The Arizona League: Real Players. Fictional Teams

[AZTarHeel]

1906 Season Standings & Wrap-Up

Northern League
It's a runaway regular season championship for the Flagstaff Lumberjacks. The FlagJax are the only team to break over 100 wins for the season, leading the NL in runs scored (708), stolen bases (317) and pitching ERA (2.61).

Outfielder Wahoo Sam Crawford likely put his stamp on a fifth Big Stick Award, smashing 31 homers and batting .289 for the season...

The Grand Canyon River Runners also had little trouble winning the wildcard berth. This is the third year in a row that Flag and Grand Canyon have finished first and second, though last year the roles were reversed. Neither team has won a Cactus Champions Cup yet...

Team      	W	L	PCT	GB	 Pyt.Rec	Diff	 	Home	Away	XInn	1Run	M#	Streak	Last10
Flagstaff	101	61	.623	-	101-61	0	 	48-33	53-28	13-7	26-18	*	W1	3-7
Grand Canyon	91	71	.562	10.0	92-70	-1	 	42-39	49-32	11-12	29-22	-	L1	6-4
Payson  	83	79	.512	18.0	86-76	-3	 	44-37	39-42	8-10	22-32	-	L2	4-6
Jerome  	81	81	.500	20.0	78-84	3	 	41-40	40-41	10-10	23-24	-	W5	7-3
Sedona  	80	82	.494	21.0	74-88	6	 	41-40	39-42	12-10	33-22	-	W2	5-5
Cottonwood	76	86	.469	25.0	79-83	-3	 	36-45	40-41	9-4	22-30	-	L3	5-5
Lake Havasu	71	91	.438	30.0	73-89	-2	 	35-46	36-45	6-10	24-28	-	W3	5-5
Kayenta 	65	97	.401	36.0	64-98	1	 	33-48	32-49	5-11	28-31	-	L3	5-5

Southern League
Two-time Cactus Cup champion Prescott put itself in prime position to win a third Arizona League title, capturing the SL regular season crown. Things were much tighter in the South, with last year's champ, Bisbee, nipping upstart Yuma at the line for the wildcard berth...

Hats off to the Tucson Saguaros for not being terrible this season (ha!). Newcomer Ty Cobb had a solid year, batting an even .300 with 50 RBIs. Welcome to the bigs, Mr. Georgia Peach...

Team      	W	L	PCT	GB	 Pyt.Rec	Diff	 	Home	Away	XInn	1Run	M#	Streak	Last10
Prescott	92	70	.568	-	90-72	2	 	45-36	47-34	8-8	33-21	*	W2	7-3
Bisbee   	88	75	.540	4.5	84-79	4	 	42-39	46-36	18-12	28-25	-	W4	6-4
Yuma    	87	76	.534	5.5	84-79	3	 	43-39	44-37	12-10	31-27	-	L4	4-6
Tucson  	81	81	.500	11.0	73-89	8	 	35-46	46-35	14-8	35-19	-	W1	5-5
Tempe   	79	83	.488	13.0	81-81	-2	 	39-42	40-41	10-11	27-32	-	L2	5-5
Tombstone	75	87	.463	17.0	75-87	0	 	37-44	38-43	8-10	28-27	-	L1	4-6
Nogales 	74	88	.457	18.0	81-81	-7	 	33-48	41-40	5-13	21-30	-	W1	4-6
Phoenix 	73	89	.451	19.0	82-80	-9	 	33-48	40-41	8-11	12-34	-	L1	4-6

[AZTarHeel]

1906 Playoffs



Northern League Championships

Grand Canyon defeats Flagstaff, 4-1

The River Runners earn their third shot at a Cactus Champions Cup title in the six-year history of the Arizona League. Their first two attempts came up short in 1902 and 1904 (every even year, it seems, Grand Canyon makes it to the final).

The 'Runners won the first two games of the NL series, including a 16-7 stomping of the Lumberjacks in Game Two. After Flag captured Game Three, Grand Canyon cruised in Game four by an 8-1 score. They closed things out with a 6-4 decision.

Winning pitcher Frank Smith had a key hit and two RBIs in the decisive Game Five. Despite the losing cause, Flagstaff's Sam Crawford batted .556 for the series. He was 3-for-4 in Game Five, but only had one RBI for the whole series. It wasn't his fault, the 'Jacks just couldn't get guys on ahead of him.

Outfielders Jimmy Sheckard and Cy Seymour had six RBIs apiece for the River Runners...


Southern League Championships

Prescott defeats Bisbee, 4-3

While Grand Canyon is seeking its first Arizona League title, Prescott is trying to go 3-0 in the Cactus Champions Cup series. The Antelopes had to knock out the defending AZL champs to get their shot.

Bisbee got off to a hot start, crushing the 'Lopes 11-0 in the opener, in Prescott. Frank Owen pitched a three-hitter. Game Two also went to the Prospectors 8-3. This time Otto Hess did the honors and got the pitching victory.

