The Albuquerque Cardinals were a minor league baseball team based in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

. Albuquerque teams played exclusively as a member of the Arizona-Texas League in 1932 and from 1937 to 1941, winning three league championships. The team played as the Albuquerque "Dons" in 1932 before the league folded, resuming play in 1937. The franchise became known as the Albuquerque "Cardinals" while serving as a minor league affiliate of the

St Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

from 1937 to 1941. The Dons and Cardinals hosted home minor league games at Tingley Field

History

Minor league baseball first began in Albuquerque in 1915, when the

Albuquerque Dukes The Albuquerque Dukes were a minor league baseball team based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. History The first Dukes team was formed in 1915 as part of the Class D Rio Grande Association. The team finished in third place with a 32-25 record. Fra ...

played one season in the Rio Grande Association. The Albuquerque Dons returned minor league baseball to the city, joining the 1932 Class D level Arizona-Texas League In 1932, Albuquerque Dons had a record of 57–42 and were in first place under Manager Bobby Coltrin when the five–team league disbanded on July 24, 1932. The Arizona-Texas League did not play for the next four seasons. In 1937, the Arizona-Texas League reformed. The Albuquerque "Cardinals" took the moniker of their major league affiliate as they joined the Class D level league and won the league championship. The Albuquerque Cardinals played as an affiliate of the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals hav ...

in 1937, the first of a five–year partnership. The Cardinals placed third with an overall record of 56–59, playing the season under manager

Bill DeLancey William Pinkney DeLancey (November 28, 1911 – November 28, 1946) was an American professional baseball player during the 1930s. As a 22-year-old rookie catcher in , he helped to lead the St. Louis Cardinals' fabled Gashouse Gang team to the wor ...

. The 1937 regular season standings were led by the

El Paso Texans EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American p ...

with a 73–49 record, followed by Albuquerque (56–59), the

Bisbee Bees The Bisbee Bees were a Minor League Baseball team that represented Bisbee, Arizona from 1928 to 1941. The Bisbee Bees played as members of the Arizona State League (1928–1930) and Arizona–Texas League (1931–1932, 1937–1941). The Bees wer ...

(51–71), and

Tucson Cowboys , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...

(57–58). Albuquerque won the second–half championship, after the Cardinals defeated El Paso in a one–game playoff for second–half championship to force a final series. El Paso had won the first–half championship. In the 1937 Finals, the Albuquerque defeated the El Paso 4 games to 3 to capture the 1937 championship. Total home attendance for the Cardinals was 30,110. The 1938 Albuquerque Cardinals placed third in the four–team Arizona–Texas League regular season standings. The Cardinals ended the season with a 67–65 record, playing under returning manager Bill DeLancey and did not qualify for the playoff, won by El Paso. Albuquerque had season home attendance of 60,000, averaging 909 per home game. Albuquerque finished 6.0 games behind first place Bisbee in the final standings. The 1939 Albuquerque Cardinals won their second Arizona–Texas League Championship. The Cardinals finished the regular season with a record of 70–60, placing second in the overall standings under manager Bill DeLancey, winning the second half–standings of the split–season schedule. In the playoff final, the Cardinals defeated the Bisbee-Douglas Bees 4 games to 2 to claim the 1939 championship. The Cardinals had home season attendance of 100,000. The 1940 four-team Arizona–Texas League became a Class C level league. The Albuquerque Cardinals finished with a record of 60–64, placing third in the league, playing the season under manager

Jack Farmer Floyd Haskell "Jack" Farmer (July 14, 1892 – May 21, 1970) was a Major League Baseball second baseman who played for two seasons. He played for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1916 and the Cleveland Indians in 1918. He attended Cumberland University ...

. The Cardinals did not play in the post season, won by El Paso over Tucson. The Cardinals finished 6.5 games behind 1st place Tucson in the final overall standings. 1941 was the final season for the Albuquerque Cardinals. The Arizona-Texas League continued as a four–team, Class C level league. The 1941 Cardinals manager was

Jimmy Zinn James Edward Zinn (January 21, 1895 – February 26, 1991) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played all or part of four seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Athletics (1919), Pittsburgh Pirates (1920–22), a ...

