The Tulsa Oilers , located in Tulsa, Oklahoma , were a minor league baseball team that existed on-and-off in multiple leagues from 1905 to 1976. For most of their history, they played at Oiler Park , which opened on July 11, 1934, and was located on the Tulsa County Fairgrounds at 15th Street and Sandusky Avenue.
32-710: In 1905, the Oilers were part of the Missouri Valley League . They finished 44–58 under manager Charley Shafft. The Missouri Valley League folded after 1905, and the Oilers became a charter member of the South Central League. Under managers Frank Smith and Bill Rupp, the Oilers finished the 1906 season with a 45–42 record. The League folded, and the Oilers played in the Oklahoma–Arkansas–Kansas League in 1907. They finished with
64-593: A Major League team – the Pittsburgh Pirates . That affiliation lasted that year only, however. The 1932 Oilers were recognized as number 83 on Minor League Baseball's list of the 100 greatest minor league teams of all time . From 1933 to 1942, the Oilers played in the Texas League . In 1936, they won the league championship and the Dixie Series , a postseason interleague championship between
96-456: A 15,000-seat facility on the site of old Dugdale Field. Sick invested in the team, and it bore results. The Rainiers finished first in 1939, 1940 and 1941. They lost the postseason series in 1939, but won pennants in 1940 and 1941. In 1942 and 1943, the Rainiers finished in third place, but did win another PCL pennant in 1942. After a few lean years, the Rainiers won PCL flags in 1951 and 1955,
128-588: A 37–60 record, under Hall of Fame manager Jake Beckley . The Oklahoma–Arkansas–Kansas League saw two teams leave, so in 1908 the Oilers played in the Oklahoma–Kansas League , which was just the aforementioned Oklahoma–Arkansas–Kansas League minus a couple teams. They finished with the second best record in the league – 69–55 under managers Harry B. "Deacon" White and Stu McBirney. The league folded after only one year of existence as well. The Tulsa Oilers did not organize in 1909. However, in 1910, they played in
160-583: A tailspin in August and finished last in the NWL North Division. The Cincinnati Reds picked up Seattle as an affiliate for the next two seasons. The Rainiers came in with two second-place showings as the team groomed future major league pitchers Manny Sarmiento , Mike Armstrong and outfielder Lynn Jones during that time, as well as manager Greg Riddoch . Peterson went the independent route for 1975 and 1976, signing his own players. One of those
192-598: A team in the Western Association called the Tulsa Producers .) In 1919, the Oilers joined the Western League , where they played from 1919 until 1929, and in 1932. Their performance during those years can be seen in the following chart. From 1922 to 1924, Oilers star Lyman Lamb hit 68, 71 and 100 doubles, respectively – the latter of which is a minor league record. In 1930, McNulty Park
224-601: The Pawtucket Red Sox . The Oilers repeated as league champions in 1974, again winning the West Division and then beating the Indianapolis Indians 4 games to 3. (There was no Junior World Series that year.) The following chart lists their performance during their final eight years of existence: Through their many years of existence, the Oilers had had many big names both play for and manage
256-662: The Spokane Indians . Oiler outfielder Jim Hicks was named MVP of the PCL . During their final eight years of existence, the Oilers were members of the American Association . They won the league championship twice. In 1973, the Oilers led the West Division, then won the league playoff 4 games to 3 over the Iowa Oaks . The Oilers went on to play in the 1973 Junior World Series , where they lost 4 games to 1 to
288-1258: The Tulsa Drillers . The Drillers have been a mainstay of the Texas League ever since; they played at Oiler Park from 1977 to 1980 until Robert B. Sutton Stadium, later Tulsa County Stadium and then Drillers Stadium , opened in 1981. They now play at ONEOK Field . Missouri Valley League The Missouri Valley League was an American minor league baseball league which operated from 1901 through 1905. The Missouri Valley league formed in 1901 as an Independent league. The league consisted of teams in Kansas and Missouri: Columbus, Kansas , Fort Scott Memphis Route , Galena, Kansas , Joplin Colts , Monett Railroadmen , Nevada Reds , Oswego, Kansas and Pittsburg Coal Barons . 1901 league records and standings are unknown. In 1902, The teams in Nevada, Missouri , Fort Scott, Kansas and Joplin, Missouri remained. Sedalia, Missouri ; Coffeyville, Kansas ; Jefferson City, Missouri ; Iola, Kansas and Springfield, Missouri joined as
320-553: The Western Association . On July 22, the Tulsa Oilers team disbanded. From 1911 to 1913, the Tulsa Oilers were not involved in organized baseball. However, in 1914 they rejoined the Western Association, leading the league with a 74–49 record under manager Howard Price. Even after such an impressive season, the Oilers disbanded again, and baseball would not be played under that name until 1919. (Until 1917 Tulsa had