Prescott then took the middle two games of the seres, both of which were played in Bisbee. The teams then split Games Five and Six, forcing a Game Seven. Fittingly, the decisive contest went 11 innings before the Antelopes finally snuck away with a 2-1 triumph. Both teams scored a run apiece in the second. Then, the pitching held until 1B Tim Jordan's walk-off home run (with two outs) in the bottom of the 11th...


Cactus Champions Cup

Prescott defeats Grand Canyon, 4-3

This series went back-and-forth. Grand Canyon took the opener 3-2, scoring the tying and go-ahead runs in the top of the ninth. Prescott won Game Two and Game Three, and the teams traded wins the rest of the way till the Antelopes won Game Seven 7-5. A six-run fifth inning keyed the victory, clinching Prescott's third Arizona League title in six years. The River Runners led 4-0 and 4-1 before the onslaught of Antelope runs.

A bases clearing double by 3B Germany Schaefer (he was 3-for-4 with four RBIs for the game) proved the biggest hit of the series. Schaeffer had nine RBIs and batted .351 in the playoffs. Kaiser Wilhelm (another name with German connections) was the winning pitcher for Game Seven.

Hats off to the 'Lopes -- the 1906 Arizona League Cactus Champions Cup winners!!!

Cactus Cup Champions
1901- Payson Longhorns (4-2 over Nogales)
1902- Nogales Apaches (4-1 over Grand Canyon)
1903- Prescott Antelopes (4-2 over Jerome)
1904- Prescott Antelopes (4-2 over Grand Canyon)
1905- Bisbee Prospectors (4-3 over Flagstaff)
1906- Prescott Antelopes (4-3 over Grand Canyon)

NOTES: Prescott has had GC's number twice. GC is now 0-3 in the Cactus Cup series. Prescott is 3-0 ... The Southern League has now won the last five titles...

[AZTarHeel]

1906 News & Notes

1906 All-Star Game

Northern League 2, Southern League 1

Charlie "Piano Legs" Hickman, a catcher for Payson, got the game-winning RBI in the 10th inning. Tucson's Ty Cobb had a rough first All-Star appearance, going 0-for-4 and committing two errors. Charlie Jaeger of Lake Havasu was the winning pitcher.


No-Hitters
Only one this season. Tombstone's Irv Higginbotham gave a great performance on April 25 against Yuma, walking one. Amazingly, he didn't have a single strikeout. Tombstone won 5-1, giving up a run on a couple of errors... The losing pitcher in this game was Yuma's Addie Joss, who as you'll read later, won the 1906 Top Hurler Award for the Southern League...


Injury Notebook
Jerome already has a reputation as bar-brawling, sin-filled city. That reputation was only confirmed when Jerome Copper Miners back-up catcher Tommy Raub broke his nose in a bar fight. He missed a few games, and owners from other cities just rolled their eyes...


Misc.
• Yuma's 87 wins was the most in franchise history ... The Prisoners are on the move up! Or should we say, breaking out...

• Lake Havasu, which is seeking to move to a new location as a franchise, put seven players on the trading block during the summer. The Blues made four different trades over a couple week period, eventually getting Jack Taylor, the only AZ League player to pitch a Perfect Game.

• Speaking of Taylor, his career has been far from robust. He;s been traded a few times and has had injury issues. In six seasons, he's posted a 94-95 record with six saves and a 3.51 ERA. But for one afternoon in late September 1901, everything worked to perfection for the right-hander from Ohio...

[AZTarHeel]

1906 Award Winners

Top Hurler Awards
Flagstaff right-hander Fred Beebe earned Top Hurler honors in the Northern League. He compiled an ERA of 2.50, going 27-11 in 40 starts. He fanned 131 while giving up 303 hits in 363.2 innings. He pitched 37 complete games with 3 shutouts. He was 9th in the Northern in ERA and 1st in wins...

The Yuma Prisoners boasted the Southern Top Hurler Award winner, Addie Joss. In 41 starts, Joss struck out 115 batters in 369.2 innings of work. His ERA was 2.48, his record 27-13. He was 1st in the Southern in ERA and 1st in wins...

Big Stick Awards
The move to rename the Big Stick Award after Sam Crawford picked up more steam. The Flagstaff outfielder won the honor for the fifth time in the six-year history of the AZL. Crawford hit 31 bombs this year (league record) while batting .289. He added 24 doubles, along with 106 runs scored. He was 7th in the Northern in batting, 1st in homeruns and 1st in RBI.

The 1906 Southern Big Stick Award winner was Tombstone's rightfielder Buck Freeman. Freeman posted a .312 OBP. While batting .268, 152 for 568, he drove in 87 runs. He was 1st in the Southern in RBIs and 1st in homers...

