Canadian Teams in the Pony League Pipeline to the Majors

The Pennsylvania-Ontario-New York (PONY) League was a Class-D (entry-level) minor league that operated from 1939 through 1956 before becoming the New York-Pennsylvania League. (Ontario no longer hosted any franchises.) The successor league operated from 1957 through 2020, when Major League Baseball restructured the minor-league system. As an entry-level league, its role as a pipeline to the major leagues tends to be overlooked in comparison to the higher-level minor leagues.

Several notable individuals began their baseball careers in the PONY League, including two members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame (Warren Spahn and Nellie Fox), an umpire (Larry Napp), several managers (Paul Owens, Danny Ozark, Buck Rodgers, and Jerry Coleman), two members of the original Montréal Expos (Roy Face and Maury Wills), as well as a number of other recognizable names.

This review of the history of the PONY League will focus on the contributions of the Canadian franchises based in Hamilton and London, Ontario. Hamilton, despite a few nickname changes, was an affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals for the duration of its franchise. London was an affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates for its franchise tenure.

HAMILTON RED WINGS (1939-1942)

The PONY League operated as a six-team league from 1939 through 1941 before expanding to eight teams in 1942. Hamilton made the playoffs with a 61-44 record in the league’s inaugural season. George Dockins (15-5) led the team in wins and later had a two-year major-league career. Other players with major-league careers were pitcher George Dagenhard (two games), Don Hurst (seven seasons as an outfielder-first baseman), first baseman Buddy Gremp (113 games), and outfielder Nick Goulish (two seasons).

Hamilton defeated the unaffiliated Batavia Clippers in the opening round of the 1939 playoffs. Four Batavia players, including two Canadians, had subsequent major-league careers: outfielder Whitey Platt (five seasons), shortstop Eddie Turchin (11 games), and Canadian pitchers Dick Fowler (9-11, 4.39) and Frank Colman (8-7 3.18).

Fowler, inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985, compiled a major-league record of 66-79 with a 4.11 ERA over 10 seasons. His lifetime record is somewhat deceiving, as he completed 44 percent of his career starts (75 of 170) and compiled a 42-30 record from 1947 to 1949 for the Philadelphia Athletics. Playing for noncontending ballclubs combined with arm problems to contribute to his sub-.500 career statistics.

Colman, inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999, later played six seasons as an outfielder-first baseman with the Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Yankees, compiling a lifetime batting average of .228.

Hamilton lost the 1939 finals four games to two to the Brooklyn Dodgers-affiliated Olean Oilers.1 Olean pitchers Glen Moulder (three seasons) and Vince Shupe (one season), and shortstop Stan Rojek (eight seasons) later played in the majors. The Olean catcher also had a lengthy major-league career, but not as a player. Larry Napp hit .253 with Olean before joining the Batavia Clippers in 1940, batting .183 in his final PONY League season.

Napp became an umpire in 1948, and joined the American League umpiring staff in 1951. He umpired until 1974 before becoming an American League supervisor of officials. Napp umpired in the World Series in 1954, 1956 (third base during Don Larsen’s perfect game), 1963, and 1969. He also umpired in the All-Star Games in 1953, 1957, 1961, and 1968.2

In 1940 Hamilton made the playoffs despite a sub-.500 record and was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Olean Oilers, still a Dodgers affiliate. Hamilton pitchers Mike Clark (two seasons) and Ken Holcombe (six seasons), and shortstop George Genovese (three games) had subsequent major-league careers. Olean second baseman Bill Burich (27 games) was the only Olean player to reach the majors.

In 1941 Hamilton again made the playoffs with a sub-.500 record, this time facing the Jamestown Falcons, a Detroit Tigers affiliate, in round one of the playoffs.3 The Hamilton roster featured no future major-league players other than holdovers Clark and Genovese. Four Falcons reached the majors: outfielder Earl Rapp (three seasons), second baseman Greg Mulleavy (79 games), shortstop John O’Neil (46 games), and third baseman Frank Carswell (16 games).

