The Salina Blue Jays were a minor league baseball team based in

Salina, Kansas Salina is a city in, and the county seat of, Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,889. In the early 1800s, the Kanza tribal land reached eastward from the middle of the Kansas Territory. In 1 ...

. The Salina Blue Jays and their immediate predecessor, the Salina "Millers" played as members of the

Southwestern League The Southwestern League was the name of four former minor league baseball leagues that operated in the Southwestern United States. The second league, also known as the ''Oklahoma State League'', was in operation for the 1904 season. The third l ...

(1922–1926) and

Western Association The Western Association was the name of five different leagues formed in American minor league baseball during the 19th and 20th centuries. The oldest league, originally established as the Northwestern League in 1883, was refounded as the Weste ...

(1938–1941, 1946–1952), winning the 1926 league championship and two league pennants. The Salina Millers were a minor league affiliate of the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

in 1941 and the Blue Jays were a Philadelphia Phillies affiliate from 1946 to 1952. Salina hosted home minor league games at Oakdale Park from 1922 to 1926 and Kenwood Field from 1938 to 1952. The 1922 Salina Millers team was preceded by the 1914 Salina Coyotes of the

Kansas State League The Kansas State League was a minor league baseball sports league, league in the United States that operated in the state of Kansas in the late 19th century and into the early 20th century. History The Kansas State League was first established ...

History

Salina Millers 1922 to 1941

The Salina Millers were preceded by the 1914 Salina Coyotes, who played their final season as members of the four–team, Class D level

. After the 1922 Coyotes folded, Salina was without a minor league team until the Salina Millers joined the 1922 Class C level

. The 1922 Salina Millers finished last in their first season of play. Managed by John McCloskey and Chester Olson, the Millers ended the season in 8th place in the eight–team league with a 45–88 record. The Millers were 37.0 games behind the 1st place

Muskogee Mets Muskogee or Muscogee can refer to: *Muscogee, or Muscogee Creek, a Native American people of the southeastern woodlands *Muscogee (Creek) Nation, a federally recognized Muscogee tribe in Oklahoma * Muscogee language, a language spoken by some Musco ...

in the final standings. The Salina Millers placed 6th with a 60–72 record in the 1923 Southwestern League under manager Benny Meyer. D. Walker led the league with 200 strikeouts. In 1924, Salina placed 2nd in the league with a 72–56 final record. The 1925 Salina Millers captured the Southwestern League pennant. The Millers finished with a 73–55 record, placing 1st in the Southwestern League regular season. In the Finals, the Topeka Senators defeated the Salina Millers 4 games to 1. Jim Payton was the Salina manager. Pitcher Joe Bloomer of Salina led the league with 21 wins. The Salina Millers won the 1926 Southwestern League Championship. Under returning manager Jim Payton, the Salina Millers finished with a record of 76–41, placing 1st in the regular season standings. In the Finals, the Salina Millers defeated the Enid Boosters 3 games to 1 to claim the Championship. The Southwestern League permanently folded after the season. Salina's Bill Diester led the Southwestern League with a .444 batting average, 110 runs scored and 190 total hits. Teammate Dick Wykoff led the league with 28 home runs as a hitter and 25 wins as a pitcher. In 1938, the Salina Millers joined the

, which was expanding from six–teams to eight–teams. The Salina Millers finished in the lower division of the Western Association, playing in the league from 1938 to 1941. The Millers finished 8th (47–87) under manager Harry Suter, 7th (55–79) under Riley Parker and 6th (60–75) in their first three seasons of playing in the Western Association. In 1941, Salina became an affiliate of the

and finished 7th at 46–88 under manager Red Rollings. After the 1941 season, the Carthage Browns and the Salina Millers franchises both folded, as the Western Association reduced to a six–team league.

Salina Blue Jays 1946 to 1952

Salina resumed Western Association play in 1946, when the newly named Salina Blue Jays rejoining the eight–team Class C level league, which was reforming after a hiatus during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Playing as an affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, Salina would remain both as a Phillies affiliate and a Western Association member through 1951. Salina joined the Fort Smith Giants, Hutchinson Cubs,

Joplin Miners The Joplin Miners was the primary name of the minor league baseball team in Joplin, Missouri that played for 49 seasons between 1901 and 1954. Baseball Hall of Fame Inductees Mickey Mantle and Whitey Herzog played for Joplin. Professional baseba ...

, Leavenworth Braves,

Muskogee Reds Muskogee Reds refers to three baseball teams based in Muskogee, Oklahoma, United States. The first team played in the Missouri Valley League in 1905. The next played in the Western Association in 1917, and the third played in the Western Association ...