Rookie of the Year Awards
Flagstaff won another honor when Fred Beebe was named the Northern's best newcomer. The Lumberjacks pitcher, 25, compiled an ERA of 2.50, going 27-11 in 40 starts. He fanned 131 while giving up 303 hits in 363.2 innings. He pitched 3 shutouts and 37 complete games. He was 9th in the Northern in ERA and 1st in wins...

The Southern Rookie of the Year winner was announced today, with Tombstone's pitcher Irv Higginbotham earning the trophy for putting up the best numbers. Opposing players hit just .229 against Irv this season. While posting an ERA of 2.84 he went 22-17 in 40 starts, fanning 91 and walking 73 hitters. He had 35 complete games, 4 shutouts and one no-hitter (nice job for a rook). He was 10th in the Southern in ERA and 5th in wins!


Field General Awards

Northern League
Pitcher: Doc White (LAK)
Catcher: Lew Drill (LAK)
First Base: Candy Lachance (PAY)
Second Base: Charlie Malay (FLG)
Third Base: Fred Hartman (LAK)
Shortstop: Bobby Wallace (PAY)
Leftfield: Fred Odwell (KAY)
Centerfield: Roy Thomas (LAK)
Rightfield: Cy Seymour (GCA)

Southern League
Pitcher: Carl Druhot (BIS)
Catcher: Harry Bemis (BIS)
First Base: John Ganzel (TOM)
Second Base: Sam Mertes (NOG)
Third Base: Bert Conn (TOM)
Shortstop: Freddy Parent (YUM)
Leftfield: Charlie Jones (TUC)
Centerfield: George Browne (TEM)
Rightfield: Fielder Jones (TEM)

[AZTarHeel]

Breaking News!!!

Lake Havasu Blues officials confirmed today that the franchise will move. The team will play out the 1907 season in Havasu and then begin '08 in its new home.

The location will be announced at the 1906 Winter Meetings. Sources say the team has been looking north of Phoenix and west of Phoenix.

"We're excited about moving closer to the Valley, where we'll have a chance to draw more fans and build more interest," the franchise said in a release.

Commissioner Phinieus "Doc" Victory had no immediate comment, only to say that a league restructuring was possible, with one team possibly moving from the Southern League to the Northern, and the Blues franchise joining the Southern... "We'll hash it out at the Winter Meetings," Victory said.

[Robbo1222]

This is great stuff mate. As a Baseball fan living in the UK and having never visited USA the Geography of the league is unfamiliar.

However have been a D-Backs fan since 2001 when I first got into Baseball and have been following this league with interest. Currently rooting for the (Ever improving)!!! Tucson..............

Cheers

Martin

[AZTarHeel]

Originally Posted by Robbo1222

This is great stuff mate. As a Baseball fan living in the UK and having never visited USA the Geography of the league is unfamiliar.

However have been a D-Backs fan since 2001 when I first got into Baseball and have been following this league with interest. Currently rooting for the (Ever improving)!!! Tucson..............

Cheers

Martin

Thanks for the comments, Martin ... glad you are enjoying it ... I chose a lot of small towns in AZ, which is why you may not recognize them. Jerome, for example, was a happening place when the mines were working, but only about 400-500 people live there now. It's up on a mountainside, and looks today like the whole town is ready to slide down into the valley (the jail actually did)...

Anyways, I have simmed ahead a bit, and things are looking up for Tucson

[AZTarHeel]

1906 Leaderboard

Some stats for those who are interested in the top guys in the league:

TOP 5 in BATTING AVG :
.327 George Stone(LAK,NL)
.314 Jim Jackson(CTW,NL)
.314 Ginger Beaumont(PAY,NL)
.309 Fred Clarke(CTW,NL)
.304 Nap Lajoie(JER,NL) -- he was the first pick of the AZL in '01

TOP 5 in HOMERUNS :
31 Sam Crawford(FLG,NL)
24 Buck Freeman(TOM)
20 Tim Jordan( PRE)
15 Irv Waldron(TEM)
14 Socks Seybold(JER)

TOP 5 in RBI :
108 Sam Crawford(FLG,NL)
87 Buck Freeman(TOM)
83 Ginger Beaumont(PAY,NL)
82 Harry Bay(FLG)
81 Irv Waldron(TEM)

TOP 5 in ERA :
2.09 Doc White(BIS LAK)
2.19 Noodles Hahn(PAY,NL)
2.36 Red Ames(SED)
2.38 Bob Rhoads(SED)
2.45 Orval Overall(GCA,NL)

TOP 5 in WINS :
27 Tom Fisher(JER,NL)
27 Fred Beebe( FLG,NL)
27 Addie Joss(YUM,SL)
25 Barney Wolfe(FLG TUC,SL)
24 Kaiser Wilhelm(PRE)

TOP 5 in SAVES :
5 Weldon Henley(SED)
5 Chick Fraser(SED PRE LAK)
5 Bill Reidy(CTW)
4 Ralph Caldwell(PAY)
4 Charlie Jaeger(LAK,NL)