352-524: The 1905 Class C level Missouri Valley League. In 1905, South McAlester moved to Ft. Smith on July 6. Muskogee disbanded on August 31, causing the Missouri Valley League to end on September 5. schedule Coffeyville (9–30) moved to Chanute June 23. schedule Nevada (21–39) moved to Webb City July 13, then disbanded July 16; Leavenworth disbanded July 16. schedule schedule Muskogee disbanded Aug 31, causing
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#1732782408689384-617: The 1976 season. For one year they were the New Orleans Pelicans , then moved on to Springfield, Illinois , and in 1982 to Louisville, Kentucky , where the team set minor league attendance records and is now called the Louisville Bats . Tulsa was not without baseball for long, however; shortly after the Oilers announced they were leaving town, the Lafayette Drillers of the Texas League moved to Tulsa as
416-543: The Eastern Division, then lost the championship series to the Seattle Angels , 4 games to 3. The following year, future Hall of Famer Warren Spahn took over as manager; he would ultimately become the winningest manager in Oilers history. After a poor 1967 season, in 1968 the Oilers had one of their best seasons ever, winning the Eastern Division, then winning the PCL championship series 4 games to 1 over
448-653: The Missouri Valley League became designated as a Class D level league. On June 23, the Coffeyville Indians, with a 9-30 record, relocated to Chanute, Kansas , where they compiled a 32–51 record. In the 1903 season, the teams in Chanute and Jefferson City folded. New teams in Leavenworth, Kansas , and Pittsburg, Kansas , formed and joined the league. The Nevada team, with a record of 21–39, relocated to Webb City, Missouri , on July 13, where their record
480-599: The PCL's new Western Division (the PCL had absorbed former American Association teams in the midwestern and southwestern parts of the United States). In the playoffs, the Angels defeated the Eastern Division champion Tulsa Oilers, for Seattle's last PCL pennant. The team's last year was 1968, in which they finished in eighth place overall. Seattle had been granted an expansion team in the American League ,
512-727: The Pacific Northwest League as the Seattle Clamdiggers . Though the team finished second in 1906, the PCL contracted from six teams to four after the season (mainly due to the failures of the Sacramento franchise). For the next 11 seasons, the Indians played in the Northwest League , at the time a Class B league. The Indians re-entered the PCL in 1919 with Portland (which had dropped out of
544-881: The Pacific Northwest, and changed their name after being acquired by the Rainier Brewing Company , which was in turn named for nearby Mount Rainier . Along with the Los Angeles Angels , Portland Beavers , Oakland Oaks , Sacramento Solons , and San Francisco Seals the Indians were charter members of the Pacific Coast League which was founded in 1903 after the California League and the Pacific Northwest League merged. They were known in
576-627: The Rainiers and signed a deal to play in Sicks' Stadium (where the team inherited the Pilots' old offices). The Rainiers played five seasons in the NWL between 1972 and 1976 with two winning teams. The team was a co-op operation in 1972, drawing players primarily from the San Francisco and Baltimore minor league systems. Managed by former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Ray Washburn, the Rainiers went into
608-479: The Reds until 1954. In 1955, they were a Cleveland Indians affiliate; in 1956, they were again a Cubs affiliate. From 1957 to 1958, they were a Philadelphia Phillies affiliate. For the rest of their existence, they were a St. Louis Cardinals affiliate. In their second year in the Texas League, the Oilers got a new home, Texas League Park. However, it was not well maintained over the years; its dilapidated condition
640-414: The deteriorating condition of Oiler Park. Smith had poured significant resources into keeping the park at something approaching Triple-A standards. However, it was obvious that the park was nearing the end of its useful life. When Smith was unable to get commitments for a new park, or at least further public or private funding for badly-needed upgrades to Oiler Park, he moved the team to New Orleans after
672-529: The final professional baseball game in Sicks' Stadium. In 1977 , another American League expansion team was awarded to Seattle, the Seattle Mariners . The Seattle Rainiers were affiliated with the following major league teams: Baseball Hall of Fame alumni Notable alumni The Mariners occasionally wear Rainiers uniforms as a "1950s throwback" promotion. In 1995, the Tacoma Tigers,
