The Golden State Baseball League

[cochrane]

Jake's Vision: The Beginning of the Golden State Baseball League

One of the luckier people in 1986 was a man named Jacob Lewis "Jake" Westphalen. A retired Air Force colonel, his lifelong passion was baseball, having ignited it when his older brother took him to see the San Francisco Seals in the old Pacific Coast League as a child. He watched brothers Joe and Dominic DiMaggio swing the bat before Joe's contract was purchased by the New York Yankees and he entered into baseball history. His distinguished military career included serving in the Korean conflict and the Vietnam War before being retired at the mandatory age of 65 in 1984.

To pass the time during his retirement, Jake would venture to university ballparks and watch the collegiate players play through their season. Following one game, he noticed a group of two teams waiting for the San Jose State Spartans to finish and got into a lengthy conversation with the manager of the South Side Sharks, a man named Henry Holbeck. Holbeck and Westphalen became fast friends and often discussed the lack of a professional-amateur league in the bay area that lasted beyond a single season. They both wished they had the financial backing to build such a league and as fortune would have it, Jake won the September 17th drawing of the California State Lottery in 1986. He was worth nearly 150 million dollars.

Upon receipt of his first annuity, Jake and Henry began scouting cities for the possibility of opening a four-team pro-am league. Chico jumped on board almost immediately, having been devoid of a baseball team in quite some time. They would eventually be named for the tradition held every year by the university, known as 'Pioneer Days.' Sacramento's city council showed interest, but the city had no desire to own the team outright, instead opting to provide a ballpark for games. San Jose initially wanted no part in it; the city was strapped for cash and the folding of the San Jose Bees (the former Royals affiliate) proved it. Stadium upgrades were nowhere within sight of the city's priorities, and a fly-by-night league could not help to resolve it. Henry's impassioned speech before the city council allowed them use of Municipal Stadium, if Jake would donate funds to renovate it to hold a capacity of ten thousand people. The agreement was made and in honor of Jake's service in the Air Force, the San Jose team would be called the Bombers.

The search for the fourth city was exhausting for the elder gentlemen. They had traveled to Eureka, Santa Rosa, Vallejo, Salinas, Stockton, Modesto, Bakersfield, Riverside, Long Beach, Visalia, Santa Barbara, and Santa Cruz. None of them were remotely interested in participating or allowing use of city facilities without some sort of guarantee of financial viability over time. When they arrived at Fresno, they were greeted with open arms. The recent demise of the Fresno Giants left a large hole in the baseball community and the possibility of a team without the interference of Major League Baseball intrigued the city to purchase the franchise and promise a new ballpark to be constructed. The team's name was selected in a contest run by the Fresno Bee: the Suns.

With four cities involved and a fifty-four game schedule to determine, Jake and Henry returned to San Jose to set up the league office and began business as baseball men. The Golden State Baseball League was open for business.

[cochrane]

Part Two: Finding Owners

With the office set up and the feelers out to the collegiate, scholastic, and amateur leagues within the state, the next step for Jake and Henry was to find owners for the four teams that would get the ball rolling.

Finding an owner for Sacramento was easy; the city decided to put the idea as a city measure and the resolution passed with a majority vote. Even the local supermarket magnate offered to put up funds for building a ballpark, to which he would have the naming rights, of course. Chico's owners were a pair of lawyer from Los Angeles, who had no interest in owning teams in either Fresno or San Jose. In the interests of looking after their investment, they offered their legal services as part of the ownership deal. And yet, the San Jose franchise seemed to have no takers. Jake and Henry decided that the league should take custodianship of the team until they could sell it to another group.

While the search for owners went on, the media began paying some attention to them. SION and ESPN, as well as local news outlets approached the pair with tentative anticipation. The young ESPN tried to make a feature out of it, but it got cut to a thirty-second bite just before the end of the baseball segment on Sportscenter. Jake was not disappointed, for the idea was to invigorate the state, not the nation. The result of the national coverage, however, did draw the attention of Japanese athletes, who had been looking for a way to expose their talents to the United States above and beyond the Nippon Professional Baseball leagues.