, St. Joseph Cardinals and Topeka Owls in the reformed 1946 Western League. In the 1946 season, playing as an affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, the Blue Jays finished last in the standings. Salina finished with a 51–77 record, placing 8th in the Western Association regular season standings. The manager was Edwin Ralls, as Salina finished 22.5 games behind the 1st place Leavenworth Braves. Hosting home games at Kenwood Field, Salina home season attendance was 44,050, an average of 688 per home game.Pitcher William Washburn of Salina led the league with 240 strikeouts. The Salina Blue Jays won the 1947 Western Association pennant. The Blue Jays placed 1st in the regular season with a record of 85–53, as Edwin Ralls returned as manager. Salina finished 2.0 games in front of the 2nd place Topeka Owls. In the 1st round of the playoffs, the

defeated the Salina 3 games to 2. The 1947 home attendance was 60,369, an average of 875 per home game. Under manager

Vance Dinges Vance George Dinges (May 29, 1915 – October 4, 1990) was an American professional baseball player. He appeared in 159 Major League games as a first baseman and outfielder for the 1945 and 1946 Philadelphia Phillies. The native of Elizabeth ...

, the 1948 Blue Jays placed 7th in the Western Association, with a 58–80 regular season record. Salina drew 41,850 for the season and did not qualify for the postseason playoffs. The 1949 Salina Blue Jays finished with a 69–69 overall record with manager

Joe Gantenbein Joseph Steven Gantenbein (August 25, 1915 – April 20, 1993) was an American Major League Baseball infielder in Major League Baseball who played from 1939 to 1940 for the Philadelphia Athletics. Listed at 5' 9", 168 lb., Gantenbein batted and ...

, ending 27.0 games behind the 1st place St. Joseph Cardinals. The Blue Jays placed 6th in the Western Association regular season standings, as Salina had season attendance of 50,145. The Blue Jays did not qualify for the playoffs. Salina continued as a Philadelphia Phillies affiliate in 1950 and finished last in the Western Association. Under manager John Davenport, Salina finished with a 53–83 overall record to place 8th in the 1950 Western Association standings, finishing 37.0 games behind the 1st place

, who had

Mickey Mantle Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995), nicknamed "the Commerce Comet" and "the Mick", was an American professional baseball player. Mantle played his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career (1951–1968) with the New York ...

. The 1950 season home attendance was 44,773, an average of 658 per home game. In 1951, the Salina Blue Jays placed 4th in the Western Association regular season standings. With a record of 63–58, the Blue Jays finished 12.5 games behind the 1st place Topeka Owls, as the post season was cancelled due to flooding. Salina was managed by Pat Patterson. The Blue Jays had home season attendance of 47,550. The 1952 season was the final season for the Salina Blue Jays. The 1952 Blue Jays finished with a record of 61–77, as Pat Patterson returned as manager, placing 5th in the Western Association regular season, 22.5 games behind the 1st place

. Their season attendance of 35,984 was last in the league. Actor and game show host

Bert Convy Bernard Whalen "Bert" Convy (July 23, 1933 – July 15, 1991) was an American actor, singer, game show host and panelist known for hosting '' Tattletales'', ''Super Password'' and ''Win, Lose or Draw''. Early life Convy was born in St. Loui ...

played for the 1952 Blue Jays. The Salina Blue Jays folded after the 1952 season and were replaced in the 1953 Western Association by the St. Joseph Cardinals. After the Blue Jays folded in 1952, Salina did not host another minor league team until 2016, when the

Salina Stockade The Salina Stockade was built in Salina, Kansas, to provide the residents with protection from the American Indians in the area, many of whom were hostile toward white settlement. Salina had been raided in 1862 by Native Americans and then Confed ...

began play in the Independent level

Pecos League Pecos may refer to: Places * Pecos River, rises near Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States * Pecos, Texas, a city in Reeves County, Texas, United States * Pecos County, Texas, named for the Pecos River ** Pecos Spring, a spring * Pecos, New Mexico, ...

