The Peninsula Winter League was a

Rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

level baseball

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

that played from 1959 to 1968 as a winter league. The Peninsula Winter League teams were

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

affiliate teams and were based in

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

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 Joe Morgan and Willie Stargell played in the Peninsula Winter League.

History

Prior to the minor league, a league named the Peninsula Winter League played as a semi–pro league beginning in the 1940s and continuing through the 1950s. The Grace Brothers Beer Company sponsored a successful team in the early league. The Peninsula Winter League was formed for the 1959 season as a

level minor league. The league president was

Bill Weiss William J. Weiss (June 2, 1925, Chicago – August 16, 2011, San Mateo, California), was an American baseball historian and statistician. He served as the official statistician for the Pacific Coast League, and edited a weekly newsletter for the ...

. The Peninsula Winter League teams were all based in San Francisco, California and each team took the moniker of its

affiliate team. The league continued minor league play through 1968. The Peninsula Winter League (PWL) was organized by a group of major league scouts and member teams were financed by major league organizations. The league players were young organization members and free agents still attending school. Although the league rosters, statistics and standings of the Peninsula Winter League are unknown, it is known that

members Joe Morgan and Willie Stargell played on teams in the Peninsula Winter League. The Peninsula Winter League began play in 1959 with six charter teams. The 1959 teams were the PWL Dodgers, PWL Giants, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Pirates and PWL Yankees. The Peninsula Winter League expanded to eight teams in 1960, adding the PWL Braves and PWL Cardinals as members. The Giants, Orioles and Phillies teams played in the league for its duration. It is possible some Peninsula Winter League games were played at Flood County Park in

San Mateo County San Mateo County ( ), officially the County of San Mateo, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 764,442. Redwood City is the county seat, and the third most populated city following Daly ...

, which still has baseball today. Fitzgerald Field in

San Mateo, California San Mateo ( ; ) is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula. About 20 miles (32 km) south of San Francisco, the city borders Burlingame to the north, Hillsborough to the west, San Francisco Bay and Foster C ...

hosted the Orioles and other league games. Peninsula Winter League teams also played games at Candlestick Park. After the 1968 season, the league continued in name as an amateur and

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

league, playing through 1993. Bill Weiss continued as league commissioner until 1984.

Teams by season

*1959: (6) PWL Dodgers, PWL Giants, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Pirates, PWL Yankees *1960: (8) PWL Braves, PWL Cardinals, PWL Dodgers, PWL Giants, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Pirates, PWL Yankees *1961: (8) PWL Braves, PWL Cardinals, PWL Giants, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Pirates, PWL Twins, PWL Yankees *1962: (7) PWL Braves, PWL Giants, PWL Indians, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Pirates, PWL Yankees *1963: (6) PWL Giants, PWL Indians, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Pirates, PWL Yankees *1964: (6) PWL Giants, PWL Indians, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Twins, PWL Yankees *1965: (8) PWL Giants, PWL Indians, PWL Mets, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Reds, PWL Twins, PWL Yankees *1966: (8) PWL Giants, PWL Indians, PWL Mets, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Reds, PWL Twins, PWL Yankees *1967: (6) PWL Giants, PWL Mets, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Twins, PWL Yankees *1968: (6) PWL Cardinals, PWL Giants, PWL Mets, PWL Orioles, PWL Phillies, PWL Twins

Peninsula Winter League standings

The exact standings and records of the Peninsula Winter League are unknown.

Notable league alumni

* Joe Morgan * Willie Stargell *

Frank Bertaina Frank Louis Bertaina (April 14, 1944 – March 3, 2010) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from through for the Baltimore Orioles (1964–67, 1969), Washington Senators (1967–69), and St. Louis Cardinals (1970). Liste ...

(1959) * Nelson Briles (1962) * Wally Bunker (1961–1962) *

Ken Caminiti Kenneth Gene Caminiti (April 21, 1963 – October 10, 2004) was an American third baseman who spent 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Houston Astros (1987–1994, 1999–2000), San Diego Padres (1995–1998), Texas Rangers ( ...

Tom Candiotti Thomas Caesar Candiotti (born August 31, 1957) is an American former knuckleball pitcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Indians, Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers. As of the 20 ...

Ernie Fazio Ernest Joseph Fazio (January 25, 1942 – December 1, 2017) was an American professional baseball second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Colt .45s (1962–63) and Kansas City Athletics (1966). Fazio attended Sant ...

(1962) * Jim Fregosi (1960) * Darrell Johnson (1960) *

Frank Lucchesi Frank Joseph Lucchesi ( ; April 24, 1927 – June 8, 2019) was an American professional baseball player, manager, and coach. He was the manager of three Major League Baseball (MLB) teams: the Philadelphia Phillies (–); Texas Rangers (–); ...

(1959, MGR) * Mark Parent * Ron Stone (1962) *

Frank Zupo Frank Joseph Zupo (August 29, 1939 – March 25, 2005), nicknamed "Noodles", was an American professional baseball baseball player, player. A catcher, he appeared in 16 games played, games over parts of three seasons in Major League Baseball for t ...

(1962)

References

External links

Peninsula Winter League - Baseball Reference
{{Professional Baseball Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States Baseball leagues in California Defunct professional sports leagues in the United States Sports leagues established in 1959 Sports leagues disestablished in 1968 1968 disestablishments in California