The Erie Sailors was the primary name of several
minor league baseball teams that played in
Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 a ...
between 1906 and 1994.
Pre-1930s
Several unrelated teams used the Erie Sailors name in the
Interstate League (1906–1907, 1913, 1916), the
Ohio–Pennsylvania League
The Ohio–Pennsylvania League (1905–1912) was a Class C (baseball), Class C and Class D (baseball), Class D level minor league baseball league that featured franchises based in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The league was founded b ...
(1908–1911), and the
Central League
The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consist ...
(1912, 1915, 1928–30, 1932).
1938–1963
During these years, the Erie Sailors played in the
Middle Atlantic League
The Middle Atlantic League (or Mid-Atlantic League) was a lower-level circuit in American minor league baseball that played during the second quarter of the 20th century.
History
The Middle Atlantic League played from 1925 through 1951, with t ...
from 1938–1939, 1941–1942, and 1946–1951; the
Pennsylvania–Ontario–New York League (PONY League) from 1944–1945 and 1954–1956; and the PONY's successor
New York – Penn League
New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created.
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
Albums and EPs
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
from 1957–1963. Several times during this period, the team was also called the Erie Senators, after its major league affiliate, the
Washington Senators. The Sailors won league championship in 1957. The Sailors won the regular season by nine games in 1951. They then lost the league championship series to the
Niagara Falls Citizens
The Niagara Falls Citizens were a minor league baseball club, based in Niagara Falls, New York. The franchise can be traced back to 1939 when the Niagara Falls Rainbows were established and played as a charter member of the Pennsylvania–Ontario ...
, four games to two.
From 1948 onward, this team (and all subsequent Sailors teams) played at
Ainsworth Field
Ainsworth Field is a 3,000 seat baseball stadium located in Erie, Pennsylvania. It hosted the Erie Sailors and other Erie-based minor league teams between 1928 and 1994. In 1995, it was made obsolete for professional use by the opening of UPMC ...
.
New York–Penn League – 1990s
In 1990, after 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) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
ended their affiliation with the team (then known as the Erie Orioles), they reclaimed the Sailors name and operated as an unaffiliated minor league team for two years before becoming the
Florida Marlins' first farm team in 1992 and a
Texas Rangers affiliate in 1993. Because of the deteriorating condition of Ainsworth Field, the team moved after the 1993 season to
Fishkill, New York
Fishkill is a village within the town of Fishkill in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The village is in the eastern part of the town of Fishkill on U.S. Route 9. It is north of Interstate 84. NY 52 is the main street. It is part of the ...
and then became the
Hudson Valley Renegades.
Frontier League
In 1994, the Sailors were a team in the independent
Frontier League, winning the league championship in their only year of existence as a member of the Frontier League. In 1995, the
Erie SeaWolves
The Erie SeaWolves are an United States, American professional baseball team based in Erie, Pennsylvania. They compete in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) as a member of the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League's Southwest Division, serving ...
moved to town, displacing the Sailors, forcing the franchise to move to
Johnstown, Pennsylvania as the
Johnstown Steal/Johnnies and then to
Florence, Kentucky
Florence is a home rule-class city in Boone County, Kentucky, United States. Florence is the second largest city located in Northern Kentucky, after Covington, and part of the Greater Cincinnati Metropolitan Area. The population was 31,946 at ...
as the
Florence Y'alls
The Florence Y'alls are a professional baseball team based within the Greater Cincinnati region in the city of Florence, Kentucky. The Y'alls are a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, an independent baseball league. Since 2004, ...
.
Notable alumni
Hall of Fame Alumni
*
Chief Bender
Charles Albert "Chief" Bender (May 5, 1884There is uncertainty about Bender's birth-date. He was voted the SABR "Centennial Celebrity" of 1983, as the best baseball player or figure born in 1883. However, the SABR ''Baseball Research Journal'' fo ...
(1932) Inducted, 1953
Other notable alumni
*
Vic Aldridge
Victor Aldridge (October 25, 1893 – April 17, 1973), nicknamed the "Hoosier Schoolmaster", was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Giants, and was known to be ...
(1915)
*
Luis Alicea
Luis René Alicea de Jesús (born July 29, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball second baseman and coach.
Alicea played for the Kansas City Royals, Texas Rangers, Anaheim Angels, St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox. He played college ba ...
(1986)
*
Pete Appleton (1951)
*
George Bamberger
George Irvin Bamberger (August 1, 1923 – April 4, 2004) was an American professional baseball player, pitching coach and manager. In Major League Baseball, the right-handed pitcher appeared in ten games, nine in relief, for the 1951–52 New Yo ...
