Atlantic Association

Atlantic Association
Classification	Independent (1889–1890); Class D (1908)
Sport	Minor League Baseball
Inaugural season	1889 ; 1908
Ceased	1890 (1st iteration) ; 1908 (2nd iteration)
President	James M. Braden (1889–1890); Hugh McBreen (1908)
No. of teams	14 (Total – 1st iteration) ; 7 (Total – 2nd iteration)
Country	United States
Most titles	1 Worcester (1889); New Haven Nutmegs (1890); Portland Blue Sox (1908)
Related; competitions	New England League

Last updated January 05, 2023

The Atlantic Association was a minor league baseball organization that operated between 1889 and 1890 and again in 1908 in the Northeastern United States.

History

First Demise

In each of the two seasons 4 or more teams failed to finish the season and with three teams remaining folded after the 1890 season. Only the New Haven Nutmegs survived after the demise of the league by transferring to another league.^[1]

Second Demise

A smaller league in 1908 was also like the first league and plagued by teams failing to finish the season.^[1] Despite being the best team, Portland folded with the demise of the league and disbanded with its association with the Maine State League.

Cities represented

Attleboro, Massachusetts : Attleboro Angels (1908) – team moved from Taunton
Baltimore, Maryland : Baltimore Orioles (1890) – not to be mistaken for the Baltimore Orioles of the American Association
Easton, Pennsylvania : Easton (1889) – unnamed club failed to complete season and folded in June 1889
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania : Harrisburg Athletics (1890) – former Harrisburg Ponies from the Pennsylvania State League and replaced the Jersey City Gladiators July 1890
Hartford, Connecticut : Hartford Baseball Club (1889); Hartford Nutmeggers (1890): team disbanded August 1890
Jersey City, New Jersey : Jersey City Skeeters (1889) Jersey City Gladiators (1890): replaced the Skeeters and then replaced by Harrisburg Athletics July 1890
Lebanon, Pennsylvania : Lebanon (1890) – unnamed team disbanded August 25, 1890
Lewiston, Maine : Lewiston (1908)
Lowell, Massachusetts : Lowell (1889) – unnamed team disbanded after 1889
New Haven, Connecticut : New Haven (1889) – unnamed team disbanded?; New Haven Nutmegs 1890: best team in the AA in 1892 but transferred to Eastern Association after end of season and last played as Eastern League's New Haven Bulldogs in 1932
Newark, New Jersey : Newark Little Giants (1889–1890) – formerly with Eastern League, International League and Central League; club folded 1889
Newport, Rhode Island : Newport Ponies (1908) – disbanded May 19
Norwalk, Connecticut : Norwalk (1889) – unnamed team disbanded after single season
Pawtucket, Rhode Island : Pawtucket Colts (1908) – originally with New England League in 1899
Portland, Maine : Portland Blue Sox (1908) – best team in the AA in 1908, moved from Maine State League and appears to have joined New England League in 1919
Washington D.C. : Washington Senators (1890): disbanded July 1890
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania : Wilkes-Barre Coal Barons (1889) – disbanded August 1889
Wilmington, Delaware : Wilmington Peach Growers (1890) – disbanded August 1890
Taunton, Massachusetts : Taunton Angels (1908) – team moved to Attleboro, MA as Angels
Woonsocket, Rhode Island : Woonsocket Trotters (1908) – disbanded May 1908
Worcester, Pennsylvania : Worcester (1889–1890) – best team in the AA in 1889

Standings & statistics

1889 Atlantic Association
schedule

Team standings	W	L	PCT	GB	Managers
Worcester	58	35	.624	0	Walt Burnham
Newark Little Giants	54	40	.574	4.5	Sam Trott
Hartford	52	44	.542	7.5	John Henry
New Haven	40	52	.435	17.5	Harry Spence / Jack Burdock
Lowell	35	59	.373	23.5	John Cosgrove/ Nate Kellogg / Dan Sullivan
Wilkes-Barre Coal Barons	32	20	.605	NA	John Irwin / M.H. Bergunder
Jersey City Skeeters	33	23	.589	NA	Patrick Powers
Easton	10	26	.378	NA	Henry Putnam
Norwalk	2	17	.105	NA	Jim Donnelly / George Moolic

Norwalk disbanded September 2.
Easton disbanded June 22.
Jersey City disbanded July 25.
Wilkes-Barre disbanded August 1.

