The Channel Cities Oilers were a

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

baseball team in the

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leag ...

that played in 1954 and 1955. They were based in

Ventura, California Ventura, officially named San Buenaventura (Spanish for "Saint Bonaventure"), is a city on the Southern Coast of California and the county seat of Ventura County. The population was 110,763 at the 2020 census. Ventura is a popular tourist des ...

, and also in the neighboring resort town of

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

. They played their home games at Laguna Park and Babe Ruth Field in Seaside Park. Their team name reflected the off-shore

oil well An oil well is a drillhole boring in Earth that is designed to bring petroleum oil hydrocarbons to the surface. Usually some natural gas is released as associated petroleum gas along with the oil. A well that is designed to produce only gas may ...

drilling industry in the

Santa Barbara Channel The Santa Barbara Channel is a portion of the Southern California Bight and separates the mainland of California from the northern Channel Islands. It is generally south of the city of Santa Barbara, and west of the Oxnard Plain in Ventura Count ...

that began in the 1950s and was curtailed by a catastrophic oil spill in 1969. Notable major league players include

Chuck Essegian Charles Abraham Essegian (born August 9, 1931) is an American former professional baseball left fielder. He appeared in 404 games in Major League Baseball (MLB) over six seasons (1958–1963) for the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, L ...

Al Gionfriddo Albert Francis Gionfriddo (March 8, 1922 – March 14, 2003) was an American professional baseball player who played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder. Career Gionfriddo made his major league debut on September 23, at the age of 22 with ...

Dario Lodigiani Dario Antonio Lodigiani odi(June 6, 1916 – February 10, 2008) was an infielder in Major League Baseball who played for two different teams between 1938 and 1946. Listed at 5'8", 150 lb., he batted and threw right-handed. He was born in Sa ...

(who managed the Ventura team in 1954) and Dave Melton.1954 Roster
/ref> They moved to become the

Reno Silver Sox The Reno Silver Sox were a minor league baseball team that existed on and off from 1947 to 1992. The team name is derived from the nickname of Nevada, the "Silver State". There was another baseball team known as the Reno Silver Sox who played i ...

midway through the 1955 season.

References

External links

Baseball Reference
Baseball teams established in 1954 Defunct California League teams Ventura, California Santa Barbara, California Defunct baseball teams in California Professional baseball teams in California 1954 establishments in California 1955 disestablishments in California Baseball teams disestablished in 1955 {{California-baseball-team-stub