Arkansas State League
The Arkansas State League was an American minor league baseball league. Several leagues of this name operated at different times. The first version was in operation in 1894, followed by an 1897 league. The Class D level league operated from 1908–1909 in Arkansas and Louisiana and also in 1934–1935 in Arkansas and Missouri. In 1936, the league was renamed the Arkansas-Missouri League.
| Sport | Minor League Baseball |
|---|---|
| Inaugural season | 1894 |
| Ceased | 1935 |
| Replaced by | Arkansas-Missouri League |
| President | Harry S. Edwards (1897) T. J. Craighead (1908) W. W. Hurst (1909) R. M. Rider (1909) Frank E. Matthews (1934) Charles Morgan (1934–1935) |
| No. of teams | 22 |
| Country |  United States |
| Most titles | 2 Little Rock 1894, 1897 |
| Classification | Independent (1894, 1897) Class D (1908–1909, 1934–1935) |
Cities represented
- Alexandria, Louisiana: Alexandria Hoo Hoos 1909
- Argenta, Arkansas: Argenta 1908; Argenta Shamrocks 1909
- Bentonville, Arkansas: Bentonville Officeholders 1934–1935
- Brinkley, Arkansas: Brinkley Infants 1908
- Camden, Arkansas: Camden Rainmakers 1894
- Cassville, Missouri: Cassville Tigers 1935
- Fayetteville, Arkansas: Fayetteville Educators 1934; Fayetteville Bears 1935
- Fort Smith, Arkansas: Fort Smith Indians 1894, 1897; Ft. Smith Soldiers 1909
- Helena, Arkansas: Helena Ponies 1908; Helena Hellions 1909
- Hot Springs, Arkansas: Hot Springs Bathers 1894, 1897; Hot Springs Giants 1908; Hot Springs Vaporites 1909
- Huntsville, Arkansas: Huntsville Red Birds 1935
- Jonesboro, Arkansas: Jonesboro Zebras 1909
- Little Rock, Arkansas: Little Rock Rose Buds 1894; Little Rock Senators 1897
- Monroe, Louisiana: Monroe Municipals 1909
- Morrilton, Arkansas: Morrilton Cotton Pickers 1894
- Newport, Arkansas & Batesville, Arkansas: Newport Pearl Diggers 1908; Newport-Batesville Pearl Diggers 1909
- Pine Bluff, Arkansas: Pine Bluff Pine Knotts 1908
- Poplar Bluff, Missouri: Poplar Bluff Tigers 1908
- Rogers, Arkansas: Rogers Rustlers 1934; Rogers Cardinals 1935
- Siloam Springs, Arkansas: Siloam Springs Buffaloes 1934; Siloam Springs Travelers 1935
- Texarkana, Arkansas: Texarkana 1894 ;Texarkana Nobles 1897
- Texarkana, Texas: Texarkana 1909
Arkansas State League standings
1894
| Team Standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Little Rock Rose Buds | 11 | 5 | .688 | - | |
| Morrillton Cotton Pickers | 10 | 5 | .667 | 0.5 | Massey |
| Camden Rainmakers | 7 | 10 | .412 | 4.5 | |
| Hot Springs Bathers | 3 | 11 | .214 | 7.0 | |
| Fort Smith Indians | Rogers | ||||
| Texarkana |
1897
| Team Standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Little Rock Senators | 21 | 7 | .750 | - | Harry Edwards |
| Hot Springs Bathers | 17 | 15 | .531 | 6.0 | Dudley Payne |
| Fort Smith Indians | 15 | 23 | .395 | 10.0 | Hardin |
| Texarkana Nobles | 9 | 23 | .281 | 14.0 | Thomas Browner |
After the league disbanded August 18, Little Rock and Hot Springs played a 21-game series for the championship of Arkansas.
1908
| Team Standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hot Springs Giants | 78 | 38 | .672 | - | Arthur Riggs / W. Forbes |
| Newport Pearl Diggers | 65 | 44 | .596 | 9.5 | Robert Shelton |
| Helena Ponies | 67 | 48 | .583 | 10.5 | Rudolph Kling |
| Pine Bluff Tigers | 51 | 61 | .455 | 24.0 | Walter Deaver / Al Sullivan |
| Argenta Shamrocks | 49 | 68 | .419 | 28.5 | James Kerwin / Roy Geyer / Charles Reece / Arthur Riggs |
| Poplar Bluff Tigers / Brinkley Infant # | 28 | 79 | .262 | 45.5 | Al Sullivan / Lee Dawkins |
Poplar Bluff was replaced by Brinkley June 8. No Playoffs were scheduled.
1909
| Team Standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonesboro Zebras | 42 | 27 | .609 | - | Senter Rainey / Harry Welch |
| Helena Hellions | 39 | 25 | .609 | 0.5 | C. A. Vandergriff |
| Texarkana | 34 | 35 | .493 | 8.0 | Robert Shelton |
| Hot Springs Vaporites | 33 | 37 | .471 | 9.5 | Arthur Riggs / Elmer Coyle |
| Monroe Municipals /Newport-Batesville Pearl Diggers | 25 | 38 | .397 | 14.0 | W. Dobard |
| Ft. Smith Soldiers | 27 | 42 | .391 | 15.0 | Hugo Bezdek / Dad Ritter |
| Argenta Shamrocks | 26 | 19 | .578 | NA | Dad Ritter |
| Alexandria Hoo Hoos | 20 | 23 | .465 | NA | John Auslet |
Argenta & Alexandria disbanded June 7.
Monroe moved to Newport-Batesville July 1. No Playoffs were scheduled. [1]
1934
The league reaumed operations. New teams in Bentonville, Fayetteville, Rogers, and Siloam Springs joined. The winners of the first and second halves of the season played for the league championship at the end of the year.
| Team Name | Record |
| Bentonville Officeholders | 40–35 (2nd half winner) |
| Siloam Springs Buffaloes | 37–31 (tied for 1st half winner) |
| Rogers Rustlers | 36–35 (tied for 1st half winner) |
| Fayetteville Educators | 33–42 |
Rogers defeated Siloam Springs 1 game to none for the 1st half title. Rogers defeated Bentonville 4 games to 3 for the league championship.
1935
New teams in Cassville, Missouri and Huntsville, Arkansas formed.
| Siloam Springs Travelers | 66-43 (2nd half winner) |
| Rogers Cardinals | 59-50 (1st half winner) |
| Cassville Tigers | 54-48 |
| Bentonville Officeholders | 51-56 |
| Fayetteville Bears | 45-56 |
| Huntsville Red Birds | 41-63 |
Rogers defeated Siloam Springs 4 games to 3 for the championship. All teams moved to the renamed 1936 Arkansas–Missouri League, and the Arkansas State League folded.
References
- Sumner, Benjamin Barrett. Minor League Baseball Standings:All North American Leagues, Through 1999. Jefferson, N.C.:McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-0781-6
Hall, John G. "Majoring in The Minors." Oklahoma Bylines-Transcript Press, Norman, Oklahoma 1996 and republished 2000 by Inter-State Printing, Sedalia, Mo. ISBN 1-882336-09-7.
- "Arkansas State League - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.