1954 California League season

1954 California League season
League	California League
Sport	Baseball
Duration	April 23 – September 12
Number of games	140
Number of teams	8
Regular season
League champions	Modesto Reds
Season MVP	Bob Thorpe, Stockton Ports
Playoffs
League champions	Modesto Reds
Runners-up	San Jose Red Sox
CALL seasons
← 1953 1955 →

The 1954 California League was a Class C baseball season played between April 23 and September 12. Eight teams played a 140-game schedule, as the top four teams qualified for the playoffs.

The Modesto Reds won the California League championship, defeating the San Jose Red Sox in the final round of the playoffs.

Team changes

• The Santa Barbara Dodgers and Ventura Oilers combined into one team. The team was named the Channel Cities Oilers.
• The Salinas Packers join the league as an expansion team.
• The Bakersfield Indians ended their affiliation with the Detroit Tigers and began a new affiliation with the Brooklyn Dodgers.
• The Modesto Reds ended their affiliation with the Milwaukee Braves and began a new affiliation with the New York Yankees.
• The Visalia Stars are renamed to the Visalia Cubs.

Teams

1954 California League
Team	City	MLB Affiliate	Stadium
Bakersfield Indians	Bakersfield, California	Brooklyn Dodgers	Sam Lynn Ballpark
Channel Cities Oilers	Santa Barbara, California Ventura, California	None	Laguna Park Babe Ruth Field
Fresno Cardinals	Fresno, California	St. Louis Cardinals	Fresno State College Park
Modesto Reds	Modesto, California	New York Yankees	Modesto Field
Salinas Packers	Salinas, California	None	Salinas Municipal Stadium
San Jose Red Sox	San Jose, California	Boston Red Sox	San Jose Municipal Stadium
Stockton Ports	Stockton, California	Chicago Cubs	Billy Hebert Field
Visalia Cubs	Visalia, California	None	Recreation Ballpark

Map of teams

Bakersfield

Channel Cities - Santa Barbara

Channel Cities - Ventura

Fresno

Modesto

Salinas

San Jose

Stockton

Visalia

California League Teams

Regular season

Summary

• The Modesto Reds finished with the best record in the regular season for the first time since in team history.

Standings

^[1]

California League
Team	Win	Loss	%	GB
Modesto Reds	88	52	.629	–
Bakersfield Indians	80	60	.571	8
Stockton Ports	80	60	.571	8
San Jose Red Sox	78	62	.557	10
Fresno Cardinals	73	67	.521	15
Channel Cities Oilers	68	72	.486	20
Salinas Packers	56	84	.400	32
Visalia Cubs	37	103	.264	26

League Leaders

Batting leaders

^[2]

Stat	Player	Total
AVG	Joseph Brunacki, Fresno Cardinals	.344
H	Bobby Smith, Fresno Cardinals	179
R	Ray Perry, Bakersfield Indians	142
2B	Billy Kerr, Modesto Reds John Smith, San Jose Red Sox	34
3B	Bobby Smith, Fresno Cardinals	22
HR	Ray Perry, Bakersfield Indians	37
RBI	Billy Kerr, Modesto Reds Ray Perry, Bakersfield Indians	128
SB	Nino Spatafore, San Jose Red Sox	31

Pitching leaders

^[3]

Stat	Player	Total
W	Bob Thorpe, Stockton Ports	28
ERA	Bob Thorpe, Stockton Ports	2.28
CG	Bob Thorpe, Stockton Ports	32
SHO	Bob Thorpe, Stockton Ports	5
IP	Bob Thorpe, Stockton Ports	300.0
SO	Rick Botelho, Modesto Reds	234

Playoffs

• The Modesto Reds won their second California League championship, defeating the San Jose Red Sox in five games.

Playoff bracket

	Semi-finals					Finals
	1	Modesto	3
	3	Stockton	0
						1	Modesto	4
						4	San Jose	1
	2	Bakersfield	0
	4	San Jose	3

Awards

California League awards
Award name	Recipient
Most Valuable Player	Bob Thorpe, Stockton Ports

See also

• 1954 Major League Baseball season

References

1. CALL Standings at stats-crew.com, URL accessed October 9, 2025
2. 1954 CALL Batting Leaders at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed October 9, 2025
3. 1954 CALL Pitching Leaders at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed October 9, 2025

External links

• Minor League Baseball official website