Hamilton upset Jamestown three games to two in the series to advance to the finals,4 where the team lost to the second-place Bradford Bees, a Boston Bees affiliate, four games to one.5 Bradford pitcher Ben Cardoni (three seasons), third baseman Ducky Detweiler (13 games), and catcher Butch Sutcliffe (four games) had brief major-league careers.

In 1942 Hamilton posted its third consecutive sub-.500 season, this time failing to make the playoffs. Catcher Eddie Yount (six games) and outfielder Otis Davis (one game) later made brief major-league appearances.

Three players of note played for other teams during this era. Warren Spahn compiled a record of 5-4 with an ERA of 2.73 while starting nine games and relieving in three others for the Boston Bees-affiliated Bradford Bees in 1940. Spahn was in the majors by 1942 with the Boston Braves, was in military service from 1943 through 1945, and resumed his Hall of Fame career in 1946. Spahn compiled a record of 363-245 with a 3.09 ERA over his 21-year career.

Jerry Coleman hit .304 as a shortstop in 1942 with the Wellsville Yankees, a New York Yankees affiliate. Coleman had a nine-year career with New York (hitting .263 overall) in addition to serving his country in both World War II and the Korean War. Coleman’s post-playing career was in broadcasting, primarily with the San Diego Padres, from 1972 through 1979 and from 1981 through 2013. Coleman managed the Padres in 1980.

Danny Ozark hit .247 as a second baseman in 1942 for the Dodgers affiliate Olean Oilers. Ozark did not make the major leagues as a player, but managed the Philadelphia Phillies from 1973 through 1979 and the San Francisco Giants in 1984. He had a lifetime winning percentage of .533, and his Phillies made three consecutive postseason appearances beginning in 1976. They lost the National League Championship Series each time, in three games to the 1976 Cincinnati Reds, and in four games in both 1977 and 1978 to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

LONDON PIRATES (1940-1941)

London, Ontario, had a franchise affiliated with the Pittsburgh Pirates for the 1940 and 1941 seasons. London made the playoffs in its inaugural season, but was eliminated three games to two in the first round of the playoffs by the 58-48 Batavia Clippers, an unaffiliated team. London catcher Andy Seminick (15 seasons), second baseman Jimmy Jordan (four seasons), and first baseman Vic Barnhart (74 games) later reached the majors. In addition to Larry Napp, Olean third baseman Don Richmond (56 games) and outfielder Walt Chippie (18 games) made brief major-league appearances.

In 1941 London fell to last place with a 47-63 record,6 and the team folded. Despite the franchise’s brief existence, the team did leave a legacy to this day. The team played at Labatt Park, which had opened on May 3, 1 8 7 7 . 7 The London Pirates’ vice president for the 1940 season was George “Mooney” Gibson. Gibson, a Canadian, was a former major-league catcher who played 14 seasons between 1905 and 1918 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Giants. He is credited with having played a key role in the installation of lights at Labatt Park to enable night games for the PONY League franchise.8

The ballpark continues to be used by the Intercounty Baseball League London Majors. The IBL is the top-level baseball league in Canada, having operated for 101 years prior to the COVID-postponed 2020 season.9 More than 40 IBL players have advanced to major-league baseball or returned to the league after their major-league careers, including Fergie Jenkins, Denny McLain, Chris Speier, and Paul Spoljaric.10

1943-1945: THE WAR YEARS

During the war years, the PONY League operated without any Canadian franchises. The league operated with six Western New York teams in 1943 (Batavia, Hornell, Jamestown, Lockport, Olean, and Wellsville), and added two Western Pennsylvania teams (Bradford and Erie) for 1944 and 1945.

Nellie Fox was signed out of high school in 1944 by the Philadelphia Athletics, and assigned to the Tigers-affiliated Jamestown Falcons as an outfielder. During the season, Fox was promoted to the Lancaster Red Roses of the Class-B Inter-State League to play first base. His overall batting average for the season was .309.

By 1947, Fox was in the major leagues, appearing in a total of 98 games as a second baseman with the Philadelphia Athletics between 1947 and 1949. Fox was traded in the 1949 offseason to the Chicago White Sox for catcher Joe Tipton. Tipton had a seven-year career with a lifetime batting average of .236, while Fox averaged .288 over his 19-year Hall of Fame career.

