Texas League

The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which operates in the South Central United States. It is classified as a Double-A league. 
Despite the league's name, only its four South Division teams are actually based in Texas; the four North Division teams are located in surrounding states of Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri.  The league maintains its headquarters in Fort Worth.

The league was founded in 1888 and ran through 1892. It was called the Texas Association in 1895, the Texas-Southern League in 1896 and again as the Texas League from 1897–1899.  It was revived as a Class D league in 1902, moved to Class C in 1904 where it played through 1910 (except for 1906 as Class D again), played at Class B until 1920, and finally moved up to Class A in 1921. The Texas League, like many others, shut down during World War II. From 1959 to 1961, the Texas League and the Mexican League formed the Pan American Association. The two leagues played a limited interlocking schedule and post-season championship. By 1971, the Texas League and the Southern League had both decreased to seven teams. They played an interlocking schedule with the Southern League known as the Dixie Association. The two leagues played separate playoffs.

The League's name is well known due to its association with a particular aspect of the game. A bloop single that drops between the infielders and outfielders has been called a Texas Leaguer since the 1890s, despite no evidence that it originated in the Texas League, or was any more common there than elsewhere. There is a common thread throughout Civil War anecdotes that refer to a game played 30 years earlier in the Sabine Pass area. As the story goes, a Union soldier hit a ball over the outfielder's head, leading him into a long chase for the ball which resulted in a bullet wound from a nearby sniper. After the incident, hits were only awarded for balls that landed between the infielders and outfielders.

Team moves
In recent years, the Texas League has witnessed a great deal of change. Teams once known as the Jackson Mets,  El Paso Diablos, Shreveport Captains, and Wichita Wranglers have all relocated to new cities and bigger stadiums.

In 2019, the San Antonio Missions relocated to Amarillo, Texas, becoming the Amarillo Sod Poodles. At the same time, the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the Pacific Coast League moved to San Antonio to continue on as the Missions at the Triple-A level.

Current teams

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Division
!Team
!MLB Affiliation
!City
!Stadium
!data-sort-type="number"|Capacity
|-
! rowspan="4" | North
|Arkansas Travelers
|Seattle Mariners
|North Little Rock, Arkansas
|Dickey–Stephens Park
|align=center|7,200
|-
|Northwest Arkansas Naturals
|Kansas City Royals
|Springdale, Arkansas
|Arvest Ballpark
|align=center|7,305
|-
|Springfield Cardinals
|St. Louis Cardinals
|Springfield, Missouri
|Hammons Field
|align=center|10,486
|-
|Tulsa Drillers
|Los Angeles Dodgers
|Tulsa, Oklahoma
|ONEOK Field
|align=center|7,833
|-
! rowspan="4" | South
|Amarillo Sod Poodles
|San Diego Padres
|Amarillo, Texas
|Hodgetown
|align=center|6,631
|-
|Corpus Christi Hooks
|Houston Astros
|Corpus Christi, Texas
|Whataburger Field
|align=center|7,050
|-
|Frisco RoughRiders
|Texas Rangers
|Frisco, Texas
|Dr Pepper Ballpark
|align=center|10,316
|-
|Midland RockHounds
|Oakland Athletics
|Midland, Texas
|Security Bank Ballpark
|align=center|6,669
|}

Current team rosters

Texas League timeline

   

 In 1971, the Southern League and Texas League were each down to seven teams, so they formed the Dixie Association for one season. They played interlocking schedules but held their own separate playoffs.

Complete list of Texas League teams (1902–present)
Current team names are in bold.

 Albuquerque Dodgers
 Albuquerque Dukes
 Alexandria Aces
 Amarillo Giants
 Amarillo Gold Sox
 Amarillo Sonics
 Amarillo Sod Poodles
 Ardmore Rosebuds
 Ardmore Territorians
 Arkansas Travelers
 Austin Braves
 Austin Senators
 Beaumont Exporters
 Beaumont Golden Gators
 Beaumont Millionaires
 Beaumont Oil Gushers
 Beaumont Oilers
 Beaumont Roughnecks
 Brenham Orphans
 Cleburne Railroaders
 Corpus Christi Giants
 Corpus Christi Hooks
 Corsicana Oil Citys
 Corsicana Oilers
 Dallas Eagles
 Dallas Giants
 Dallas Griffins
 Dallas Marines
 Dallas Rangers
 Dallas Rebels
 Dallas Steers
 Dallas Submarines
 Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs
 El Paso Diablos
 El Paso Sun Dodgers
 El Paso Sun Kings

 Fort Worth Cats
 Fort Worth Panthers
 Fort Worth Spurs
 Frisco RoughRiders
 Galveston Buccaneers
 Galveston Crabs
 Galveston Pirates
 Galveston Sand Crabs
 Greenville Hunters
 Houston Buffaloes
 Jackson Astros
 Jackson Mets
 Jackson Soldiers
 Lafayette Drillers
 Lamesa Dodgers
 Lamesa Lobos
 Longview Cannibals
 Lubbock Cubs
 Lubbock Longhorns
 Lubbock Panhandlers
 Lufkin Circles
 Memphis Blues
 Midland Angels
 Midland Cubs
 Midland RockHounds
 Northwest Arkansas Naturals
 Oklahoma City Indians
 Oklahoma City Mets
 Paris Eisenfelder's Homeseekers
 Paris Parisites
 Pueblo Coloradans
 Rio Grande Valley Giants
 Round Rock Express

 San Antonio Bears
 San Antonio Brewers
 San Antonio Bronchos
 San Antonio Bullets
 San Antonio Dodgers
 San Antonio Indians
 San Antonio Missions
 Sherman-Denison Students
 Shreveport Braves
 Shreveport Captains
 Shreveport Gassers
 Shreveport Pirates
 Shreveport Sports
 Shreveport Swamp Dragons
 Springfield Cardinals
 Temple Boll Weevils
 Texarkana Casketmakers
 Tulsa Cardinals
 Tulsa Drillers
 Tulsa Indians
 Tulsa Oilers
 Tyler Sports
 Tyler Texans
 Tyler Wildcats or Wildcatters
 Victoria Rosebuds
 Victoria Toros
 Waco Cubs
 Waco Navigators
 Waco Steers
 Waco Tigers
 Wichita Falls Spudders
 Wichita Kansans
 Wichita Pilots
 Wichita Wranglers
 Wichita Wingers

League champions and award winners

Hall of fame

See also

References

Sources
Baseball in the Lone Star State: Texas League's Greatest Hits, Tom Kayser and David King, Trinity University Press 2005

Notes

External links

 
Category:Minor baseball leagues in the United States
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Category:Baseball leagues in Arkansas
Category:Baseball leagues in Colorado
Category:Baseball leagues in Kansas
Category:Baseball leagues in Louisiana
Category:Baseball leagues in Mississippi
Category:Baseball leagues in Missouri
Category:Baseball leagues in New Mexico
Category:Baseball leagues in Oklahoma
Category:Baseball leagues in Tennessee
Category:Sports leagues established in 1888
Category:1888 establishments in Texas
Category:Organizations based in Fort Worth, Texas