Daytona Beach Islanders was a name for various minor league

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

teams that have all played in the Florida State League from 1920–1966 and in 1977 and again from 1985–1986. In 1968 through 1973, the team became the Daytona Beach Dodgers, due to their affiliation with the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

. In 1977, the team once again took up the Islanders name before becoming the Daytona Beach Astros for the next seven seasons. Then, for the 1985 and 1986 seasons, they were, yet again, known as the Daytona Beach Islanders, playing as a co-op club of the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

and Texas Rangers for the first of those years and as a full affiliate of the Rangers for the 1986 season.Rhodes, Beth. "White Sox To Field Class A Team In Daytona Beach," ''Orlando'' (FL) ''Sentinel'', Wednesday, December 10, 1986.
/ref> Finally the team became the Daytona Beach Admirals (and was a

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

affiliate) in 1987, before being sold and becoming the St. Lucie Mets.

History

Islanders

The first team known as the Daytona Islanders team was an independent team that played from 1920–1924. Partway through the 1924 season, they moved to Clearwater, Florida to become the Clearwater Pelicans. The second team was 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 ha ...

(1936–1938, 1940–41) and Brooklyn Dodgers (1939). While the Islanders were an affiliate of the Cardinals, Stan Musial played for them under manager

Dickey Kerr Richard Henry Kerr (July 3, 1893 – May 4, 1963) was an American professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball. He also served as a coach and manager in the minor leagues. Early life Kerr was born in St. Loui ...

. The third team played from 1946–1966 as an affiliate of the Brooklyn Dodgers (1946),

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

(1950–53, 55–56), St. Louis Cardinals (1954, 57–60),

(1961),

Kansas City A's The history of the Athletics Major League Baseball franchise spans the period from 1901 to the present day, having begun as a charter member franchise in the new American League in Philadelphia before moving to Kansas City in 1955 for 13 seas ...

(1962–64) and Detroit Tigers (1965–66).

Dodgers

In 1968, the team became the Daytona Beach Dodgers, Single-A affiliate of the

and continued to play their games in the Florida State League until 1973.

Astros

After a hiatus in 1977, the team was once again named the Islanders, before becoming the Daytona Beach Astros the following year, as an affiliate with the Houston Astros. After 1984, the Astros moved the team to

Kissimmee, Florida Kissimmee ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Osceola County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 79,226. It is a Principal City of the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area, wh ...

and they became the

Osceola Astros Osceola (1804 – January 30, 1838, Asi-yahola in Creek), named Billy Powell at birth in Alabama, became an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee, and his great-grandfather was a Scotsman, James McQ ...

Admirals

A team known as the Admirals moved back into Daytona Beach and played for one season, before moving to St. Lucie and becoming the St. Lucie Mets.

Notable alumni

Admirals

John Barfield John David Barfield (October 15, 1964 – December 24, 2016) was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He played during three seasons (1989 to 1991) at the major league level for the Texas Rangers. He pitched in the affiliated minor leagues through ...

* Tom Drees * Wayne Edwards * Buddy Groom *

Matt Merullo Matthew Bates Merullo (born August 4, 1965) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) catcher who played for the Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, and Minnesota Twins between 1989 and 1995. Playing career Merullo attended the Unive ...

Bob Milacki Robert Milacki (born July 28, 1964) is a former professional baseball player who pitched in Major League Baseball between and , mostly with the Baltimore Orioles. Playing career Milacki began his career with the Baltimore Orioles, pitching for t ...

Francisco Oliveras Francisco Javier Oliveras Noa (born January 31, 1963) is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Minnesota Twins and San Francisco Giants from to . See also * List of Major League Baseball players from Puerto Rico Puerto R ...

* Allan Ramirez * Billy Ripken *

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted m ...

* Jeff Tackett

Astros

Ricky Adams Ricky Lee Adams (January 21, 1959 – October 28, 2011) was an American former professional baseball player who played three seasons for the Los Angeles Angels, California Angels and San Francisco Giants of the Major League Baseball (MLB). In ...

* Rod Boxberger * Eric Bullock * Jeff Calhoun * Jeff Datz * Glenn Davis * Bill Doran *

Danny Heep Daniel William Heep (born July 3, 1957), is a retired Major League Baseball outfielder. Heep, who batted and threw left-handed, played for five different ballclubs during his 13-year career: the Houston Astros (1979–1982), New York Mets (198 ...

* Pedro Hernández * Chris Jones * Mark Knudson * Doug Phifer *

Doug Konieczny Douglas James Konieczny ( ; September 27, 1951) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Konieczny pitched in all or part of four seasons between and , all for the Houston Astros. Konieczny graduated from St. Ladislaus High School in ...

* Jack Lazorko * Scott Loucks * Louie Meadows * Ron Meridith *

John Mizerock John Joseph Mizerock (; born December 8, 1960) is an American former Major League Baseball backup catcher for the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves. He was the eighth overall pick in the 1979 Major League Baseball Draft. He later served as a ...

