] The Lafayette Chiefs became members of the eight–team Class D level Mississippi–Ohio Valley League, joining the Clinton Pirates, Decatur Commodores, Dubuque Packers, Hannibal Citizens, Kokomo Giants, Mattoon Indians and Paris Lakers in league play. The Chiefs ended the season with a 63–63 record, finishing in fifth place, playing the season under manager Mark Wylie and finishing 11.0 games behind the first place Dubuque Packers. Lafayette had home attendance of 61,287 fans for the season.[12][13][3]

In 1956, Lafayette qualified for the playoffs in a newly named league. Layafette became an affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, adopting the corresponding Lafayette Red Sox nickname.[14] The franchise remained a member as the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League changed its league name to become the Midwest League, which continued play as a Class D level league. The Clinton Pirates, Decatur Commodores, Dubuque Packers, Kokomo Dodgers, Mattoon Phillies, Michigan City White Caps and Paris Lakers were the other Midwest League charter members. The Lafayette Red Sox placed second in the initial Midwest League standings with a 69–56 record, playing under manager Len Okrie. In the playoffs, the Red Sox were defeated in the firsrst round of the four–team playoff by the eventual champion Paris Lakers 2 games to 0. Lafayette had total season attendance of 42,821.[15][16][3]

In their final season of play, the 1957 Lafayette Red Sox did not qualify for the Midwest League playoffs. Lafayette ended the season with a 55–67 record, under manager Ken Deal, placing sixth in the final standings and finishing 19.0 games behind the first place Kokomo Dodgers. The franchise drew 32,667 at home for the season.[17][18][3]

After the 1957 season, the Lafayette franchise moved to Waterloo, Iowa and became the Waterloo Hawks, playing in the 1958 Midwest League. The franchise is still in existence, having evolved into today's Lansing Lugnuts.[19][3]

Lafayette, Indiana was without minor league baseball until the 1994 Lafayette Leopards played as members of the Independent level Great Central League which folded during the 1994 season. Lafayette was in first place with a 44–24 record when the league folded.[20]

The ballpark edit

Starting in 1955, Lafayette teams reportedly played minor league home games at Loeb Stadium. The ballpark was known as "Colombian Park" until 1971. Built in 1937, the ballpark had a capacity of 5,000 in 1955 and 3,200 in 1997, with dimensions (Left, Center, Right) of 322–415–333.[21][22] The stadium was demolished in 2019, with a new ballpark opening on the site in 2021.[23]

From 1943 to 1945, Colombian Park was the Spring Training site of the Cleveland Indians. In this era, teams held spring training at cities in their region because of restrictions in place due to World War II.[24][25]

Timeline edit

Year(s) # Yrs. Team Level League Affiliate
1909 1 Lafayette Maroons Class D Northern State of Indiana League None
1910–1911 2 Lafayette Farmers
1955 1 Lafayette Chiefs Mississippi-Ohio Valley League Cleveland Indians
1956–1957 2 Lafayette Red Sox Midwest League Boston Red Sox
1994 1 Layayette Leopards Independent Great Central League None

Year–by–year records edit

Year Record Finish Manager Playoffs/Notes
1909 66–39 1st (tied) Pete Driver League Co-Champions
1910 39–30 3rd Fred Payne / Carl Cominger None held
1911 28–37 5th Carl Cominger League folded July 29
1955 63–63 5th Mark Wylie Did not qualify
1956 69–56 2nd Len Okrie Lost in 1st round
1957 55–67 6th Ken Deal Did not qualify
1957 44–24 1st Jim Gonzales League champions

Notable alumni edit

See also edit

Lafayette Red Sox players

References edit

  1. ^ "1909 Lafayette Maroons minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  2. ^ "1909 Lafayette Wets Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 978-1932391176.
  4. ^ "1910 Northern State of Indiana League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  5. ^ "1910 Northern State of Indiana League (NSIL) Standings on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  6. ^ "1910 Northern State of Indiana League schedule". The Huntington Herald. 1910-07-07. p. 4. Retrieved 2022-07-15.
  7. ^ "1910 Lafayette Farmers minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  8. ^ "1910 Lafayette Farmers Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  9. ^ "1911 Lafayette Farmers minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  10. ^ "1911 Lafayette Farmers Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  11. ^ "Lafayette, Indiana Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  12. ^ "1955 Lafayette Chiefs Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  13. ^ "1955 Mississippi-Ohio Valley League (MOVL) on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  14. ^ "1956 Lafayette Red Sox Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  15. ^ "1956 Midwest League (MWL) on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  16. ^ "1956 Midwest League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  17. ^ "1957 Lafayette Red Sox Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  18. ^ "1957 Lafayette Red Sox Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  19. ^ "Baseball in Lafayette, Indiana". Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  20. ^ "1994 Lafayette Leopards Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  21. ^ "Minor league baseball at Columbian Park in Lafayette, IN on StatsCrew.com". StatsCrew.com. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  22. ^ Kriebel, Bob (June 10, 2016). "Stadium puts Lafayette Red Sox on baseball map". Journal & Courier. Lafayette, Indiana. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  23. ^ "American Structurepoint Celebrates Loeb Stadium Dedication" (Press release). American Structurepoint. April 1, 2021. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  24. ^ "Cleveland Indians Spring Training". Spring Training Online. August Publications. Retrieved February 28, 2020. Lafayette, Ind. (1943-1945)
  25. ^ Kriebel, Bob (February 5, 2017). "Wartime travel restrictions landed Indians in Greater Lafayette for spring training". Journal & Courier. Lafayette, Indiana. Retrieved February 28, 2020.