**Player statistics**
Player	Team	Stat	Tot	Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Robert Hamilton	Lowell	BA	.341	Jesse Burkett	Worcester	W	30
Ted Scheffler	Worcester	Runs	87	Henry Dooms	Newark	W	30
Robert Hamilton	Lowell	Hits	117	Jesse Burkett	Worcester	SO	240
William Campion	Worcester	HR	8	Bill Daley	Jersey City	Pct	.750; 18-6

1890 Atlantic Association
schedule

Team standings	W	L	PCT	GB	Managers
New Haven Nutmegs	82	36	.695	0	Walt Burnham
Worcester / Lebanon	60	51	.541	18.5	Jim Cudworth
Newark Little Giants	60	61	.496	23.5	Sam Trott
Jersey City Gladiators / Harrisburg Athletics	58	72	.446	30	Steve Brady / Jack Burdock / James Harrington
Baltimore Orioles	77	24	.762	NA	Billy Barnie
Washington Senators	38	47	.447	NA	Ted Sullivan
Wilmington Peach Growers	29	66	.305	NA	Barney Stephenson / Joe Simmons / Bill Wehrle
Hartford Nutmeggers	22	60	.268	NA	John Henry / Ezra Sutton / Tom Forster

Jersey City (27-46) disbanded July 22.
Harrisburg, from the disbanded Interstate League, applied for the vacant franchise and joined the league July 24.
Worcester (37-31) moved to Lebanon July 28; Washington disbanded August 2; Hartford disbanded August 25; Wilmington disbanded August 27.
Baltimore left the league to join the American Association August 27.

**Player statistics**
Player	Team	Stat	Tot	Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Joe Sommer	Baltimore	BA	.347	Les German	Baltimore	W	35
Reddy Mack	Baltimore	Runs	120	John Doran	New Haven	SO	241
Danny Long	Baltimore	Runs	120	John Doran	New Haven	ERA	1.12
Dan Lally	New Haven	Hits	159	Mike O'Rourke	Baltimore	Pct	.923; 12-1
Dan Lally	New Haven	HR	12

1908 Atlantic Association

Team standings	W	L	PCT	GB	Managers
Portland Blue Sox	8	3	.727	0	F. Driscoll
Lewiston	8	4	.667	.5	George Beede / Ed McDonough
Pawtucket Colts	6	3	.667	1	William Conners
Newport Ponies	5	5	.500	2.5	Ben Anthony / George Reed
Taunton / Attleboro Angels	1	12	.077	8	Mike McDermott / Bill Wilson / McEleney
Woonsocket Trotters	0	1	.000	NA	John Leighton / Buster Burrill

Taunton moved to Attleboro; Woonsocket disbanded May 4; Pawtucket disbanded May 19.
The league started May 2 and disbanded May 21.

**Player statistics**
Player	Team	Stat	Tot	Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Billy Lush	Taunton/Attleboro	BA	.418	Sandy Burk	Pawtucket/Attleboro	W	4
Bob Black	Pawtucket	Runs	13	Sandy Burk	Pawtucket/Attleboro	SO	40
Pat Sullivan	Lewiston	Runs	13	Joe Burns	Taunton/Attleboro	Hits	16
Pat Sullivan	Lewiston	Hits	16	Pat Sullivan	Lewiston	HR	4

^[1]

Hall of Fame alumni

Jesse Burkett, 1889 Worcester
Frank Grant, 1890 Harrisburg Athletics

Related Research Articles

The Eastern League (EL) is a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) sports league that has operated under that name since 1938, with the exception of the 2021 season, during which the league operated under the moniker Double-A Northeast. The league has played at the Double-A level since 1963, and consists primarily of teams located in the Northeastern United States.

The Northeast League was a professional independent baseball league that operated in the Northeastern United States from 1995 until 1998 and from 2003 until 2004. Between 1999 and 2002, the league was part of the Northern League after the two leagues agreed to merge. The league was superseded by the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball, which its members joined for the 2005 season.

The Boston and Providence Railroad was a railroad company in the states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island which connected its namesake cities. It opened in two sections in 1834 and 1835 - one of the first rail lines in the United States - with a more direct route into Providence built in 1847. Branches were built to Dedham in 1834, Stoughton in 1845, and North Attleboro in 1871. It was acquired by the Old Colony Railroad in 1888, which in turn was leased by the New Haven Railroad in 1893. The line became the New Haven's primary mainline to Boston; it was realigned in Boston in 1899 during the construction of South Station, and in Pawtucket and Central Falls in 1916 for grade crossing elimination.

The Pawsox Radio Network was the radio network of the Pawtucket Red Sox, a Triple-A minor league affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. There were 12 stations and three F.M. translators in the network, including the flagship and part-time stations. The network last broadcast games for the Pawtucket team in 2019, as the 2020 minor league season was cancelled and the team relocated to Worcester, Massachusetts, becoming the Worcester Red Sox for the 2021 season.

