The Central League was a Class C league of minor league baseball that operated in the United States in 1897. Representatives met to organize in

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

, on January 20, 1897. George Simmons was elected president, secretary, and treasurer. While the exact league lineup was not finalized at the meeting, it was resolved that the circuit was to consist of six teams who would pay a $500 deposit to guarantee they would play the entire season, and player salaries were capped at $900 per team. Officials met again on February 7 in Evansville to solidify the league's membership, and franchises were granted to clubs in

Cairo, Illinois Cairo ( ) is the southernmost city in Illinois and the county seat of Alexander County. The city is located at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Fort Defiance, a Civil War camp, was built here in 1862 by Union General Ulysses ...

; Evansville,

Terre Haute Terre Haute ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, about 5 miles east of the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a ...

, and

Washington, Indiana Washington is a city in Daviess County, Indiana. The population was 11,509 at the time of the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Daviess County. It is also the principal city of the Washington, Indiana Micropolitan Statistical Are ...

;

Paducah, Kentucky Paducah ( ) is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of McCracken County, Kentucky. The largest city in the Jackson Purchase region, it is located at the confluence of the Tennessee and the Ohio rivers, halfway between St. Louis, Missour ...

; and

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. It was reported the Nashville Centennials franchise relocated on June 4, 1897. Severe financial problems throughout the circuit forced the league to disband on July 20. As of July 19, the final day of play, the

Evansville Brewers The Evansville Brewers were a minor league baseball team from Evansville, Indiana, that played in the Class C Central League in 1897. Team history On February 7, 1897, the Evansville Brewers were formed as a charter member of the Class C Cent ...

were in first place with a 41–30 (.577) record, making them the ''de facto'' league champions.

League standings

References

Baseball leagues in Illinois Baseball leagues in Indiana Baseball leagues in Kentucky Baseball leagues in Tennessee Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States Sports leagues established in 1897 Sports leagues disestablished in 1897 {{baseball-competition-stub