HAMILTON CARDINALS (1946-1947)

The Hamilton franchise returned to the PONY League as the Cardinals in 1946, missing the playoffs in both 1946 and 1947. Canadian outfielder-first baseman Tom Burgess, from London, Ontario, was one of the leading hitters for the 1946 team (.271/16/65); his season was the start of a career of more than 40 years in professional baseball.

Although he spent most of his playing career in the minor leagues, he did appear in 104 major-league games, compiling a .177 batting average. Upon retirement as an active player, Burgess became a minor-league manager beginning in 1969, and served as a major-league coach for the 1977 New York Mets and 1978 Atlanta Braves.11 Burgess was a minor-league hitting instructor for the Kansas City Royals from 1988 through 1995.12

After his professional career, Burgess supported Canadian baseball by serving as a coach for the Canadian National Baseball Team that included major-league players Jason Bay and Justin Morneau.13 He was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1992.

The only other Cardinals from those teams to make major-league appearances were 1946 shortstop Jim Clark (nine games) and 1947 pitcher Ralph Beard (one season).

HAMILTON RED BIRDS (1948)

Hamilton finished third and played the Tigers-affiliated Jamestown Falcons in the opening round of the playoffs,14 losing the series four games to one.15 Pitchers Dan Lewandowski (two games) from Hamilton and Milt Jordan (eight games) from Jamestown were the only players to make brief major-league appearances.

HAMILTON CARDINALS (1949-1955)

This seven-year stretch was the franchise’s most successful, featuring six playoff appearances, a first-place finish in 1952, and the league championship in 1955.

The 1949 team finished third, led by holdover pitcher Lewandowski and future major-league pitcher Willard Schmidt (seven seasons). Hamilton again met the Tigers-affiliated Jamestown Falcons in round one of the playoffs, this time defeating them four games to one. None of the Jamestown players made the major leagues. Hamilton then lost the league finals, four games to one, to the Bradford Blue Wings, a Philadelphia Phillies affiliate.

Two players from the Bradford team made the major leagues: third baseman Dick Young (20 games) and fifth starter (based on number of games started) Roy Face. Face (14-2, 3.32) went on to have a 16-year major-league career, compiling a lifetime record of 104-95/3.48 with 191 saves. He played his final season with the 1969 expansion Montréal Expos (4-2/3.94, 5 saves).

Hamilton finished third in 1950. The team featured four future major-league players: first baseman Pidge Browne (65 games) and catcher Hal Smith (seven seasons), as well as third baseman Ken Boyer and pitcher Stu Miller. Boyer, primarily a third baseman (.342), also pitched in 21 games for Hamilton (6-8, 4.39). He was the starting third baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1955 through 1965, compiling a batting average of .293 with 255 home runs and 1,001 RBIs over those 11 years. Boyer played four more seasons with the New York Mets, Chicago White Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers before retiring in 1969.

His final career statistics include a .287 average, 282 home runs and 1,141 RBIs. Stu Miller was the ace of the Hamilton staff, starting 27 games and compiling a 16-13 record with a 3.21 ERA. He went on to a 16-year major-league career with the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, New York/San Francisco Giants, Baltimore Orioles, and Atlanta Braves, compiling a lifetime record of 105-103 with a 3.24 ERA.

Hamilton was eliminated four games to two by the (then) independent Olean Oilers in round one of the 1950 playoffs.16 Olean infielder/ outfielder Chuck Harmon (four seasons) and infielder Len Schulte (124 games) later appeared in the major leagues.

The 1951 Cardinals, featuring future major-league infielder Wally Shannon (65 games), finished fourth. Hamilton was again eliminated in round one of the playoffs by the independent Olean Oilers, this time four games to three.17 Olean had two future major leaguers on the team, holdover Harmon and first baseman Paul Owens. Owens had a lengthy career with the Philadelphia Phillies organization despite a relatively late start. His post-secondary education was interrupted by three years of service in the US army during World War II.