A Few Other Notables
• Bisbee DH John Titus hit for the cycle in a playoff game against Prescott. His 1st hit, a solo homerun off Jake Thielman in the 1st inning, cleared the fence in left field. A single in the 3rd off Jake Thielman accounted for his 2nd hit. Number 3 in the 6th inning accounted for a double. Hit number 4 followed in the 8th inning, a triple. Titus became the 9th player in league history collect at least a single, double, triple and a homerun in a single game. Frank Chance cycled in July 1906

• Nogales 2B Jon Hummel and Tempe P Hi West are considered the top prospects in the AZL going into 1907 ... Neither have reached the Bigs yet...

• Two players had five hits in a game this season, Payson's Jimmy Burke and Nogales' Doc Nance...

And now, the 1906 Winter Meetings!

[AZTarHeel]

Sources: Havasu franchise moving just north of Phoenix

Arizona Republic

Lake Havasu's beleaguered Arizona League Baseball franchise will move to the Carefree community north of Phoenix, several sources have confirmed.

The team will retain its nickname, thus becoming the Carefree Blues beginning with the 1908 season. Carefree officials have confirmed the relocation decision, saying construction of a stadium is already underway.

The impending move of the Blues is expected to be the major topic of the upcoming AZL Winter Meetings. Sources have indicated that the Carefree Blues would shift into the Southern League, thus forcing a Southern team to be switched to the Northern League.

The most obvious choice would be Prescott moving North. But owners from Flagstaff and Grand Canyon have publicly said they'll fight such a realignment. Flag and Grand Canyon have been the NL's top teams the past three seasons.

"The Winter Meetings could be very interesting this year," one team owner said on condition of anonymity. "I wouldn't be surprised to see Flagstaff and Grand Canyon and maybe Sedona threaten to pull out of the league all together if the Prescott realignment is approved. They don't want another powerhouse up North. And who can blame them?"

Stay tuned for more...

[AZTarHeel]

The 1906 Winter Meetings

Phinieus "Doc" Victory knew that the Winter Meetings of '06 could be his defining moment as commissioner of the Arizona League. It's one thing to start a baseball league. It's another to keep it running through adverse times.

So for the weeks leading up to the Winter Meetings, Victory traveled all over his beloved territory to make sure everything would go smoothly with Lake Havasu's relocation and Prescott's proposed move to the Northern League. Owners barked, of course, especially those in Flagstaff, Grand Canyon and Cottonwood. They kept talking about the realignment "disturbing the balance of power" between North and South.

"Hogwash" was typically Victory's reply. He repeatedly told them how the moves would help everyone involved. Lake Havasu's ownership group would finally be happy, since they got their move into the Valley of the Sun. Prescott folks would be happy, since they wouldn't be traveling nearly as far for games. Other Southern League franchises would be happy to see Prescott go, for they had travel concerns as well (and win-loss concerns). The Northern League would likely have an even greater following since a more natural rival - and a great franchise - was joining the mix (Havasu's pretty far away from places like Jerome, Cottonwood, Sedona, etc.).

There was tentative peace when the Meetings started, but you never know... Flagstaff officials still maintained that they might flee the league to join the fledgling Nevada-Utah Baseball Association that was entering its third year. "They'd love to have us in that league," Flag's owners kept saying. "Imagine the records Sam Crawford could put up over there."

Victory just let them rant and rave... He knew that his league was far superior and that the folks in Las Vegas had only created the Nevada-Utah Baseball Association to try and get in on some of his action. So far, without much success or fan following (it was a Single A League if that)... Plus, Victory had befriended Crawford and knew he'd quit baseball before he'd leave the AZ League for a bush league like the NUBA...

Stay tuned...

[AZTarHeel]

1906 Winter Meetings, cont.

Commissioner Victory wanted to get the meetings off to a positive start. So he rearranged the order of business, and on the first day initiated a Ring of Honor ceremony for two artists who had contributed to the Arizona League's marketing campaign...

"Here is our new official logo," Victory announced with pride. He had designed this one himself.



"And I would like to formally induct PAR65 and JaxMagicMan into the Arizona League Ring of Honor for doing such fine work in designing our team logos." (for real, PAR and JaxMan, thanks for the cool logos...)

"Here are the Northern League team logos:





"And here are the Southern League logos:"




The owners all beamed with pride over their particular team "looks". Yuma officials said they were renaming their stadium "PAR65 Park" in honor of their graphic artist...

Victory just wondered how long it would take for someone to notice that he had put Prescott in with the Northern teams and the Blues in with the Southern teams...

[Sir Lurksalot]

Those logos are terrific! Nice job, gentlemen!!

