OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - The National Pastime: The United States Baseball Federation rises

KCRoyals15 · 12-27-2024, 04:12 PM

1971

“How Does Galveston Do It?” pondered a Sporting News headline in its August, 1971 edition. “The city was the fourth-largest in Texas at the time it was ravaged by a deadly hurricane in 1900, killing thousands, flattening nearly the entire city, and becoming the namesake for the team that has thrived on Galveston island since becoming a founding member of the Texas League in 1903. The disaster aside, the then-thriving port city seemed like a perfectly fine place to harbor a franchise in the fledging circuit.”

“Nearly seven decades later, the landscape could hardly be more different. Much of the industry dried up decades ago, moving inland to relatively safer Houston while hurricanes still periodically batter the low-lying sandbar. The city’s last major advantage over its much-larger nearby metropolis was quashed in the 1950’s: the tawdry, illicit vice of gambling and houses of ill-repute that stubbornly and defiantly stayed in business until being forcefully shuttered for good by the state.”

“What’s left? A city that is smaller than several nascent suburbs of Dallas and Houston, even smaller than San Angelo, the unassuming West Texas town that is home to the Galveston Hurricanes’ minor league affiliate. The island still sees some tourist activity, some port activity, and some local business largely boosted by the affluent Moody family—the namesake of Moody National Bank.”

“On the surface, the situation in Galveston appears similar to other mid-sized towns throughout the United States that are simply trying to stay above water (metaphorically or not), though with one glaring difference: Galveston is home to one of the very best baseball clubs in the country. In a town of some 62,000, a 31,000-seat, state-of-the-art stadium is rising on the north end of the island, set to open in 1972."

"The bulk of the $36-million facility will be funded by the Galveston Hurricanes, giving a clear indication to the baseball world that the franchise is as healthy as ever and intends on staying put in what is far and away the smallest market in the United States Baseball Federation. Logic would say such a club should have died long before the Texas League’s ascension to major-league status in 1955 due to the added financial strains of big-league operation. Nonetheless not only do the Hurricanes survive against all odds, but they are robust both financially and on the field, with the talent and ambition to win a National Championship and the financial muscle to make it legitimately possible…”

The 1971 season got underway and the New England League was treated to a couple of solid races. In the New England League, New York tied for first along with the Philadelphia Quakers, who were celebrating the opening of their (and the Philly A’s) new home, Veterans Stadium. Buffalo, meanwhile, took a close third, just two games back. The Midwest Association saw Milwaukee take their third consecutive pennant, finishing three games ahead of Cleveland, who nonetheless snapped a nine-year playoff drought.

Once October hit, Philadelphia took down New York in six games to open things up. Cleveland, meanwhile, pulled off a minor upset of Milwaukee in a seven-game series. The Spiders once more went to seven games in the Conference Championship, where they defeated the Quakers to earn their first conference title in 13 years.

The Southern Conference featured a familiar sight, with Jacksonville finishing first and Miami in second, the fourth straight year those two teams finished 1-2 and Jacksonville’s seventh-straight playoff bid overall. For the third year in a row, the Louisville Colonels won the Western League, while the Omaha Golden Spikes fended off St. Louis in a thrilling race to finish second, clinching their first playoff berth in 11 years.

In the postseason, Jacksonville made quick work of their in-state rivals, downing Miami in five games. Likewise, Louisville took care of business, overcoming Omaha in six games. In the Conference Championship, the Colonels came through in a big way, taming the Tars for their second consecutive Southern Conference Championship.

The Pacific Coast League saw a tight race for the top, with Seattle and Sacramento finishing in a dead heat, though the Rainiers, in for the ninth year in a row, won a one-game playoff for the regular-season PCL title. San Diego finished third to punch their sixth-straight playoff ticket, while Portland slipped in two games ahead of San Francisco to reach the postseason for the first time in eight years.

The semifinals saw both series go the distance, with Sacramento outlasting San Diego in a seven-game match. The other one was much more surprising, as the Portland Beavers downed Seattle in seven games to send the defending champions home early. The Beavers were not done, sending the Solons off in five games to earn their first PCL title since 1962.

As has regularly been the case, the Texas League once more saw no dominant teams, as San Antonio had the best season with a rather modest 93 wins. Fort Worth finished with 90 victories, edging Dallas for the North Division crown, though both teams were heading to October. Meanwhile, with the Missions taking the South, Galveston’s streak of six-straight division titles came to an end, though the Hurricanes fended off Houston by a couple game to earn their ninth playoff berth in a row.

