The Evansville Evas was a primary nickname of an early minor league baseball teams in Evansville, Indiana between 1877 and 1931. Early Evansville teams played as members of the League Alliance (1887), Central Interstate League (1889-1890), Interstate League (1891), Northwestern League (1891), Illinois-Indiana League (1892), Southern Association (1895), Central League (1897), Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League (1901–1902), Central League (1903–1911), Kentucky-Illinois-Tennessee League (1912), Central League (1913–1917) and Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League (1919–1931). Evansville was a minor league affiliate of the Detroit Tigers from 1928 to 1931.
37-616: Beginning in 1915, Evansville has hosted home games at Bosse Field , which is the third oldest baseball stadium in the United States, still in use today by the Evansville Otters of the Frontier League . Baseball Hall of Fame members Hank Greenberg (1931), Chuck Klein (1927) and Edd Roush (1912–1913) played for Evansville during the early era, joining Warren Spahn as Evansville alumni inducted into
74-405: A combined 10 league titles. †= Team's stadium under construction or refurbishment at time 1 = A team used the stadium when their permanent stadium was unable to be used as a result of damage. 37°59′34″N 87°33′44″W / 37.99278°N 87.56222°W / 37.99278; -87.56222 Frontier League The Frontier League ( FL ; French : Ligue Frontière, LF )
111-776: A loosening in border restrictions. 10 games were played in Québec City and 11 in Trois-Rivières. They did not play in Ottawa due to COVID-19 restrictions in Ontario . On October 6, 2021, the owners of the Southern Illinois Miners , Jayne and John Simmons, announced they would be retiring from professional baseball to spend more time with family and the Miners would be ceasing operations and dropping out of
148-656: A losing effort. Cristall lost by the score of 1–0 to the Grand Rapids Raiders in an 11 inning game. Evansville had a third no–hitter when River Rats pitcher Paul Paul Fitterly threw a no–hitter against the Terre Haute Terre-iers on August 6, 1913, in a 5–0 Evansville victory. Evas pitcher Paul Winchell threw the fourth franchise no–hitter in a 1–0 Evansville victory over the Springfield Reapers on August 3, 1916. The fifth no–hitter
185-512: A minimum of ten of the 24-man roster are required to be rookies. Typically, teams play a 96-game regular season from May to September. The Frontier League uses a salary cap . As of the 2023 season, clubs had a maximum spend of US$ 365,000 on player compensation, with a minimum salary of $ 13,800 per player. Veterans could earn up to $ 22,800, and each team's highest-paid player could make as much as $ 27,300. For players aged 23 and younger on standard contracts, only 50% of their salary counts towards
222-689: A successful alternative to the Pittsburgh Pirates due to the latter franchise's long stretch of losing seasons, which lasted from the Frontier League's founding in 1993 until 2013 when the Pirates finished with a record of 94–68. On October 16, 2019, it was announced that the Frontier League would be merging with the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball , absorbing five of its teams to form
259-651: Is a baseball stadium located in Evansville, Indiana . Opened in 1915, it was the first municipally owned sports stadium in the United States and is the third-oldest ballpark still in regular use for professional baseball, surpassed only by Fenway Park (1912) in Boston and Wrigley Field (1914) in Chicago . It is the home field for the professional Evansville Otters of the independent Frontier League , as well as high school and American Legion games, and in
296-681: Is a professional baseball league in North America consisting of 18 teams – 15 in the United States and 3 in Canada. The FL is one of the four independent baseball leagues that is considered to be an MLB Partner League , and the level of play is comparable to the High-A level. The league is headquartered in Sauget, Illinois . 25 distinct franchises had competed in the league. Its largest period of growth followed in 2020–21, when six teams from
333-586: Is named for Evansville mayor, Benjamin Bosse, who helped design the ballpark. Still in use today, the ballpark is located at 1701 Main Street & Morgan Street in Evansville, Indiana. Bosse Field is currently home to the Evansville Otters in the independent Frontier League . Behind MLB's Fenway Park , which opened in 1912 and Wrigley Field , which opened in 1914, Bosse Field is the third oldest baseball park in