[AZTarHeel]

1906 Winter Meetings Conclude

Whew, it was touch-and-go at times, but Commissioner Doc Victory guided league owners through the tensest Winter Meetings yet. After it was all over with, the Lake Havasu franchise move to Carefree was approved -- as was the shift of the Prescott Antelopes franchise into the Northern League, with Carefree going into the Southern.

Victory was prepared to call the bluff of Flagstaff, Grand Canyon and Cottonwood if they threatened to pull out of the Arizona League. But that never came about, especially when All-Star OF Sam Crawford came out with a statement saying he would quit baseball if Flagstaff dropped out of the AZL.

Then there was Jerome's strong statement: "Bring on Prescott. Bring on anybody. We'll take 'em on, and then beat 'em up in the bar fight after the game..."

So, for 1907 the league structure will remain the same. Beginning in 1908, the Arizona League will look like this:

NORTHERN LEAGUE
Cottonwood Monsoon
Flagstaff Lumberjacks
Grand Canyon River Runners
Jerome Copper Miners
Kayenta Turquoise Warriors
Payson Longhorns
Prescott Antelopes
Sedona Scorpions

SOUTHERN LEAGUE
Bisbee Prospectors
Carefree Blues
Nogales Apaches
Phoenix Dust Devils
Tempe Sun Devils
Tombstone Epitaphs
Tucson Saguaros
Yuma Prisoners


Retirements
The following players announced their retirement from the Arizona League at the Winter Meetings. Guys were voted Players of Distinction are listed in bold:

Jake Beckley retires ...
Monte Cross retires ...
Tommy Dowd retires ...
Hugh Duffy retires ...
Chauncey Fisher retires ...
Kid Gleason retires ...
Billy Hamilton retires ...
Bobby Lowe retires ...
Kid Nichols retires ...
JER: Steve Brodie retires ...
JER: Art Nichols retires ...
LAK: Fred Hartman retires ...
SED: Ted Breitenstein retires ...
KAY: Elmer Smith retires ...
TUC: Frank Scheibeck retires ...
TUC: Jack O'neill retires ...
TEM: Kid Carsey retires ...
NOG: Algie Mcbride retires ...
NOG: Mike Kahoe retires ...
TOM: Frank Genins retires ...
TOM: Russ Hall retires ...

Sliding Billy Hamilton was a career .287 hitter, a one-time winner of the Big Stick Award and leader of the SL in batting average during the 1902 season (.351) ... He batted .339 in the post-season, which included two Cactus Champions Cups with Prescott...

Next up: The 1907 Amateur Draft!!

[AZTarHeel]

1907 Amateur Draft

The Kayenta Turquiose Warriors had the first pick and went with P Nap Rucker... Pitchers, obviously, were at a premium...

Round 1:
Kayenta pick: P Nap Rucker
Lake Havasu pick: P Walter Johnson
Phoenix pick: P Art Fromme
Nogales pick: P Sam Frock
Tombstone pick: P Heinie Berger
Cottonwood pick: P Roy Hitt
Tempe pick: P Tex Pruiett
Sedona pick: P Ed Karger
Tucson pick: P Glenn Liebhardt
Jerome pick: P Howie Camnitz
Payson pick: P Bobby Keefe
Yuma pick: P Bugs Raymond
Bisbee pick: P Elmer Steele
Grand Canyon pick: P Nick Maddox
Prescott pick: P Lew Brockett
Flagstaff pick: P Slow joe Doyle

Round 2 :
Kayenta pick: P Lew Moren
Lake Havasu pick: P Henry Gehring
Phoenix pick: P Rube Vickers
Nogales pick: P Fred Smith
Tombstone pick: P Bob Spade
Cottonwood pick: P Oscar Graham
Tempe pick: LF Harl Maggert
Sedona pick: 2B Otto Knabe
Tucson pick: 3B Eddie Grant
Jerome pick: CF Joe Birmingham
Payson pick: 3B Bobby Byrne
Yuma pick: CF Rube Oldring
Bisbee pick: 1B Ed Konetchy
Grand Canyon pick: SS Heinie Wagner
Prescott pick: LF George Whiteman
Flagstaff pick: P Tex Neuer

Round 3 :
Kayenta pick: CF Fred Osborn
Lake Havasu pick: 3B Mike Mowrey
Phoenix pick: P George Bell
Nogales pick: C Larry Mclean
Tombstone pick: P Jake Boultes
Cottonwood pick: 2B Red Downs
Tempe pick: RF Bill Hinchman
Sedona pick: C Ira Thomas
Tucson pick: C Tex Erwin
Jerome pick: RF Goat Anderson
Payson pick: SS Tony Smith
Yuma pick: CF John Kane
Bisbee pick: C Jim Stephens
Grand Canyon pick: P Bill Otey
Prescott pick: 1B Pete Lister
Flagstaff pick: RF Mike Mitchell