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#1732782408689704-581: The ground. Located at Rainier and McClellan Streets, it had been built in 1913 when the Indians played in the Northwest League. For the next six years, the team played at Civic Stadium , featuring a playing field of hardpan dirt. Events took a definite turn for the better in 1938 when Emil Sick, owner of Seattle's Rainier Brewing Company , bought the Indians and renamed them the Seattle Rainiers. He began construction of Sick's Stadium ,
736-505: The ill-fated Seattle Pilots , which began play in 1969 . The Pilots would last but one year in Seattle, before a bankruptcy court sold the team to a group headed by Bud Selig and were moved to Milwaukee in 1970. After the Pilots left, Seattle was without professional baseball for the first time since 1900. Following a two-year void, a Sacramento man named Art Peterson bought a Class A Northwest League franchise for Seattle, named them
768-685: The last pennants won under Sick's ownership. After the 1960 season, the team was sold to the Boston Red Sox . The Red Sox in turn sold the Rainiers to the Los Angeles/California Angels in 1965, who renamed the team the Seattle Angels, as they were known during their last four seasons. The last hurrah for the Rainiers-turned-Angels came in 1966, when the Seattle Angels won the championship of
800-445: The league after 1917), bringing the number of teams in the league to eight. The Indians finished in last place that year, but jumped to second in 1920. In 1924, the Indians won their first PCL pennant, clinching the title on the last day of the 202-game season. For more than a decade after their championship run, the Indians were mired in the second division year after year. In 1932, their home park, 15,000-seat Dugdale Field , burned to
832-628: The season to be shortened to September 5. South McAlester moved to Ft. Smith July 6. Seattle Angels The Seattle Rainiers , originally named the Seattle Indians and also known as the Seattle Angels , were a Minor League Baseball team in Seattle , Washington , that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1906 and 1919 to 1968. They were initially named for the indigenous Native American population of
864-411: The team. Jake Beckley, Gus Weyhing, Deacon White, Gus Mancuso , Marty McManus , Whitey Kurowski , Warren Spahn and Ken Boyer all managed for the team at one point or another. Steve Carlton, Mike Torrez, Ted Simmons , Nelson Briles , Jerry Reuss , Keith Hernandez , Bob Forsch , Dal Maxvill and Mike Easler all played for the team. By the end of the 1976 season, the Oilers were again faced with
896-677: The winners of the Southern Association and the Texas League. From 1940 to 1942, they were affiliated with the Chicago Cubs . The Texas League was shut down from 1943 to 1945 due to World War II, but when it started up again in 1946, the Oilers again played in the league until 1965. In 1946 and 1947, they were affiliated with the Cubs, but in 1948 they became affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds . They stayed affiliated with
928-559: Was 0–4. The teams from Leavenworth and Webb City folded mid–season on July 16. In 1904, new teams in Leavenworth, Kansas, and Topeka, Kansas , formed and joined the league. After the 1904 season, the Missouri Valley League essentially reformed under a different name as five member teams formed under a new league. Joplin, Leavenworth, Sedalia, Springfield, and Topeka all joined the new 1905 Western Association . The Iola franchise folded. The Fort Scott and Pittsburg franchises remained in
960-537: Was declared unsuitable by the city. The team opted to move Topeka, Kansas for a spell while plans for a replacement were drawn up. In 1930 and 1931, they were known as the Topeka Senators . They returned to Tulsa in 1932, temporarily playing at Fairgrounds Park. Although 1932 was the Oilers' final season in the Western League, it was also the first season in which they were actually affiliated with
992-512: Was obvious as early as the 1950s. In 1961, the team was nearly moved to Albuquerque partly due to the stadium's poor state of repair, but A. Ray Smith bought out the previous owner and heavily renovated the park, renaming it Oiler Park . The following shows the Oilers' performance during their years in the Texas League: In 1966, the Oilers moved up to AAA baseball as part of the Pacific Coast League . In their first year, they won
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1024-527: Was outfielder Casey Sander , a Seattle native who played one season in 1975 before embarking upon an acting career, eventually landing a regular role in the longtime ABC-TV sitcom Grace Under Fire . The 1976 team had the best showing of the Rainiers' five-season run, finishing second by one game to the Portland Mavericks in the NWL's Northern Division. On September 1, 1976, Seattle shut out Portland 2-0, with local product George Meyring winning
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