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32-550: The Provincial League was part of a long history of Quebec-based minor leagues. The first iterations played in 1894 and 1900. Later, the Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League played from 1922 to 1924, spending two years as an independent league before joining the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues , the governing body of minor league baseball, in its last season. Like later incarnations of

64-546: A Vermont native. Page had founded the Eastern Canada league as well and was president of both leagues, while Dubuc became the player/manager of the Ottawa franchise. For travel, the two made efforts to structure the league with franchises based in towns having Canadian Pacific stops. The new league began play on May 15, 1924, structured as a six–team Class B level league with franchises based in locations indicative of

96-423: A knee injury and had to be carried off the field. He returned to the mound as a relief pitcher two weeks later on July 12 and allowed only one hit in four innings. He also pitched a complete-game shutout over the 1908 World Series champion Chicago Cubs team on September 7, 1908. In all, Dubuc appeared in 15 games for the 1908 Reds, nine as a starter, and compiled a 5–6 record and a 2.74 ERA. He also traveled with

128-575: A starter, and compiling a 15–14 record with a 2.89 ERA. He was arguably the best fielding pitcher in the American League in 1913 with a 4.56 range factor per nine innings pitched (best in the American League), 107 assists (second in the league among pitchers) and 16 putouts (third in the league). He also led the league for the second consecutive year in wild pitches with 13 and ranked fourth with 91 bases on balls. He remained with

160-587: The Cincinnati Reds (1908–1909), Detroit Tigers (1912–1916), Boston Red Sox (1918), and New York Giants (1919). During his major league career, he had an 85–76 win–loss record with a 3.04 earned run average (ERA). His best season was 1912 when he compiled a 17–10 record with a 2.77 ERA. Dubuc was an above average hitting pitcher in his major league career, posting a .230 batting average (150-for-652) with 57 runs , 23 doubles , 10 triples , 4 home runs , 58 RBI and drawing 30 bases on balls . He

192-487: The Cincinnati Reds . Dubuc was neither a participant nor a conspirator in the scandal, but was pursued for his "guilty knowledge" of the fix. Sources are in conflict as to whether or not Dubuc was banned from baseball as a result of the investigation. In December 1926, Dubuc signed a three-year contract to coach the Brown University baseball team. During the 1927-1928 and 1928–1929 seasons, he also coached

224-586: The University of Notre Dame in the fall of 1906 and played both baseball and basketball for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish . As a freshman in the spring of 1907, he compiled a 5–1 record as a pitcher. In his only loss in 1907, Dubuc threw a one-hitter and struck out 16 batters but Notre Dame lost to Minnesota , 2–1. In 1908, his record improved to 8–1, his only loss coming against the University of Vermont . On June 7, 1908, Dubuc and

256-712: The 1911 season. He compiled a 21–11 record with Montreal in 1911. On September 1, 1911, after Dubuc's strong performance during the 1911 season, the Detroit Tigers selected Dubuc in the Major League Baseball draft. Dubuc signed with the Tigers in January 1912 after some wrangling over salary with Tigers owner Frank Navin . Dubuc became part of the Tigers' starting rotation for five consecutive years from 1912 to 1916. In five seasons with Detroit, Dubuc

288-592: The 1919 Giants and compiled a 6–4 record with a career low 2.66 ERA. Despite the strong performance, Dubuc was released by John McGraw of the Giants after the 1919 season. McGraw later stated publicly that he released Dubuc because he "constantly associated" with Sleepy Bill Burns , a gambler who played with Dubuc on the 1912 Tigers and was a central figure in the Black Sox Scandal . Although his major league career ended in 1919, Dubuc continued to play in

320-580: The 1924 season. The Class B level league directly evolved from the 1922–1923 Eastern Canada League . The 1924 Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League consisted of teams based in Canada and the United States . The Eastern Canada League was a Class B level minor league that began play in 1922, with franchises based entirely in Canada. The four–team league played for two seasons. Three of the teams remained when

352-683: The Brown ice hockey team. From 1929 and into the 1930s, he also served as manager and president of a professional hockey team at Providence, Rhode Island , known as the Rhode Island Reds , as part of the Canadian–American Hockey League . Dubuc also scouted for the Detroit Tigers in the late 1920s and 1930s. As a scout, he signed catcher Birdie Tebbetts and first baseman Hank Greenberg . He also served as

