The Missoula Timberjacks represented

Missoula, Montana Missoula ( ; fla, label=Salish language, Séliš, Nłʔay, lit=Place of the Small Bull Trout, script=Latn; kut, Tuhuⱡnana, script=Latn) is a city in the U.S. state of Montana; it is the county seat of Missoula County, Montana, Missoula Cou ...

, in the Class C level Pioneer League from 1956 to 1960. Previously, Missoula played as members of the Montana State League (1892, 1905, 1925) and

Union Association The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for just the 1884 season. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season. Seven of the twelve teams who were in the Association at some poi ...

(1911–1913). Their best season was 1958 when they went 70–59 under manager

Jack McKeon Jack Aloysius McKeon (; born November 23, 1930), nicknamed "Trader Jack," is an American former Major League Baseball manager and front-office executive. In , at age 72, he won a World Series as manager of the Florida Marlins. Two full seasons ...

and had

Jim Kaat James Lee Kaat (; born November 7, 1938) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a left-handed pitcher for the Washington Senators / Minnesota Twins (–), ...

on the roster. The Missoula Timberjacks were an affiliate of the Washington Senators (1957–1959) and

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

(1960).

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 ...

members

Clark Griffith Clark Calvin Griffith (November 20, 1869 – October 27, 1955), nicknamed "The Old Fox", was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher, manager and team owner. He began his MLB playing career with the St. Louis Browns (1891), Boston Reds ...

and Jim Kaat played for Missoula.

History

The Timberjacks were preceded by Missoula teams in the Montana State League (1892, 1905, 1925) and Union Association (1911–1913). Missoula first began minor league play as charter members of the 1892 Montana State League. The 1892 Montana State League was six–team Class B league. The league played a split season. The Bozeman and Great Falls franchises disbanded on July 23, 1892, after the conclusion of the first half. The overall standings were Helena (29–21),

Butte __NOTOC__ In geomorphology, a butte () is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from a French word mea ...

(26–22), Missoula (18–29) and Philipsburg (22–23). Bozeman had a record of 10–8 and the Great Falls Smelter Cities 6–10 when they folded. Butte won the first half championship and Missoula won the second half title. Butte won the overall championship. Helena allegedly forfeited over complaints regarding money and umpiring.

member

played for Missoula in 1892. It was reported Griffith pitched so well in one game that Missoula fans showered him with gold coins after the game. Griffith later bought property and built a home in Montana.The league did not return to play in 1893. The Montana State League played a season in 1905. Butte, Great Falls, Helena and Missoula composed the league. No league standings or records are available. Missoula captured the Union Association championship in 1912. In 1925, the Montana State League played a final season as a four–team Independent minor league. Butte, Great Falls, Helena and Missoula played in the league, which has no official results. The Timberjacks resumed play as members of the 1956 Class C Pioneer League. Country singer

Charley Pride Charley Frank Pride (March 18, 1934 – December 12, 2020) was an American singer, guitarist, and professional baseball player. His greatest musical success came in the early to mid-1970s, when he was the best-selling performer for RCA Reco ...

played for the Timberjacks briefly in 1960. Today, Missoula is home to the

Missoula PaddleHeads The Missoula PaddleHeads are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Missoula, Montana, and play their home games at Ogren Par ...

, continuing play as members of the Rookie level Pioneer League.

The ballpark

The Timberjacks played at Campbell Field for the duration of their existence. Built in 1947, the original ballpark burned in 1969 and was rebuilt. Campbell Field is still in use today on the campus of the

University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. UM reported 10,962 undergraduate and graduate students in the fal ...

Timeline

Year-by-Year Record

Notable alumni

Baseball Hall of Fame alumni

(1892) Inducted, 1946 *

(1958) Inducted, 2022; 3x MLB All-Star; 16x Gold Glove

Notable alumni

Cliff Blankenship Clifford Douglas Blankenship (April 10, 1880 – April 26, 1956) was an American professional baseball player. He played his first game on April 17, 1905. He played his 95th and final game on August 18, 1909. His batting average was .225. In 1907 ...

(1912–1913, MGR) * Pat Bohen (1913) *

Bullet Joe Bush Leslie Ambrose "Bullet Joe" Bush (November 27, 1892 – November 1, 1974) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the Philadelphia Athletics, Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in ...