External links edit

  • Lafayette - Baseball Reference

lafayette, indiana, minor, league, baseball, history, minor, league, baseball, teams, were, based, lafayette, indiana, various, seasons, between, 1909, 1994, lafayette, teams, played, members, northern, state, indiana, league, from, 1909, 1911, mississippi, oh. Minor league baseball teams were based in Lafayette Indiana in various seasons between 1909 and 1994 Lafayette teams played as members of the Northern State of Indiana League from 1909 to 1911 the Mississippi Ohio Valley League in 1955 the Midwest League in 1956 and 1957 and 1994 Great Central League winning two league championships Lafayette was a minor league affiliate of the Cleveland Indians in 1955 and Boston Red Sox in 1956 and 1957 Lafayette Indianaminor league baseball teams1909 1994 1909 1911 1955 1957 1994 Lafayette IndianaMinor league affiliationsClassClass D 1909 1911 1955 1957 Inddpendent 1994 LeagueNorthern State of Indiana League 1909 1911 Mississippi Ohio Valley League 1955 Midwest League 1956 1957 Great Central League 1994 Major league affiliationsTeamCleveland Indians 1955 Boston Red Sox 1956 1957 Minor league titlesLeague titles 2 19091994Wild card berths 1 1956Team dataNameLafayette Maroons 1909 Lafayette Farmers 1910 1911 Lafayette Chiefs 1955 Lafayette Red Sox 1956 1957 Lafayette Leopards 1994 BallparkLoeb Stadium 1955 1957 Contents 1 History 2 The ballpark 3 Timeline 4 Year by year records 5 Notable alumni 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksHistory editLafayette Indiana first hosted minor league baseball with the 1909 Lafayette Maroons The Lafayette Maroons were members of the six team Class D level Northern State of Indiana League The Maroons finished as co league champions in their first season The Bluffton Babes Huntington Johnnies Kokomo Wild Cats Marion Boosters and Wabash Whitecaps joined Lafayette in league play The Maroons finished the 1909 season with a record of 66 39 playing under manager Pete Driver The Bluffton Babes with a 65 38 631 record and the Lafayette Maroons with a 66 39 record 629 tied for first place in the standings as no playoffs were held The teams finished 6 0 games ahead of the third place Huntington Johnnies in the final standings 1 2 3 Continuing play in 1910 the Lafayette Farmers placed third in the Northern State of Indiana League final standings after the league realigned during the season 4 5 The Farmers finished the season with a 39 30 record under managers Fred Payne and Carl Cominger In 1910 the Northern State of Indiana League began the season with four teams On July 2 1910 the Bluffton Babes and Marion Booster franchises joined league play and games played prior to July 1 1910 were not counted in the standings The Wabash Rockeries won the league championship with a 46 25 record finishing 3 5 games ahead of the second place Bluffton Babes and 6 0 games ahead of the third place Lafayette Farmers 6 7 8 3 The Lafayette Farmers continued play in 1911 as the Northern State of Indiana League folded during the season Lafayette was in fourth place when the 1911 Northern State of Indiana League folded during the season On July 29 1911 the Farmers had a record of 28 37 under Carl Cominger when the league permanently folded Lafayette finished 13 0 games behind the first place Marion Boosters in the final standings 9 10 3 Minor league play next returned to Lafayette Indiana in 1955 The 1955 the Lafayette Chiefs began play in the Mississippi Ohio Valley League playing as an affiliate of the Cleveland Indians 11 The Lafayette Chiefs became members of the eight team Class D level Mississippi Ohio Valley League joining the Clinton Pirates Decatur Commodores Dubuque Packers Hannibal Citizens Kokomo Giants Mattoon Indians and Paris Lakers in league play The Chiefs ended the season with a 63 63 record finishing in fifth place playing the season under manager Mark Wylie and finishing 11 0 games behind the first place Dubuque Packers Lafayette had home attendance of 61 287 fans for the season 12 13 3 In 1956 Lafayette qualified for the playoffs in a newly named league Layafette became an affiliate of the Boston Red Sox adopting the corresponding Lafayette Red Sox nickname 14 The franchise remained a member as the Mississippi Ohio Valley League changed its league name to become the Midwest League which continued play as a Class D level league The Clinton Pirates Decatur Commodores Dubuque Packers Kokomo Dodgers Mattoon Phillies Michigan City White Caps and Paris Lakers were the other Midwest League charter members The Lafayette Red Sox placed second in the initial Midwest League standings with a 69 56 record playing under manager Len Okrie In the playoffs the Red Sox were defeated in the firsrst round of the four team playoff by the eventual champion Paris Lakers 2 games to 0 Lafayette had total season attendance of 42 821 15 16 3 