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384-588: The Manchester in 1926 as it transitioned into the New England League , which was revived for the 1926 season. At age 37, he appeared in 10 games as a pitcher and compiled a 2–2 record with a 2.00 ERA. He also batted .311 in 61 at bats. During the 1920 investigation into the Black Sox Scandal , evidence was discovered showing that Sleepy Bill Burns had advised Dubuc that the 1919 World Series had been fixed and that Dubuc should, therefore, bet on

416-597: The Notre Dame catcher, Ray Scanlan, appeared in a semipro baseball game for the "White Rocks" at Gunther Park in Chicago. Dubuc appeared under the name Williams, but he was recognized by fans present at the game. Despite the presence of the Notre Dame battery, the White Rocks lost by a 2–1 score. The Notre Dame athletic board of control charged Dubuc and Scanlan with professionalism, and they denied having played in

448-632: The Ottawa Aces, as part of the Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League . He also served as the team's player-manager in the 1924 season. He compiled a 2–2 record and a .286 batting average for Ottawa in 1924. In 1925, he was hired as the manager of the Manchester, New Hampshire , team in the Boston Twilight League. Dubuc was a player-manager for Manchester, making an occasional appearance as a pitcher. He remained as player-manager of

480-673: The Reds to Cuba after the 1908 season and won three of four exhibitions games he started on that trip. In 1909, Dubuc was slowed after contracting malaria . He appeared in 11 games for the 1909 Reds, two as a starter, and compiled a 2–5 record with a 3.66 ERA. On November 3, 1909, the Reds sold Dubuc to the Buffalo Bisons of the Eastern League . He was then acquired by the Montreal Royals where he remained through

512-573: The Tigers for another three years, going 12–14 with a 3.46 ERA in 1914, 17–12 with a 3.21 ERA in 1915, and 10–10 with a 2.96 ERA in 1916. On January 16, 1917, the Tigers released Dubuc to the Salt Lake City Bees of the Pacific Coast League . He compiled a 22–16 record a in 1917 and a 3.18 ERA in 42 games for Salt Lake in 1917. The following year, he went 9–9 with a 3.60 ERA in 19 games for Salt Lake. He also played in

544-476: The final iteration of the Provincial League launched; it lasted until 1971 as an independent organization. The Provincial League has drawn some scholarly attention as a professional independent circuit during a time when very few such leagues existed. Especially in the late 1930s, it was known as safe haven for black and indigenous players who were excluded from the organized leagues. During this time,

576-611: The first–half pennant and the Ottawa Canadiens won the second–half pennant. In the playoffs, Montreal defeated Ottawa 8 games to 7. In 1924, the Eastern Canada League expanded and added teams to become the Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League. The league was formed from the efforts of Canadian Pacific Railway sports promoter Joseph Page and retired Major League Baseball pitcher Jean Dubuc ,

608-545: The foundation of the Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League. In their final season of play, the 1923 Class B level Eastern Canada League featured the Montreal Royals (66–51) Ottawa Canadiens (62–52), Quebec Bulldogs (47–62) and Trois Rivieres Trios/Montreal (52–62). In mid season 1923, Trois-Rivières moved to Montreal. Ottawa played some home games in Montreal while its own ballpark was being built. The Montreal Royals won

640-425: The game and requested time to gather evidence in their defense. Dubuc was ultimately found to have appeared in the game, and his college eligibility was removed. Within days after losing his college eligibility, Dubuc signed with the Cincinnati Reds . On June 25, 1908, Dubuc made his major league debut for the Reds. He gave up five earned runs in 3 + 1 ⁄ 3 innings and, adding injury to insult, sustained

672-502: The league evolved to become the 1924 Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League. In 1922, the Eastern Canada League began play as a Class B league and was founded by Joseph H. Page, who also served as league president. The four–team circuit was composed of the Montreal Royals (55–69), Ottawa Senators (68–57), Trois Rivieres Trios (69–53) and Valleyfield/Cap de la Madeleine Madcaps (56–69). Valleyfield moved to Cap de la Madeleine on July 29, 1922. Montreal and Ottawa would become stable franchises and form

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704-472: The league name. The Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec franchises remained and three expansion franchises were added. The charter Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League members featured three new franchises, the Montpelier Goldfish (Vermont), Outremont Canadiens (Montreal's second team) and Rutland Sheiks (Vermont). They joined the Montreal Royals, Ottawa-Hull Senators and Quebec Bulldogs. The league played

