The Michigan City White Caps were a minor league baseball team based in

Michigan City, Indiana Michigan City is a city in LaPorte County, Indiana, United States. It is one of the two principal cities of the Michigan City-La Porte, Indiana Metropolitan statistical area, which is included in the Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City Combined sta ...

from 1956 to 1959. The White Caps were a member of the Class C

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

(1956–1959). The team set the foundation for today's

West Michigan White Caps The West Michigan Whitecaps are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Comstock Park, Michigan, a suburb of Grand Rapids, and play their home games at LMCU Ballpark ...

of the Midwest League.

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

member

Juan Marichal Juan Antonio Marichal Sánchez (born October 20, 1937), nicknamed "the Dominican Dandy", is a Dominican former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for three teams from 1960 to 1975, almost entirely the San Francisco Giant ...

played for the 1958 Michigan City White Caps.

History

The franchise had played in

Hannibal, Missouri Hannibal is a city along the Mississippi River in Marion and Ralls counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 17,312, making it the largest city in Marion County. The bulk of the city is in Mario ...

as the Hannibal Stags, before moving to Michigan City in 1956. The Michigan City White Caps became a become a charter member of the newly named

in 1956. The White Caps were affiliated with the

Giants A giant is a being of human appearance, sometimes of prodigious size and strength, common in folklore. Giant(s) or The Giant(s) may also refer to: Mythology and religion *Giants (Greek mythology) *Jötunn, a Germanic term often translated as 'gi ...

, who played in New York from 1956 to 1957 and San Francisco from 1958 to 1959. The Michigan City franchise folded after the 1959 Midwest League season. The nickname name was restored to the region when today's

began play in the 1994 Midwest League.

Inductee

pitched for Michigan City in 1958. Marichal captured the Midwest League Pitcher of the Year award, after a 21–8 record, 1.87 ERA and 246 strikeouts. On August 12, 1957

Bobby Bolin Bobby Donald Bolin (born January 29, 1939) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who appeared 495 games in Major League Baseball over 13 seasons (1961–1973) for the San Francisco Giants (–), Milwaukee Brewers () and Boston Re ...

threw a no-hitter against the

Dubuque Packers Minor league baseball teams have operated in the city of Dubuque, Iowa under a variety of names in various leagues, playing in 52 seasons between 1879 and 1976. Dubuque teams were an affiliate of the Houston Astros (1975–1976), Kansas City Royal ...

, in an 11–0 victory. During the White Caps era, Michigan City was home to the Jaymar-Ruby Corporation (1922–2009), Jaymar-Rubs produced the then-popular

Sansabelt Sansabelt is a brand of men's trousers. The trousers have a wide webbed elastic band sewn into the waist, which is intended to make a belt or suspenders unnecessary, hence the name '' sans a belt''. The slacks come in a classic fit with roomy le ...

dress pants, among other apparel. As a perk, White Caps players were given free dress pants by the company. Allegedly, Juan Marichal did not like the pants and gave them away.

The ballpark

The White Caps played at Ames Field. The park was constructed in 1939 and demolished in 1995. Today, the

Michigan City High School Michigan City High School is located in Michigan City, Indiana. History Michigan City High School was formed by the merger of Rogers High School and Elston High School in 1995. Michigan City High School is located on the former campus of Rogers ...

football field occupies the site. The address is 2501 Franklin Street, Michigan City, Indiana.

Notable alumni

Hall of Fame Alumni *

(1958) Inducted, 1983 Notable Alumni *

Buddy Kerr John Joseph "Buddy" Kerr (November 6, 1922 – November 7, 2006) was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball. From 1943 through 1951, Kerr played for the New York Giants (1943–1949) and Boston Braves (1950–1951). A native of Astoria, Ne ...

(1958–1959, MGR) MLB All-Star *

Rick Joseph Ricardo Emelindo Joseph Harrigan (August 24, 1939 – September 8, 1979) was a Dominican professional baseball corner infielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Athletics and the Philadelphia Phillies in all or p ...

(1959) *

Wayne Schurr Wayne Allen Schurr (born August 6, 1937) is an American former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who appeared in 26 games for the Chicago Cubs in . The native of Garrett, Indiana, was a right-hander listed as tall and . Schurr attended Hill ...

(1959) * Jose Tartabull (1958–1959) Father of

Danny Tartabull Danilo Tartabull Mora (born October 30, 1962) is a Cuban– Puerto Rican former professional baseball right fielder and designated hitter. He played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners (1984–1986), Kansas City R ...

Matty Alou Mateo "Matty" Rojas Alou (December 22, 1938 – November 3, 2011) was a Dominican former professional baseball player and manager. He played as an outfielder in Major League Baseball from 1960 to 1974. He also played in Nippon Professional ...

(1957) 2x MLB All-Star; 1966 NL Batting Champion *

(1957) *

Bob Farley Robert Jacob Farley (born November 15, 1937) is a retired American professional baseball player. He was a first baseman and outfielder who played part of and all of in Major League Baseball for the San Francisco Giants, Chicago White Sox and De ...

(1957) *

Manny Mota Manuel Rafael Mota Geronimo, more commonly known as Manny Mota (born February 18, 1938), is a Dominican former Major League Baseball outfielder who played 20 seasons for the San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and Montreal Expos, as well a ...

(1957) MLB All-Star *

John Orsino John Joseph Orsino (April 22, 1938 – November 1, 2016) was a Major League Baseball catcher. He was signed by the New York Giants as an amateur free agent before the 1957 season, and played for the San Francisco Giants (1961–1962), Baltimore ...

(1957)

Year-by-year record

References

Baseball teams established in 1956 Baseball teams disestablished in 1959 Defunct Midwest League teams San Francisco Giants minor league affiliates New York Giants minor league affiliates Defunct baseball teams in Indiana Michigan City, Indiana 1956 establishments in Indiana 1959 disestablishments in Indiana Defunct minor league baseball teams {{Indiana-baseball-team-stub