. Under Zinn, the Cardinals finished 63–65, placing second in the league and finishing 21.0 games behind the first place Tucson Cowboys (86–46). No playoffs were held. The Arizona–Texas League folded after the 1941 season. In 1942, Albuquerque continued play as the

, joining the

West Texas-New Mexico League West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

. Today, Albuquerque is home to the Class AAA

Albuquerque Isotopes The Albuquerque Isotopes are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They play home games at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at an el ...

The ballpark

The Albuquerque Dons and Albuquerque Cardinals played minor league home games at Tingley Field. Also called "Apprentice Field," the stadium was upgraded in 1937 with a $10,900

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...

grant. The ballpark officially opened April 6, 1932. Tingley Field, was named for Mayor Clyde Tingley.

general manager

Branch Rickey Wesley Branch Rickey (December 20, 1881 – December 9, 1965) was an American baseball player and sports executive. Rickey was instrumental in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier by signing black player Jackie Robinson. He also creat ...

was present for first game in 1937 and called Tingley Field "one of the finest minor league parks in America". Tingley Field was demolished in 1969. Today, the old ticket booth remains and the site is called Tingley Park, a public park with baseball and softball fields. Tingley Field Ticket Office Albuquerque

Timeline

Season–by–season

Notable alumni

Dick Adams Dick Adams may refer to: * Dick Adams (politician) (born 1951), Australian politician * Dick Adams (baseball) (1920–2016), American Major League Baseball player * Dick Adams (Canadian football) (born 1948), Canadian football player See also * ...

(1940) *

Italo Chelini Italo Vincent Chelini (October 10, 1914 – August 25, 1972), nicknamed "Chilly", was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Chicago White Sox from 1935 to 1937.Bill DeLancey William Pinkney DeLancey (November 28, 1911 – November 28, 1946) was an American professional baseball player during the 1930s. As a 22-year-old rookie catcher in , he helped to lead the St. Louis Cardinals' fabled Gashouse Gang team to the wor ...

(1937–1939, MGR) *

Bill Endicott "Farmer" Bill Endicott (November 5, 1876 – June 7, 1944) was an American racecar driver. He raced in three Indianapolis 500 races in the 1910s. Endicott raced on several IMCA circuits in the United States and Canada in the 1910s and 1920s ...

(1937) *

(1940, MGR) *

Dick Gyselman Richard Ronald Gyselman (April 6, 1908 – September 20, 1990) was a third baseman in Major League Baseball. He played for the Boston Braves in 1933 and 1934. For his success in minor league baseball, Gyselman was a 2003 inductee in the Pacific C ...

(1932) *

Johnny Hetki John Edward Hetki (May 12, 1922 – January 10, 2019) was a long relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Browns and Pittsburgh Pirates in all or parts of eight seasons spanning 1945–54. Listed a ...

(1941) * Lloyd Johnson (1932) * Eddie Malone (1938) *

Dave Odom George David Odom (born October 9, 1942) is a retired American men's college basketball coach. He served as the head coach of the East Carolina Pirates, Wake Forest Demon Deacons and South Carolina Gamecocks. Playing career Odom began his caree ...

(1937) * Warren Sandel (1939) *

Bobby Sturgeon Robert Harwood Sturgeon (August 6, 1919 – March 10, 2007) was a shortstop and second baseman in Major League Baseball who played between 1940 and 1948 for the Chicago Cubs (1940–1942, 1946–1947) and Boston Braves (1948). Listed at , 17 ...

(1937–1938) *

(1941, MGR)

References

{{reflist, 2

External links

Albuquerque - Baseball Reference
Defunct minor league baseball teams Sports in Albuquerque, New Mexico Professional baseball teams in New Mexico Baseball teams established in 1937 Baseball teams disestablished in 1941 Defunct baseball teams in New Mexico St. Louis Cardinals minor league affiliates 1937 establishments in New Mexico Defunct Arizona-Texas League teams