The Peoria Distillers were a minor league baseball team that existed on-and-off from 1894 to 1917. They played in the

Western Association The Western Association was the name of five different leagues formed in American minor league baseball during the 19th and 20th centuries. The oldest league, originally established as the Northwestern League in 1883, was refounded as the Wester ...

from 1894 to 1896; the

Central League The or , also known as the for sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League i ...

in 1900, 1904 and 1917; the Western League from 1902 to 1903; and the Three-I League from 1905 to 1917. The team was the second baseball team to play in Peoria. They played in Lake View Park.

Management

Under managers David Drohan and Charley Stis, they won their first League Championship in 1911. In 1916, they won their second and final League Championship under the guidance of William Jackson.

Pants Rowland Clarence Henry "Pants" Rowland (February 12, 1878 – May 17, 1969) was an American Major League Baseball manager for the Chicago White Sox from 1915 through 1918 who went on to become a major figure in minor league baseball. He was born in Pla ...

was the Peoria team's manager in 1913, then was hired by

Charles Comiskey Charles Albert Comiskey (August 15, 1859 – October 26, 1931), nicknamed "Commy" or "the Old Roman", was an American Major League Baseball player, manager, and team owner. He was a key person in the formation of the American League and was als ...

to be manager of the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

. He guided them to the

1917 World Series The 1917 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1917 season. The 14th edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion Chicago White Sox against the National League champion New York Giants ...

championship, the last one won by the White Sox until 2005.

Notable players

Joe McGinnity Joseph Jerome McGinnity (March 20, 1871 – November 14, 1929) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the late 19th and early 20th century. McGinnity played in MLB for ten years, pitching for the National League's ...

, nicknamed "Iron Man," who would go on to have a long career in the Major Leagues and be inducted in the

National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United St ...

, pitched every inning of a 21-inning game for the Peoria Distillers in 1898. His manager in Peoria was Pat Wright. George Stone baseball card

Others who played for the Distillers in the 19th century and proceeded to the majors included Harry Bay, Jimmy Burke,

Frank Dillon Frank Edward Dillon (October 17, 1873 – September 12, 1931), known in later years as Pop Dillon, was an American baseball player and manager. He played 22 seasons in professional baseball from 1894 to 1915, including five years in Major Leagu ...

, Frank Donnelly, Dan Dugdale, Hi Ebright,

Zaza Harvey Ervin King "Zaza" Harvey (January 5, 1879 – June 3, 1954) was an American professional baseball player. He appeared as an outfielder and pitcher in the major leagues from 1900 to 1902 for the Chicago Orphans, Chicago White Sox, and Clevelan ...

, John Roach and

Harry Truby Harry Garvin Truby (May 12, 1870 – March 21, 1953), was an infielder in the Major Leagues in 1895 and 1896. Truby played for the Chicago Colts and Pittsburgh Pirates. In 70 games over two seasons, Truby posted a .281 batting average (73-for-2 ...

. In 1902 George Stone, who later was the 1906 American League batting champion, played for the team. In 1913, outfielder

Max Flack Max John Flack (February 5, 1890 – July 31, 1975) was a Major League Baseball outfielder. He played twelve seasons in the majors from 1914 to 1925 for the Chicago Chi-Feds/Whales (1914–15) of the Federal League, then the Chicago Cubs (1916� ...

played for the Distillers, and would go on to play for St. Louis in the

1918 World Series The 1918 World Series was the championship series in Major League Baseball for the 1918 season. The 15th edition of the World Series, it matched the American League champion Boston Red Sox against the National League champion Chicago Cubs. The ...

Legacy

The

Peoria Chiefs The Peoria Chiefs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. The team was established in 1983 as the Peoria Suns. They are located in Peoria, Illinois, and are named for the Pe ...

will occasionally play as the Peoria Distillers, sell throwback jerseys, and decorate the

stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...

with historic pictures of Distillers players.

References

Baseball teams established in 1894 Baseball teams disestablished in 1917 1894 establishments in Illinois 1917 disestablishments in Illinois Defunct minor league baseball teams Defunct baseball teams in Illinois Distillers Professional baseball teams in Illinois Illinois-Indiana-Iowa League teams Central League teams Defunct Western League teams Defunct Western Association teams Illinois–Iowa League teams {{Illinois-baseball-team-stub