736-565: The league permanently folded after completing the season on September 3, 1924. Jean Dubuc Jean Joseph Octave Dubuc (September 15, 1888 – August 28, 1958), sometimes known by the nickname "Chauncey" , was a right-handed American baseball pitcher , manager, and scout, and a coach of both baseball and ice hockey . A native of Vermont , Dubuc played professional baseball for 17 years between 1908 and 1926, including nine seasons in Major League Baseball with

768-467: The league, it was the product of Canadian Pacific Railway sports promoter Joseph Page and retired Major League Baseball pitcher Jean Dubuc , who laboured extensively to set up teams in towns with Canadian Pacific stops. The Provincial League concept was relaunched in 1935. The league spent five seasons as an independent circuit before joining the NAPBL as a Class B league in 1940. Throughout this time,

800-897: The minor leagues for the Toledo Mud Hens of the American Association in 1920 and the Syracuse Stars of the International League in 1922 and 1923. During the 1921 season, with his role in the Black Sox Scandal under review, Dubuc played semi-pro baseball in Montreal in the Atwater Twi-Light League and the Montreal City Baseball League. In 1924, Dubuc organized an Ottawa baseball team, called

832-486: The most successful clubs were Quebec City and Trois-Rivières . The Provincial League took a hiatus during World War II , and returned afterward as an independent league with inconsistent levels of success. By 1948 it was again a fully professional six-team league, though outside the purview of the NAPBL. In 1950 it rejoined the NAPBL as a Class C circuit, following a similar pattern to earlier successful independent organizations. It lasted until 1955 before folding. In 1958

864-508: The opportunities it offered drew black players from across North America, and it even once included a team representing the Caughnawaga Mohawk reservation. Other notable players included Maurice Richard , Pete Gray , Adrián Zabala , Roland Gladu , and a retired Félix Mantilla . Ontario%E2%80%93Quebec%E2%80%93Vermont League The Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League was a minor league baseball league that played in

896-592: The outfield for Salt Lake in 1918 with a .303 batting average. In late July 1918, he signed with the Boston Red Sox . He appeared in only two games for the Red Sox, compiling an 0–1 record with a 4.22 ERA. On April 7, 1919, the Red Sox returned Dubuc to Salt Lake. Two weeks later, on April 23, the New York Giants bought Dubuc from Salt Lake. He appeared in 36 games, 33 as a relief pitcher, for

928-589: The season in two halves. The Quebec Bulldogs won both half seasons and were the champions as no playoffs were held. The final overall standings were won by Quebec Bulldogs (66–40). Quebec was followed by the Montreal Royals (54–55), Outremont Canadiens (49–58) and Ottawa-Hull Senators (46–55). The two new Vermont based franchises, the Rutland Sheiks (34–20) and Montpelier Goldfish (16–37) both folded on July 15, 1924. The four remaining Ontario–Quebec–Vermont League teams continued play after losing two franchises, but

960-475: Was 72–60 with 90 complete games. In 1912, Dubuc appeared in 37 games, 26 as a starter, and compiled a 17–10 record with a 2.77 ERA and a .269 batting average. He ranked among the American League leaders with a .630 winning percentage (eighth), and 23 complete games (ninth). However, lack of control also placed him among the league leaders with 16 wild pitches (first) and 109 bases on balls (second). In 1913, he had another strong year, appearing in 36 games, 28 as

992-612: Was born in St. Johnsbury, Vermont , in 1888. He attended Saint Michael's College in Vermont as a member of the high school class of 1906. While attending Saint Michael's, he played three sports, compiled a 23–1 record in two years as a pitcher for the baseball team, and threw a no-hitter against the University of Vermont baseball team in 1906. He was inducted into the Saint Michael's Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006. Dubuc enrolled at

Provincial League (baseball) - Misplaced Pages Continue

1024-435: Was used as a pinch hitter 109 times and also played five games in the outfield. During the investigation of the Black Sox Scandal , he was implicated for having "guilty knowledge" of the fix. He later served as the coach of the Brown University baseball team in the 1920s and worked as a scout for the Detroit Tigers in the late 1920s and 1930. He was responsible for signing Birdie Tebbetts and Hank Greenberg . Dubuc

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