The Biddeford Orphans were a minor league baseball team based in

Biddeford, Maine Biddeford is a city in York County, Maine, United States. It is the principal commercial center of York County. Its population was 22,552 at the 2020 census. The twin cities of Saco and Biddeford include the resort communities of Biddeford Po ...

. Preceded in minor league play by the 1885 Biddeford "Clamdiggers," who played as members of the 1885 Eastern New England League, the Orphans were members of the Class D level

Maine State League The Maine State League was a Class D level minor league baseball league that played in the 1897, 1907 and 1908 seasons. The eight–team Maine State League consisted of teams based in Maine and New Hampshire. The Maine State League permanently ...

in 1907 and 1908, hosting home games at St. Louis Park.

History

Minor league baseball began in Biddeford, Maine in 1885. The Biddeford Clamdiggers became members of the 1885

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

level Eastern New England League. The five–team league schedule consisted of an 80–game season, with each team playing 20 games against each of the other four. On July 17, 1885, Biddeford had a record of 13–20 when the franchise disbanded and relocated to Newburyport, Massachusetts to complete the season. Playing under manager Irwin, the Biddeford/Newburyport team had a 25–55 overall record, placing fifth and last in the league standings, finishing 23.5 games behind first place Lawrence. The 1907 Biddeford Orphans resumed play as members of the

, which reformed as an eight–team Class D level league. The "Orphans" moniker corresponds to Biddeford being home in the era to the Sisters of Mercy Orphanage. Biddeford began play in the 1907 season alongside fellow members from Augusta, Maine (

Augusta Senators Augusta may refer to: Places Australia * Augusta, Western Australia Brasil * Rua Augusta (São Paulo) Canada * Augusta, Ontario * North Augusta, Ontario * Augusta Street (Hamilton, Ontario) France * Augusta Suessionum ("Augusta of the Sue ...

), Bangor, Maine ( Bangor Cubs),

Lewiston, Maine Lewiston (; ; officially the City of Lewiston, Maine) is the second largest city in Maine and the most central city in Androscoggin County. The city lies halfway between Augusta, the state's capital, and Portland, the state's most populous ci ...

(Lewiston),

Manchester, New Hampshire Manchester is a city in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the most populous city in New Hampshire. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 115,644. Manchester is, along with Nashua, one of two seats of New Ha ...

(Manchester),

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropo ...

(

Pine Tree Capers A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accepts ...

), a second team in Portland (

Portland Blue Sox The Portland Blue Sox were a class-D minor league baseball team in Portland, Maine which played from 1907 to 1908 in the Maine State League and the Atlantic Association before folding. The Blue Sox were relaunched in 1919 to make up for the lo ...

) and Waterville, Maine (Waterville). Biddeford continued play as the 1907 Maine State League began games on May 24, 1907. The league lost several franchises before the season concluded. Both Manchester and Waterville folded in June, with Augusta and Lewiston folding after. With a 30–27 record, Biddeford placed second in the final 1907 standings, finishing 6.5 games behind the first place Bangor Cubs, playing the season under managers Charlie Allen and John Guiney. Bangor had a 47–31 final record, followed by the Biddeford Orphans, Portland Blue Sox (39–41) and Pine Tree Capers (27–32) in the 1907 final standings. The Augusta Senators (27–28), Lewiston (24–23), Manchester (1–7) and Waterville (8–14) all folded before the completion of the season. In 1908, Biddeford continued play under new manager Bernie McGraw as Maine State League games began play on June 10, 1908. During the season, Pine Tree and York Beach both disbanded on July 19, 1908, and when the Portland Blue Sox disbanded on August 28, 1908, the Maine State League permanently folded. The Portland Blue Sox were in 1st place with a 32–20 record, followed the Bangor White Sox (31–22), Lewiston/Augusta (20–26) and Biddeford (18–30) in the standings. However, since Portland folded, the Bangor White Sox were awarded the 1908 Maine State League championship. The Maine State League permanently folded following the 1908 season. Biddleford, Maine has not hosted another minor league team.

The ballpark

The Biddeford Orphans were noted to have played home games at St. Louis Field in 1907 and 1908. St. Louis Field is still in use today as a public park with ballfields. It is located at 284 Hill Street Biddeford, Maine.

Timeline

Year–by–year records

Notable alumni

* Frank Beck (1885) * Kid Butler (1885) *

Artie Clarke Arthur Franklin Clarke (1865–1949) was a Major League Baseball player. He played for the New York Giants of the National League in 1890–1891. He played college ball at Brown University and Williams College Williams College is a private ...

(1885) * Charlie Fischer (1885) * John Fox (1885) *

Jim Halpin James Nathaniel Halpin (October 4, 1863 – January 4, 1893), a native of England, was a Major League Baseball shortstop/third baseman. He played for the Worcester Ruby Legs (1882), Washington Nationals (1884 Union Association), and Detroit Wolve ...

(1885) * John Hanna (1885) * Pat Hartnett (1885) * John Irwin (1885) * Michael McDermott (1885) * Jim McKeever (1885) *

Hank Morrison Stephen Henry Morrison (May 22, 1866 – September 30, 1927), was a professional baseball player who played pitcher in the Major Leagues for the 1887 Indianapolis Hoosiers of the National League. He played minor league baseball in the Tri-State L ...

(1885) *

Henry Mullin Henry J. Mullin (1862–1937) was a Major League Baseball outfielder. He played for the 1884 Washington Nationals in the American Association and Boston Reds in the Union Association. He played in the New England League The New England League ...

(1885) * Mike Slattery (1885) * Guerdon Whiteley (1885)

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

Biddeford - Baseball Reference
Professional baseball teams in Maine Defunct baseball teams in Maine Baseball teams established in 1907 Baseball teams disestablished in 1908 Maine State League teams Sports in Biddeford, Maine 1908 disestablishments in Maine 1907 establishments in Maine