Corpus Christi Clippers

Early Corprus Christi teams played in various leagues under differing monkiers. The first minor league team based in Corpus Christi was the 1910 Corpus Christi Pelicans, who played as charter members of the Southwest Texas League (1910-1911). The Corpus Christi Seahawks were members of the Gulf Coast League (1926), Texas Valley League (1927–1928) and Rio Grande Valley League (1931). The Corpus Christi Spudders played in the 1938 Texas Valley League.[1]

The 1927 Corpus Christi Seahawks won the 1927 Texas Valley League championship. The Seahawks were managed by Jim Payton in the Class D league. The Seahawks finished 1st in the regular season standings with a 63–56 record in the four–team league. Corpus Christi then defeated the Laredo Oilers 3 games to 0 in the finals.[2][3][4][5]

The Corpus Christi Aces played in the Class D Rio Grande Valley League in 1949 and 1950. The Aces joined the Class B Gulf Coast League (1951–1953), changing their name to Clippers for the 1954 season. Texas businessman, George Schepps, was the owner of both the Aces and Clippers.[6][7][8]

The Corpus Christi Clippers were affiliates of the Milwaukee Braves (1954–1956) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1957). In their four seasons of play, the Corpus Christi Clippers finished with records of 87–60, 93–48, 83–57 and 69–58 (1954–1957). The Clippers captured the 1955 Big State League Championship and made the Big State Finals the other three seasons. The Clippers had home attendance totals of 97,255; 102,788; 112,625 and 56,871 in their four seasons. The Big State League permanently folded after the 1957 season.[9][10]

In 1958, the Oklahoma City Indians of the Class AA Texas League moved to Corpus Christi, Texas. The franchise was an affiliate of the San Francisco Giants and began play as the Corpus Christi Giants.[11][12]

The 1958 Corpus Christi Giants won the Texas League Championship. The Giants finished the regular season with a 77–75 record. They were 3rd in the Texas League under Manager Ray Murray. In the 1958 Texas League Playoffs, Corpus Christi defeated the Houston Buffalos 4 games to 1. In the Finals, the Corpus Christi Giants defeated the Austin Senators 4 games to 1 to capture the championship. Playing at Schepps Palms, Corpus Christi had season attendance of 87,774, an average of 1,155 per game.[13][11][14][15]

In 1959, the Corpus Christi Giants finished 66–79. They were 6th in the Texas League under Manager Ray Murray. Corpus Christi had season attendance of 61,501, an average of 848. After the season, Corpus Christi relocated to Harlingen, Texas and became the Rio Grande Valley Giants.[16][11]

Baseball Hall of Fame member Gaylord Perry played for the 1959 Corpus Christi Giants. Perry was 10–11 with a 4.05 ERA at age 20.[17][16]

Corpus Christi teams played at Schepps Palm Field from 1949–1959. Named after owner George Schepps, the ballpark was torn down in 1960 after the departure of the Corpus Christi Giants. Schepps Palm Field was located near Old Brownsville Road, Highway 44 and Baldwin Boulevard. The approximate address of the site today is 4242 Baldwin Boulevard, Corpus Christi, Texas 78405.[10][18][7]

Corpus Christi-Baseball Reference