The Wichita Aviators were a minor league baseball team based in

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had a population of 647,610 in 2020. It is located in ...

from 1905 to 1933. Wichita was a member of the

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 ...

(1905–1908) and Western League (1909–1933).

History

The club played mostly in the Western League. However, the club began play as the Wichita Jobbers, a member of the

. The Jobbers played in the Western Association from 1905 to 1908, winning the league championship in 1905 and 1907. The 1907 Jobbers were recognized as one of the 100 greatest minor league teams of all time. The Jobbers then moved to the Western League, where they played until midway through their 1911 season. That year, the team relocated to

Pueblo, Colorado Pueblo () is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 111,876 at the 2020 United States Census, making Pueblo the ninth most populo ...

, where they finished out the year as the

Pueblo Indians The Puebloans or Pueblo peoples, are Native Americans in the Southwestern United States who share common agricultural, material, and religious practices. Currently 100 pueblos are actively inhabited, among which Taos, San Ildefonso, Acoma, Z ...

. However, a team representing Wichita was fielded in 1912 to compete in the Western League. The Wichita Witches played continuously in the league until 1916. The team finished their 1916 season in Colorado Springs, Colorado as the

Colorado Springs Millionaires The Colorado Springs Millionaires were a minor league baseball team, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado that played primarily in the Western League. History The first Colorado Springs team played in the Colorado State League in 1889 and 1896 ...

, before returning to Wichita in 1917. The team was again renamed the Jobbers from 1918 to 1920, before retaking the Witches moniker as they won their third league title, the first in the Western League, in 1921. From 1923 to 1926, the club was renamed the Wichita Izzies, and they took the name the Wichita Larks from 1927 to 1929. In 1919, Jobbers outfielder Joe Wilhoit posted the longest hitting streak in professional baseball history. The 33-year-old, who had spent much of the previous three seasons in the majors, hit safely in 69 consecutive games. Wilhoit's streak lasted from June 14 to August 19, during which he was 153-for-297 for a .515 batting average. He would lead the Western League with a .422 batting average and 211 hits before finishing the season (and his big league career) with the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

. Multiple Izzies players had or would go on to have major league experience. 1923:

Johnny Butler John Stephen Butler (March 20, 1893 in Fall River, Kansas – April 29, 1967 in Seal Beach, California), was a professional baseball player who played shortstop from 1926 to 1929. After his playing career ended, he was a coach for the Chicago ...

Joe Casey Joe Casey is an American comic book writer. He has worked on titles such as '' Wildcats 3.0'', ''Uncanny X-Men'', '' The Intimates'', '' Adventures of Superman'', and '' G.I. Joe: America's Elite'' among others. As part of the comics creator grou ...

Jocko Conlan John Bertrand "Jocko" Conlan (December 6, 1899 – April 16, 1989) was an American baseball umpire who worked in the National League (NL) from 1941 to 1965. He had a brief career as an outfielder with the Chicago White Sox before entering umpirin ...

, Howie Gregory, Ed Hovlik,

Ernie Maun Ernest Gerald Maun (February 3, 1901 – January 1, 1987) was a Major League Baseball pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the ...

Hugh McMullen Hugh Raphael McMullen (December 16, 1901 – May 23, 1986) was a Major League Baseball catcher. McMullen played for the New York Giants in and , the Washington Senators in , and the Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American profe ...

Paul Musser Paul Musser (June 24, 1889 – July 7, 1973) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Washington Senators () and Boston Red Sox (). Listed at , 175 lb., Musser batted and threw right-handed. A native of Millheim, Pennsylvan ...

1924:

Fred Beck Frederick Thomas Beck (November 17, 1886 – March 12, 1962) was a baseball player in the major leagues from 1909 to 1911 with the Boston Doves, Cincinnati Reds, and Philadelphia Phillies. In 1914 and 1915, he played for the Chicago Whales ...

, Butler, Archie Campbell,

Chuck Corgan Charles Howard Corgan (December 4, 1902 – June 13, 1928) played professional baseball and football. In baseball, he played the infield for the Brooklyn Robins during the 1925 and 1927 seasons. He also played football for the Kansas City Blues/C ...

, Gregory, Hovlik, McMullen, Musser 1925: Campbell, Chet Chadbourne, Corgan,

Fred Graf Frederick Graf (August 25, 1889 – October 4, 1979) was a Major League Baseball third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the ...

, Gregory, Raymond Haley,

Don Hankins Donald Wayne Hankins (February 9, 1902 – May 16, 1963) was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League ...

, Hovlik, McMullen,

Ray Morehart Raymond Anderson Morehart (December 2, 1899 – January 13, 1989) was an American Major League Baseball, major league baseball player. Born in Terrell, Texas, Terrell, Texas, Morehart attended Austin College and played two seasons for the Chicag ...

, Ken Penner, Bill Sweeney 1926: Jack Berly, Fred Brickell, Campbell,

Pete Compton Anna Sebastian "Pete" Compton (September 28, 1889 – February 3, 1978), was a Major League Baseball outfielder who played in parts of six seasons from to with five major league teams. In all, Compton would spend 20 years in professional basebal ...

, Bill Doran, Gregory, Haley, Sweeney In 1920, the club was renamed the Wichita Aviators, and from 1930 to 1931 they became an affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 1931, the Aviators won their second Western league title, and fourth overall league title. The Aviators affiliation changed in 1932 from the Pirates to the Chicago Cubs. Former Aviators include Indian Bob Johnson, Woody Jensen,

Vern Kennedy Lloyd Vernon Kennedy (March 20, 1907 – January 28, 1993) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Browns, Washington Senators, Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinna ...

Jack Mealey Maurice F. "Jack" Mealey (April 28, 1899 – August 1971) was a long-time minor league baseball catcher, who also managed in the minor leagues and served as president of the Sooner State League for five years. He was born in Glen Carbon, Penn ...

, and Hall of Famer Arky Vaughan.Wichita, KS page
/ref> In 1933 the Wichita Aviators became the Wichita Oilers. After beginning the year 6–13, the club moved to Muskogee, Oklahoma, where they became the Muskogee Oilers. Overall the Oilers were 26–95, one of the worst records ever posted in the Western League. The club was just 20–82 after leaving Wichita, and only went 8–57 in the second half. The Oilers did not return in 1934 and Wichita would not have another team until the Wichita Indians began play in 1950.

Season records

References

{{reflist Photo of 1912 Team https://www.newspapers.com/clip/43637540/ Baseball teams established in 1905 Sports clubs disestablished in 1933 Defunct minor league baseball teams Professional baseball teams in Kansas Defunct baseball teams in Kansas Pittsburgh Pirates minor league affiliates Chicago Cubs minor league affiliates 1905 establishments in Kansas Defunct Western League teams Defunct Western Association teams Baseball teams disestablished in 1933