(1912) * Bobby Cargo (1892) *

Ed Cartwright Edward Charles "Jumbo" Cartwright (October 6, 1859 – September 3, 1933) was a professional first baseman in Major League Baseball in 1890 and from 1894 to 1897. He played for the St. Louis Browns of the American Association (predecessor of t ...

(1892, MGR) * Lem Cross (1892) *

Bert Cueto Dagoberto Cueto Concepción (August 14, 1937 – October 25, 2011) was a Cuban-born professional baseball player. The native of San Luis, Pinar del Río, was a right-handed pitcher whose nine-year career included seven games pitched in Major Lea ...

(1958) * Rex Dawson (1913) * Larry Foss (1957) *

Gus Gil Tomás Gustavo Gil Guillén (April 19, 1939 – December 8, 2015) was a Venezuelan professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a second baseman for the Cleveland Indians (1967) and Seattle Pilots / Milwaukee Brewers (19 ...

(1960) *

Bill Goodenough William B. Goodenough (1863 – May 24, 1905) was a center fielder in Major League Baseball. He played for the St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee B ...

(1892) *

Chuck Lauer John Charles Lauer (April 5, 1865 – May 4, 1915), was a Major League Baseball player who played outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infie ...

(1892) * Sheldon Lejeune (1905) * Hap Morse (1913) * Ollie O'Mara (1911) *

(1956–1958, MGR) Manager: 2003 World Series Champion –

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

George McVey George William McVey (September 16, 1865 – May 3, 1896) was an American professional baseball player. He played one season with the Brooklyn Grays, appearing in three games each at first base, and catcher in 1885. External linksBaseball-Referen ...

(1892, MGR) *

Minnie Mendoza Cristobal Rigoberto Mendoza Carreras (born November 16, 1933), better known as Minnie Mendoza, is a former Major League Baseball infielder and coach who played for the Minnesota Twins during the 1970 MLB season. Biography Minnie Mendoza was bor ...

(1958–1959) *

Nig Perrine John Grover "Nig" Perrine (January 14, 1885 – August 13, 1948) was an American professional baseball infielder. Perrine started his professional baseball career in 1902, at the age of 17. In 1906, he batted .308 in the American Associati ...

(1912), (1913, MGR) *

(1960) * Skipper Roberts (1912–1913) * Phil Routcliffe (1892) *

César Tovar César Leonardo Tovar (July 3, 1940 – July 14, 1994), nicknamed "Pepito" and "Mr. Versatility", was a Venezuelan professional baseball player, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins (–), Philadelphia Phillies (), T ...

(1960) *

Harry Trekell Harry Roy Trekell (November 18, 1892 – November 4, 1965) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals com ...

(1913) *

Art Twineham Arthur S. "Old Hoss" Twineham (November 26, 1866 – February 3, 1905) was a Major League Baseball catcher. Twineham played for St. Louis Browns (NL), St. Louis Browns in and . , he is the only Major League Baseball player known to have died in ...

(1892) *

Sandy Valdespino Hilario "Sandy" Valdespino Borroto (January 14, 1939 – February 26, 2023) was a Cuban-born corner outfielder in Major League Baseball who played for five different teams in the seven years from to . Listed at tall and , Valdespino batted and ...

(1958, 1960) *

Jay Ward Joseph Ward Cohen Jr. (September 20, 1920 – October 12, 1989), also known as Jay Ward, was an American creator and producer of animated TV cartoon shows. He produced animated series based on such characters as Crusader Rabbit, Rocky & Bul ...

(1958) * George Whiteman (1911) *

Carl Zamloch Carl Eugene Zamloch (October 6, 1889 – August 19, 1963) was an American baseball player, manager, and coach, and magician. The son of famed magician Anton Zamloch, he performed as a boy in his father's vaudeville magic act. He then played pro ...

(1912)

References

{{reflist

External links

Missoula at Baseball-reference.com
Baseball teams established in 1956 Sports clubs disestablished in 1960 Defunct Pioneer League (baseball) teams Defunct minor league baseball teams Professional baseball teams in Montana Sports in Missoula, Montana 1956 establishments in Montana 1960 disestablishments in Montana Cincinnati Reds minor league affiliates Washington Senators minor league affiliates Defunct sports teams in Montana Defunct baseball teams in Montana Baseball teams disestablished in 1960