The Utica Blue Sox was the name of two
minor league baseball
Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...
teams based in
Utica, New York
Utica () is the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The tenth-most populous city in New York, its population was 65,283 in the 2020 census. It is located on the Mohawk River in the Mohawk Valley at the foot of the Adiro ...
.
In the 2010s, the ''Utica Blue Sox'' is the name of a
collegiate summer baseball
Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...
team of the
Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (PGCBL) based in
New York State
New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...
.
History
Previous baseball history
Utica's first baseball team took the field in 1878. The city fielded a team in the
New York State League from 1899–1917, then was without professional baseball until
1939
This year also marks the start of the World War II, Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history.
Events
Events related to World War II have a "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1
** Coming into effect in Nazi Ger ...
, except for one year,
1924, when the Utica Utes, a member of an earlier edition of the
New York–Pennsylvania League, moved to
Oneonta, New York
Oneonta ( ) is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in southern Otsego County, New York, Otsego County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is one of the northernmost cities of Appalachia. Oneonta is home to the State Un ...
, in midseason.
The first Blue Sox team
The first Blue Sox team can be traced to the Utica Braves of the Class C
Canadian–American League, formed when the former Auburn Bouleys were moved to Utica by Amby McConnell and Father Harold Martin. The Utica Braves were initially a
Boston Braves
The Boston Braves were a Major League Baseball club that originated in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, and played from 1871 to 1952. Afterwards they moved to History of the Atlanta Braves#Milwaukee, Milwaukee (and became the Milwaukee Braves). ...
farm team
In sports, a farm team (also referred to as farm system, developmental system, feeder team, or nursery club) is generally a Team sport, team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any s ...
in 1939 and kept the nickname through 1942. The Braves were also affiliated with the
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...
in 1941 and the
Springfield Rifles in 1942.
In
1943
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured.
* January 4 � ...
, Utica moved up to the Class A
Eastern League and became an affiliate of the
Philadelphia Phillies. The nickname Blue Sox dates to
1944
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 2 – WWII:
** Free France, Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command First Army (France), French Army B, part of the Sixt ...
when their parent team was unofficially called the "Philadelphia Blue Jays". The Blue Sox of the 1940s played in a ballpark in the northern part of the city called McConnell Field, which was named after the team owner and former pro player from Utica.
Many of the Blue Sox players of the 1940s later became the ''Whiz Kids'' of the
1950
Events January
* January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed.
* January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 ...
National League champion Phillies.
Future Philadelphia stars such as
Hall of Famer Richie Ashburn, who came to Utica as a
catcher
Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...
but within a month was moved to
center field by his
manager,
Eddie Sawyer, to utilize his speed.
Others, including
Stan Lopata and
Granny Hamner, all took the field for both Utica and Philadelphia during the late 1940s.
Eddie Sawyer, manager of the Blue Sox in 1945 and 1947 and later for seven more years in Philadelphia, once said, "We had great ballclubs in a bad ballpark." Ashburn recalled the peculiar way the field was laid out, with center field to the west. "The sun would set over it", he once said. "I never got a hit up there in the first five innings in 150 games, and I still hit .300."
Murnane Field was considered one of the worst baseball layouts in the NY-P league with right field sloping downhill drastically by the time it hit the fence.
Second Blue Sox team
The name Blue Sox was resurrected in the Short-Season A classification
New York–Penn League.
A new NY-P franchise began in 1977 as the Utica Blue Jays, playing at Murnane Field, being the first affiliate in the Toronto Blue Jays organization, from 1977–1980. That team included Toronto's first ever draft pick, Tom Goffena. The line up also included future major leaguers Jesse Barfield, David Wells and Paul Hodgson.
Toronto withdrew their affiliation after the 1980 season and the club played as an independent, under the name Blue Sox, from 1981 through 1983. The ownership of that team included Miles Wolff (Durham Bulls), actor/writer Brian Doyle Murray and his brother, comedian Bill Murray. Bill Murray sang the national anthem for the Blue Sox 1981 home opener. The independent Utica Blue Sox won the NY-P championship in 1983.