In their final season of play the 1957 Lafayette Red Sox did not qualify for the Midwest League playoffs Lafayette ended the season with a 55 67 record under manager Ken Deal placing sixth in the final standings and finishing 19 0 games behind the first place Kokomo Dodgers The franchise drew 32 667 at home for the season 17 18 3 After the 1957 season the Lafayette franchise moved to Waterloo Iowa and became the Waterloo Hawks playing in the 1958 Midwest League The franchise is still in existence having evolved into today s Lansing Lugnuts 19 3 Lafayette Indiana was without minor league baseball until the 1994 Lafayette Leopards played as members of the Independent level Great Central League which folded during the 1994 season Lafayette was in first place with a 44 24 record when the league folded 20 The ballpark editStarting in 1955 Lafayette teams reportedly played minor league home games at Loeb Stadium The ballpark was known as Colombian Park until 1971 Built in 1937 the ballpark had a capacity of 5 000 in 1955 and 3 200 in 1997 with dimensions Left Center Right of 322 415 333 21 22 The stadium was demolished in 2019 with a new ballpark opening on the site in 2021 23 From 1943 to 1945 Colombian Park was the Spring Training site of the Cleveland Indians In this era teams held spring training at cities in their region because of restrictions in place due to World War II 24 25 Timeline editYear s Yrs Team Level League Affiliate1909 1 Lafayette Maroons Class D Northern State of Indiana League None1910 1911 2 Lafayette Farmers1955 1 Lafayette Chiefs Mississippi Ohio Valley League Cleveland Indians1956 1957 2 Lafayette Red Sox Midwest League Boston Red Sox1994 1 Layayette Leopards Independent Great Central League NoneYear by year records editYear Record Finish Manager Playoffs Notes1909 66 39 1st tied Pete Driver League Co Champions1910 39 30 3rd Fred Payne Carl Cominger None held1911 28 37 5th Carl Cominger League folded July 291955 63 63 5th Mark Wylie Did not qualify1956 69 56 2nd Len Okrie Lost in 1st round1957 55 67 6th Ken Deal Did not qualify1957 44 24 1st Jim Gonzales League championsNotable alumni editKen Deal 1957 MGR Russ Gibson 1957 Carl Mathias 1955 Len Okrie 1957 MGR Fred Payne 1910 MGR Jay Ritchie 1956 Tracy Stallard 1956 1957 Surrendered Roger Maris 61 Home Run 1961See also editLafayette Red Sox playersReferences edit 1909 Lafayette Maroons minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1909 Lafayette Wets Statistics Baseball Reference com a b c d e f g Johnson Lloyd Wolff Miles eds 2007 The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball Third ed Baseball America ISBN 978 1932391176 1910 Northern State of Indiana League Baseball Reference com 1910 Northern State of Indiana League NSIL Standings on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1910 Northern State of Indiana League schedule The Huntington Herald 1910 07 07 p 4 Retrieved 2022 07 15 1910 Lafayette Farmers minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1910 Lafayette Farmers Statistics Baseball Reference com 1911 Lafayette Farmers minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1911 Lafayette Farmers Statistics Baseball Reference com Lafayette Indiana Encyclopedia Baseball Reference com Sports Reference LLC Retrieved July 3 2018 1955 Lafayette Chiefs Roster on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1955 Mississippi Ohio Valley League MOVL on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1956 Lafayette Red Sox Roster on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1956 Midwest League MWL on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1956 Midwest League Baseball Reference com 1957 Lafayette Red Sox Roster on StatsCrew com www statscrew com 1957 Lafayette Red Sox Statistics Baseball Reference com Baseball in Lafayette Indiana Retrieved July 3 2018 1994 Lafayette Leopards Statistics Baseball Reference com Minor league baseball at Columbian Park in Lafayette IN on StatsCrew com StatsCrew com Retrieved September 8 2021 Kriebel Bob June 10 2016 Stadium puts Lafayette Red Sox on baseball map Journal amp Courier Lafayette Indiana Retrieved September 8 2021 American Structurepoint Celebrates Loeb Stadium Dedication Press release American Structurepoint April 1 2021 Retrieved September 8 2021 Cleveland Indians Spring Training Spring Training Online August Publications Retrieved February 28 2020 Lafayette Ind 1943 1945 Kriebel Bob February 5 2017 Wartime travel restrictions landed Indians in Greater Lafayette for spring training Journal amp Courier Lafayette Indiana Retrieved February 28 2020 External links editLafayette Baseball Reference Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Lafayette Indiana minor league baseball history amp oldid 1151205767, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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