The ballparks

The Salina Millers first played minor league home games at Oakdale Park in the baseball seasons from 1922 to 1926. The ballpark site is located near its successor, Kenwood Field. Still in use today as a public park, Oakdale Park is located at 730 Oakdale Drive, Salina, Kansas. Beginning in 1938, the Salina Millers and Blue Jays minor league teams hosted home games at Kenwood Field through 1952. The ballpark was noted to have had a capacity of 3,500 in 1938, 2,100 in 1939 and 2,200 in 1950. The field dimensions were (Left, Center, Right) 360–380–360. Kenwood Park is still in use as a public park, located at 821 Kenwood Park Drive, Salina, Kansas. Statue of Liberty replica in Salina, KS

Timeline

Year–by–year records

Notable alumni

* Bill Bagwell (1922) * Walter Brown (1941) * Bubba Church (1947) *

Jim Command James Dalton Command (October 15, 1928 – August 10, 2014) was an American professional baseball player and scout. He had two separate trials with the 1954–55 Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB), starting four games as a thi ...

(1947–1948) *

(1952) Actor *

Otis Delaporte Otis T. Delaporte (January 6, 1919 – April 1, 1981) was an American football and baseball player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Southwestern Oklahoma State University Southwestern Oklahoma State University (SWOSU) is a publ ...

(1941) * George Darrow (1926) *

(1948, MGR) *

Joe Dugan Joseph Anthony Dugan (May 12, 1897 – July 7, 1982), was an American professional baseball player. Nicknamed "Jumping Joe", he was considered one of the best defensive third basemen of his era. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop ...

(1946) * John Fitzpatrick (1941, MGR) * Liz Funk (1939) *

(1949, MGR) *

Paul Gillespie Paul Allen Gillespie (September 18, 1920 – August 11, 1970) was a Major League Baseball catcher for the Chicago Cubs in 1942, 1944, and 1945. A native of the Sugar Valley Community in Bartow County, Georgia, he stood and weighed 195 lbs. ...

(1941) * Sheldon Jones (1941) * Doyle Lade (1941) *

Eddie Lopat Edmund Walter Lopat (originally Lopatynski) (June 21, 1918 – June 15, 1992) was a Major League Baseball pitcher, coach, manager, front office executive, and scout. He was sometimes known as "The Junk Man", but better known as "Steady Eddie ...

(1941) MLB All-Star *

Del Lundgren Ebin Delmer Lundgren (September 21, 1899 – October 19, 1984) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from through for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1924) and Boston Red Sox (1926–27). Listed at , 160 lb, Lundgren batted and threw ri ...

(1922–1923) *

John McCloskey John McCloskey (March 10, 1810 – October 10, 1885) was a senior-ranking American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the first American born Archbishop of New York from 1864 until his death in 1885, having previously served as Bishop o ...

(1922, MGR) * Benny Meyer (1923, MGR) * Tommy Nelson (1939) * Jack Radtke (1938) *

Billy Rogell William George Rogell (; November 24, 1904 – August 9, 2003) was an American baseball player who played 14 years in Major League Baseball, primarily as a shortstop for the Detroit Tigers. He made his major league debut on April 14, 1925 and p ...

(1924) * Red Rollings (1941, MGR) * Danny Schell (1949) *

Gene Snyder Marion Eugene Snyder (January 26, 1928 – February 16, 2007) was an American politician elected as a Republican to the United States House of Representatives from two different districts in his native Kentucky. Background Snyder was born ...

(1951) *

Elmer Stricklett Elmer Griffin Stricklett (August 29, 1876 – June 7, 1964) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox and Brooklyn Superbas from 1904 through 1907. Including his time in mi ...

(1898) *

Paul Stuffel Paul Harrington Stuffel (March 22, 1927 – September 9, 2018) was an American professional baseball player, a right-handed pitcher who worked in seven games over portions of three Major League seasons for the Philadelphia Phillies. Biography A ...

(1947) * Lee Tate (1952) * Wiley Taylor (1923) *

Bill Walker Bill Walker may refer to: Australian rules football * Bill A. Walker (1886–1934), Australian rules footballer for Essendon * Bill Walker (Australian footballer, born 1883) (1883–1971), Australian rules footballer for Fitzroy * Bill J. V. Wal ...

(1923) MLB All-Star *

Elmer Weingartner Elmer William Weingartner (August 13, 1918 – March 15, 2009) was a shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for the Cleveland Indians during the season. Listed at , , Weingartner batted and threw right-handed. He was born in Cleveland, Oh ...

(1941) * Ed Wheeler (1940)

References

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External references

Baseball Reference
Defunct minor league baseball teams Philadelphia Phillies minor league affiliates Salina, Kansas Defunct sports teams in Kansas Sports in Salina, Kansas Professional baseball teams in Kansas Defunct baseball teams in Kansas Baseball teams disestablished in 1952 Baseball teams established in 1946