Round 4 :
Kayenta pick: 1B Bob Unglaub
Lake Havasu pick: 2B Nig Perrine
Phoenix pick: P Rube Dessau
Nogales pick: P Stoney Mcglynn
Tombstone pick: CF Jack Burnett
Cottonwood pick: C Bruno Block
Tempe pick: 1B Harry Swacina
Sedona pick: CF Mike Welday
Tucson pick: P Herm Malloy
Jerome pick: C Walter Blair
Payson pick: CF Art Kruger
Yuma pick: P Roy Castleton
Bisbee pick: LF Newt Randall
Grand Canyon pick: 1B Chick Autry
Prescott pick: LF Joe Delahanty
Flagstaff pick: P Elijah Jones

Round 5 :
Kayenta pick: RF John Kelly

[AZTarHeel]

1907 Season Wrap-up

Northern League

The Flagstaff Lumberjacks were back as one of the top teams in the NL, earning a playoff berth for the fourth straight year. But will this be the season the 'Jacks get over the hump and win the whole thing? The folks in the high country are itching for a title...

Grand Canyon was finally pushed out of the playoff picture by none other than the Sedona Scorpions. The Scorps had finished last twice and no better than third in the previous six seasons of the Arizona League. Hats off to the team from Red Rock Country for tying for a regular season championship. Pitchers Ed Karger (24-8, 1.76 ERA) and Red Ames (22 wins) led the way for Sedona this season. Catcher Fred Jacklitsch hit .291 with an OPS of .700.

Lake Havasu nearly wrote a neat tale, getting a playoff berth in their final season in Havasu and as an NL member. But the Blues stumbled down the stretch and fell one game short... Sigh. The team left their soon-to-be former hometown feeling the Blues ... See you in Carefree in '08...

Team         	W	L	PCT	GB	 Pyt.Rec	Diff	 	Home	Away	XInn	1Run	M#	Streak	Last10
Sedona   	89	73	.549	-	86-76	3	 	41-40	48-33	10-5	29-32	*	L1	7-3
Flagstaff	89	74	.546	.5	89-74	0	 	44-37	45-37	5-6	26-25	-	W1	4-6
Lake Havasu	88	75	.540	1.5	88-75	0	 	48-34	40-41	6-7	29-30	-	L3	6-4
Cottonwood	82	80	.506	7.0	75-87	7	 	42-39	40-41	6-2	33-24	-	W2	5-5
Grand Canyon	77	85	.475	12.0	84-78	-7	 	37-44	40-41	9-15	24-28	-	W1	4-6
Jerome    	77	85	.475	12.0	78-84	-1	 	38-43	39-42	6-10	26-31	-	W2	5-5
Payson    	77	85	.475	12.0	67-95	10	 	41-40	36-45	11-6	33-20	-	W1	4-6
Kayenta  	70	92	.432	19.0	80-82	-10	 	31-50	39-42	7-9	26-36	-	L2	4-6

Southern League

What ever happened to Prescott? The proud and mighty Antelopes basically took this season off, or so it seems, before moving to the Northern League. The 'Lopes were dead last in the Southern League. Other SL owners had a field day with that...

Hats off to the Tombstone Epitaphs and Tempe Sun Devils for taking the SL's two playoff berths -- two newcomers at the top. The Epis, which had finished fifth, sixth or seventh in five of the previous six years, had the best record in baseball this season. The Sun Devils had finished between fourth and sixth in their first six years in the AZL. Sam Leever had 28 pitching wins for Tempe ... Pretty tough division this year, with four teams earning 81 or more victories... Yuma fans -- almost! Tucson fans -- maybe next year...

Team         	W	L	PCT	GB	 Pyt.Rec	Diff	 	Home	Away	XInn	1Run	M#	Streak	Last10
Tombstone	91	71	.562	-	88-74	3	 	47-34	44-37	10-10	28-26	*	L1	4-6
Tempe    	88	74	.543	3.0	83-79	5	 	47-34	41-40	12-8	38-23	-	L2	8-2
Yuma      	87	75	.537	4.0	94-68	-7	 	47-34	40-41	11-11	27-27	-	L1	6-4
Bisbee     	81	81	.500	10.0	77-85	4	 	50-31	31-50	14-10	33-31	-	W3	7-3
Nogales   	79	83	.488	12.0	83-79	-4	 	47-34	32-49	11-10	19-34	-	W1	2-8
Phoenix   	78	84	.481	13.0	80-82	-2	 	42-39	36-45	8-15	27-28	-	W1	5-5
Tucson    	73	89	.451	18.0	74-88	-1	 	37-44	36-45	7-11	23-24	-	L1	4-6
Prescott	71	91	.438	20.0	70-92	1	 	39-42	32-49	10-8	26-28	-	W1	4-6

No matter what happens in the post-season, we'll have a brand new champion!!

[Jestor]

Count me as a Tucson fan and nice to see a Victory in charge

Just out of curiosity, do you have Sierra Vista as a minor league team too?