The Hurricanes promptly showed that it didn’t matter how they got to the playoffs as long as they got in, as the swept San Antonio out in the Division Finals. Over in the North, Fort Worth took care of their crosstown Rivals, drubbing Dallas in five games. The long-tortured Panthers finally got over the hump in the finals, taking down Galveston in six games to earn their first Texas League title as a big-league club and their TL title at all since 1906—ending a 65-year drought.

With the title drought over, Fort Worth carried that momentum into the national tournament, where the Fort Worth Panthers (TL) defeated the Portland Beavers (PCL) in the semifinals. On the other side, the Louisville Colonels (SOU) defeat the Cleveland Spiders (NOR) to set up the finals. With all the cards on the table, the Louisville Colonels (SOU) defeat the Fort Worth Panthers (TL), 4-2 to give the Colonels their second National Championship and first since 1943.

Just two years after saying goodbye to all-time great Aaron Vergara, Milwaukee welcomed another star on the left side of the infield with the 1969 debut of Mark Oxford. In his third season, the 24-year-old had firmly cemented himself as a star in the making, slashing .321/.403/.477 with 198 hits 107 runs, 27 doubles, 9 triples, 17 homers, 70 RBI, and 33 stolen bases, in addition to excellent defense at shortstop, earning him his first Northern Conference MVP award.

Four years prior, Milwaukee acquired right-hander Hunter Dellaripa in a very peculiar way. A solid arm, the Philadelphia A’s dealt him directly to the independent Bakersfield Conquistadors in the Southwest League on July 5, 1967, getting two players back. The very next day, the Black Hawks purchased Dellaripa’s contract for the default Southwest League purchase price of $10,000. Becoming a strong piece in the Milwaukee staff, the 35-year-old was at his strongest in ’71, going 16-8 with a conference-leading 2.14 ERA, striking out 125 batters in 236.0 innings to win Pitcher of the Year.

A pair of longtime Northern sluggers reached 400 home runs this year, starting with Toronto’s Justin Watts, who hit his historic blast in May 16. On the final day of August, Eric Weed of New York reached that benchmark as well.

After breaking out with 32 homers in his first season as a starter in 1970, 25-year-old first baseman George Turner erupted in his fourth season in St. Louis the following year. Turner led the Southern Conference in all three triple-slash categories, slashing .357/.427/.620, with a conference-high 222 hits, 125 runs, and 143 RBI. He also added 38 doubles, 10 triples, 35 homers, and 19 stolen bases. All-in-all, it was an easy choice for his first MVP.

For the second time in three seasons, Kansas City right-hander Matt Peterson took home Pitcher of the Year honors. The 31-year-old went 19-9 with a conference-best 2.48 ERA, striking out 204 batters in 257.2 innings, while leading the South with 14 complete games.

Though he was done winning MVP awards, Jacksonville’s Steve Bishop continued to play at an MVP level, bashing 33 homers and 102 RBI in just 113 games. On April 29, he became the first non-PCL player (and just the third overall) to connect for his 500th career home run.

The Pacific Coast League was once more dominated by a familiar subject. Seattle’s Joseph Miller only hit .244, but he won his seventh home run title with 43, and also drove in a league-leading 114 runs, while even adding a career-high 17 stolen bases to earn his record seventh MVP award.

Sacramento lefty Mannuel Aldrama bounced back and forth between the majors and minors over much of his first six big-league seasons. However, he put it all together in his age-28 season, going 22-13 with a 2.42 ERA, striking out 218 batters and throwing a league-leading five shutouts in 304.1 innings, earning PCL Pitcher of the Year.

Early in the season, Seattle’s Jarrett Messing joined a small circle of elites by connecting for his 3,000th hit on March 13. Meanwhile, another Seattle mainstay, Griffin Searle, moved on from the Rainiers last winter after 21 seasons after wanting to keep playing while Seattle wished to move on following the 1970 campaign. The 44-year-old's final season was a dud, though, as Searle hit just .131 in part-time duty for the Memphis Chicks and was released in mid-August to end his career. Nonetheless, his 22-year run came to a close with 654 home runs (all but two in the PCL), the highest total in USBF history to that point. He also topped 2,000 RBIs (2,074), still the most in big-league history and finished just 19 hits shy of 3,000 for his career.

