Interstate League
The Interstate League was the name of five different American minor baseball leagues that played intermittently from 1896 through 1952.
Early leagues[]
Earlier versions of the Interstate League, with years active:
- 1896–1901: an unclassified loop with teams in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, and West Virginia.
- 1905-08; 1914-16: a Class D league with clubs in Pennsylvania and New York.
- 1913: a Class C league operating in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
- 1932: a Class D circuit based in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
In addition, a Class C Interstate Association existed for one season, 1906, in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio.
1939–1952[]
Sport | Baseball |
---|---|
Founded | 1939 |
Inaugural season | 1939 |
Ceased | 1952 |
No. of teams | 4 (1939) 8 (1940–1941) (1946–1952) 6 (1942–1945) |
Country | ![]() |
Last champion(s) | Hagerstown Braves |
Most titles | Wilmington Blue Rocks (4) Lancaster Red Roses (4) |
Official website | None |
The longest tenured version of the Interstate League was the last incarnation, which played in the Middle Atlantic States from 1939 through 1952, and was one of the few mid-level minor leagues to operate continuously during the World War II period.
This circuit, which began as Class C and was upgraded to Class B in 1940, typically had teams in Allentown, Harrisburg, Lancaster and Sunbury, all in Pennsylvania; Hagerstown, Maryland; Trenton, New Jersey; and Wilmington, Delaware. Its final champion was the Hagerstown Braves, a Boston Braves affiliate. That season, the York White Roses led the league in attendance, attracting over 78,000 fans.
Cities/Teams/Years[]
Cities represented | Teams | Major League Affiliate | Year(s) |
---|---|---|---|
Allentown, Pennsylvania | Allentown Dukes | Boston Braves | 1939 |
Allentown Fleetwings | St. Louis Cardinals | 1940 | |
Allentown Wings | Philadelphia Phillies (1941) St. Louis Cardinals (1942–43) |
1941–43 | |
Allentown Cardinals | St. Louis Cardinals | 1944–52 | |
Bridgeport, Connecticut | Bridgeport Bees | Boston Braves | 1941 |
Hagerstown, Maryland | Hagerstown Owls | Detroit Tigers (1941–44) (1947–48) Chicago Cubs (1945–46) Washington Senators (1949) |
1941–49 |
Hagerstown Braves | Boston Braves | 1950–52 | |
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania | Harrisburg Senators | Pittsburgh Pirates (1941–42) Cleveland Indians (1946–51) Philadelphia Athletics (1952) |
1940–42, 1946–52 |
Hazleton, Pennsylvania | Hazleton Mountaineers | Unaffiliated | 1939–40 |
Lancaster, Pennsylvania | Lancaster Red Roses | Philadelphia Athletics (1944–47) Brooklyn Dodgers (1948–52) |
1940–52 |
Reading, Pennsylvania | Unaffiliated | 1940 | |
Reading Brooks | Brooklyn Dodgers | 1941 | |
Salisbury, Maryland | Philadelphia Athletics | 1951 | |
Salisbury Reds | Cincinnati Reds | 1952 | |
Sunbury, Pennsylvania | Sunbury Senators | Unaffiliated | 1939 |
Sunbury Indians | Unaffiliated | 1940 | |
Sunbury Yankees[1] | New York Yankees | 1946–47 | |
Sunbury Reds | Cincinnati Reds | 1948–49 | |
Sunbury Athletics | Philadelphia Athletics | 1950 | |
Sunbury Giants | New York Giants | 1951–52 | |
Trenton, New Jersey | Trenton Senators | Unaffiliated | 1939–41 |
Trenton Packers | Philadelphia Phillies (1942–43) Brooklyn Dodgers (1944) |
1942–44 | |
Trenton Spartans | Brooklyn Dodgers | 1945 | |
Trenton Giants | New York Giants | 1946–50 | |
Wilmington, Delaware | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Philadelphia Athletics (1940–43) Philadelphia Phillies (1944–52) |
1940–52 |
York, Pennsylvania | York Bees | Boston Braves | 1940 |
York White Roses | Pittsburgh Pirates (1943–50) St. Louis Browns (1952) |
1943–52 |
League champions[]
Season | Interstate League champion | Interstate League runner-up | Other postseason participants |
---|---|---|---|
1939 | Allentown Dukes | Sunbury Senators | Trenton Senators |
1940 | Lancaster Red Roses | Reading Chicks | Trenton Senators; Wilmington Blue Rocks |
1941 | Harrisburg Senators | Trenton Senators | Hagerstown Owls; Reading Brooks |
1942 | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Hagerstown Owls | Harrisburg Senators; Allentown Wings |