The interest spawned a trip to Japan by Jake and Henry, who met with top coaches and players expressing interest in playing within the new Golden State Baseball League. One of whom was a very young high school pitcher named Toshiki Hirayama who was being scouted by the Yomiuri Giants, but had his sights set on the San Francisco Giants. With the prospect of playing for a team in California professionally looming before the young man, he opted to sign a contract with the San Jose Bombers right away. The league had its first official player, and the season was over a year away from starting.

On the homefront, people wanting to buy season tickets continued to ring the tiny office until they set up a special hotline for that kind of information. For the time being, they placed an old answering machine on the line and took down names and addresses and assured everyone that they would contact them as soon as tickets became available. To reinforce the power of the new league, rennovations on the dormant Municipal Stadium were nearly finished by summer's end; the previous 5,000 seat capacity was to be increased in phases of two seasons. Five thousand to nine thousand, then nine thousand to twelve thousand. The same deals were being struck within Fresno and Chico. Chico's Nettleton Field had a meager two thousand seats, but the initial investment by the Pioneers' front office increased that capacity to eighty five hundred.

The first owners' meeting of the league happened shortly after fall began. Rules and guidelines were quickly determined through three short days:

• Spring Training would begin in May, while the season began in June.
• The 1st and 2nd place teams would play a five-game championship series.
• 54 games until the league reached 10 teams.
• No DH.
• 50-man active rosters to start, 20-man reserve roster.
• No minors for at least ten seasons.
• No salary caps, but all teams agreed to share revenues over two and a half million dollars of their available cash at the end of each season. This rule would expire after the tenth season.
• Visiting teams would take 20% of the gate revenue.
• Player salaries would be kept under $500,000 for the first five seasons.

The lawyers from Los Angeles drew everything up and the GSBL had their charter. By unanimous consent, Jake was nominated and elected as the first Commissioner of the league.

NEXT: Part Three: The First Season

[cochrane]

Part Three: The First Season

Marketing was a cinch in San Jose. The four thousand seats set aside for season ticket holders sold out in three days, and already the Bombers were guaranteed a forty-five percent sale for all of its twenty-seven home games. Chico opened every one of its seats up for season tickets and sold half, while Fresno and Sacramento had to turn people away after they reached their maximums. Sacramento even went so far as to place people on a waiting list by lottery to ensure fairness in the event a seat opened up.

The graphic design department drew up logos for the four teams, and designed uniforms and cap logos as well.




All four teams approved of the design, for the time being. Fresno and Sacramento both commented that they would adopt a redesign later in their tenure within the league... though such changes were to be approved by the commissioner prior to being adopted.

The last part of the preseason included the inaugural draft. As promised to some of the Japanese players, they were drafted by the teams they showed interest in playing for and with salaries promised them in their individual negotiations. Hirayama, the young pitcher from Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, was handed his new Bombers' jersey with the number 99 on the back, just as he requested. He said that he wanted that number because that was the bare minimum of batters he was looking to strike out each season. Jake told him, "It's too bad we don't have any uniforms with three digits on the back."

Jake, however, was appreciating the new GSBL logo that was designed by the same person. The logo was adapated into a large patch that each player would wear upon the arm of their uniforms:



Spring Training began in San Jose. The first part of the training schedule had two weeks of open tryouts for all would-be players. Professionals and amateurs alike were put through their paces by the teams new coaching staffs and managers. Even players from across the country made it to try out for a spot on the large active roster. Guys with beer bellies and guys with no musclature at all showed up, hoping to impress the staff into letting them play ball for them for the season. With a guaranteed payment of twenty-five hundred dollars (league minimum) for just two months of games, the idea of being a pro baseball player was a dream come true for many.

Five thousand people showed that first week, all playing hard to win one of two hundred and eighty roster spots. Half of them were cut the third day, and it broke Jake's heart to see so many people have their dreams dashed. A majority of those players cut had raw and unfinished talent. He hoped the owners would reconsider the idea of a minor league system, soon.

All four teams made use of the San Jose State University sports complex, including the expanded Municipal Stadium. Two weeks of exhibition games took place, one during the day, and the other at night. To promote the league, people were admitted for free during those two weeks, so they could get a look at the players and start getting a sense of the hometown pride. San Jose held a large Japanese population, and when the Japanese players like Hirayama played, they would bring out their trumpets and drums and chant like they were watching a Japanese game. Jake liked the atmosphere so much, he allowed fans to bring in their instruments to play at games.