In the Texas League, 24-year-old Houston second baseman Ronnie Moles was coming into his own and in his third season, he won the TL batting title, slashing .319/.387/.463 with 183 hits, 94 runs, 33 doubles, 10 triples, 10 homers, and 82 RBI to earn MVP honors.

His teammate, Dean Poch, won 21 games with a 2.56 ERA in his first year in Houston in ’69, then fell off considerably in 1970. This year, though, he bounced back, going 24-8 with a 2.59 ERA to lead the TL in wins, while also working 274.1 innings, including a league-high 17 complete games and 6 shutouts. That all was more than enough to earn the 33-year-old the Pitcher of the Year trophy.

This year, the PCL elected a steady slugger to the Hall of Fame:

OF Danny Quinones (1950-65), 75.3%

---

Three of the four playoff teams in the American Baseball League were the usual suspects: Pittsburgh won 111 games, San Jose 107, and Pittsburgh 102. But crashing the party in the West was the Hawaii Islanders. In Trey Skipper’s second season the job, he led the Islanders to a 27-game turnaround, jolting the franchise from the doldrums of 17-straight losing seasons (most of them in Vancouver) to make the playoffs.

On the other side, Spokane went 78-84, their first losing season in 18 years in the ABL. That paled in comparison to Albuquerque, though, who set a new ABL standard for futility with a 37-125 record—a record so putrid that the franchise announced before the end of the season that they would be going out of business at the close of the campaign.

In the postseason, the defending champion Newark Eagles upset Pittsburgh in the first round, knocking off the Ironmen in six games. Meanwhile, the Isles pulled a bigger upset of San Jose in a six-game triumph. Hawaii had one more upset in tow, as the Islanders clipped the wings of the Eagles decisively, sweeping Newark to hoist the American Cup for the first time in franchise history.

One key to Hawaii’s turnaround was the aggressive (and lopsided) trade for reigning MVP Dusty Frailey, who sparked the top of the lineup by slashing .336/.374/.420 with a league-leading 221 hits, 106 runs, 38 doubles, 3 homers, 74 RBI, and 16 steals. He became the first known player in professional baseball history to win MVP honors in consecutive years in the same league, but different teams.

On the mound, another Islander repeated as Pitcher of the Year, as Chris Wallace won his fifth ABL POTY trophy. The 36-year-old went 24-7 with a 1.71 ERA leading the ABL in both marks, while striking out 312 batters in 242.0 innings. Tragically, despite being at the top of his game, Wallace’s career hit a screeching halt just four starts into the 1972 season, when an elbow injury ended his career, one in which he set still-standing ABL records with a 2.05 career ERA and 3,508 strikeouts.

---

Minor League Champions
Southeastern League: Jackson Junebugs, 92-62, defeats Chattanooga
Colonial League: Pittsfield Colonials, 87-53, defeats Hartford
River Valley League: St. Joseph Snakes, 95-45, defeats Peoria
Rocky Mountain League: Billings Mustangs, 73-53, defeats Pueblo
Coastal League: Macon Peaches, 85-69, defeats Richmond (2nd straight)
Northern League: Fargo-Moorhead Indians, 97-43, defeats La Crosse (2nd straight)
Great Lakes League: Youngstown Steelers, 95-45, defeats Harrisburg
Southwest League: Long Beach Earthquakes, 89-66, defeats Las Vegas
Southern Association: Joplin Jaspers, 77-63, defeats Shreveport
Northwest League: Yakima Tomahawks, 88-52, defeats Reno
Can-Am League: Portland Lobsters, 69-57, defeats Manchester
Mid-Atlantic League: Greensboro Patriots, 78-62, defeats Raleigh-Durham
Lone Star League: Lubbock Hubbers, 83-57, defeats Amarillo
Great Plains League: Thunder Bay Timberjacks, 87-53, defeats Lincoln
Florida Coast League: Columbus Catfish, 76-65, defeats West Palm Beach (3rd straight)
Big Sky League: Saskatoon Rivermen, 78-54, defeats Ogden

A pair of excellent races were notable in the minors. In the Can-Am League, the top four teams were all separated by just three games. In the Florida Coast League, the top six teams were separated by just five games to end the regular season, including Columbus and West Palm Beach tied at the top. The Catfish won a one-game playoff for the regular-season crown, then won the league title for the third year in a row.

