Best Record: 93-69 (1972)
Worst Record: 54-108 (1968)
Playoff Appearances: 1
Championships: 1 (1969)
With the ABC wanting to tap into the West Coast market, the California Stars were born for the 1962 season, alongside the Seattle Sea Monsters, New Jersey Stallions and Wisconsin Bears. They got off to a rough start by losing 107 games in their inagural season, but a 115-loss season by the Sea Monsters kept them out of last place. They lost 105 games in their second season, before improving to 78-84 in 1964, but still finishing in sixth place. They never could figure out how to win, bottoming out with a 108-loss season in 1968. Then in 1969, something changed. The team was actually competitive for the first time ever. Despite many saying that they were bound to fade away, they never did. They won a weak ABC West division with an 85-78 record, their first ever finish above .500. Facing the 102-win Indiana Fireflies in the ABC Championship Series, nobody gave them much of a chance. However, they quickly asserted their dominance over the supposedly superior Fireflies, knocking them out in four games to reach the World Series in their 8th season of existence. They took down the Philadelphia Hornets to win their first--and to date only--championship.
The Stars remained competitive for a few years after that, but never made it back to the playoffs and are still at this time searching for their next playoff appearance. They have only posted 8 winning seasons in 28 seasons of existence (and on the flip side, they have posted 11 seasons where they lost 90 or more games). They have only finished in second place twice since their championship, and one of those 2nd place finishes was accomplished with a 76-86 record. Outfielder Christiopher Stone has brought excitement to the team in his decade roaming the outfield for them, and is likely to be the first Hall of Famer to feature a Stars cap on his plaque. He is currently playing for the San Diego Sharks, having departed as a free agent two seasons ago after never winning anything significant with the Stars.
Outlook for 1990:
Not much excitement surrounds this team, although they did just improve from 95 losses in 1988 to a .500 finish in 1989. They have the pieces to be a playoff contender in 1990, but are just as likely to sink back to the bottom. They will not be expected to do all that much next season.
Current Manager:
Corey Presser just finished his first season as Stars manager, taking over from the fired George O'Farrell. Presser is a Los Angeles native, and was a first baseman in his playing days. He put up good minor league numbers from 1956 through 1971 with several teams, but he never made the Major Leagues. He had no prior managerial experience before taking the Stars' job. He is signed for one more season, and should earn an extension if the team plays well in 1990.
Hall of Famers: none