NEXT: The First Season II: Regular Season Begins

[AZTarHeel]

Cool graphics ... I'm a fan "state" dynasties as well... Good luck with this one...

AZ

[cochrane]

Awesome. Thanks.

-- ZC

[cochrane]

The First Season II: Regular Season Begins

The first game of the regular season got started amidst much pomp and circumstance as ten grand would allow. Jake had picked out his seat in the press box, but the number of local press that used their credentials to get in was so large that they had to move those who couldn't fit to the section of seats to the sides of the dugouts that had been delegated to VIPs. The problem was, much to Jake's dismay, many of the VIPs he had invited did not show for the game.

Beyond Henry and the hard-working and underpaid staff who had spent a year and half of their lives dedicate to getting to this point, the VIP sections had been vacant. So, the press moved in and instead of having two bald patches of box seats, the infield boxes were full once more as Sacramento left-fielder Garry Aguilera stepped in to face down the San Jose ace pitcher, Toshiki Hirayama. While Aguilera had the honor of being the first batter in Golden State history, he also had the honor of being the first single. After three pitches, on a 2-1 count, he got himself a base hit with a groundball up the middle.

Not deterred by the baserunner, Jake watched as Hirayama beared down and stuck out Major League bench player Tom Simmons. After that, he forced center-fielder John Bennett into a flyout, and then the Grizzlies clean-up man, Billy 'Million Dollar' Smith stepped up to face the young pitcher. Smith was a nice guy; he almost made it onto the Bombers' roster had it not been for his wife and two kids. Although he was originally from New Mexico, he, his wife, and four kids moved to Vallejo as he moved around the Athletics minor league system prior to being bumped up to the big club for half a month in the 1987 season. They called him 'Million Dollar' because of after his face-first dive into home plate, he had to have all of his front teeth capped and repaired. When he arrived back to his class-AAA team the next spring, he was known as the man with the million dollar smile.

But when Smith faced down the opposing pitcher, all of that congeniality disappeared. Jake watched as he fouled off Hirayama's 92mph fastball, and then held up to watch a curveball float outside. The next three pitches were like a silent battle happening between Smith and Hirayama. He tried his slider.. fouled off. His curveball.. fouled off. His sinker... fouled off. Finally, as though sick of trying to pitch around him, the Japanese pitcher that flew thousands of miles to play baseball for a very young league, reared back and located his fastball high and tight, but catching enough black to get the call he wanted. Smith was frozen in place as the ball slapped into the glove of Bombers' catcher Artie Palmer. The umpire reached back into a bow-and-arrow motion and the ball floated back toward the mound as the Bombers filed into the dugout.

The fans in the park went wild.

Jake sat in his seat, wearing a satisfied smile on his face.

NEXT: Part Four: 1988 Stats

[cochrane]

Part Three: The Inaugural Season (1988)

4th Place: Fresno Suns (18-36, 13.0 GB)

The city-owned Suns were never in it to begin with, unfortunately. They would finish the season thirteen games back in the league. The teams batting average was .232 and their starting rotation gave up way too many runs to contend for a playoff spot in the first year (team ERA: 5.87). While the team's performance seemed disappointing to many in the league, the city celebrated its team with a two-day fan festival following the end of the season. The first of many, the city's mayor promised. Among the stars of the team were catcher Bartolo Moreno, who led the club in batting average, home runs, and RBIs (.307, 8 HR, 28 RBI), and reliever Eric Robertson, who in thirteen appearances, carried an ERA of 2.95 and struck out nine through eighteen and third innings. Although those numbers seem paltry when compared to the rest of the league, on a team where runs and holding opposing runners were at a premium, these two were the "stars" of the team. In the offseason, Fresno would trade Robertson to Sacramento in exchange for shortstop Carl Burkholder. Only time will tell on how this trade affects the Suns' offensive landscape. On the fan front, a major rivalry formed with Chico, as both are cities along California State Route 99. Chico won the season series by an overwhelming 14 games, including two three-game sweeps. In spite of the teams' last place finish, the team's financials were promising, with the season ticket holders filling all available vacancies by the end of the year.