The team became an affiliate with the
Philadelphia Phillies from 1986–1987, 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 ...
from 1988–92 and the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
from 1993–1995. In 1996 the team became affiliated with the
Florida Marlins and were renamed the Utica Marlins; however, the team was renamed the Blue Sox the very next season. Among the notable players who were once Utica Blue Sox players; Larry Walker, Miguel Cabrera, Adrian Gonzales, Andy Ashby, Jason Grimsley and Esteban Beltre.
By the end of the 2001 season, the city needed a standard level ball park and Donovan Stadium at Murnane Field was in need of renovations and repairs in order to keep the Blue Sox team in the league. On February 7, 2002,
Cal Ripken Jr. and the Ripken Professional Baseball Association purchased the Blue Sox and moved the club to
Aberdeen, Maryland, where it became the
Aberdeen IronBirds.
For a time in the late 1980s,
Morganna the Kissing Bandit owned a share of the Blue Sox.
In media
Acclaimed author and journalist
Roger Kahn
Roger Kahn (October 31, 1927 – February 6, 2020) was an American journalist and author, best known for his 1972 baseball book '' The Boys of Summer''.
Biography
Roger Kahn was born in Brooklyn, New York, on October 31, 1927, to Olga (''née ...
(''The Boys of Summer'') wrote about his year as a part owner of the team for the 1983 championship season. The book, ''Good Enough to Dream,'' was published in 1985.
Notable alumni
*
Richie Ashburn (1945) Inducted
Baseball Hall of Fame, 1995
*
Larry Walker
Larry Kenneth Robert Walker (born December 1, 1966) is a Canadian former professional baseball right fielder. During his 17-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, he played with the Montreal Expos, Colorado Rockies, and St. Louis Cardinals. I ...
(1985) Inducted Baseball Hall of Fame, 2020
*
Andy Ashby (1987) 2× MLB All-Star
*
Jesse Barfield (1977) MLB All-Star
*
Ken Brett
Kenneth Alven Brett (September 18, 1948 – November 18, 2003) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for the Boston Red Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Yank ...
(1985) MLB All-Star
*
Miguel Cabrera (2000) 11× MLB All-Star; 4× MLB Batting Title (2011–2013, 2015); 2012 AL Triple Crown; 2× AL Most Valuable Player (2012–2013)
*
Mike Cameron (1992) MLB All-Star
*
Ray Durham (1991) 2× MLB All-Star
*
Ross Gload (1997)
*
Adrian Gonzalez (2000) 5× MLB All-Star
*
Jason Grimsley (1986)
*
Granny Hamner (1945) 3× MLB All-Star
*
Willie Jones (1948) 2× MLB All-Star
*
Fred Kendall (1992)
*
Stan Lopata (1945) 2× MLB All-Star
*
Chuck McElroy (1986)
*
Steve Ridzik (1949)
*
Wally Schang (1943)
*
Scott Service (1986)
*
Tony Taylor (1986–1987) 2× MLB All-Star
References
Further reading
*
External links
*Lloyd Johnson and Miles Wolff, editors. ''The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball'', 1997 edition. Durham, North Carolina:
Baseball America
''Baseball America'' (BA) is a sports publication company that covers baseball at every level, including Major League Baseball (MLB), with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) college, high school, and inte ...
.
Photographs of Donovan Stadium (Murnane Field), former home of the Utica Blue Sox of the NY-P League – ''Rochester Area Ballparks''
{{New York-Pennsylvania League (1923-1937) , state=collapsed
Baseball teams established in 1939
Baseball teams disestablished in 2001
Defunct New York–Penn League teams
Defunct Eastern League (1938–present) teams
Boston Braves minor league affiliates
Boston Red Sox minor league affiliates
Chicago White Sox minor league affiliates
Detroit Tigers minor league affiliates
Miami Marlins minor league affiliates
Philadelphia Phillies minor league affiliates
Toronto Blue Jays minor league affiliates
Defunct baseball teams in New York (state)
1939 establishments in New York (state)
2001 disestablishments in New York (state)
Blue Sox