370-723: The Steal ) and in 2000 (as the Johnnies ), Richmond Roosters in 2001 and 2002, Windy City in 2007 and 2008, the Joliet Slammers in 2011 and 2018, and the Evansville Otters in 2006 and 2016. With four titles, the Schaumburg Boomers have won the most league championships. On June 20, 2000, Brian Tollberg debuted with the San Diego Padres , becoming the first player from the Frontier League to make it to
407-467: The Texas Rangers affiliated Down East Wood Ducks . The two new franchises bring the league to 18 teams, the largest total in its history. The expansion also marks the league's first expansion into the deep south, with the previous southernmost team being the Evansville Otters . Commissioner Steven Tahsler announced a new scheduling format for the 2025 season. Instead of a two division model,
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#1732787512842444-1287: The Three-I League title in 1946, 1948, 1956, and 1957. From 1921 to 1922, Bosse Field was used as a football stadium and was home to the Evansville Crimson Giants of the NFL . The Otters franchise came to Evansville in 1995 and have attracted a record number of fans for the league. In 2006 the Otters won the Frontier League title. Baseball Hall of Fame members Hank Greenberg , Chuck Klein , Edd Roush , Warren Spahn , and Sam Thompson played at Bosse Field during their careers; another 95 Hall of Fame members visited Bosse Field on opposing teams. There have been over 20 Major League Baseball players from Evansville and dozens of Minor Leaguers. Football Hall of Fame member Bob Griese played high school football and American Legion baseball at Bosse Field; Don Mattingly , Andy Benes , Rob Maurer , Jeff Schulz , Alan Benes and Jamey Carroll all played at Bosse Field during their high school and/or college careers. Current / former professional teams who have called Bosse Field home, have won
481-893: The Trois-Rivières Aigles , and the Ottawa Titans would not compete in the 2021 season due to the prolonged closure of the Canada–United States border as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic . The Titans, the Aigles and the Capitales later joined forces to form a new team that competed as a member of the Atlantic Division. Known as Équipe Québec , they began the season as a traveling team , and starting on July 30, 2021, started sharing home games between Québec City and Trois-Rivières following
518-550: The 1938 Evansville Bees returned to Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League play as an affiliate of the Bostin Braves / Boston Bees . That era of Evansville baseball ran through 1957. Today, Evansville hosts the Evansville Otters of the Frontier League , who continue play at Bosse Field. Early Evansville teams played at Louisiana Street Park through 1914. Adjacent to the Evansville Union Stockyards and
555-467: The Frontier League announced it would be adding two new teams. The first announcement came around the same time as the announcement of the partnership with Major League Baseball, as Ottawa was granted an expansion franchise in the league. The team, as chosen by fans in a contest, was named the Titans and will play at RCGT Park . Then, on January 8, 2021, after the reorganization of Minor League Baseball,
592-705: The Frontier League. As a result, the league formed the Empire State Greys , to compete as a traveling team with a roster of players from the Empire Professional Baseball League . In September 2023, the league announced a new team, the New England Knockouts , were to play at Campanelli Stadium in Brockton, Massachusetts, beginning with the 2024 season. This brought the total number of permanent members of
629-667: The Hall of Fame. The Evansville Evas and Hubs directly preceded the 1938 Evansville Bees , who rejoined the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League. After early Evansville minor league teams began play in 1887 as the Evansville Red , other teams followed in the late 1800s: Evansville Hoosiers (1889-1892; 1896), Evansville Brewers (1897) and the 1895 Evansville Blackbirds of the Southern Association . It