3rd Place: San Jose Bombers (29-25, 2.0 GB)

A mere game shy of tying for a playoff spot, San Jose did not do poorly in its first season of existence. The Bombers gave the Grizzlies and the Pioneers a run for their money, led by ace starter (and 1988 Westphalen Medal winner) Toshiki Hirayama (8-2, 1.70 ERA, 155 K) and shortstop Ramon Gallardo (.317, 9 HR, 49 RBI). Hirayama threw a record 7 complete games and 1 complete game shutout, winning eight of the twelve games he started for the team. He was atop the short list of Westphalen Medal candidates from the end of April to the end of the season, eventually winning the inaugural award for outstanding achievement in pitching for the Golden State Baseball League. During the year, the Bombers developed a rivalry with the Grizzlies, as they met many times during the season. Sacramento fans made the road trip down to San Jose to see their home team play, and in turn, entered a hostile environment as the Bombers swept the Grizzlies. The season series resulted in 7 wins for the Grizzlies, and 11 wins for the Bombers. Admittedly, it seemed that Sacramento fans liked to venture to other parks to follow their team around the state, and rivalries formed along with Chico and Fresno. The league began talks with the city of San Jose to further expand San Jose Municipal Stadium to sixteen thousand seats, but the zoning issues on the land surrounding the ballpark must be addressed during the general election as a city measure to repurpose that land for the Bombers. Given the outstanding performance and the race for a playoff spot capturing a lot of regional attention in the media, the city seemed a lot more receptive to accommodating the Bombers than it had when the league was still on paper. Measure F is reportedly gaining support among voters, and looks to pass with a minor majority in November. On the financial side, season ticket ownership is up five percent.

2nd Place: Sacramento Grizzlies (30-24, 1.0 GB)

No one could ever doubt the veracity of the Grizzlies' fans. Calling themselves "Grizzly Nation," they would follow their home team to Chico, San Jose, and Fresno without fail. In fact, the fact that many of these fans followed the Sacramento team around the state proved to be a financial boon for the other teams, as the empty seats prior to the game were invariably filled by a seat of red-white ballcaps, shirts, and jerseys. The second-place Sacramento team stunned the new league with brilliant hitting and pitching. Shortshop Billy 'Million Dollar' Smith was the team's leader in batting average (.333), home runs (17), and RBIs (59). Starter Artie Reese struck out 46 and ended the regular season with a 2.45 ERA, winning three of his ten starts. He was particularly effective during the playoffs, with eight innings pitched and six strikeouts for the one game he appeared in as a starter. The Grizzlies won that game by one run. Sacramento also took home two of the Golden Glove awards, at shortshop and left field. On the home front, their new ballpark was still under construction when the regular season began play, but Raley Field was completed in time for the playoffs. The Grizzlies took advantage of the extra seating as they moved out of the Sacramento State ballpark to the twelve thousand seat field. Season tickets for the next season are reportedly a tough ticket to get, and a majority of the spring training bookings in San Jose are also filled by Sacramento fans, looking to get away for a two-week vacation next May.

1st Place: Chico Pioneers (31-23)

