Portland Blue Sox
Encyclopedia
The Portland Blue Sox were a class-D minor league baseball team in Portland
, Maine
which played from 1907 to 1908 in the Maine State League and the Atlantic Association before folding. The Blue Sox were relaunched in 1919 to make up for the loss of the Portland Duffs, which folded in 1917 and played in the Eastern League
. The 1919 Blue Sox were added to the New England League
, but only lasted one season.
The Blue Sox' record in both the Maine State League and the Atlantic Association is unknown. Only one player who ever played for the Blue Sox made it to the majors; Cuke Barrows
of Gray, Maine
, who went on to play with the Chicago White Sox
. Barrows played on the 1907 Blue Sox.
It is believed that the name Blue Sox might derive from the name of the Boston Red Sox
, who had received the nickname from John I. Taylor
the year before the Blue Sox were founded.
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
which played from 1907 to 1908 in the Maine State League and the Atlantic Association before folding. The Blue Sox were relaunched in 1919 to make up for the loss of the Portland Duffs, which folded in 1917 and played in the Eastern League
Eastern League (baseball, 1916-32)
The Eastern League of 1916 through the mid-season of 1932 was an American minor baseball league and the third of four circuits to use the Eastern League name since the 19th century...
. The 1919 Blue Sox were added to the New England League
New England League
The New England League was a mid-level league in American minor league baseball that played sporadically in five of the six New England states between 1886 and 1949. After 1901, it existed in the shadow of two Major League Baseball clubs in Boston and alongside stronger, higher-classification...
, but only lasted one season.
The Blue Sox' record in both the Maine State League and the Atlantic Association is unknown. Only one player who ever played for the Blue Sox made it to the majors; Cuke Barrows
Cuke Barrows
Cuke Barrows was a baseball outfielder who played for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball from 1909 to 1912. Barrows played in 32 games and had a career batting average of .192.-External links:...
of Gray, Maine
Gray, Maine
Gray is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 6,820 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine metropolitan statistical area. Gray is home to regional headquarters for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and...
, who went on to play with the Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
. Barrows played on the 1907 Blue Sox.
It is believed that the name Blue Sox might derive from the name of the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
, who had received the nickname from John I. Taylor
John I. Taylor
John Irving Taylor owned the Boston Red Sox from 1904 until 1911. He was the son of General Charles H. Taylor, publisher of the Boston Globe. He purchased the team from Henry Killilea on April 19, 1904, with his father Charles serving as a minority owner. In September 1911, the Taylors sold half...
the year before the Blue Sox were founded.