Dallas Rangers

The Dallas Rangers were a high-level minor league baseball team located in Dallas, Texas from 1958 to 1964. The team was known by the Dallas Rangers name in 1958, 1959, and 1964 and as the Dallas-Fort Worth Rangers from 1960 to 1963. It played in the Double-A Texas League in 1958, the Triple-A American Association from 1959 to 1962 and the Triple-A Pacific Coast League in 1963 and 1964. Its home stadium was Burnett Field.

Dallas Rangers
19581964
Dallas, Texas
Minor league affiliations
Class
  • Triple-A (1959–1964)
  • Double-A (1946–1958)
  • Class A1 (1936–1942)
  • Class A (1921–1935)
  • Class B (1911–1920)
  • Class C (1907–1910)
  • Class D (1902–1906)
League
Major league affiliations
Team
Minor league titles
Dixie Series titles (3)
  • 1926
  • 1946
  • 1953
League titles (12)
  • 1903
  • 1910
  • 1917
  • 1918
  • 1926
  • 1929
  • 1941
  • 1946
  • 1952
  • 1953
  • 1955
  • 1957
First half titles (3)
  • 1888
  • 1895
  • 1929
Second half titles (3)
  • 1888
  • 1903
  • 1932
Team data
Name
  • Dallas Rangers (1958–1959; 1964)
  • Dallas-Fort Worth Rangers (1960–1963)
  • Dallas Eagles (1949–1957)
  • Dallas Rebels (1939–1942; 1946–1948)
  • Dallas Steers (1923–1938)
  • Dallas Marines (1919–1922)
  • Dallas Submarines (1917-1918)
  • Dallas Giants (1902–1916)
  • Dallas Griffins (1902)
Previous parks
Burnett Field

Storied Texas League franchises

Both Dallas and Fort Worth had long and storied histories in the Texas League.

Dallas was a mainstay in the Texas League from 1902 to 1958. Over the years, it was known by many nicknames—the Griffins (1902), Giants (1903–1916), Submarines (1917-1918), Marines (1919–1922), Steers (1923–1938), Rebels (1939–1942, 1946–1948) and Eagles (1949–1957), before it was dubbed the Rangers [1] in its final TL campaign.

The Fort Worth team was called the Panthers (1902–1935) and the Cats (1936–1942, 1946–1958, 1964).

Dallas won the Dixie Series, a postseason interleague championship between the champions of the Southern Association and the Texas League, in 1926,[2] 1946,[3] and 1953.[4]

Admission to Triple-A baseball

In 1959, the American Association expanded and admitted both cities, Dallas as an unaffiliated club and Fort Worth as an affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. Dallas' Rangers outdrew Fort Worth's Cats, 130,000 to 97,000, and the two teams were merged in 1960 as the top farm team of the Kansas City Athletics. The Dallas Cowboys, Clint Murchison's new NFL franchise, were originally to be called the "Dallas Rangers" because the baseball team's owners had told him in 1959 that they were disbanding. When the owners reversed course the following year, Murchison volunteered to rename his new team to avoid confusion.[5]

The Rangers struggled on the field and at the gate in 1960, finishing last and drawing only 113,000 fans. In 1961, the team was affiliated with the expansion Los Angeles Angels, and then in 1962 the Angels split the working agreement with the Philadelphia Phillies. During this two-year period, the Rangers featured future MLB stars such as the Angels' Jim Fregosi and Dean Chance. But they continued to lag behind other Association members in attendance.

When the American Association itself folded after the 1962 season, the Rangers joined the Pacific Coast League and affiliated with the Minnesota Twins, inheriting the players of the defunct Vancouver Mounties. The 1963 Dallas-Fort Worth Rangers, managed by Jack McKeon and led by Triple-A rookie Tony Oliva, who hit .304 with 23 home runs, finally reached the .500 level. But the Minnesota affiliation lasted only that one season.

Final season and relocation to Canada

The lowly Kansas City A's returned as the team's parent in 1964. Moreover, that season the Texas League placed a team (another Cubs' affiliate) in Fort Worth, and the Rangers reverted to their Dallas-only identity.

The last Dallas Rangers club, managed by John McNamara, won only 53 of 157 PCL games. Starting pitchers Lew Krausse and Bill Landis lost 19 and 17 games, respectively. The team drew only 39,000 fans all season. The franchise then moved in 1965 to, ironically, Vancouver. The Dallas-Fort Worth regional name was then applied to the Texas League club, which played in Arlington and became known as the Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs through 1971. The old nickname Rangers was revived for the major league Texas Rangers, who moved to Turnpike (renamed Arlington) Stadium in 1972.

Yearly record

YearRecordFinish
Full Season
LeagueAttendanceManagerPostseason
195876–77FifthTexas League116,085Davey Williams
George Schepps
Fred Martin
DNQ
195975–87Fourth
(Western Division)
American Association130,334Fred Martin
Jim Fanning
DNQ
196064–90EighthAmerican Association113,849Jim FanningDNQ
196172–77FifthAmerican Association105,933Walker CooperDNQ
196259–90SixthAmerican Association86,034Dick Littlefield
Ray Murray
DNQ
196379–79Third
(South Division)
Pacific Coast League118,350Jack McKeonDNQ
196453–104Sixth
(East Division)
Pacific Coast League39,391John McNamaraDNQ

Notable alumni

References

  1. "Dallas TL Club Named Rangers". Dallas Morning News. 1958-03-18. Archived from the original on 2011-07-13. Retrieved 2011-01-08.
  2. "Dixie Series Is Won by Dallas". Victoria Advocate. Victoria. October 1, 1926. p. 1 via Newspapers.com.
  3. "Dallas Sweeps Dixie Series, 9-7". Tyler Morning Telegraph. Tyler. October 8, 1946. p. 3 via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Dallas Rally Defeats Nashville to Become Dixie Series Champs". The Jackson Sun. Jackson. October 1, 1953. p. 10 via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Dallas Eleven Changes Made". New York Times. 1960-03-20. p. S4.

Further reading

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