666-878: The Majors. A week later, Morgan Burkhart made his debut with the Boston Red Sox . Although the league does not have any teams located in the same city as Major League teams, it does nonetheless have teams located within the markets of Major League teams. The Chicago area has three teams ( Joliet Slammers , Schaumburg Boomers and Windy City ThunderBolts ), as does the New York area ( New Jersey Jackals , Sussex County Miners , and New York Boulders ), and St. Louis ( Gateway Grizzlies ), Cleveland ( Lake Erie Crushers ), Cincinnati ( Florence Y'alls ) and Pittsburgh ( Washington Wild Things ) each have one. The Wild Things, in particular, have been able to market themselves as
703-558: The Midwestern Division. The league had a partnership agreement with the California Winter League for player development. On September 24, 2020, Major League Baseball announced that it named the Frontier League an MLB Partner League . This enables collaboration with MLB to jointly discuss marketing and promotional initiatives to grow, expand, and enhance the game of baseball. For the 2021 season,
740-558: The Stockyard Hotel with a beer garden, the ballpark was built in 1895 and closed in 1960. The last minor league game was played at the park on June 16, 1915. The Louisiana Street baseball park was located at East Louisiana Street and Read Avenue. Beginning in June, 1915, Evansville minor league teams have played at Bosse Field . Built at a cost of $ 100,000, Bosse Filed was the first municipally owned stadium in organized baseball and
777-429: The United States. The first game at Bosse Field was played on June 17, 1915. Evansville Hoosiers players Evansville Hubs players Evansville Evas players Evansville Pocketeers players Evansville River Rats players Evansville Strikers players Evansville Yankees players Evansville Brewers players Evansville Black Birds players Evansville Red players Bosse Field Bosse Field
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#1732787512842814-404: The affairs of our city, Garvin's Park would not have been purchased by the city, and this stadium would not have been built. No more fitting name could therefore have been given this stadium than to call it Bosse Field. —School board member Rev. J.U. Schneider honoring Mayor Bosse at Bosse Field's dedication in 1915 Ten baseball teams other than the Otters have played at Bosse Field. Some of
851-415: The ceased Can-Am and New York–Penn leagues joined alongside an expansion franchise. The Evansville Otters , the only one of the original eight franchises still playing today, is the longest tenured team in the league, while the Schaumburg Boomers have won the most championships. The FL's regular season is typically held from May to September, with each team playing 96 games. Following the conclusion of
888-612: The field in Evansville. The Evansville teams played in the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League (1901–1902; 1919–1931), Central League (1903–1911; 1913–1917) and Kentucky-Illinois-Tennessee League (1912). Evansville played as an affiliate of the Detroit Tigers from 1928 to 1931. The Evansville franchise stopped play after the 1931 season during the Great Depression . Evansville was without baseball until
925-437: The full $ 50,000 price. Mayor Bosse conceived of the plan to sell part of the land to the school board who would then build a new stadium to be used for school functions as well as Evansville's baseball team, of which Bosse was a co-owner. When the president of the school board opposed the plan, Bosse had him replaced with a friend, and the new school board both approved the project and also voted to name it Bosse Field in honor of
962-602: The largest independent professional baseball league. This added the New Jersey Jackals , New York Boulders , Quebec Capitales , Sussex County Miners , and Trois-Rivieres Aigles to the league; the Ottawa Champions , the last remaining Can-Am League team, was not invited to participate. The divisions were renamed, with the easternmost teams playing in the Can-Am Division and the westernmost in
999-620: The league added the Tri-City ValleyCats , which were one of several teams that were orphaned or disbanded when the New York-Penn League was folded. The Titans and ValleyCats joined the five former Can-Am League teams and Washington in the Can-Am Division; to even the divisions at seven teams, Lake Erie was moved to the Midwestern Division. In April 2021, the league announced that the Québec Capitales ,
