Kansas City Packers - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Kansas City Packers were a Federal League

Federal League

The Federal League of Base Ball Clubs, known simply as the Federal League, was an American professional baseball league that operated as a "third major league", in competition with the established National and American Leagues, from to...

baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

club in Kansas City

Kansas City Metropolitan Area

The Kansas City Metropolitan Area is a fifteen-county metropolitan area that is anchored by Kansas City, Missouri and is bisected by the border between the states of Missouri and Kansas. As of the 2010 Census, the metropolitan area has a population of 2,035,334. The metropolitan area is the...

from 1914 to 1915. They finished sixth in 1914 with a 67-84 record, and fourth in 1915 with an 81-72 record.

The Packers moved to Kansas City in July 1913 from Covington

Covington, Kentucky

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 43,370 people, 18,257 households, and 10,132 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,301.3 people per square mile . There were 20,448 housing units at an average density of 1,556.5 per square mile...

, Kentucky when the Federal League was an independent minor league. When the league declared itself major, the Packers’ first signing was of former St. Louis Browns

Baltimore Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...

manager, George Stovall

George Stovall

George Thomas Stovall, nicknamed "Firebrand" , was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball with the Cleveland Naps and the St. Louis Browns in the American League, and he also played two seasons with the Kansas City Packers of the short-lived Federal League...

, reportedly the first signing of a major league player in violation of his reserve clause

Reserve clause

The reserve clause is a term formerly employed in North American professional sports contracts. The reserve clause, contained in all standard player contracts, stated that, upon the contract's expiration the rights to the player were to be retained by the team to which he had been signed...

.

The Packers began their major league life on April 23, 1914 as the visiting team in the first game played in what is now known as Wrigley Field

Wrigley Field

Wrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...

. George “Chief” Johnson was the Packers’ starting pitcher in that historic game, but was removed after two innings when served with an injunction from his former team, the Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....

.

The Packers’ home season ended early for them, when a flash flood

Flash flood

A flash flood is a rapid flooding of geomorphic low-lying areas—washes, rivers, dry lakes and basins. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with a storm, hurricane, or tropical storm or meltwater from ice or snow flowing over ice sheets or snowfields...

that hit Kansas City after a heavy downpour knocked down the walls of the ballpark, Gordon and Koppel Field

Gordon and Koppel Field

Gordon and Koppel Field is a former baseball ground located in Kansas City, Missouri. The ground was home to the Kansas City Packers of the Federal League in 1914 and 1915. Two members of the Gordon family were on the team's board of directors...

. The Packers finished on the road, and ended in sixth place, 20 games behind the pennant-winning Indianapolis Hoosiers

1914 Indianapolis Hoosiers season

The Indianapolis Hoosiers season was a season in American baseball. The Hoosiers won the inaugural Federal League championship, finishing 88-65, 1½ games ahead of the Chicago Federals.- Offseason :...

.

During the 1914-1915 off-season, the Federal League tried to move the franchise to Newark, New Jersey

Newark, New Jersey

Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...

, but were prevented by injunctions by obtained by Kansas City management. The Packers went into spring training believing they would be playing in Newark, but last-minute negotiations led to the Indianapolis franchise being moved instead.

In the course of the closest pennant race in major league history, the Packers led until late August before fading and finishing 4th, five and one-half games behind the first place Chicago Whales, and one-half game ahead of the fifth place Newark Pepper.

Among the men who played for the Packers were Stovall, Bill Bradley, Johnny Rawlings

Johnny Rawlings

John William Rawlings [Red] was a second baseman and shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for six different teams between the and seasons. Listed at 5'8", 158 lb., he batted and threw right-handed....

, Chief Johnson

Chief Johnson

George Howard "Chief" Johnson was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He played three seasons in the majors, from until , for the Cincinnati Reds and Kansas City Packers.-External links:...

, Ted Easterly

Ted Easterly

Theodore Harrison Easterly was a catcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Cleveland Naps , Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Packers . Easterly batted left-handed and threw right-handed. He was born in Lincoln, Nebraska.Easterly was a good contact hitter who batted over .300 four times...

and Nick Cullop

Nick Cullop (pitcher)

Norman Andrew "Nick" Cullop was a starting pitcher who played in Major League Baseball between and . A native of Chilhowie, Virginia, Cullop batted and threw left-handed...

, who won 22 games in 1915.

See also