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13-406: The 1921 Independence Producers were ranked #77 on The National Baseball Association's top 100 minor league teams . Independence possibly hosted the first night game in organized baseball on April 28, 1930, at Riverside Stadium . Baseball Hall of Fame member Mickey Mantle played for the 1949 Independence Yankees, his first professional season. Hall of Famer Burleigh Grimes was the manager of

26-520: A 17–year–old. Mantle hit .313 with 7 home runs for the Independence Yankees, as the team finished with 71–53 record and the league championship. Beginning in 1921, Independence teams played at Riverside Stadium , located on East Oak Street. The stadium was later named Producers Park and Shulthis Stadium . Built in 1918 by A.W. Shulthis, the stadium reportedly hosted the first night game in organized baseball, on April 28, 1930. Now part of

39-627: A list of the top 100 best minor league baseball teams of the century. Their list includes 69 distinct franchises from across the United States and in Canada and Mexico. There are representatives from every decade of the century. Weiss and Wright developed a statistical formula to evaluate teams. First, a rating was given to each league. They assigned 100 points for Triple-A leagues down to 20 points for Class D leagues. The equivalent classifications of each league were used to adjust for changes in

52-686: A record of 100–38 in taking the Southwestern League Championship. The team is ranked #77 on The National Baseball Association's top 100 minor league teams by MiLB.com and Baseball Historians Bill Weiss and Marshall Wright . The 1930 Producers were the Western Association Champions, defeating the Joplin Miners in the championship series. It was the first time the series had been played at night. The 1948 and 1949 Independence Yankees won

65-656: A single game. Four days later the Producers had eight home runs in a game against the Muskogee Chiefs setting a league record. The Independence Yankees were formed in 1947 as an expansion team in the Class D level Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League . The franchise remained in the league as an affiliate of the New York Yankees (1947–1950) and St. Louis Browns (1952). The team did not play in 1951, and became

78-654: The Independence Browns in 1952. The Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League permanently folded after the 1952 season. In 20 seasons of minor league play, Independence had successes on the field. The 1906 Independence Coyotes won the Kansas State League championship with a 69–48 record. Changing leagues when the Kansas State League folded, the franchise played 1907 as the Independence Champs . The 1921 Independence Producers finished with

91-766: The 1948 Independence Yankees. Baseball in Independence started with a team in the Kansas State League in 1896. From 1906 to 1911 Independence teams played in four leagues with four different nicknames. From 1921 to 1932, the Independence Producers played as members of the Southwestern League (1921–1924) and the Western Association (1925–1932). The 1921 Producers finished with an overall record of 100–38 and

104-549: The 69 franchises to make the list, 14 appeared more than once. The Baltimore Orioles took 6 places on the list, the most of any team, followed by the Ft. Worth Panthers and Toronto Maple Leafs (5), Newark Bears and San Francisco Seals (4); Kansas City Blues , Los Angeles Angels , and St. Paul Saints (3); and Charlotte Hornets , Columbus Senators/Red Birds , Houston Buffaloes , Indianapolis Indians , Memphis Chicks , and Milwaukee Brewers (2). Thirty leagues are represented on

117-552: The Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League Championship in back-to-back seasons. Independence finished 74–46 in 1948 under Hall of Fame member Burleigh Grimes and 71–53 under Harry Craft in 1949. The 1949 Independence Yankees featured a 17–year old Mickey Mantle playing shortstop. After the 1952 Independence Browns, Independence has not hosted another minor league team. In 1949, Mickey Mantle began his professional career with Independence as

130-514: The athletic field for Unified School District 446, the original grandstand remained as part of a new multipurpose complex until it was demolished in 2015. The National Baseball Association%27s top 100 minor league teams In 2001, during the centennial celebration of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues , Minor League Baseball tasked baseball historians Bill Weiss and Marshall Wright to develop

143-750: The list. The league with the most entrants is the International League with 17. The other top leagues are the American Association (13); Pacific Coast League (10); Eastern League and Texas League (8); California League , Western Association , and Western League (4). Thirty-one teams competed at the Double-A classification level, the most of any class, followed by Class A (24); Class C (12); Class B (11); Triple-A (10); Class D (7); Class A1 and independent (2); and Class A-Advanced (1). Twenty-seven teams competed in

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156-466: The minor league structure since 1900. Next, individual teams were graded based on winning percentage and total wins in order to assess each team's strength against its league and its season-long performance. The combination of these three metrics resulted in a statistical list of the century's top teams. Weiss and Wright further took into account intangibles such as winning a pennant, significant achievements, or reputation in creating their final list. Of

169-642: The team is ranked on The National Baseball Association's top 100 minor league teams of all–time. On August 9, 1908 Gene Packard pitched a perfect game for the Independence Jewelers against the Bartlesville Boosters, with 10 strikeouts. On July 2, 1930, Independence pitcher Colonel Bob House had nineteen strikeouts against the Springfield Midgets , which was a Western Association league record for strikeouts in

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