The New England League was a mid-level league in American minor league baseball that played intermittently in five of the six New England states between 1886 and 1949. After 1901, it existed in the shadow of two Major League Baseball clubs in Boston and alongside stronger, higher-classification leagues.

The Connecticut League, also known as the Connecticut State League, was a professional baseball association of teams in the state of Connecticut. The league began as offshoot of the original Connecticut State League, which dates back as far as 1884. In 1891, the Connecticut State League included the Ansonia Cuban Giants, a team made up of entirely African-American ballplayers, including future Hall of Famers Frank Grant and Sol White. In 1902, it was a Class D league with teams in eight cities. In 1905, the league became Class B, which lasted until 1913, when the league became the Eastern Association due to several teams outside of the state entering the league. Also a Class B league, it survived two more seasons, then folded after the 1914 season.

The Atlantic League was a minor league baseball league that operated between 1896 and 1900 in the Northeastern United States. It was the successor of the Pennsylvania State League, which had operated from 1892 to 1895. The name has subsequently been reused twice, for another short-lived league in 1914, and for a contemporary independent minor league.

The New York State League was a minor league baseball league that played between 1885 and 1917. The league began play as an Independent level league before playing from 1902 to 1917 as a Class B level league. League franchises were based in New York and Pennsylvania. John H. Farrell served as president of the league from 1897 to 1917.

The Colonial League was the name of two mid-level American minor baseball leagues. The first Colonial League was a Class C level league that existed from 1914 to 1915 as a minor league for the outlaw Federal League. The second Colonial League existed from 1947 through mid-July 1950. It was graded Class B, two levels below the major leagues, and featured teams based in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey

The Wilkes-Barre Barons were a minor league baseball team that existed on and off from 1886 to 1955. They began as an unnamed team in the Pennsylvania State Association in 1886.

The Pennsylvania State League was an American minor league baseball sports league that operated from 1892 to 1895, then became the first Atlantic League. The league member teams were exclusively based in Pennsylvania.

The Eastern Association was a minor league baseball league. The first version of the league appeared in 1882, followed by similar one season leagues in 1891 and 1909 with teams in Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. The league was a Class B level league in the 1913 and 1914 seasons, with teams based in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

The Pottsville Colts were a minor league baseball team, that played in Pottsville, Pennsylvania in the late 1890s and early 1900. The team was the second professional baseball club in Pottsville, after the short-lived Pottsville Antharcites that played in the Interstate Association in 1883. The Antharcites posted a 15-50 record, which garnered them 6th place in the league standings.

The Middle States League was a minor league baseball league that operated in the Northeast United States in 1889. A total of 13 teams competed in the league, though several joined the original 8-team lineup after its April 28 start and several folded before its September 10 close. It was a racially integrated league that included two African American teams, the Cuban Giants and New York Gorhams. The Harrisburg Ponies won the league pennant.

The Baltimore Orioles of the 1890 Atlantic Association were a minor league baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The 1890 Orioles were a short–lived member of the Atlantic Association, before the franchise rejoined the American Association during the season. The team hosted home minor league games at Oriole Park.

The Washington Senators were a short–lived minor league baseball team based in Washington D.C. in 1890. The Senators were a charter member of the Atlantic Association before the team folded during the 1890 season.

The Lebanon Pretzel Eaters were a minor league baseball team based in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. In 1892, the Pretzel Eaters played a partial season as members of the Class B level Pennsylvania State League, hosting minor league home games at Penryn Park. The team folded before the end of the Pennsylvania State League season.

The Attleboro Burros were a minor league baseball team based in Attleboro, Massachusetts. In 1928, the Burros played the season as members of the Class B level New England League, reaching the league playoff Final. The Burros were preceded and succeeded by two Attleboro teams that played partial minor league seasons. The Attleboro Angels played briefly in the 1908 Atlantic Association and Attleboro played a few games in returning to the New England League in 1933. The 1933 team was a minor league affiliate of the New York Giants. Attleboro teams hosted minor league home games at the Brady Field in 1908 and Hayward Field in 1928 and 1933.

References

1 2 3 The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball. Lloyd Johnson & Miles Wolff, editors (Third ed.). Baseball America. 2007. ISBN 978-1932391176.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[encyc-1] 1 2 3 The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball. Lloyd Johnson & Miles Wolff, editors (Third ed.). Baseball America. 2007. ISBN 978-1932391176.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)

[1]