After the war, Owens completed his post-secondary studies before beginning his baseball career by joining Olean in 1951 at age 27. He led the PONY League in hitting that year with a .407 batting average, including 17 home runs and a league record 38-game hitting streak. In 1952 he played for the Class-B Winston-Salem Cardinals, then left baseball for two years. Owens returned to Organized Baseball in 1955 as player-manager of the still independent Olean. Olean became a farm team of the Phillies in 1956 and Owens began his nearly 50-year career with the Philadelphia organization. After the 1957 season, Owens was promoted to be player-manager for the Class-C Bakersfield Bears. In 1960 he became a scout; he advanced to Phillies farm director in 1965, and eventually to general manager from 1972 until 1983, and manager in the 1972, 1983, and 1984 seasons. He continued to serve the Phillies in various capacities until his death in 2003.

Hamilton finished first in 1952, holdover Pidge Browne leading the offense with a .344 average and 15 home runs. The Cardinals were defeated in the opening playoff round, four games to one, by the Brooklyn-affiliated Hornell Dodgers. While Browne was the only Hamilton player to appear in the majors, Hornell featured two: outfielder John Glenn (32 games) and shortstop Maury Wills. Wills had a 14-year big-league playing career, primarily with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He also played two seasons in Pittsburgh, and was an original Montréal Expo in 1969 before being traded with Manny Mota to the Dodgers for Ron Fairly and Paul Popovich in June 1969. Wills had a lifetime batting average of .281 with 586 stolen bases.

In 1953 Hamilton finished third,18 this time defeating the Hornell Dodgers in three straight games in the opening playoff round.19 No player from either team reached the majors. The Cardinals then lost the finals to the first-place Jamestown Falcons, still a Tigers affiliate.20 The Falcons featured four future major leaguers: pitchers Bob Shaw (11 seasons) and Ken Rowe (26 games), outfielder Ken Walters (three seasons), and outfielder George Alusik (298 games).

Hamilton missed the playoffs in 1954, finishing tied with the Bradford Phillies for sixth with a 61-65 record. Pitchers Marty Kutyna (four seasons) and Tom Baker (10 games) had brief major-league careers.

The 1955 campaign was a championship season for Hamilton. The team finished the regular season in first place with an 82-43 record, leading the league in runs scored and fewest runs allowed. The top four starters had a combined record of 61-24, led by Gary Geiger (20-7 with a 1.98 ERA). Geiger did make the major leagues in 1958, forging a 12-year career as an outfielder with a lifetime batting average of .246. Reliever Paul Toth (three seasons) also reached the majors. The Hamilton hitting was led by 32-year-old second baseman Ed Lyons, who batted .350 and hit 17 home runs. Lyons was the only Hamilton player with previous major-league experience, having played for the 1947 Washington Senators, batting .154 in 26 at-bats.

Hamilton defeated the fourth-place (68-58) Wellsville Braves, a Milwaukee Braves affiliate, two games to one, in round one of the playoffs.21 Wellsville was led by future major-league pitcher Don Nottebart (18-11, 2.57). Nottebart had a nine-year major-league career with a record of 36-51/3.65. Wellsville catcher Ron Henry (42 games) later reached the majors, and 38-year-old second baseman Alex Monchak had previous major-league experience, having appeared in 19 games for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1940.

Hamilton then defeated the third-place (69-57) Boston Red Sox-affiliated Corning Red Sox in three straight games in the final to win the PONY League pennant.22 Corning starter Ken McBride (10-9, 3.81) later fashioned a seven-year majorleague career, compiling a 40-50 record with a 3.79 ERA. The only other future major leaguer on the team was Bill Monbouquette. He appeared in only one game for Corning, a start that lasted two innings in which he yielded six hits and three earned runs in a no-decision. Monbouquette went on to have an 11-year major-league career, amassing a 114-112/3.68 record.

Several players of interest began their baseball careers in the PONY League during this era. Don Zimmer played shortstop for the 1950 Hornell Dodgers, hitting .315 with 23 home runs. Zimmer hit .235 in a 12-year major-league career. In his post-playing career Zimmer was both a coach and a manager. His 13-year managerial record was .508 (885-858) with one postseason appearance, his 1989 Chicago Cubs being defeated four games to one in the NLCS by the San Francisco Giants. Frank Lary went 5-2 with a 1.88 ERA for the 1950 Tigers-affiliated Jamestown Falcons; he had a 12-year major-league career with a record of 128-116/3.49. And Bobby Richardson played second base and hit .412 for the 1953 New York Yankees-affiliated Olean Yankees. Richardson played second base for the New York Yankees over a 12-year career and hit .266.

