The Central League was a minor league baseball

Minor league baseball

Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...

 league that operated sporadically from 1903-1917, 1920-1922, 1926, 1928-1930, 1934, and 1948-1951. In 1926, the league merged mid-season with the Michigan State League

Michigan State League

Michigan State League was the name of six American professional baseball leagues. Five of them operated only one or two baseball seasons and the other four seasons...

 and played under that name for the remainder of the season. The Central League later reformed in 1928.

Minor League Class History

Before the current minor league baseball classification system was introduced in 1963, minor leagues/teams were classfied from Class D up to Class Triple-A

AAA (baseball)

Triple-A refers to the highest level of play in minor league baseball in the United States and Mexico.-Purpose:Triple-A teams' main purpose is to prepare players for the Major Leagues:...

. The following is a list of the various classifications that the Central League had during its years of operation:

• Class B: 1903-1917, 1920-1922, 1928-1930, 1932, 1934
• Class C: 1926
• Class A: 1948-1951

Former Teams

The following are former teams that made up the Central League.

• Akron Rubbermen, 1912
• Akron Tyrites, 1928-1929, 1932
• Anderson Orphans, 1903
• Canton Chinamen, 1906-1907
• Canton Red Stockings, 1905
• Canton Statesmen, 1912
• Canton Terriers, 1928-1930, 1932
• Charleston Senators
  Charleston Senators
  The Charleston Senators were an American minor league baseball team based in Charleston, West Virginia. They were the first professional baseball team to play in Charleston, beginning play in 1910. The team was inactive during a few periods, playing their last game in 1960....
  
  , 1949-1951
• Dayton Aviators, 1928-1930
• Dayton Ducks
  Dayton Ducks
  The Dayton Ducks were a minor league baseball team that played in the Central League in 1932 and then the Middle Atlantic League from 1933-1942. They were affiliated with the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1934-35, 1938-1942 and the Chicago White Sox in 1937. The team was briefly known as the Dayton Wings...
  
  , 1932
• Dayton Indians, 1948-1951
• Dayton Veterans, 1903-1917
• Erie Sailors
  Erie Sailors
  The Erie Sailors was the name of several minor league baseball teams that played in Erie, Pennsylvania between 1906 and 1994.-Pre-1930s:Several unrelated teams used the Erie Sailors name in the Interstate League , the Ohio-Pennsylvania League , and the Central League .-1938-1963:During these years,...
  
  , 1912, 1915, 1928-1930, 1932
• Evansville Evas, 1916-1917
• Evansville River Rats
  Evansville River Rats
  The Evansville River Rats were a professional minor league baseball team based in Evansville, Indiana. They played from 1901 to 1902 in the Illinois-Indiana-Iowa League and from 1903 to 1910 and 1914 to 1915 in the Central League...
  
  , 1903-1910, 1913-1915
• Evansville Strikers, 1911
• Flint Arrows
  Flint Arrows
  The Flint Arrows were a professional baseball team in Flint, Michigan from 1948-1951. They were a part of the Central League and played their home games at Atwood Stadium. Their overall record was 169-102, and they won the Central League Championship in 1948, and 1950....
  
  , 1948-1951
• Fort Wayne Billikens, 1908-1910
• Fort Wayne Brakies, 1911
• Fort Wayne Champs, 1913
• Fort Wayne Chiefs, 1928-1930, 1932, 1934
• Fort Wayne Cubs, 1915
• Fort Wayne Generals, 1948
• Fort Wayne Railroaders, 1903-1905, 1912, 1914
• Grand Rapids Billbobs, 1922
• Grand Rapids Bill-eds, 1913
• Grand Rapids Black Sox, 1912, 1915-1917, 1926
• Grand Rapids Champs, 1914
• Grand Rapids Furniture Makers, 1911
• Grand Rapids Grads, 1911
• Grand Rapids Jets, 1948-1951
• Grand Rapids Joshers, 1920-1921
• Grand Rapids Orphans, 1903-1905
• Grand Rapids Raiders, 1910
• Grand Rapids Tigers, 1934
• Grand Rapids Wolverines, 1906-1909
• Ionia Mayors
  Ionia Mayors
  The Ionia Mayors were a Central League baseball team based in Ionia, Michigan, USA that existed for part of the 1921 season and in 1922. They were the only professional baseball team to played in Ionia....
  
