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Texas League
File:Texasleague.png
Texas League logo
SportBaseball
Founded1902
No. of teams8
Country(ies)USA
Most recent champion(s)Tulsa Drillers (2018)
Most titlesHouston Buffaloes (16)
Official websiteOfficial website

The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which operates in the South Central United States. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its four South Division teams are actually based in Texas; the four North Division teams are located in surrounding states of Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri. The league maintains its headquarters in San Antonio.

The league was founded in 1888 and ran through 1892. It was called the Texas Association in 1895, the Texas-Southern League in 1896 and again as the Texas League from 1897–1899. It was revived as a Class D league in 1902, moved to Class C in 1904 where it played through 1910 (except for 1906 as Class D again), played at Class B until 1920, and finally moved up to Class A in 1921. The Texas League, like many others, shut down during World War II. From 1959 to 1961, the Texas League and the Mexican League formed the Pan American Association. The two leagues played a limited interlocking schedule and post-season championship. By 1971, the Texas League and the Southern League had both decreased to seven teams. They played an interlocking schedule with the Southern League known as the Dixie Association. The two leagues played separate playoffs.

The League's name is well known due to its association with a particular aspect of the game. A bloop single that drops between the infielders and outfielders has been called a Texas Leaguer since the 1890s, despite no evidence that it originated in the Texas League, or was any more common there than elsewhere.[1] There is a common thread throughout Civil War anecdotes that refer to a game played 30 years earlier in the Sabine Pass area. As the story goes, a Union soldier hit a ball over the outfielder's head, leading him into a long chase for the ball which resulted in a bullet wound from a nearby sniper. After the incident, hits were only awarded for balls that landed between the infielders and outfielders.[citation needed]

Team moves[]

In recent years, the Texas League has witnessed a great deal of change. Teams once known as the Jackson Mets, El Paso Diablos, Shreveport Captains, and Wichita Wranglers have all relocated to new cities and bigger stadiums.

In 2019, the San Antonio Missions relocated to Amarillo, Texas, becoming the Amarillo Sod Poodles. At the same time, the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the Pacific Coast League moved to San Antonio to continue on as the Missions at the Triple-A level.[2]

Current teams[]

File:Texas League map.png

Current team locations:

  North Division
  South Division

Division Team MLB Affiliation City Stadium Capacity
North Arkansas Travelers Seattle Mariners North Little Rock, Arkansas Dickey–Stephens Park 7,200[3]
Northwest Arkansas Naturals Kansas City Royals Springdale, Arkansas Arvest Ballpark 7,305[4]
Springfield Cardinals St. Louis Cardinals Springfield, Missouri Hammons Field 10,486[5]
Tulsa Drillers Los Angeles Dodgers Tulsa, Oklahoma ONEOK Field 7,833[6]
South Amarillo Sod Poodles San Diego Padres Amarillo, Texas Hodgetown 6,631[7]
Corpus Christi Hooks Houston Astros Corpus Christi, Texas Whataburger Field 7,050[8]
Frisco RoughRiders Texas Rangers Frisco, Texas Dr Pepper Ballpark 10,316[9]
Midland RockHounds Oakland Athletics Midland, Texas Security Bank Ballpark 6,669[10]

Current team rosters[]

Texas League timeline[]

League members Dixie Association Other Current League Other Defunct League

  • In 1971, the Southern League and Texas League were each down to seven teams, so they formed the Dixie Association for one season. They played interlocking schedules but held their own separate playoffs.

Complete list of Texas League teams (1902–present)[]

Current team names are in bold.

  • Albuquerque Dodgers
  • Albuquerque Dukes
  • Alexandria Aces
  • Amarillo Giants
  • Amarillo Gold Sox
  • Amarillo Sonics
  • Amarillo Sod Poodles
  • Ardmore Rosebuds
  • Ardmore Territorians
  • Arkansas Travelers
  • Austin Braves
  • Austin Senators
  • Beaumont Exporters
  • Beaumont Golden Gators
  • Beaumont Millionaires
  • Beaumont Oil Gushers
  • Beaumont Oilers
  • Beaumont Roughnecks
  • Brenham Orphans
  • Cleburne Railroaders
  • Corpus Christi Giants
  • Corpus Christi Hooks
  • Corsicana Oil Citys
  • Corsicana Oilers
  • Dallas Eagles
  • Dallas Giants
  • Dallas Griffins
  • Dallas Marines
  • Dallas Rangers
  • Dallas Rebels
  • Dallas Steers
  • Dallas Submarines
  • Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs
  • El Paso Diablos
  • El Paso Sun Dodgers
  • El Paso Sun Kings

