The Western Tri-State League was a

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

league, which was formed in 1912, and disbanded in 1914. It was a Class D league. Over its three-year existence, the league featured six teams from six different cities in

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

, and

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. Two teams, the Pendleton Buckaroos, and the

Walla Walla Bears The Walla Walla Bears were a minor league baseball team in the northwest United States, located in Walla Walla, Washington. The Bears were members of the Class A short-season Northwest League and were affiliated with the Philadelphia Phillies. ...

, spent all three seasons in the league. The Pendleton Buckaroos won two league championships, the first coming in 1912, and the other in 1914. The Walla Walla Bears won the first-half league championship in 1913, while the Boise Irrigators were the second half champions. In 1913, the league opened with six teams, two more than the previous year. However, early into the league, two teams were dropped due to financial strains. In 1915, the league folded. Initially, it was attributed to financial difficulties. However, it was later said to be issues with the relations of team owners.

League history

1912 season

In 1912, the Western Tri-State League was recognized by the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, and classified as a Class D league. The league president was W. N. Sweet. The league opened with four teams: the Boise Irrigators, who represented

Boise, Idaho Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown are ...

; the La Grande Pippins, who represented

La Grande, Oregon La Grande is a city in Union County, Oregon, United States. Originally named "Brownsville," it was forced to change its name because that name was being used for a city in Linn County. Located in the Grande Ronde Valley, the city's name comes ...

; the Pendleton Buckaroos, who represented

Pendleton, Oregon Pendleton is a city and the county seat of Umatilla County, Oregon. The population was 17,107 at the time of the 2020 census, which includes approximately 1,600 people who are incarcerated at Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution. Pendleton ...

; and the

, who represented

Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla is a city in Walla Walla County, Washington, where it is the largest city and county seat. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 census, estimated to have decreased to 33,927 as of 2021. The population of the city and its two su ...

. At the end of the 1912 season, the Pendleton Buckaroos won the league championship with a .622

winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

. Four players in the Western Tri-State League that season would eventually go on to play in

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), ...

. Those players were Bob Smith, and

Carl Mays Carl William Mays (November 12, 1891 – April 4, 1971) was an American baseball pitcher who played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1929. During his career, he won over 200 games, 27 in 1921 alone, and was a member of four Wor ...

of the Boise Irrigators; and Bob Jones, and

Paul Strand Paul Strand (October 16, 1890 – March 31, 1976) was an American photographer and filmmaker who, along with fellow modernist photographers like Alfred Stieglitz and Edward Weston, helped establish photography as an art form in the 20th century. ...

of the Walla Walla Bears.

1913 season

At the start of the 1913 season, it was announced that there would be an addition of two teams to the Western Tri-State League. Those teams were the Baker City Golddiggers, of

Baker City, Oregon Baker City is a city in and the county seat of Baker County, Oregon, United States. It was named after Edward D. Baker, the only U.S. Senator ever killed in military combat. The population was 10,099 at the time of the 2020 census. History Pl ...

; and the North Yakima Braves, of

Yakima, Washington Yakima ( or ) is a city in and the county seat of Yakima County, Washington, and the state's 11th-largest city by population. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 96,968 and a metropolitan population of 256,728. The uninco ...

. Furthermore, the La Grande club changed their name from the Pippins to the Spuds. The league had considered adding a team in

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Canada ...

, but ruled it out until the 1914 season. W. N. Sweet returned as the league president. Early in the year, it was announced that two teams would be dropped from the league, to make it more economically effective to run the circuit. The teams that were cut were the newly formed Baker City Golddiggers, and the established Pendleton Buckaroos. In May, it was announced by league officials that the league's season would be split up into two halves. The intention of this move was to stimulate interests, and lower the cost of operation. 1913 Walla Walla Bears

The Walla Walla Bears finished the first half of the season in first place with a record of 45–20. They were followed by the Boise Irrigators (40–23) in second, the Pendleton Buckaroos in third (31–29), and the North Yakima Braves (30–34) in fourth. During the second half of the season, the Boise club took home the pennant, finishing with a 32–22 record. They were followed by the second-place North Yakima club (27–27), the third-place Walla Walla club (26–28), and the fourth-place Pendleton club (23–31). Eight players who spent the 1913 season in the Western Tri-State League went on to play in Major League Baseball. Those players were Con Starkel of the Baker City club; Dad Clark, and Steve Melter of the Boise club; Milo Netzel of the North Yakima club;

Howie Haworth Homer Howard Haworth (August 27, 1893 – January 28, 1953) was a Major League Baseball catcher who played for one season. He played seven games for the Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based ...

, and Don Rader of the Pendleton club; and Elmer Leonard, and

Earl Sheely Earl Homer Sheely (February 12, 1893 – September 16, 1952) was a first baseman for the Chicago White Sox (1921–27), Pittsburgh Pirates (1929) and Boston Braves (1931). Sheely finished sixth in voting for the 1925 American League MVP, playin ...

of the Walla Walla club.

1914 season, and disbanding

Before the start of the 1914 season, it was announced that the Boise Irrigators were leaving the Western Tri-State League, and joining the

Union Association The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for just the 1884 season. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season. Seven of the twelve teams who were in the Association at some poi ...

. Therefore, W. N. Sweet, the president of the league, and president of the Boise club resigned his post. Before the start of the season, L. M. Brown, the secretary of the Western Tri-State League, announced that the league would be adopting a 98-game schedule, and that they would be adding another team due to the absence of Boise. Over a dozen requests were sent to secretary Brown requesting a baseball team. Brown selected Baker City, Oregon as the location for the new franchise. Local reports speculated that the 1914 season would be the league's most successful. In Walla Walla, Washington, the cities public schools were dismissed early, and admitted to the Walla Walla Bears game for free. There was also a

parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, float (parade), floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually ce ...

, which led to the ball park. Attendance for all of the clubs

opening day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

games were record-breaking that year. The Pendleton Walla Walla, Washington Minor League City Encyclopedia won the league title that season with a 59–37 record. In second place were the Walla Walla Bears with a record of 53–43. Behind them were the Baker City Miners with a 44–52 record. The North Yakima Braves, with a record of 36–50, finished last. Four players in the league that season had an MLB appearance some time in their professional career. Those players were:

Ray French Raymond James French, MBE (born 23 December 1939) is an English former rugby league and rugby union footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s. French played at international level in both codes. He won four caps for England in rugby union ...

, and Suds Sutherland of the Baker City club;

Ed Mensor Edward Mensor (November 7, 1885 – April 20, 1970) was an outfielder in 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 the Pendleton club; and

of the Walla Walla club. Before the start of the 1915 season, the Western Tri-State League failed to raise enough money to operate their league, effectively ending the league. League president R. W. Ritner later stated that the failure of the league was due to the North Yakama, and Walla Walla clubs who did not want to work together.

Teams

References

{{Professional Baseball Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States 1912 establishments in the United States 1914 disestablishments in the United States Sports leagues established in 1912 Baseball leagues in Idaho Baseball leagues in Oregon Baseball leagues in Washington (state) Sports leagues disestablished in 1914