[AZTarHeel]

Originally Posted by Jestor

Count me as a Tucson fan and nice to see a Victory in charge

Just out of curiosity, do you have Sierra Vista as a minor league team too?

I haven't really named my minor league teams -- maybe I should do that ... I'll keep Sierra Vista in mind if the AZL ever expands (which if I keep playing long enough, it will) ...

Better times ahead for Tucson...

[AZTarHeel]

1907 Playoffs

Northern League Championship



Flagstaff defeated Sedona, 4-2
The Scorpions played two great games, twice beating the Lumberjacks 6-0 with three-hit performances by pitchers Red Ames and Ed Karger. But that was it for Sedona as the boys from Red Rock Country lost out on their first real chance at the Cactus Champions Cup.

Flagstaff sealed their berth into the AZL championship series with a 4-2 win in Game Six. The Lumberjacks scored one in the eighth and one in the ninth to put things away. Right fielder Sam Crawford led Flag with a .308 average during the series, with a home run. Leadoff man Roger Bresnahan batted .292. Sedona leftfielder Spike Shannon had a great series (.375 with seven RBIs) but the Scorpions still fell short...


Southern League Championship



Tombstone defeated Tempe, 4-1
This series was a lot closer than it looks at first glance. The Epitaphs needed 14 innings to squeak by the opening game, a 5-4 triumph. The Sun Devils fell despite stroking 18 hits. Buck Freeman had the winning hit in the 14th for Tombstone.

The Epis also won Game Two by a run (6-5), Game Four by two runs in the 11th inning (7-5) and Game Five by a run (3-2). Tempe's lone win was an impressive 6-0 shutout in Game Two ... The series clinching RBI came from Tombstone's Joe Tinker with two outs in the seventh inning of Game Five...

The series MVP had to be 35-year-old Tombstone LF Kip Selbach, who batted .400 in the five games with three home runs and five RBIs.


Cactus Champions Cup



Flagstaff defeated Tombstone, 4-3
Finally, the Lumberjacks and their star-studded right fielder Sam Crawford got themselves a championship.

Fittingly, Game Seven was a barn-burner, before Flag pulled it out 3-2 in the bottom of 11th. Fans on hand called it one of the most exciting games in the Arizona League's short history. Pitcher Fred Beebe was the player of the game, pitching all 11 innings and surrendering just seven hits. Lumberjack 2B Charlie Malay had the game-winning, series clinching RBI in the bottom of the 11th, his sixth RBI of the playoffs.

Sam Crawford went 0-for-5 in Game Seven but wore a giant smile nonetheless. "It's all about the team, and this team is the best in the world," he said afterward.

Commissioner Doc Victory winked at Flagstaff's owners after the celebration and trophy presentations. "Glad you stayed in the Arizona League?" he asked with a sly smile...

[AZTarHeel]

1907 News & Notes

1907 All-Star Game

Northern League 3, Southern League 1
The NL standouts outhit the SL boys 11-3 ... Flagstaff left-fielder Harry "Deer Foot" Bay had four hits and two RBIs, while Cottonwood 1B Harry Davis belted a solo home run ... Cottonwood's "Big Ed" Walsh earned the pitching victory.

The NL lineup was full of studs from that era -- OF Sam Crawford, 2B Nap Lajoie, OF Cy Seymour, SS Honus Wagner, 1B Frank Chance... Tucson's Ty Cobb went 0-for-4 on the Southern League side...


No-Hitters

Three new players joined the prestigious list. Here is the complete list of players to have thrown no-hitters. Only one perfect game still, and that was in 1901:

5/5/1901, Jack Chesbro (GCA), 7 K, 2 BB
9/28/1901, Jack Taylor (NOG), 2 K, 0 BB (PERFECT GAME!)
6/11/1902, Roscoe Miller (FLA), 6 K, 1 BB
7/26/1902, Bob Rhoads (SED), 6 K, 5 BB
6/5/1904, Noodles Hahn (PAY), 2 K, 1 BB
7/5/1904, Frank Smith (GCA), 3 K, 0 BB
8/15/1905, Mike O'neill (PRE), 3 K, 1 BB
8/18/1905, Walter Clarkson (YUM), 1 K, 2 BB
8/19/1905, Red Ames (SED), 3 K, 2 BB
4/25/1906, Irv Higginbotham (TOM), 0 K, 1 BB
4/24/1907, Cowboy Jones (KAY), 4 K, 0 BB
4/29/1907, Nick Altrock (TOM), 7 K, 3 BB
6/29/1907, Ed Doheny (NOG), 4 K, 3 BB

Injury Notebook

• Jerome pitcher Tom "Red" Fisher, 26, saw his baseball career come to an end in April. He ripped a biceps muscle. "That's it for me," he said, sobbing after the doctor's reports. This was a big blow to Jerome and to the career of the promising young right-hander, who had posted a 27-14 record the year before.