  • Fort Worth Cats
  • Fort Worth Panthers
  • Fort Worth Spurs
  • Frisco RoughRiders
  • Galveston Buccaneers
  • Galveston Crabs
  • Galveston Pirates
  • Galveston Sand Crabs
  • Greenville Hunters
  • Houston Buffaloes
  • Jackson Astros
  • Jackson Mets
  • Jackson Soldiers
  • Lafayette Drillers
  • Lamesa Dodgers
  • Lamesa Lobos
  • Longview Cannibals
  • Lubbock Cubs
  • Lubbock Longhorns
  • Lubbock Panhandlers
  • Lufkin Circles
  • Memphis Blues
  • Midland Angels
  • Midland Cubs
  • Midland RockHounds
  • Northwest Arkansas Naturals
  • Oklahoma City Indians
  • Oklahoma City Mets
  • Paris Eisenfelder's Homeseekers
  • Paris Parisites
  • Pueblo Coloradans
  • Rio Grande Valley Giants
  • Round Rock Express

  • San Antonio Bears
  • San Antonio Brewers
  • San Antonio Bronchos
  • San Antonio Bullets
  • San Antonio Dodgers
  • San Antonio Indians
  • San Antonio Missions
  • Sherman-Denison Students
  • Shreveport Braves
  • Shreveport Captains
  • Shreveport Gassers
  • Shreveport Pirates
  • Shreveport Sports
  • Shreveport Swamp Dragons
  • Springfield Cardinals
  • Temple Boll Weevils
  • Texarkana Casketmakers
  • Tulsa Cardinals
  • Tulsa Drillers
  • Tulsa Indians
  • Tulsa Oilers
  • Tyler Sports
  • Tyler Texans
  • Tyler Wildcats or Wildcatters
  • Victoria Rosebuds
  • Victoria Toros
  • Waco Cubs
  • Waco Navigators
  • Waco Steers
  • Waco Tigers
  • Wichita Falls Spudders
  • Wichita Kansans
  • Wichita Pilots
  • Wichita Wranglers
  • Wichita Wingers

League champions and award winners[]

Hall of fame[]

See also[]

References[]

Sources[]

  • Baseball in the Lone Star State: Texas League's Greatest Hits, Tom Kayser and David King, Trinity University Press 2005

Notes[]

  1. Popik, Barry. "Barry Popik". http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/texas/entry/texas_leaguer_texas_league_hit. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  2. "San Antonio to join PCL beginning in 2019". June 21, 2017. https://www.milb.com/pacific-coast/news/san-antonio-to-join-pcl-beginning-in-2019/c-237847412/t-209979204. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  3. "Dickey-Stephens Park". Arkansas Diamonds: The Ballparks of Arkansas and Their History. Archived from the original on May 5, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150505040708/http://ballparks.baseballyakker.com/?page_id=96. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  4. Bergeron, Angela (2008). "Feature Story - August 2008". Engineering News-Record (McGraw-Hill). Archived from the original on February 27, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140227045226/http://southcentral.construction.com/features/archive/2008/0808_feature3.asp. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  5. Mock, Joe. "Hammons Field in Springfield, Missouri". Baseball Parks. http://www.baseballparks.com/indepth/springfield. Retrieved September 22, 2017.
  6. "ONEOK Field". Tulsa Sports Commission. 2010. http://www.tulsasports.org/general/909/stadiums. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  7. Reichard, Kevin (April 10, 2019). "Sod Poodles Launch Crowd-Pleasing Ballpark". August Publications. https://ballparkdigest.com/2019/04/10/sod-poodles-launch-crowd-pleasing-ballpark/.
  8. Goldberg-Strassler, Jesse (November 19, 2012). "Whataburger Field / Corpus Christi Hooks". Ballpark Digest. http://ballparkdigest.com/201211195865/minor-league-baseball/visits/whataburger-field-corpus-christi-hooks. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  9. Goldberg-Strassler, Jesse (November 14, 2012). "Dr Pepper Ballpark / Frisco RoughRiders". Ballpark Digest. http://ballparkdigest.com/201211145835/minor-league-baseball/visits/dr-pepper-ballpark-frisco-roughriders. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  10. "Security Bank Ballpark". Stadiums USA. Archived from the original on May 8, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160508150020/http://www.stadiumsusa.com/stadium/Securitybank-ballpark-79706/Midland+Rockhounds+. Retrieved September 22, 2017.

External links[]

Template:Texas League

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