The Paris Lakers were a minor league baseball team based in

Paris, Illinois Paris is a city in Edgar County, Illinois, south of Chicago and west of Indianapolis. The population was 8,291 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat and largest city of Edgar County. History Paris was established in 1826 on land donated by ...

from 1950 to 1959. The Lakers played as members of the

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 ...

from 1956 to 1959 and its predecessor, the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League from 1950 to 1955. The Lakers won the first Midwest League championship in 1956. The Paris Lakers were a minor league affiliate of the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

from 1955 to 1959.

History

The Lakers were preceded in Paris, Illinois by the 1908 Paris Parisians, who played as a member of the Class D level Eastern Illinois League. The Paris Lakers were an original franchise in the 1956

, having previously had played in the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League, the predecessor of the Midwest League. From 1950 to 1954, the Lakers played as a non-affiliated team, and from 1955 to 1959, they were affiliated with the

. Paris finished 85–42 in the 1952 Mississippi–Ohio Valley League, to place 2nd. Their manager from 1950 to 1954 was Paris native Tom Sunkel. The Lakers won the first ever

championship in 1956, defeating 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 ...

3 games to 1 in the Finals. On August 18, 1957 Kenneth Rollins threw a no-hitter against the

Michigan City White Caps The Michigan City White Caps were a minor league baseball team based in Michigan City, Indiana from 1956 to 1959. The White Caps were a member of the Class C Midwest League (1956–1959). The team set the foundation for today's West Michigan Whi ...

, winning 12–0.

The ballpark

The Lakers' home field was Laker Stadium. Laker Stadium hosted the 1951 Mississippi–Ohio Valley League All-Star Game. The ballfield and part of the original stands are still in use today at the stadium, which sits within Twin Lakes Park. The address is 137 West Steidl Road, Paris, Illinois.

Timeline

Year–by–year records

Notable alumni

Tony Balsamo Anthony Alred Balsamo is a former Major League Baseball player. He was born November 21, 1937, in Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the ...

(1959) * Doc Bracken (1953–1954) *

Harvey Branch Harvey Alfred Branch (born February 8, 1939) is an American former professional baseball player. He was a left-handed pitcher who had a seven-year career in minor league baseball, but whose Major League Baseball, Major League tenure consisted of a ...

(1958–1959) * Dick Burwell (1959) *

John Buzhardt John William Buzhardt (August 17, 1936 – June 15, 2008) was an American professional baseball right-handed pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles and ...

(1955) * Jack Curtis (1956) *

Dave Gerard (baseball) David Frederick Gerard (August 6, 1936 – October 10, 2001), was an American professional baseball player, a right-handed pitcher whose career extended for ten seasons (1955–1964). A native of New York City, he grew up in Yardley, Pennsylvania ...

(1955) *

Bob Giggie Robert Thomas Giggie (August 13, 1933 – December 9, 2018) was an American professional baseball player and Major League Baseball pitcher. He appeared in 30 games pitched (all but two in relief) for the Milwaukee Braves during the and season ...

(1951) *

Lou Johnson Louis Brown Johnson (September 22, 1934 – October 1, 2020), nicknamed Sweet Lou, was an American Major League Baseball outfielder. Johnson's professional baseball career lasted for 17 seasons, and included 8 years in the majors: parts of 1960� ...

(1958) * Mike Krsnich (1950–1951) *

Nelson Mathews Nelson Elmer Mathews (born July 21, 1941) is a retired American professional baseball outfielder who appeared in the Major Leagues (MLB) from 1960 to 1965 for the Chicago Cubs and Kansas City Athletics. Born in Columbia, Illinois, he graduated fr ...

(1959) *

Moe Morhardt Meredith Goodwin "Moe" Morhardt (born January 16, 1937) is an American former Major League Baseball first baseman. He played parts of the 1961 and 1962 seasons with the Chicago Cubs, appearing in 25 major league games.Don Prince (1958) * Marty Purtell (1956, MGR) *

Joe Schaffernoth Joseph Arthur Schaffernoth (August 6, 1937 – June 18, 2016) was an American professional baseball player and right-handed pitcher who appeared in 74 games, all but one in relief, in Major League Baseball for the Chicago Cubs (1959–1961) and C ...

(1956) * Johnnie Seale (1959) * Quincy Smith (1951–1954) * Morrie Steevens (1959) * Tom Sunkel (1950–1954, MGR) * Harry Taylor (1955) *

Verlon Walker Verlon Lee Walker (March 7, 1929 – March 24, 1971) was an American catcher in minor league baseball and a coach for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball from 1961 through 1970. He was also known as Rube Walker, nicknamed after his more famo ...

(1957–1959, MGR) *

Jim Zapp James Stephen Zapp (April 18, 1924 – September 30, 2016), nicknamed "Zipper", was an American baseball outfielder who played baseball in the Negro leagues and minor leagues from 1945 to 1955. Spending the majority of his career with the Bal ...

(1952)

References

{{Midwest League Defunct Midwest League teams Chicago Cubs minor league affiliates Professional baseball teams in Illinois 1950 establishments in Illinois 1959 disestablishments in Illinois Mississippi-Ohio Valley League Defunct minor league baseball teams Baseball teams established in 1950 Defunct baseball teams in Illinois Baseball teams disestablished in 1959