(1946)
*
Joe Boever
Joseph Martin Boever (born October 4, 1960) is an American former professional baseball right-handed relief pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from to for the St. Louis Cardinals, Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, Houst ...
(1982)
*
Billy Gilbert (1912)
*
Frank Gilhooley
Francis Patrick "Frank" Gilhooley Sr. (June 10, 1892 – July 11, 1959) was an outfielder in Major League Baseball, playing mostly as a right fielder from through for the St. Louis Cardinals (1911–12), New York Yankees (1913–18) and Boston ...
(1912)
*
Bernard Gilkey
Otis Bernard Gilkey (born September 24, 1966) is an American former professional baseball left fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets, Arizona Diamondbacks, Boston Red Sox, and Atlanta Braves. ...
(1985)
*
Fredi Gonzalez Fredi may refer to:
* Fredi (Valencian pilota) (born 1957), retired Valencian pilota professional player
* Fredi Bobic (born 1971), German football striker
* Fredi González (born 1964), Cuban current manager of the Atlanta Braves
* Fredi Walker, A ...
(1992)
*
Lance Johnson
Kenneth Lance Johnson (born July 6, 1963) is an American former professional baseball center fielder.
Career
Johnson was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. After graduating from Princeton High School, he completed his education at the University of So ...
(1984) MLB All-Star
*
Pat Kelly (1962) MLB All-Star
*
Paul LaPalme
Paul Edmore LaPalme (December 14, 1923 – February 7, 2010) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played from 1951 through 1957 for four different teams in Major League Baseball. Listed at , , he batted and threw left-handed.
A nativ ...
(1942)
*
John Lynch (1992) NFL HOF and current 49ers GM
*
Dick McAuliffe
Richard John McAuliffe (November 29, 1939 – May 13, 2016) was an American professional baseball shortstop / second baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers (1960–73) and Boston Red Sox (1974–75). He was a ...
(1957) 3 x MLB All-Star
*
Cliff Melton
Clifford George Melton (January 3, 1912 – July 28, 1986) was an American professional baseball left-handed pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Giants over parts of eight seasons spanning 1937–44. Listed at , ...
(1932) MLB All-Star
*
Jim Merritt
James Joseph Merritt (born December 9, 1943) is a former left-handed Major League Baseball pitcher.
Minnesota Twins
Merritt originally signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers out of Edgewood High School in West Covina, California, but was plucked f ...
(1962) MLB All-Star
*
Tom Pagnozzi (1983) MLB All-Star
*
Frank Quilici
Francis Ralph Quilici (May 11, 1939 – May 14, 2018) was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager who spent his entire Major League Baseball career with the Minnesota Twins. Quilici served the team for all or part of five year ...
(1961)
*
Arthur Rhodes (1989) MLB All-Star
*
Buck Rodgers (1957) 1987 NL Manager of the Year
*
Dean Stone
Darrah Dean Stone (September 1, 1930 – August 21, 2018) was an American professional baseball baseball player, player, a pitcher who appeared in 166 games pitched, games over all or parts of eight Major League Baseball seasons. The well-traveled ...
(1951) MLB All-Star
*
Bobby Tolan
Robert Tolan (born November 19, 1945) is an American former professional baseball center fielder / right fielder, and coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals (–), Cincinnati Reds (–), San Diego Padres (–, ...
(1988-1989)
*
Todd Worrell (1982) 3 x MLB All-Star; 1986 NL Rookie of the Year
*
Todd Zeile (1986)
Year-by-year record
{{Defunct Pennsylvania sports teams
Defunct minor league baseball teams
Defunct New York–Penn League teams
Sports in Erie, Pennsylvania
Defunct baseball teams in Pennsylvania
Baltimore Orioles minor league affiliates
Boston Bees minor league affiliates
Cincinnati Reds minor league affiliates
Detroit Tigers minor league affiliates
Miami Marlins minor league affiliates
Minnesota Twins minor league affiliates
New York Giants minor league affiliates
New York Yankees minor league affiliates
St. Louis Cardinals minor league affiliates
Texas Rangers minor league affiliates
Washington Senators minor league affiliates
1905 establishments in Pennsylvania
1994 disestablishments in Pennsylvania
Baseball teams established in 1905
Baseball teams disestablished in 1994
Defunct Frontier League teams
Defunct independent baseball league teams
Central League teams
Middle Atlantic League teams
Ohio-Pennsylvania League teams