The Pioneers began the season with the best record in the league, winning five games in a row, including a three-game sweep of the Fresno Suns. The strong start carried Chico through to the end of the season, as they took the league pennant away from the Sacramento Grizzlies by a single game. The Pioneers ended up taking four of the season-end awards, including the Holbeck Medal for Most Valuable Player, which went to center-fielder Jose "Clang" Cota (.356, 15 HR, 45 RBI). "Clang" was named so, after eight of his fifteen home runs ended up striking the foul pole in right field, resulting in a very loud noise. Cota led the team in all three categories, while his pitching counterpart, starter Rob "Animal" Alleyne led the Pioneers in wins, ERA, and strikeouts (7 wins, 1.35 ERA, and 76 strikeouts). Alleyne's nickname came from the fact that he wore his brown hair shaggy and long, with a full beard to match. Both players were recognized in the year-end celebration once the team made the playoffs and faced the Grizzlies in a best-of-five contest. Along with their rivals in Sacramento and Fresno, the Pioneers were well-received by their fans, however, the two lawyers who owned the team found issues in trying to resolve the lease dispute with the city of Chico. According to the initial agreement, the lease on Nettleton Field could be renewed by the team at the end of the 1988 season, but the city wanted to renegotiate the terms as the fans of the team ended up trashing the collegiate-level ballpark after every game and the workload proved to be too much for the cleaning crew hired by the city as part of the first year contract. Under the terms of the second year's agreement, the team would need to cover the cost of the cleaning of the ballpark after every game, and the ballpark would be inspected by the city to ensure compliance. Failure to comply would result in the lease being terminated by the city, which caused a major problem in the team's finances. Thus, the campaign for a dedicated event facility for the Pioneers began, but the city council has not yet approved the motion to place a measure on the ballot in November. The owners are contemplating a move to another city, preferably one closer to the Los Angeles area.

Playoffs: Sacramento over Chico, 3 games to 0.

Final Standings

Team            	W	L	PCT	GB	
Chico Pioneers  	31	23	.574	-	
Sacramento Grizzlies	30	24	.556	1.0	
San Jose Bombers	29	25	.537	2.0	
Fresno Suns     	18	36	.333	13.0

Wild Card
Team            	W	L	PCT	GB
Sacramento Grizzlies	30	24	.556	-
San Jose Bombers	29	25	.537	1.0
Fresno Suns     	18	36	.333	12.0

Season End Awards:

• CF J. Cota of the Chico Pioneers honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Holbeck Medal.
• SP T. Hirayama of the San Jose Bombers honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Westphalen Medal.
• C A. Palmer of the San Jose Bombers honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Rookie of the Year.
• SP R. Alleyne of the Chico Pioneers honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at P.
• C M. Arruda of the Chico Pioneers honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at C.
• 1B P. Crittenden of the Fresno Suns honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at 1B.
• 2B A. López of the Fresno Suns honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at 2B.
• 3B G. Whittier of the Fresno Suns honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at 3B.
• SS B. Smith of the Sacramento Grizzlies honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at SS.
• LF G. Aguilera of the Sacramento Grizzlies honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at LF.
• CF A. Daniels of the San Jose Bombers honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at CF.
• RF A. García of the Chico Pioneers honored: Wins the 1988 GSBL L1 Golden Glove Award at RF.

NEXT: Offseason Movements for 1988-1989.

[hayesb26]

Originally Posted by cochrane

Smith was frozen in place as the ball slapped into the glove of Bombers' catcher Artie Palmer. The umpire reached back into a bow-and-arrow motion and the ball floated back toward the mound as the Bombers filed into the dugout.

Very nice. Keep this up!!

[cochrane]

Originally Posted by hayesb26

Very nice. Keep this up!!

Thanks. I'll try to have the next post up tomorrow.

-- ZC

[Mach_1]

Go Grizzlies!!!

(and keep up the good work!)

[cochrane]

Originally Posted by Mach_1

Go Grizzlies!!!

(and keep up the good work!)

I have the first five seasons simmed already and the Grizzlies turn out to be pretty good.

-- ZC

[cochrane]

Part Four: The First Offseason

The Sacramento Grizzlies upset a heavily-favored Chico Pioneers team all but set to claim the inaugural league championship of the Golden State Baseball League. When the five-game series opened up at Nettleton Field in Chico, no one could have ever predicted that the Grizzlies would take that first game with a score of 11-2. But the Pioneers' bats were silenced save for five hits, as starter Orlando Cordero absolutely mastered the Chico lineup for eight innings, giving up no runs off four hits, and striking out three. It wasn't until George Gallardo took over that they finally managed to bring two runners around to score before the end of that first game.

And it was that first game that really set the tone for the series, as the Grizzlies continued to steamroll twice more to sweep Chico for the Governor's Cup.

