The Florida International League was a lower- to mid-level circuit in American and

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

n minor league baseball that existed from

1946 Events January * January 6 - The first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into four occupation zones. * January 10 ** The ...

through July 27, 1954. It was designated Class C for its first three seasons, then upgraded to Class B in

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022. * January 2 – Luis ...

for the final 5½ years of its existence.

History

The FIL featured teams located in the largest metropolitan centers in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

and

. Its longest serving clubs were located in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

(usually nicknamed the Sun Sox),

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough C ...

(named the Smokers, after the city's large

cigar A cigar is a rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco leaves made to be smoked. Cigars are produced in a variety of sizes and shapes. Since the 20th century, almost all cigars are made of three distinct components: the filler, the binder l ...

business) and

West Palm Beach West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

(called the Indians, though the team was never affiliated with the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

). All played during the 8½ seasons of the FIL's existence. Perhaps its most notable member club, however, was the Havana Cubans, an affiliate of the Washington Senators, in

Havana, Cuba Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

. The Cubanos were the sole FIL club outside Florida and played in the loop from 1946–1953. They won five consecutive regular season titles from 1946–1950 and dominated in attendance as well, drawing over 200,000 fans from 1947–1949. The Cubanos furnished many Cuban baseball players to the parent Senators, including pitchers Sandalio "Sandy" Consuegra, Conrado Marrero and Miguel "Mike" Fornieles, and

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Carlos Paula Carlos Paula Conill (November 28, 1927 – April 25, 1983) was a Major League Baseball right fielder who played for the Washington Senators from 1954 to 1956. A native of Havana, Cuba, he stood 6'3" and weighed 195 lbs. Paula was ac ...

, who in broke the color line for the Senators as their first player of African descent. In 1954, however, Havana left the FIL to become a Class AAA

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ( ...

franchise, the Sugar Kings. The FIL could not last without its Cuban entry, and folded in midyear with St. Petersburg in first place. Miami eventually would join the International League as the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The fra ...

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim Elliot and Pete Fleming, are kille ...

and other cities joined the Class D (now Class A)

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A followi ...

Member clubs

* Fort Lauderdale Braves — also known as ''Lions'' * Greater Miami Flamingos * Havana Cubans *

Key West Conchs Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (ma ...

* Lakeland Pilots — also known as ''Patriots'' * Miami Sun Sox — also known as ''Tourists'' *

Miami Beach Flamingos The Miami Beach Flamingos were a professional minor league baseball team based in Miami Beach, Florida periodically from 1940 until 1954. The team played its home games at Flamingo Field and was a member of the Class D Florida East Coast League a ...

* St. Petersburg Saints * Tallahassee Rebels * Tampa Smokers * West Palm Beach Indians

League champions

*1946 – Tampa Smokers *1947 – Havana Cubans *1948 – Havana Cubans *1949 – Tampa Smokers *1950 – Miami Sun Sox *1951 – St. Petersburg Saints *1952 – Miami Sun Sox *1953 – Fort Lauderdale Braves

References

*Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, editors: ''The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball.'' Durham, North Carolina:

Baseball America ''Baseball America'' is a sports enterprise that covers baseball at every level, including MLB, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in the MiLB, college, high school, and international leagues. It is currently published in the form o ...

, 1997.

External links

1952 Miami Sun Sox team
{{Professional Baseball Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States Baseball leagues in Florida Sports leagues established in 1946 Sports leagues disestablished in 1954 Defunct professional sports leagues in the United States