• Tombstone also lost a great centerfielder late in the season. Emmet "Snags" Heidrick, 31, tore up his rib cage muscle while making a catch in the playoffs, ending his career. He was a five-time all-star for Tombstone and a career .291 hitter. He appeared in 999 games for the Epitaphs. "What I wouldn't do to play game No. 1000," Heidrick said. "But that appears unlikely from what the docs have told me." RIP ...


Misc.

• Nogales 2B Jon Hummel, 24 was again listed as the top non-pitching prospect in the AZL. He's No. 8 overall (behind seven pitchers). Hummel has finally reached the bigs, batting .223 with two homers and 17 RBIs for the Apaches...

• Tombstone's Del Mason is considered the top pitching prospect in the AZL. He's been in AAA for four years just itching to get a shot at the big time. He's only appeared in seven games for the Big Club, posting a 1-1 record and 6+ ERA

• Payson pitcher Ed Ruelbach, 24, gets this year's Iron Man Pitcher award for throwing 16.2 innings in a game against Jerome on July 10. He only surrendered one run and eight hits (with seven strikeouts). He tossed 184 pitches before finally coming out to a great round of applause ... In a cruel twist of fate, the contest went 18 innings and teammate Jack Powell, who threw just seven pitches in relief, got the win. Big Ed, as they call him in Payson, started 40 games and finished 38 of them... Nice... Today's pitchers are wimps...

[AZTarHeel]

1907 Award Winners

Top Hurlers

Lake Havasu will have one last thing to hang its hat on before the franchise moves to Carefree. Pitcher Doc White was named the Northern League's Toop Hurler for 1907. This season White compiled an ERA of 2.17, going 28-13 in 41 starts. He fanned 111 while giving up 278 hits in 372.2 innings. Doc pitched 6 shutouts and had 40 complete games. He was 4th in the Northern in ERA and 1st in wins ...

Yuma right-hander Addie Joss captured the Southern Top Hurler Award this season. He went 29-11 this season, with an ERA of 1.87. In 365 innings he was able to strike out 99 batters. He also had 40 complete games, with 9 being shutouts. He was 2nd in the Southern in ERA and 1st in wins ... This is Joss' second time winning the Top Hurler Award. There could be many more on the way for the 27-year-old.


Big Stick Awards

It was another day to remember for Flagstaff's Sam Crawford, who won the Northern Big Stick Award for the sixth time in seven years. It put the finishing touches on what has been another tremendous season for the slugger. Crawford had a robust .329 average, with 54 extra base hits along with 264 total bases, resulting in a .557 slugging percentage. He was 1st in the Northern in batting, 2nd in homeruns and 6th in RBI,

The Big Stick Award in the Southern was handed to Yuma's rightfielder Tom McCreery. Mccreery posted a .317 OBP. While batting .272, he drove in 86 runs. He was 10th in the Southern in batting, 4th in homeruns and 2nd in RBI ... (A bit of an upset "Mugsy" McGraw from Nogales and Ty Cobb of Tucson seemed to have some better numbers. Sportswriters!


Rookie of the Year

The 1907 Northern Rookie of the Year winner is from Sedona this season. Ed Karger put together impressive numbers en route to winning the first major award of his career. The 24-year-old pitcher posted a stellar record of 24-8 this season, with an ERA of 1.79. In 296.1 Innings he was able to strike out 86 batters. He had 25 complete games and 4 shutouts. He was 2nd in the Northern in ERA and 4th in wins.

Another pitcher, Heinie Berger, was named the Southern Rookie of the Year winner. The Tombstone hurler put up pretty good numbers for a rookie. In 41 starts this year Heinie struck out 106 batters in 383.2 innings of work. His ERA was 2.25, his record 24-15. Heinie pitched 5 shutouts and 39 complete games. He was 5th in the Southern in ERA and 4th in wins ...

A nice start for both pitchers...


Field General Awards

Northern League Winners
Pitcher: Doc White (LAK)
Catcher: Boileryard Clarke (CTW) - great name!
First Base: Candy Lachance (PAY) - also great name!
Second Base: Nap Lajoie (JER) - the very first pick in the first AZL draft
Third Base: Bill Coughlin (JER)
Shortstop: Bobby Wallace (PAY)
Leftfield: Fred Odwell (KAY)
Centerfield: Roy Thomas (LAK)
Rightfield: Johnny Bates (CTW)

Southern League Winners
Pitcher: Frank Owen (TUC)
Catcher: Nig Clarke (TOM)
First Base: Tim Jordan (PRE)
Second Base: Jimmy Williams (PHX)
Third Base: Sammy Strang (BIS)
Shortstop: Joe Tinker (TOM)
Leftfield: Sherry Magee (NOG)
Centerfield: Ty Cobb (TUC) - good job, Mr. Cobb...
Rightfield: Fred Ketchum (TUC)