HAMILTON RED WINGS (1956) THE FINAL SEASON

Winning the PONY League title in 1955 did not lead to sustained success for the Hamilton franchise. St. Louis did not renew its affiliation with Hamilton for 1956, so the team was rebranded as the Red Wings and attempted to operate as an independent club. These efforts proved unsuccessful, and the franchise, as did the Yankees-affiliated Bradford Yankees, folded on May 16, 1956. The Sporting News summarized the contributing factors in an article in its issue of May 23, 1956.23 Bad weather in early May hurt the league; 25 of the first 40 scheduled games were postponed. This particularly hurt the finances of the independent Hamilton Red Wings. The league did consider assuming operation of the franchise. However, the Bradford Yankees were also experiencing financial problems, so both franchises were folded on May 16.

With the demise of the sole Canadian franchise, the league renamed itself the New York-Pennsylvania League beginning in 1957. Although some teams returned to Canada for several seasons (Toronto Blue Jays-affiliated St. Catharines Blue Jays 1986-1995 and St. Catharines Stompers 1996-1999, St. Louis Cardinals-affiliated Hamilton Red Birds 1988-1992, and Pittsburgh Pirates-affiliated Welland Pirates 1989-1994), the PONY League name was not resurrected.

Two players of interest began their playing careers in 1956, the final year of the PONY League. Tommy Davis hit .325 for the Hornell Dodgers, still affiliated with Brooklyn. Davis had an 18-year major-league career, batting .294. And Buck Rodgers hit .235 as a catcher for the Jamestown Falcons, still a Tigers affiliate. Rodgers had a nine-year playing career, hitting .232. His post-playing career included 13 years as a manager, compiling a 784-774 (.503) record. He managed the Montréal Expos for seven seasons (1985 through 1991) to an aggregate record of 520-499 (.510). Rodgers made one postseason managerial appearance, with the Milwaukee Brewers, losing the American League East Division playoff (due to the split season resulting from the 1981 player strike) to the New York Yankees, three games to two.

ALLEN TAIT has been a SABR member since 1976. A retired fraud investigator, he is chapter leader for the Hanlan’s Point (Toronto) chapter and a member of numerous SABR research committees.

 

Sources

Data regarding the teams and players is drawn from Baseball-Reference.com, except as noted.

 

Notes

1 The Sporting News, September 28, 1939: 11.

2 Ray Murray, “Ex-AL Ump Knapp [sic] Dies at Age 77,” South Florida Sun-Sentinel, July 9, 1993.

3 The Sporting News, September 4, 1941: 7.

4 The Sporting News, September 18, 1941: 11.

5 The Sporting News, September 25, 1941: 7. From 1936 to 1941 the Boston National League team was nicknamed Bees.

6 The Sporting News, September 4, 1941: 7.

7 Thompson, John (ed.), Intercounty Baseball League – 100 Years Strong (2018): 137.

8 Thompson: 137.

9 https://www.theibl.ca.

10 https://www.theibl.ca.

11 https://baseballhaIloffame.ca/blog/2009/07/29/ tom-burgess.

12 https://basebaIlhalloffame.ca/blog/2009/07/29/ tom-burgess.

13 https://basebaIIhalloffame.ca/blog/2009/07/29/ tom-burgess.

14 The Sporting News, September 8, 1948: 36.

15 The Sporting News, September 22, 1948: 37.

16 The Sporting News, September 20, 1950: 42.

17 The Sporting News, September 26, 1951: 36.

18 The Sporting News, September 9, 1953: 36.

19 The Sporting News, September 23, 1953: 35.

20 The Sporting News, September 30, 1953: 54.

21 The Sporting News, September 21, 1955: 37.

22 The Sporting News, September 21, 1955: 37.

23 “Jean and Carroll Jean Drop Pony League Franchise at Hamilton,” The Sporting News, May 23, 1956: 37.