12-27-2024, 04:12 PM	#81
KCRoyals15 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Oct 2020 Location: A lot of them Posts: 123	Colonel Cool 1971 “How Does Galveston Do It?” pondered a Sporting News headline in its August, 1971 edition. “The city was the fourth-largest in Texas at the time it was ravaged by a deadly hurricane in 1900, killing thousands, flattening nearly the entire city, and becoming the namesake for the team that has thrived on Galveston island since becoming a founding member of the Texas League in 1903. The disaster aside, the then-thriving port city seemed like a perfectly fine place to harbor a franchise in the fledging circuit.” “Nearly seven decades later, the landscape could hardly be more different. Much of the industry dried up decades ago, moving inland to relatively safer Houston while hurricanes still periodically batter the low-lying sandbar. The city’s last major advantage over its much-larger nearby metropolis was quashed in the 1950’s: the tawdry, illicit vice of gambling and houses of ill-repute that stubbornly and defiantly stayed in business until being forcefully shuttered for good by the state.” “What’s left? A city that is smaller than several nascent suburbs of Dallas and Houston, even smaller than San Angelo, the unassuming West Texas town that is home to the Galveston Hurricanes’ minor league affiliate. The island still sees some tourist activity, some port activity, and some local business largely boosted by the affluent Moody family—the namesake of Moody National Bank.” “On the surface, the situation in Galveston appears similar to other mid-sized towns throughout the United States that are simply trying to stay above water (metaphorically or not), though with one glaring difference: Galveston is home to one of the very best baseball clubs in the country. In a town of some 62,000, a 31,000-seat, state-of-the-art stadium is rising on the north end of the island, set to open in 1972." "The bulk of the $36-million facility will be funded by the Galveston Hurricanes, giving a clear indication to the baseball world that the franchise is as healthy as ever and intends on staying put in what is far and away the smallest market in the United States Baseball Federation. Logic would say such a club should have died long before the Texas League’s ascension to major-league status in 1955 due to the added financial strains of big-league operation. Nonetheless not only do the Hurricanes survive against all odds, but they are robust both financially and on the field, with the talent and ambition to win a National Championship and the financial muscle to make it legitimately possible…” The 1971 season got underway and the New England League was treated to a couple of solid races. In the New England League, New York tied for first along with the Philadelphia Quakers, who were celebrating the opening of their (and the Philly A’s) new home, Veterans Stadium. Buffalo, meanwhile, took a close third, just two games back. The Midwest Association saw Milwaukee take their third consecutive pennant, finishing three games ahead of Cleveland, who nonetheless snapped a nine-year playoff drought. Once October hit, Philadelphia took down New York in six games to open things up. Cleveland, meanwhile, pulled off a minor upset of Milwaukee in a seven-game series. The Spiders once more went to seven games in the Conference Championship, where they defeated the Quakers to earn their first conference title in 13 years. The Southern Conference featured a familiar sight, with Jacksonville finishing first and Miami in second, the fourth straight year those two teams finished 1-2 and Jacksonville’s seventh-straight playoff bid overall. For the third year in a row, the Louisville Colonels won the Western League, while the Omaha Golden Spikes fended off St. Louis in a thrilling race to finish second, clinching their first playoff berth in 11 years. In the postseason, Jacksonville made quick work of their in-state rivals, downing Miami in five games. Likewise, Louisville took care of business, overcoming Omaha in six games. In the Conference Championship, the Colonels came through in a big way, taming the Tars for their second consecutive Southern Conference Championship. The Pacific Coast League saw a tight race for the top, with Seattle and Sacramento finishing in a dead heat, though the Rainiers, in for the ninth year in a row, won a one-game playoff for the regular-season PCL title. San Diego finished third to punch their sixth-straight playoff ticket, while Portland slipped in two games ahead of San Francisco to reach the postseason for the first time in eight years. The semifinals saw both series go the distance, with Sacramento outlasting San Diego in a seven-game match. The other one was much more surprising, as the Portland