The Seguin Toros were a minor league baseball team based in Seguin, Texas . In 1976, the Toros played in the only season of the 1976 Class A level Gulf States League , advancing to the league finals in their only season of play. Seguin hosted minor league home games at the Fairgrounds Ball Park, now named Smokey Joe Williams Field in honor of Smokey Joe Williams .
20-521: Minor league baseball was formed in Seguin, Texas in 1976. The Seguin "Toros" became charter members of the six–team, Class A level Gulf States League . The Baton Rouge Cougars , Beeville Bees , Corpus Christi Seagulls , Rio Grande Valley WhiteWings ( Harlingen, Texas ) and Victoria Cowboys joined Seguin in beginning league play on June 1. 1976. Playing under manager Jimmy Smith, the Toros advanced to
40-545: The California League , Carolina League , and Florida State League . Class A was originally the highest level of Minor League Baseball , beginning with the earliest classifications, established circa 1890. Teams within leagues at this level had their players' contracts protected and the players were subject to reserve clauses . When the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues –
60-686: The Trenton Senators . The league was renamed as the Eastern League in 1938 when the Scranton Miners of Scranton, Pennsylvania , moved to Hartford, Connecticut , and became the Hartford Bees . The league has had teams in a total of 52 different cities, located in 12 different states and two Canadian provinces. The league consisted of six to eight teams from 1923 until 1993. The league expanded to 10 teams in 1994 with
80-625: The Western League (1947–1958), Central League (1948–1951) and Western International League (1952–1954). The Western International League became the Class B Northwest League in 1955, and the Western and Central loops folded. The hierarchy of Triple-A through Class D continued until Minor League Baseball restructured in 1963, at which time Classes B through D were abolished, with existing leagues at those levels reassigned into Class A, while
100-764: The 1977 season. Seguin, Texas has not hosted another minor league team. The 1976 Seguin Toros minor league team played home games at the Fairgrounds Ball Park. The Fairgrounds Ball Park in Seguin is still in use today by the Seguin River Monsters, a summer collegiate baseball team in the Texas Collegiate League , located at 950 South Austin Street, Seguin, Texas. The Fairgrounds Ball Park has since been renamed to Smokey Joe Williams Field in honor of Smokey Joe Williams who
120-697: The 2009 season, becoming the Richmond Flying Squirrels . The start of the 2020 season was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic before ultimately being cancelled. As part of Major League Baseball 's 2021 reorganization of the minor leagues, the league was temporarily renamed the "Double-A Northeast"; the Somerset Patriots , formerly an independent team, joined the league, while the Trenton Thunder were relegated to
140-496: The Class A-Advanced level. These three leagues operated with Low-A naming for the 2021 season. Following MLB's acquisition of the rights to the names of the historical minor leagues, MLB announced on March 16, 2022, that the leagues would revert to their prior names, effective with the 2022 season. MLB also discontinued use of "Low-A" in favor of Single-A. On June 30, 2021, Minor League Baseball announced that
160-422: The Eastern League. A "†" indicates that team's article redirects to an article of a defunct Eastern League team. League champions have been determined by different means since the Eastern League's formation in 1923. Before 1934, the champions were simply the league pennant winners. A formal playoff system to determine league champions was established in 1934. The Binghamton Triplets have won 10 championships,
180-680: The South Atlantic League (renamed as the Southern League ) and Eastern League ascended to Double-A. In 1965, a Class A Short Season designation was created, for teams playing June–September schedules, primarily meant for new players acquired via the amateur draft . The Class A-Advanced designation was established in 1990, between Class A and Double-A in the minor league hierarchy. Class A and Class A Short Season were considered independent classifications, with Class A having "Full-Season" and Advanced sub-classifications, per
200-1042: The addition of the Portland Sea Dogs and the New Haven Ravens and split into two divisions, the Northern Division and the Southern Division. The league expanded to 12 teams in 1999 with the addition of the Altoona Curve and the Erie SeaWolves . The two divisions were restructured and renamed for the 2010 season as the Eastern Division and the Western Division because the Connecticut Defenders moved to Richmond, Virginia , after