1036-679: The league to sixteen teams. In September 2024, the league announced an expansion to Mississippi and North Carolina. An as yet unnamed expansion franchise was awarded to Pearl, Mississippi , following the departure of the Atlanta Braves Double-A affiliate the Mississippi Braves . The Down East Bird Dawgs, a new team in Kinston, North Carolina , will play in Grainger Stadium , which was formerly home of
1073-773: The league will revert to the 2021 setup; 2 conferences with 4 divisions. Mississippi will be playing in the West Division of the Midwest Conference while Down East will be in the East Division of the Atlantic Conference. Teams in the Frontier League must recruit and sign their own players, who usually are undrafted college players or one-time prospects who have been released by their teams. Frontier League rules limit teams to three "veterans" (Players older than 29 years as of October 1), while
1110-402: The mayor. Construction was completed the following summer, and Bosse Field opened on June 17, 1915. A Central League record crowd of 8,082 fans attended the stadium dedication and opening game, a 4–0 Evansville victory. Evansville was in third place when they moved to Bosse Field, but went on to win the league championship in 1915. If it had not been for his wise and energetic management of
1147-687: The most famous are the Evansville Triplets (1970–84), Evansville Braves (1946–57), Evas/Pocketeers/Hubs (1919–1931) and the Evansville River Rats (1914–15). The River Rats had played in Evansville previously from (1903–1910) and (1901–1902). The Triplets won the American Association titles in 1972, 1975, and 1979. The River Rats won the Central League title in 1908 and 1915. The Braves won
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1184-401: The new league. Bloomington, Illinois , Decatur, Illinois and Terre Haute, Indiana left the Central League to join, while Evansville and the others were new franchises. On July 29, 1906, Evans James Freeman, threw a no-hitter in a 2–0 victory over Terre Haute, with 7 walks and 10 strikeouts. On May 10, 1910, Evansville River Rats pitcher Bill Cristall pitched an 11–inning no-hitter in
1221-399: The past hosted spring training for the Detroit Tigers , college baseball, high school, college, and NFL football, college soccer, and concerts. Six Baseball Hall of Fame members played for Evansville teams at Bosse Field during their minor league careers, including Chuck Klein , Hank Greenberg , Warren Spahn , Bob Uecker , Bert Blyleven and Jack Morris . The historic stadium
1258-572: The regular season, 8 teams advance to the playoffs, a three tournament that runs approximately two weeks to determine the league champion. The Frontier League was founded in 1993. It initially struggled to retain franchises, with four of its eight founding teams folding within three seasons, though steadily grew to twelve teams within a decade. The first league champions were the Zanesville Greys . Eight teams have won more than one championship: Springfield in 1996 and 1998; Johnstown in 1995 (as
1295-455: Was also used in 1991 by Columbia Pictures for filming numerous game scenes in the 1992 comedy-drama, A League of Their Own . Benjamin Bosse , mayor of Evansville from 1914 to 1922, reached an agreement with Thomas Garvin's family shortly after taking office in January 1914 to purchase land on the north side of the city for a park. However, the city was in a deficit and could not afford
1332-658: Was reported that the Evansville Blackbirds were facing financial difficulties. As a result, the team began throwing games, allegedly for $ 1,500.00 per game. In 1901, the Evansville River Rats began league play in the new Class D level Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League (Three-I) as a 1901 charter franchise. Evansville joined the Bloomington Blues , Cedar Rapids Rabbitts , Davenport River Rats , Decatur Commodores , Rock Island Islanders , Rockford Red Sox and Terre Haute Hottentots as charter members in
1369-759: Was thrown by Tom Karnaghan on May 13, 1917 in a 1–0 Evansville Evas win over the South Bend Benders . The sixth franchise no–hitter was thrown by Evas pitcher Frank Winchell on August 22, 1919, as Evansville defeated the Moline Plowboys 2–0. Over the next thirty years, the team shifted names and leagues as the Evansville Hubs (1926–1931), Evansville Evas (1916–1923), Evansville Little Evas (1924), Evansville Pocketeers (1925), Evansville Strikers (1911), Evansville Yankees (1912) and original Evansville River Rats (1913–1917; 1901–1910) took
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