Beavers downed Seattle in seven games to send the defending champions home early. The Beavers were not done, sending the Solons off in five games to earn their first PCL title since 1962. As has regularly been the case, the Texas League once more saw no dominant teams, as San Antonio had the best season with a rather modest 93 wins. Fort Worth finished with 90 victories, edging Dallas for the North Division crown, though both teams were heading to October. Meanwhile, with the Missions taking the South, Galveston’s streak of six-straight division titles came to an end, though the Hurricanes fended off Houston by a couple game to earn their ninth playoff berth in a row. The Hurricanes promptly showed that it didn’t matter how they got to the playoffs as long as they got in, as the swept San Antonio out in the Division Finals. Over in the North, Fort Worth took care of their crosstown Rivals, drubbing Dallas in five games. The long-tortured Panthers finally got over the hump in the finals, taking down Galveston in six games to earn their first Texas League title as a big-league club and their TL title at all since 1906—ending a 65-year drought. With the title drought over, Fort Worth carried that momentum into the national tournament, where the Fort Worth Panthers (TL) defeated the Portland Beavers (PCL) in the semifinals. On the other side, the Louisville Colonels (SOU) defeat the Cleveland Spiders (NOR) to set up the finals. With all the cards on the table, the *Louisville Colonels (SOU) defeat the Fort Worth Panthers (TL), 4-2* to give the Colonels their second National Championship and first since 1943. Just two years after saying goodbye to all-time great Aaron Vergara, Milwaukee welcomed another star on the left side of the infield with the 1969 debut of Mark Oxford. In his third season, the 24-year-old had firmly cemented himself as a star in the making, slashing .321/.403/.477 with 198 hits 107 runs, 27 doubles, 9 triples, 17 homers, 70 RBI, and 33 stolen bases, in addition to excellent defense at shortstop, earning him his first Northern Conference MVP award. Four years prior, Milwaukee acquired right-hander Hunter Dellaripa in a very peculiar way. A solid arm, the Philadelphia A’s dealt him directly to the independent Bakersfield Conquistadors in the Southwest League on July 5, 1967, getting two players back. The very next day, the Black Hawks purchased Dellaripa’s contract for the default Southwest League purchase price of $10,000. Becoming a strong piece in the Milwaukee staff, the 35-year-old was at his strongest in ’71, going 16-8 with a conference-leading 2.14 ERA, striking out 125 batters in 236.0 innings to win Pitcher of the Year. A pair of longtime Northern sluggers reached 400 home runs this year, starting with Toronto’s Justin Watts, who hit his historic blast in May 16. On the final day of August, Eric Weed of New York reached that benchmark as well. After breaking out with 32 homers in his first season as a starter in 1970, 25-year-old first baseman George Turner erupted in his fourth season in St. Louis the following year. Turner led the Southern Conference in all three triple-slash categories, slashing .357/.427/.620, with a conference-high 222 hits, 125 runs, and 143 RBI. He also added 38 doubles, 10 triples, 35 homers, and 19 stolen bases. All-in-all, it was an easy choice for his first MVP. For the second time in three seasons, Kansas City right-hander Matt Peterson took home Pitcher of the Year honors. The 31-year-old went 19-9 with a conference-best 2.48 ERA, striking out 204 batters in 257.2 innings, while leading the South with 14 complete games. Though he was done winning MVP awards, Jacksonville’s Steve Bishop continued to play at an MVP level, bashing 33 homers and 102 RBI in just 113 games. On April 29, he became the first non-PCL player (and just the third overall) to connect for his 500th career home run. The Pacific Coast League was once more dominated by a familiar subject. Seattle’s Joseph Miller only hit .244, but he won his seventh home run title with 43, and also drove in a league-leading 114 runs, while even adding a career-high 17 stolen bases to earn his record seventh MVP award. Sacramento lefty Mannuel Aldrama bounced back and forth between the majors and minors over much of his first six big-league seasons. However, he put it all together in his age-28 season, going 22-13 with a 2.42 ERA, striking out 218 batters and throwing a league-leading five shutouts in 304.1 innings, earning PCL Pitcher of the Year. Early in the season, Seattle’s Jarrett Messing joined a small circle of elites by connecting for his 3,000th hit on March 13. Meanwhile, another Seattle mainstay, Griffin Searle, moved on from the Rainiers last winter after 21 seasons after wanting to keep playing while Seattle wished to