220-575: The finals, where the Toros were swept by the champion Corpus Christi Seagulls in three games. The Gulf States League changed names for the 1977 season, becoming the Lone Star League . Sequin did not field a franchise in the newly named league, as Beeville, Corpus Christi, Harlingen and Victoria continued play, joining the new Texas City Stars and McAllen Dusters franchises in Lone Star League play.The Lone Star League folded after
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#1732797896032240-656: The formal name of Minor League Baseball – was founded in 1901, Class A remained the highest level, restricted to leagues with cities that had an aggregate population of over a million people. Entering the 1902 season, the only Class A leagues were the Eastern League and the Western League —both leagues had eight teams, in cities such as Toronto, Ontario ; Buffalo, New York ; Worcester, Massachusetts ; Omaha, Nebraska ; Denver, Colorado ; and Peoria, Illinois . Leagues operating within less populated areas were classified as Class B, Class C, or Class D. Class A remained
260-606: The league finals. With a regular season record of 29–48, Sequin placed second, finishing 17.5 games behind the Baton Rouge Cougars in the final East Division standings. However, the first place Baton Rouge franchise folded from the league on August 13, 1976, and Sequin replaced Baton Rouge in the three-team playoff bracket. In the playoffs, the Seguin Toros swept the Beeville Bees in two games to advance to
280-705: The league operated under the moniker Double-A Northeast . The league has played at the Double-A level since 1963, and consists primarily of teams located in the Northeastern United States . The league was founded in 1923 as the New York–Pennsylvania League . The first team outside the two original states was created in 1936 when the York White Roses of York, Pennsylvania , moved to Trenton, New Jersey , and were renamed
300-525: The newly-formed MLB Draft League . Following MLB's acquisition of the rights to the names of the historical minor leagues, the Double-A Northeast was renamed the Eastern League effective with the 2022 season. Notes : This list includes teams in predecessor New York–Pennsylvania League of 1923 to 1937 . Bold font indicates an active Eastern League team. A "^" indicates that team's article redirects to an article of an active team formerly of
320-577: The rules governing baseball's minor leagues. The overall hierarchy was: Entering the 2020 minor league season (which was not played due to the COVID-19 pandemic ), Class A consisted of the Midwest League and South Atlantic League (a newer "Sally League", which been formed in 1963 as the Western Carolinas League ). Prior to the 2021 season, MLB restructured the minor leagues, eliminating Class A Short Season and discontinuing
340-660: The top classification until Class AA was established in 1912, then remained the second-highest classification until Class A1 was established in 1936. In 1946, the top two levels changed from being Class AA and Class A1 to being Class AAA and AA, with Class A remaining the third-highest level, above Classes B through D. Class A in 1946 consisted of the Eastern League and the original South Atlantic League (or "Sally League"), with teams in communities such as Vancouver, British Columbia ; Omaha, Nebraska ; Colorado Springs, Colorado ; Charlotte, North Carolina ; Scranton, Pennsylvania ; and Allentown, Pennsylvania . Class A soon included
360-410: The top two teams in each league (based on full-season winning percentage , and regardless of division) would meet in a best-of-five postseason series to determine league champions. Eastern League (1938%E2%80%932020) The Eastern League ( EL ) is a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) sports league that has operated under that name since 1938, with the exception of the 2021 season, during which
380-585: The use of all historical league names within Minor League Baseball. The Midwest League and South Atlantic League were reclassified as "High-A" leagues, and operated during 2021 as High-A Central and High-A East , respectively. They were replaced at the Class A level by three "Low-A" leagues: Low-A West , Low-A East , and Low-A Southeast . These leagues had historically been known as the California League , Carolina League , and Florida State League , respectively, and had previously operated at
400-755: Was considered one of the greatest pitchers of all time and born in Seguin. No Seguin Toros alumni advanced to the major leagues. Class A (baseball) Single-A , formerly known as Class A and sometimes as Low-A , is the fourth-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States, below Triple-A , Double-A , and High-A . There are 30 teams classified at the Single-A level, one for each team in Major League Baseball (MLB), organized into three leagues:
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