The Zanesville Infants (1908–1909) was a short-lived baseball franchise located in

Zanesville, Ohio Zanesville is a city in and the county seat of Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. It is located east of Columbus and had a population of 24,765 as of the 2020 census, down from 25,487 as of the 2010 census. Historically the state capita ...

, and affiliated with the regional

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consist ...

. The organization's name was intended to highlight that they were a new minor league club. The Infants proved tough competitors and were runners-up in the league championship in 1909. A ball club featuring many players who later formed the core of the Infants was established in Zanesville in 1907, when local investors purchased the

Youngstown Ohio Works The Youngstown Ohio Works baseball team was a minor league club that was known for winning the premier championship of the Ohio–Pennsylvania League in 1905, and for launching the professional career of pitcher Roy Castleton a year later. A tra ...

. The investors also offered a contract to the

Youngstown, Ohio Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio, and the largest city and county seat of Mahoning County, Ohio, Mahoning County. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Youngstown had a city population of 60,068. It is a principal city of ...

, club's ex-manager,

Marty Hogan Martin Francis Hogan (October 25, 1869 – August 15, 1923), nicknamed "The Indianapolis Ringer", was an English born right fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Cincinnati Reds (1894) and St. Louis Browns (1894–1895). A ...

, a former major league outfielder. Although the Zanesville team failed in its bid to join the

Ohio–Pennsylvania League The Ohio–Pennsylvania League (1905–1912) was a Class C (baseball), Class C and Class D (baseball), Class D level minor league baseball league that featured franchises based in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The league was founded b ...

, it secured a spot in the less prestigious Pennsylvania–Ohio–Maryland League. The Zanesville team disbanded along with the P-O-M League at the close of the 1907 season. Hogan managed the Infants in the 1908 season but moved on to

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

, the following year, leading that team to its first championship in the

Tri-State League The Tri-State League was the name of six different circuits in American minor league baseball. History The first league of that name played for four years (1887–1890) and consisted of teams in Ohio, Michigan and West Virginia. The second leagu ...

.''Spalding's Official Athletic Library Baseball Guide'' (New York: American Sports Publishing Co., 1910), p. 181. Meanwhile, the Zanesville team competed fiercely with the Wheeling Stogies, who took the

Championship with an 88-50 record. The Infants were runners-up in the contest, closing the season with a 75-58 record. In July 1909, the Zanesville Infants earned a spot in baseball history when the team participated in the first electrified

night game A night game, also called a nighter, is a sporting event that takes place, completely or partially, after the local sunset. Depending on the sport, this can be done either with floodlights or with the usual low-light conditions. The term "night g ...

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

. The event was made possible by inventor George Cahill, who provided his new portable lighting.{{cite web , url = http://timelines.ws/20thcent/1908_1909.HTML , title = Baseball Timeline 1908–1909 , publisher = Timelines , access-date = 2007-03-14

References

Defunct minor league baseball teams Defunct baseball teams in Ohio Sports in Zanesville, Ohio Central League teams Baseball teams disestablished in 1909 Baseball teams established in 1908