Evangeline Baseball League
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The Evangeline League began in
1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...
as a six–team Class D level
minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...
with teams based in
Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
,
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, later adding
Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...
and
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
based franchises. In 1935, the league was expanded to eight teams and ceased operations in 1942, with six teams, during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. It resumed activities in 1946, getting promoted to Class C in 1949, and lasted through 1957. The
Alexandria Aces The Alexandria Aces were a baseball team based in Alexandria, Louisiana. The last version of the Aces played in the United League Baseball in 2013. The Aces have played their home games at historic Bringhurst Field, which was built in 1933 for t ...
were the only team that played in all 21 regular seasons. Due to its association with spicy
Cajun cuisine Cajun cuisine ( , ) is a subset of Louisiana Creole cuisine, Louisiana cooking developed by the Cajuns, itself a Louisianan development incorporating elements of Indigenous cuisine of the Americas, Native American, West African, French cuisine, ...
, the league was commonly referred to as the "Pepper Sauce League" or the "Tabasco Circuit". Newspapers often abbreviated the league's name as "Vangy" or "Vangey" in headlines.


History


1946 gambling scandal

The Evangeline League was affected by a gambling scandal that surfaced after the 1946 Championship series. After the completion of the playoffs, which were won by the
Houma Indians The Houma Indians were a minor league baseball team based in Houma, Louisiana. From 1946 to 1952, the team played as exclusively as members of the Evangeline League, winning the 1946 and 1948 Evangeline League Championships and capturing the 1949 ...
, allegations emerged that Houma Indians and Abbeville Athletics players had conspired with gamblers to achieve desired outcomes of three playoff games. At the October 23, 1946 league meeting, it was alleged that Houma players conspired with gamblers for Houma to lose the fourth game of the first round of the playoffs, lose the first game of the second round and win the fourth game of the second round. After learning of the allegations, Judge W. G. Bramham, president of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, summoned the unnamed accused players to attend a hearing on January 10–11, 1947. After interviews and further investigation, five players were put on the ineligible list, meaning they could not play in minor league baseball. Houma players William "Bill" Thomas, Leonard Pecou, Alvin Kaiser and Paul Fugit and Don Vettorel of Abbeville were placed on the ineligible list by Branham for their actions. Later, Thomas and Pecou appealed and were ultimately restored to eligibility by George Trautman, Bramham's successor after two years. On August 22, 1949, both players were reinstated and allowed to immediately to return to the Houma roster. After his reinstatement, Thomas would continue his career to set the minor league career records for total games, victories, losses, hits and runs.
Baseball Reference Baseball Reference is a baseball statistics database maintained by Sports Reference. The site provides career statistics for Major League Baseball (MLB) players and teams as well as records, MLB draft history, and sabermetrics. History Founder ...
shows his career record as 301–256 over 24 seasons, with statistics from some seasons missing. Other sources have his minor league win total at 383.


1956–1957 boycotts

The Evangeline League permanently folded following the 1957 season. It never became an integrated league, despite the efforts of major league affiliates, such as the
Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
, which tried to assign black players to the
Lafayette Oilers Lafayette or La Fayette may refer to: People * Lafayette (name), a list of people with the surname Lafayette or La Fayette or the given name Lafayette * House of La Fayette, a French noble family ** Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757â ...
and integrate team rosters. In 1956, some boycotts of attending games began after Lafayette refused to accept the players to their team. Subsequently,
Lafayette Parish Lafayette Parish () is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. According to the 2020 U.S. census, the parish had a population of 241,753, up from 221,578 at the 2010 United States census. The parish seat and largest city is Lafayett ...
, home of the Baton Rouge Rebels, made it illegal for black players to play in its ballparks. The Evangeline League itself also officially banned non-white players from appearing on their rosters. These blocks forced the major league teams to reassign the players to other leagues. Due to boycotts, the 1956 playoff finals, featuring Lafayette, were cancelled as a result. Both the Lafayette Oilers and the Baton Rouge Rebels folded before the end of the 1957 season, on June 20, 1957.


Playoff history

Starting in its second year, the Evangeline League used a Shaughnessy two-round playoff system in which the teams with the teams with the first- and fourth-best records and the second- and third-best records would compete in a semifinal round with the winners competing for the league pennant. In 1948, the league canceled its playoffs due to bad weather, which had reduced attendance significantly, and again in 1956 due to "decreased interest and attendance." In both 1942 and 1957, the league folded before a playoff series could be held. In terms of repeat league champions, the Hammond Berries won the pennant three times, as did the Lafayette White Sox/Oilers; the
Alexandria Aces The Alexandria Aces were a baseball team based in Alexandria, Louisiana. The last version of the Aces played in the United League Baseball in 2013. The Aces have played their home games at historic Bringhurst Field, which was built in 1933 for t ...
and New Iberia Cardinals/Pelicans won twice; and the Baton Rouge Red Sticks, Crowley Millers,
Houma Indians The Houma Indians were a minor league baseball team based in Houma, Louisiana. From 1946 to 1952, the team played as exclusively as members of the Evangeline League, winning the 1946 and 1948 Evangeline League Championships and capturing the 1949 ...
, Jeanerette Blues, Lake Charles Skippers,
Opelousas Indians The Opelousas Indians was the primary name of the minor league baseball teams based in Opelousas, Louisiana. Between 1907 and 1941, Opelousas teams played as members of the Class D (baseball), Class D level 1907 Florida Complex League#Gulf Coast L ...
, and Thibodaux Giants each won once.


List of teams (in alphabetical order)


Etymology

*The league's name was derived from ''
Evangeline ''Evangeline, A Tale of Acadie'' is an epic poem by the American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, written in English and published in 1847. The poem follows an Acadian girl named Evangeline and her search for her lost love Gabriel during the e ...
'', an
Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...
girl made famous through a poem of
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include the poems " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and '' Evangeline''. He was the first American to comp ...
.


References


External links


Evangeline Baseball League statistics


{{Professional Baseball Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States Defunct professional sports leagues in the United States Baseball leagues in Louisiana Baseball leagues in Mississippi Baseball leagues in Texas Sports leagues established in 1934 Sports leagues disestablished in 1957 1934 establishments in the United States 1957 disestablishments in the United States