Minneapolis Millers

From SoSH

Red Sox Affiliate: 1937-1938; 1958-1960
League: American Association
Stadium: Nicollet Park (1937-1938); Metropolitan Stadium (1958-1960)

1 Red Sox find a Home in Minnesota, Part I
2 Red Sox find a Home in Minnesota, Part II
3 Teams and Records
4 League Leaders
5 Trivia
6 Millers who made the Majors
7 External Links

Red Sox find a Home in Minnesota, Part I

The Red Sox first affiliated with the Millers for the 1937 season, essentially replacing their previous AA Affiliate, the Syracuse Chiefs. The team finished in 3rd place in the American Association that first season, led by pitcher Broadway Charlie Wagner (who went 20-14 with a 3.53 ERA) and a lineup that had seven regulars batting over .300. The two main offensive threats were Red Kress (in his only season with the Sox organization), who hit .334/27/157 (Leading the League in RBI) and Roy Pfleger, who hit .326/29/121 (Leading the League in HRs).

In 1938, the Red Sox dropped their other AA team (the San Diego Padres), consolidating their high end talent in one place. The team was not as good as the 1939 version, finishing in 6th place. However, the team did feature two future Hall of Famers. Jimmie Foxx was a coach on the 1938 teams. Ted Williams, who had played in San Diego in 1937, was the other. He showed his promise by being the first player ever to win the American Association's Triple Crown, batting .366/43/142. Stan Spence also showed promise, hitting .326/25/114. Jim Tabor hit .333/13/72 before getting called up to Boston later in the year. Roy Pfleger regressed from his previous year, showing power (20 HRs, 89 RBI) but having his Batting Average fall nearly 90 points (.248)

The only Pitcher of Note was Charlie Wagner, who went 8-3 with a 3.90 ERA before being called up to Boston.

The Red Sox would move their AA affiliation at the end of 1938 to Louisville, Kentucky.

[Note: At this time, the AA designation was used for the highest level of Minor League Ball. The AAA designation did not come into being until 1946]

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Red Sox find a Home in Minnesota, Part II

The Red Sox would return to Minneapolis in 1958, after being kicked out of San Francisco with the arrival of the major leagues to the west coast. Unlike their first association, the second was immediately succesful. Led by player/manager Gene Mauch, the team finished 3rd in the league, then defeated Witchita and Denver to win the American Association Title. (The Second Consecutive title at this level for the Sox). They would go on to defeat Montreal in the Junior World Series. Art Schult led the offense, going .287/20/89. The pitching staff had a number of good pitchers, including Tom Hurd, Tom Borland and Bill Monbouquette.

The Millers would have an even better regular season in 1959 (again led by Manager and occasional Player Gene Mauch), finishing second in the league. Pumpsie Green led the offense, going .320/7/31 before being called up midseason to Boston, breaking the color barrier for the Red Sox. Ted Bowsfield and Tom Borland led the pitching staff. They would again win the American Association Title, defeating Omaha and Fort Worth. This was their second consecutive American Association Title... and the 3rd consecutive "AAA" title for the Red Sox. Future Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski would debut for the Millers during the playoffs... causing an official protest which was upheld due to his ineligibility (His debut happened 3 days prior to when he was eligible. For more, Read Here. The team would go on to participate in, perhaps, the most bizarre Junior World Series ever, losing to the Havana Sugar Kings, 4 games to 3. The final 5 games were held in Havana, Cuba (due to winter weather in Minnesota)... and all 5 games had Fidel Castro in Attendance. For more on these games, Read This.

Fidel Castro and the Minneapolis Millers

The 1960 season would be the final season for the Sox in Minnesota. They would welcome the full time services of Carl Yastrzemski, but would lose the services of Gene Mauch, who went to Philadelphia to coach the Phillies. The team finished in 5th that season (a game behind Twin City rival St. Paul Saints), missing the playoffs. Carl led the team, hitting .339/7/69. Bob Tilman and Don Gile were the power threats, hitting 24 and 19 HRs respectively. The pitching staff was led by Al Worthington, who went 11-9 with a 2.04 ERA. At the end of the season, it was announced that the Washington Senators would be moving to Minneapolis (becoming the Twins)... and for the second time in four years, the Red Sox were displaced. They would move onto Seattle, Washington for the 1961 season.

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