Honored to have the hometown team win his cup, the Governor of California, C. George Deukmejian, presented the trophy to Grizzlies' general manager, Tze-meng Gai, in a highly publicized ceremony outside of the Governor's Mansion in Sacramento, on August 11, 1988. The unfortunate aspect of the win was the next day, the Grizzlies fired Gai quietly. Chico fired their GM, Brad Beauregard, and Fresno fired their GM, Mario Orr. Beauregard ended up working for Sacramento, while Gai got hired by Chico. It was musical GMs between those two teams, and the reasoning behind the firings was simple: Gai's family lived in Chico. Beauregard had a fight with the lawyers over his performance in the first year. Only Orr would be standing in the unemployment line that year, though he would eventually sign on with a Major League club's front office in Seattle. Fresno hired Javier Rea as their new GM. He was the former assistant GM for the Kansas City Royals, and was looking for a challenge... and no one could say Fresno certainly was not a challenge.

The first trade of the first offseason came in September, shortly before the first fall meeting of the owners. San Jose traded their second baseman, Paul Butler (.296, 1 HR, 25 RBI, 125 AB), and rookie right-hander Julia Melendez to the Grizzlies in exchange for reliever Cody Meyer (2.41 ERA, 16 K, 18.2 IP) and their second round draft pick in the 1989 amateur draft. The very next day, Sacramento traded veteran third baseman, Masahiro Sasaki (.333, 0 HR, 5 RBI, 56 AB), and rookie reliever, Tommy Bernard, for Chico's MR, Cole Tidwell (2.31 ERA, 9 K, 11.1 IP), and unproven shortstop Bill Banks.

September's owner meetings began with a note of good news; the success in generating publicity for the league resulted in prospective franchise owners coming to the home office and looking to purchase an expansion team. One was the city of Santa Cruz, a city that had never before had a baseball team... minor or otherwise. In anticipation of being awarded an expansion, the city promised funds to build a twelve thousand seat ballpark near the Santa Cruz Beach and Boardwalk. The city-owned land near the amusement park was initially going to be sold to a developer, but they decided to invest in a ballclub. The other expansion-seeker was a husband-and-wife team of real estate agents, who had hit it big buying and selling land on the east coast. They were looking to bring an expansion team to Modesto. The third was an owner of a car dealership in Orange County, looking to bring a club to Anaheim or nearby.

The idea of competing in the same market as the major league brought some concern to the owners. One of the spoken agreements they made early on was to avoid awarding franchises to cities that had major league clubs. Anaheim had the California Angels, and it was by virtue of that club that the idea was then considered by the owners to look to the south. Long Beach had hosted minor league clubs before, and already had a ballpark that could support six thousand seats; the league minimum. Although they had no intention, at that time, to expand three teams, the idea was planted and grew.

Expansions were awarded in October, to Santa Cruz and Modesto. The Orange County car dealership owner would have to exercise patience.

NEXT: The 1989 Season Begins!

[cochrane]

Postscript to Part Four:

Just prior to the beginning of the 1989 preseason, the Fresno Suns unveiled their updated team logo:

[Mrexbaseball]

I'm not sure if you're still doing this league or not, but it's very interesting and has actually inspired me to start my own Solo league. Question though - how do you adjust everything when you're only playing 54 games a season? (i.e. HOF criteria, league totals, development speed, aging speed, etc..)

[cochrane]

Originally Posted by Mrexbaseball

I'm not sure if you're still doing this league or not, but it's very interesting and has actually inspired me to start my own Solo league. Question though - how do you adjust everything when you're only playing 54 games a season? (i.e. HOF criteria, league totals, development speed, aging speed, etc..)

I don't, actually. By the time we get to induct people into the Hall of Fame, we'll back to a 162 game schedule. That'll be around 2008, and current year is 1989.

-- ZC

[Mrexbaseball]

Are you still working on this league? I did enjoy reading what you had...

[soxfan34]

Yes, I too would like to see this dynasty report resurrected...very interesting read.

[Muppetus Galacticus]

Great write-ups and I hope it is still going

[Eugene Church]

Fine start.

Fine logos and uniforms.

Good story.

[cochrane]

Thanks for the praise everyone. Work and running an active league have been preventing me from doing some writing, but I do have a lot of information to break down and use as a means of telling the story. I'm hoping to have another installment done by the end of the week.

-- ZC