1943 | Lancaster Red Roses | York White Roses | Hagerstown Owls; Wilmington Blue Rocks |
1944 | Lancaster Red Roses | Allentown Cardinals | Wilmington Blue Rocks; York White Roses |
1945 | Lancaster Red Roses | Allentown Cardinals | Trenton Spartans; Wilmington Blue Rocks |
1946 | Harrisburg Senators | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Hagerstown Owls; Allentown Cardinals |
1947 | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Allentown Cardinals | Trenton Giants; Harrisburg Senators |
1948 | Trenton Giants | York White Roses | Wilmington Blue Rocks, Sunbury Reds |
1949 | Trenton Giants | Harrisburg Senators | Allentown Cardinals; Wilmington Blue Rocks |
1950 | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Hagerstown Braves | Harrisburg Senators; Trenton Giants |
1951 | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Sunbury Giants | Hagerstown Braves; Allentown Cardinals |
1952 | Hagerstown Braves | Lancaster Red Roses | York White Roses, Allentown Cardinals |
Individual records[]
Hitting[]
- Games: 142, Steve Flipowicz, Sunbury (1947)
- Batting Average: .428, Woody Wheaton, Hazelton (1939)
- At Bats: 593, Robert Mays, Hagerstown (1943)
- Runs: 128, Nellie Fox, Lancaster (1945)
128, Richard Burgett, Allentown (1946) - Hits: 220, George Kell, Lancaster (1943)
- Runs Batted In: 144, Edward Sanicki, Wilmington (1946)
- Doubles: 52, Bob Maier, Hagerstown (1943)
- Triples: 24, Harold Bamberger, Trenton (1947)
24, Charley Neal, Lancaster (1951) - Home Runs: 37, Edward Sanicki, Wilmington (1947)
- Extra Base Hits: 73, John Capra, Allentown (1944)
- Total Bases: 320, Del Ennis, Trenton (1943)
- Consecutive Game Hitting Streak: 22, Harold Nerino, Sunbury (1940)
22, Bill Cox, Harrisburg (1941)
22, Edward Nowak, Hagerstown (1945) - Sacrifices: 24, Harvey Johnson, Harrisburg (1941)
- Stolen Bases: 47, Joseph Schmidt, Wilmington (1946)
- Walks: 130, Guy Glaser, Wilmington (1945)
- Hit By Pitch: 23, Nellie Fox, Lancaster (1945)
- Struck Out: 123, Peyton Rambin, Trenton (1949)
Pitching[]
- Games: 49, George Eyrich, Wilmington (1948)
- Complete Games: 29, Charles Bowles, Lancaster (1943)
29, Norman Shope, York (1944) - Wins: 24, Daniel Lewandowski, Allentown (1951)
- Losses: 21, Wilson Emmerick, Allentown (1943)
- Best Percentage: .880 (22-3), Anderson Bush, Hagerstown (1951)
- Earned Run Average: 1.44, Royce Lint, Harrisburg (1942)
- Innings Pitched: 260, Charles Miller, Hagerstown (1943)
- Win Streak: 13, Woody Wheaton, Lancaster (1943)
- Shutouts: 7, John Burrows, Wilmington (1942),
- Strikeouts: 278, Andy Tomasic, Trenton (1947)
- Bases on Balls: 165, Dick Libby, Sunbury (1948)
- Wild Pitches: 19, Joseph Slotter, Hagerstown (1944)
No-hitters[]
Year | Date | Pitcher | Team | Opposition | Score | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1940 | July 2 | Don Kepler | Sunbury | York | 6-0 | 7 innings |
1942 | August 24 | Jack Casey | Trenton | Hagerstown | 2-3 | lost game |
1943 | July 1 | Steve Gerkin | Lancaster | Trenton | 4-0 | 7 innings |
1944 | June 25 | Hal Kelleher | Trenton | York | 6-0 | 7 innings |
1946 | June 10 | Whitey Konikowski | Trenton | Harrisburg | 4-0 | 7 innings |
1949 | May 7 | Tony West | Trenton | Westbury | 11-0 | |
1950 | June 11 | Joe Micciche | Trenton | Harrisburg | 9-0 | |
1950 | August 25 | Tony Segzda | York | Sunbury | 6-0 | |
1951 | April 28 | Keith Kelley | Lancaster | Wilmington | 10-0 | |
1951 | June 14 | William Minton | Salisbury | Harrisburg | 0-2 | lost game |
1951 | July 18 | Tom Casagrande | Wilimington | York | 0-1 | 11 innings; lost game |
1951 | July 28 | Ernest Nichols | Lancaster | Salisbury | 6-2 | |
1951 | August 20 | Tom Casagrande | Wilmington | Harrisburg | 4-0 | 7 innings |
1952 | June 5 | Bob Berresford | Harrisburg | Wilmington | 1-0 | |
1952 | August 6 | Doug Gostlin | Lancaster | Sunbury | 1-0 |
References[]
Further reading[]
- Johnson, Lloyd and Wolff, Miles, editors: Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball. Durham, North Carolina Publisher: Baseball America, 2007. Format: Hardback, 767 pp. ISBN 978-1-932391-17-6
- Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States
- Baseball leagues in Delaware
- Baseball leagues in Pennsylvania
- Baseball leagues in New Jersey
- Baseball leagues in Maryland
- Baseball leagues in Connecticut