Team history Springfield (IL) Cardinals

1 team history

1.1 1982 1987
1.2 1988 1993
1.3 team record

team history
1982 1987

the springfield cardinals arrived in midwest league in 1982 1 of 4 expansion teams, league increased 8 teams 12. springfield team owned st. louis cardinals organization , second class affiliate; retained affiliation gastonia cardinals of south atlantic league.

the first season of springfield cardinals began auspiciously won midwest league s central division 83–53 record,  13 ⁄2 games ahead of second place beloit brewers. league championship determined two-round, four-team playoff among winners of 3 divisions plus wild-card team. in first round of post-season playoffs, cardinals fell appleton foxes 2 games none. playing manager dave bialas, , outfielder alan hunsinger led league 102 runs batted in. future major leaguer danny cox pitched in 15 games, going 5–3 2.56 earned run average (era) , 68 strikeouts in 84⅓ innings.

in 1983, springfield won southern division 80–59 record, 9 games ahead of burlington rangers. in playoffs, defeated cedar rapids reds 2 games none, fell appleton foxes in championship round 3 games one. cardinals roster featured catcher bob geren, hit .265 24 home runs, , pitcher pat perry, appeared in 6 games 1–1 record , 2.22 era. outfielder curt ford won league s valuable player award, hitting .290 20 home runs , league leading 91 runs batted in.

in 1984, springfield again won southern division, posting 70–69 record placed them 4 games ahead of second place peoria chiefs. in post-season play beat beloit brewers 2 games none, again fell appleton foxes in championship 3 games two. joseph rigoli replaced bialas manager. roster included catcher tom pagnozzi, hit .283 10 home runs, , third baseman jim lindeman, hit .271 18 home runs. on august 8, john martin pitched team s first no hitter against wausau timbers, winning 2–0.

the next season, cardinals had first losing record, finishing 66–74 , tied second place in southern division, 9 games behind peoria chiefs. lloyd merritt took on manager, , roster included pitchers jeff fassero, went 4–8 4.01 era, , mike hartley (2–7, 5.12). harry mcculla led league in hitting .317 batting average.

in 1986 returned first place in southern division , posted best record in league, 87–53. gaylen pitts took on manager , named manager of year. in playoffs, springfield fell peoria chiefs in first round, 2 games none. craig wilson played second base , hit .274 1 home run. pitcher jeff oyster led league in wins 17–7 record.

in 1987, cardinals had best season, posting 94–46 record 23 games ahead of peoria chiefs, finished second in southern division, , 12 games ahead of second best team in league, kenosha twins. in first round of playoffs, beat clinton giants 2 games one, again fell short in championship, losing kenosha 3 games one. pitts again @ helm, , todd zeile (then springfield catcher) won valuable player award (which shared greg vaughn of beloit brewers), hitting .292 25 home runs , league leading 106 runs batted in. pitcher bob faron led league in wins 19–2 record while recording 2.14 era, , mike pérez posted 6–2 record , 0.85 era in 84⅓ innings relief pitcher.

1988 1993

in 1988, midwest league expanded 14 teams , switched split-season format 2 divisions, first- , second-half winners appearing in first round of playoffs. springfield placed fifth in southern division in first half 32–37 record, won second half 49–21 record. in first round of playoffs, fell cedar rapids reds, 2 games none. manager mark dejohn , roster included outfielders bernard gilkey, hit .244 6 home runs, , ray lankford, hit .284 11 home runs.

the next season, dan radison took reins manager. springfield again won southern division s second half, time 41–27 record, after placing fourth in first half 32–35 record. in post-season playoffs defeated cedar rapids in first round, 2 games none, before falling south bend white sox 3 games none in championship round.

in 1990 cardinals experienced second losing season, placing fifth in division in first half 32–38 record , sixth in second half 31–38 record. following season team s worst performance, finished first half in last place @ 28–39 , second half in fifth place @ 30–40.

in 1992, cardinals returned winning, finishing season 84–56 overall record second best in league. however, unable win division in either half, 42–28 record in first half placed them third, while identical 42–28 record in second half second place. thus, missed out on playoffs third season in row. rick colbert manager , roster included outfielder john mabry, hit .268 11 home runs, third baseman dmitri young, hit .310 14 home runs, , pitcher doug creek, went 4–1 2.61 era.

in 1993, cardinals won first half title in southern division 41–26 record. in second half 37–32 record placed them in second place, 7 games behind clinton giants. facing giants in first round of playoffs, fell 2 games none in final midwest league games. roster included t. j. mathews, went 12–9 2.72 era, , john frascatore, went 7–12 3.78 era. on august 13, mathews pitched cardinals second, , last, no hitter, shutting out burlington bees 4–0. second baseman joe biasucci won league s valuable player award after hitting .289 , leading league in home runs 26.

attendance dropped 110,189 in 1993 (compared 175,017 in 1991), , st. louis organization unhappy aging facility, decided sell franchise. madison, wisconsin, had lost madison muskies grand rapids, michigan, obtained springfield franchise, , became madison hatters.

team record

sources:

minor league baseball history . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-08. 
fan s guide midwest league . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-08. 




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^ 1982 midwest league . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ 1982 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ midwest league reference pages: annual hitting leaders . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-08. 
^ 1983 midwest league . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ midwest league 1983 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ 1983 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ 1984 midwest league . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ midwest league 1984 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ 1984 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ midwest league reference pages: no hit games . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ 1985 midwest league . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ 1985 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ 1986 midwest league . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ midwest league 1986 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ 1986 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ midwest league reference pages: annual pitching leaders . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-08. 
^ 1987 midwest league . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
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^ 1987 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-05. 
^ midwest league 1988 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-06. 
^ 1988 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-06. 
^ 1989 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-06. 
^ midwest league 1989 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-06. 
^ midwest league 1990 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-06. 
^ midwest league 1991 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-06. 
^ midwest league 1992 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-06. 
^ 1992 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-06. 
^ midwest league 1993 . mwlguide.com. retrieved 2009-08-07. 
^ 1993 springfield cardinals . baseball-reference.com. retrieved 2009-08-07. 
^ sporting news baseball guide – 1994 . sporting news. 1994: 454–455. isbn 0-89204-485-3. 
^ white, matt (1994-08-16). there s nothing minor scope of baseball . los angeles times. retrieved 2009-08-08.