move on following the 1970 campaign. The 44-year-old's final season was a dud, though, as Searle hit just .131 in part-time duty for the Memphis Chicks and was released in mid-August to end his career. Nonetheless, his 22-year run came to a close with 654 home runs (all but two in the PCL), the highest total in USBF history to that point. He also topped 2,000 RBIs (2,074), still the most in big-league history and finished just 19 hits shy of 3,000 for his career. In the Texas League, 24-year-old Houston second baseman Ronnie Moles was coming into his own and in his third season, he won the TL batting title, slashing .319/.387/.463 with 183 hits, 94 runs, 33 doubles, 10 triples, 10 homers, and 82 RBI to earn MVP honors. His teammate, Dean Poch, won 21 games with a 2.56 ERA in his first year in Houston in ’69, then fell off considerably in 1970. This year, though, he bounced back, going 24-8 with a 2.59 ERA to lead the TL in wins, while also working 274.1 innings, including a league-high 17 complete games and 6 shutouts. That all was more than enough to earn the 33-year-old the Pitcher of the Year trophy. This year, the PCL elected a steady slugger to the Hall of Fame: OF Danny Quinones (1950-65), 75.3% --- Three of the four playoff teams in the American Baseball League were the usual suspects: Pittsburgh won 111 games, San Jose 107, and Pittsburgh 102. But crashing the party in the West was the Hawaii Islanders. In Trey Skipper’s second season the job, he led the Islanders to a 27-game turnaround, jolting the franchise from the doldrums of 17-straight losing seasons (most of them in Vancouver) to make the playoffs. On the other side, Spokane went 78-84, their first losing season in 18 years in the ABL. That paled in comparison to Albuquerque, though, who set a new ABL standard for futility with a 37-125 record—a record so putrid that the franchise announced before the end of the season that they would be going out of business at the close of the campaign. In the postseason, the defending champion Newark Eagles upset Pittsburgh in the first round, knocking off the Ironmen in six games. Meanwhile, the Isles pulled a bigger upset of San Jose in a six-game triumph. Hawaii had one more upset in tow, as the Islanders clipped the wings of the Eagles decisively, sweeping Newark to hoist the American Cup for the first time in franchise history. One key to Hawaii’s turnaround was the aggressive (and lopsided) trade for reigning MVP Dusty Frailey, who sparked the top of the lineup by slashing .336/.374/.420 with a league-leading 221 hits, 106 runs, 38 doubles, 3 homers, 74 RBI, and 16 steals. He became the first known player in professional baseball history to win MVP honors in consecutive years in the same league, but different teams. On the mound, another Islander repeated as Pitcher of the Year, as Chris Wallace won his fifth ABL POTY trophy. The 36-year-old went 24-7 with a 1.71 ERA leading the ABL in both marks, while striking out 312 batters in 242.0 innings. Tragically, despite being at the top of his game, Wallace’s career hit a screeching halt just four starts into the 1972 season, when an elbow injury ended his career, one in which he set still-standing ABL records with a 2.05 career ERA and 3,508 strikeouts. --- Minor League Champions Southeastern League: Jackson Junebugs, 92-62, defeats Chattanooga Colonial League: Pittsfield Colonials, 87-53, defeats Hartford River Valley League: St. Joseph Snakes, 95-45, defeats Peoria Rocky Mountain League: Billings Mustangs, 73-53, defeats Pueblo Coastal League: Macon Peaches, 85-69, defeats Richmond (2nd straight) Northern League: Fargo-Moorhead Indians, 97-43, defeats La Crosse (2nd straight) Great Lakes League: Youngstown Steelers, 95-45, defeats Harrisburg Southwest League: Long Beach Earthquakes, 89-66, defeats Las Vegas Southern Association: Joplin Jaspers, 77-63, defeats Shreveport Northwest League: Yakima Tomahawks, 88-52, defeats Reno Can-Am League: Portland Lobsters, 69-57, defeats Manchester Mid-Atlantic League: Greensboro Patriots, 78-62, defeats Raleigh-Durham Lone Star League: Lubbock Hubbers, 83-57, defeats Amarillo Great Plains League: Thunder Bay Timberjacks, 87-53, defeats Lincoln Florida Coast League: Columbus Catfish, 76-65, defeats West Palm Beach (3rd straight) Big Sky League: Saskatoon Rivermen, 78-54, defeats Ogden A pair of excellent races were notable in the minors. In the Can-Am League, the top four teams were all separated by just three games. In the Florida Coast League, the top six teams were separated by just five games to end the regular season, including Columbus and West Palm Beach tied at the top. The Catfish won a one-game playoff for the regular-season crown, then won the league title for the third year in a row. Last edited by KCRoyals15; 12-29-2024 at 12:45 AM.