Pat Perry William Patrick Perry (born February 4, 1959) is a former pitcher who played in Major League Baseball. He pitched from 1985 to 1990 for the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers ...

* Johnny Ray * Larry Ray * J. R. Richard *

Mark Ross Mark Joseph Ross (born August 8, 1954) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched parts of six seasons in Major League Baseball between 1982 until 1990. Career Ross was originally drafted by the Houston Astros in the 7th round of the ...

* Roger Samuels * Brent Strom * Tim Tolman * Tony Walker * Robbie Wine

Dodgers

Doyle Alexander Doyle Lafayette Alexander (born September 4, 1950) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue J ...

Iván DeJesús Iván Alvarez DeJesús (born January 9, 1953), is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball shortstop and coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, N ...

Joe Ferguson Joseph Carlton Ferguson Jr. (born April 23, 1950) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football at Arkansas. Early year ...

Davey Lopes David Earle Lopes (; born May 3, 1945) is an American former second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He batted and threw right-handed. He played in MLB for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Oakland Athletics, Chicago Cubs, and Houston ...

Rick Rhoden Richard Alan Rhoden (born May 16, 1953) is a professional golfer and former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. During his 16-year baseball career, he played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1974–1978), the Pittsburgh Pirates (1979–1986), the Ne ...

Jerry Royster Jeron Kennis Royster (born October 18, 1952) is an American former Major League Baseball player and coach. He was a third baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, and the New York Yankees. He was ...

Bob Shaw Robert Shaw (31 December 1931 – 11 February 1996) was a science fiction writer and fan from Northern Ireland, noted for his originality and wit. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 1979 and 1980. His short story "Light of Other Days" ...

Steve Yeager Stephen Wayne Yeager (born November 24, 1948) is an American former professional baseball catcher. Yeager spent 14 of the 15 seasons of his Major League Baseball career, from 1972 through 1985, with the Los Angeles Dodgers. His last year, 1986, ...

Geoff Zahn Geoffery Clayton Zahn (born December 19, 1945) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched thirteen seasons in Major League Baseball from 1973 to 1985. In his career, he had a Win–loss record of 111–109, an earned run average of 3.74 ...

Islanders

Red Ames Leon Kessling "Red" Ames (August 2, 1882 – October 8, 1936) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1903 to 1919 for the New York Giants, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals, and Philadelphi ...

* Bill Antonello * Lou Bevil * Roy Branch *

Steve Busby Steven Lee "Buzz" Busby (born September 29, 1949) is a former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played his entire career for the Kansas City Royals. He batted and threw right-handed. High school Busby attended Fullerton Union High Sch ...

* Bill Butler *

Les Cain Leslie Cain (born January 13, 1948) is an American former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Detroit Tigers. He batted and threw left-handed. In a four-season career, Cain posted a 23–19 record with 303 strikeouts and ...

Bert Campaneris Dagoberto Campaneris Blanco (born March 9, 1942), nicknamed "Bert" or "Campy", is a Cuban American former professional baseball shortstop, who played Major League Baseball (MLB) for four American League (AL) teams, primarily the Kansas City / ...

* Rocky Colavito * Wayland Dean * Bobby Dews * Chuck Diering * Blix Donnelly *

Dick Drago Richard Anthony Drago (born June 25, 1945) is a former American League relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Kansas City Royals (-), Boston Red Sox (-, -), California Angels (-), Baltimore Orioles (1977) and Seattle Mariners ...

* Dave Duncan * Craig Eaton * Danny Garcia * Hank Gornicki * Tom Harrison * Kelly Heath * Mike Jones *

Mike Kilkenny Michael David Kilkenny (April 11, 1945 – June 28, 2018) was a Canadian professional baseball player who played as a pitcher in Major League Baseball. Born in Bradford, Ontario, the , left-hander was signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur f ...

* Marcel Lachemann * Gene Lamont *

Tony LaRussa Anthony La Russa Jr. (; born October 4, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. His MLB career has spanned from 1963 to 2022, in several roles. He is the former manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland ...

* Allan Lewis * Renie Martin *

Félix Millán Félix Bernardo Millán Martínez (born August 21, 1943) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball second baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets. He holds one of the best at-bat to str ...

* Ed Olivares *

Ken Phelps Kenneth Allan Phelps (born August 6, 1954) is an American former professional baseball designated hitter and first baseman. He played for six different Major League Baseball (MLB) teams from 1980 to 1990, primarily with the Seattle Mariners. Baseb ...

* Ellie Rodríguez * Joe Rudi * Ron Taylor *

Johnny Vander Meer John Samuel Vander Meer (November 2, 1914 – October 6, 1997) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher, most prominently as a member of the Cincinnati Reds where he became the on ...

* Jon Warden

Pelicans

* Tommy McMillan *

Herb Thomas Herbert Watson Thomas (April 6, 1923 – August 9, 2000) was a stock car racer who was one of NASCAR's most successful drivers in the 1950s. Thomas was NASCAR's first multi-time Cup Champion. Background Born in the small town of Olivia ...

References

External links