  , 1921-1922
• Jackson Mayors, 1921
• Kalamazoo Celery Pickers, 1920-1922, 1926
• Lansing Senators, 1921-1922
• Lima Buckeyes
  Lima Buckeyes
  The Lima Buckeyes were a very short-lived Central League baseball team, based in Lima, Ohio. Their existence consisted of only eight games in 1934, each of which they lost. Their manager was Jess Orndorff. They disbanded on May 26 of that season....
  
  , 1934
• Ludington Mariners
  Ludington Mariners
  The Ludington Mariners were a professional Class D minor league baseball team from Ludington, Michigan. Their home field was located in Culver Park....
  
  , 1920-1922
• Ludington Tars, 1926
• Marion Oilworkers, 1903-1904
• Muskegon Clippers, 1948-1950
• Muskegon Daniels, 1922
• Muskegon Muskies, 1917, 1920-1922
• Muskegon Reds
  Muskegon Reds
  The Muskegon Reds were a minor league baseball team that existed on-and-off from 1911 to 1951. They played in the Michigan State League in 1911, 1926 and from 1940 to 1941 and the Central League in 1916, 1926, 1934 and 1951...
  
  , 1916, 1926, 1934, 1951
• Newark Skeeters
  Newark Skeeters
  The Newark Skeeters was an American soccer club based in Newark, New Jersey and was a member of the American Soccer League and the Eastern Soccer League.The club folded upon the merger of the ASL & ESL after the fall 1929 season.-Year-by-year:...
  
  , 1911
• Peoria Distillers
  Peoria Distillers
  The Peoria Distillers were a minor league baseball team that existed on-and-off from 1894 to 1917. They played in the Western Association from 1894 to 1896; the Central League in 1900, 1904 and 1917; the Western League from 1902 to 1903; and the Three-I League from 1905 to 1917.-League...
  
  , 1904, 1917
• Peoria Tractors, 1934
• Richmond Quakers, 1917
• Richmond Roses, 1930
• Saginaw Bears, 1948-1950
• Saginaw Jacks, 1951
• South Bend Benders, 1911, 1912, 1916-1917
• South Bend Bronchos, 1910
• South Bend Bux, 1911
• South Bend Greens, 1903-1909
• South Bend Twins, 1932
• Springfield Babes, 1905-1907
• Springfield Blue Sox, 1930
• Springfield Buckeyes, 1928
• Springfield Dunnmen, 1929
• Springfield Reapers, 1912-1914, 1916-1917
• Springfield Red Birds, 1934
• Terre Haute Highlanders, 1915-1916
• Terre Haute Hottentots, 1903-1909
• Terre Haute Miners, 1911
• Terre Haute Stags, 1910
• Terre Haute Terre-iers, 1912-1914
• Wheeling Stogies, 1903-1912, 1915-1916
• Youngstown Buckeyes, 1932
• Youngstown Steelmen
  Youngstown Steelmen
  The Youngstown Steelmen was a minor league baseball franchise that competed in three different leagues between 1910 and 1915. The club, based in Youngstown, Ohio, participated at various times in the Ohio-Pennsylvania League, the Tri-State League, and the Central League. The Steelmen's most notable...
  
  , 1912
• Zanesville Infants
  Zanesville Infants
  The Zanesville Infants was a short-lived baseball franchise located in Zanesville, Ohio, and affiliated with the regional Central League. The organization's name was intended to highlight that they were a new minor league club...
  
  , 1908-1909
• Zanesville Potters, 1910-1912

External links

• http://www.ballparkdigest.com/leagues/central_league.htm