Mississippi Valley League
ClassificationClass D (1922–1932)
Class B (1933)
SportMinor League Baseball
FounderMichael H. Sexton
First season1922; 102 years ago (1922)
Ceased1933; 91 years ago (1933)
PresidentMichael H. Sexton (1922–1924)
Belden Hill (1925–1926)
Michael H. Sexton (1927
Belden Hill (1928–1931)
Charles A. Logan (1932–1933)
No. of teams13
CountryUnited States of America
Most titles3
Cedar Rapids Bunnies (1922, 1925, 1930)
Dubuque Dubs (1923, 1927, 1929)
Related
competitions		Illinois-Indiana-Iowa League
Midwest League
Official websitehttps://www.milb.com/midwest

The Mississippi Valley League (MVL) was a baseball Class D level minor league that operated from 1922 through 1933. Playing its last year as a Class B level league, the league franchises were based in Iowa and Illinois. Like many leagues at the time, the Great Depression led to its demise. The Mississippi Valley League was founded by Michael H. Sexton, of Rock Island, Illinois, who was then president of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues.[1]

History

The league began play in 1922 with six teams: the Cedar Rapids Bunnies, Marshalltown Ansons, Rock Island Islanders, Waterloo Hawks, Ottumwa Cardinals and the Dubuque Climbers. There were no formal playoffs, and the Bunnies finished in first place.[2] All teams from 1922 returned for 1923 with the Climbers finishing first in the league. Again, there were no formal playoffs.[3][4]

In 1924, the league expanded to eight teams, adding the Moline Plowboys and Burlington Bees. The Dubuque Climbers became the Dubuque Dubs, though the other teams remained the same. The Hawks finished first in the league.[5][4]

All teams from 1924 returned for 1925, with the Dubs becoming the Dubuque Ironmen. The Bunnies finished first in the league for the second time four years.[6] In 1926, the Ottumwa Cardinals became the Ottumwa Packers and the Dubuque Dubs became the Dubuque Speasmen, named after their manager Bill Speas. The Packers finished in first place.[7]

In 1927, the Speasmen returned to their former name the Dubuque Dubs. All other teams returned intact from the year before. Dubuque finished first in the league.[8] The same teams played in 1928, with the Hawks finishing in first place.[9] 1929 saw multiple league changes. The Dubs became the Dubuque Tigers. The Marshalltown Ansons and Ottumwa Packers left the league and were replaced by the Keokuk Indians and Davenport Blue Sox. The Tigers finished first in the league.[10]

All teams from 1929 returned for 1930, with the Bunnies finishing in first place for the third time in league history.[11] The teams remained intact for 1931 as well, with the Keokuk Indians finishing in first place.[12] 1932 featured no new teams, though it did have a new feature - a playoff system. All teams returned from 1931, and the Blue Sox finishing in first place. They however lost in the league playoffs four games to two to the Islanders, so the Islanders were the league champions.[13]

In 1933, the league featured only six teams for the first time since 1923. It also moved up in rank from Class-D to Class-B, and saw three new arrivals (Peoria Tractors, Quincy Indians, Springfield Senators) as well as multiple departures (Burlington Bees, Cedar Rapids Bunnies, Moline Plowboys, Waterloo Hawks, Dubuque Tigers). The Blue Sox finished in first place and defeated the Islanders four games to one in the playoffs to become league champions.[14]

The 1933 Davenport Blue Sox are ranked #58 in the All-time Top 100 teams by MiLB.com.[15] The Blue Sox finished the season 82-32, as Como Cotelle hit .407 and Ed Hall drove in 151 runs.[citation needed]

The Rock Island Islanders were the only team to play in the league through its entire 12-year existence.[16][4]

Cities represented: 1922–1933

Mississippi Valley League standings and statistics

1922 to 1927

1922 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 92 37 .713 -- Bill Speas
Marshalltown Ansons 73 55 .570 18.5 Frank Boyle
Rock Island Islanders 66 63 .512 26.0 Jimmy Conzelman
Waterloo Hawks 59 68 .465 32.0 Pat Ragan
Ottumwa Cardinals 49 76 .392 41.0 Jim Drohan / Carl Bond
Dubuque Climbers 44 84 .344 47.5 Larry Mullen /
Harry Henge / Joe McGinnity
Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Fred Leach Waterloo BA .383 Frank Johnson Cedar Rap W 24
Bill Speas Cedar Rapids Runs 128 Charles Schwiete Marshall SO 180
Bill Speas Cedar Rapids Hits 182 Frank Johnson Cedar Rap Pct .828; 24-5
Fred Leach Waterloo HR 13

1923 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Dubuque Climbers 78 50 .609 -- Joe McGinnity
Ottumwa Cardinals 73 53 .579 4.0 Wally Mattick
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 69 56 .552 7.5 Bill Speas
Waterloo Hawks 58 69 .457 19.5 Bert Weeden
Rock Island Islanders 53 73 .421 24.0 Tommy Thompson
Marshalltown Ansons 48 78 .381 29.0 Frank Boyle

Playoffs: None Scheduled.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Bill Speas Cedar Rapids BA .363 John Dill Ottumwa W 22
John Armstrong Dubuque Runs 93 George Brown Waterloo SO 175
Bill Speas Cedar Rapids Hits 182 Emil Levson Cedar Rapids Pct .826; 19-4
Andrew McEwan Waterloo HR 8 J. Johnson Cedar Rapids IP 317

1924 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Waterloo Hawks 84 40 .678 -- Cletus Dixon
Dubuque Dubs 70 51 .579 12.5 John Armstrong
Rock Island Islanders 64 57 .529 18.5 Preston Gray
Ottumwa Cardinals 58 61 .487 23.5 Wally Mattick
Moline Plowboys 59 65 .478 25.0 Jim Shollenberger
Burlington Bees 54 67 .446 28.5 Henry Wingfield
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 54 67 .446 28.5 Bill Speas
Marshalltown Ansons 43 78 .355 39.5 Jack Lacey / Frank Boyle

Playoffs: None Scheduled.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Fred Schulte Waterloo BA .368 Ovid McCracken Waterloo W 23
Hal Anderson Ottumwa Runs 126 Richard Didier Ottumwa SO 145
Fred Schulte Waterloo Hits 167 Claude Willoughby Waterloo Pct .750; 21-7
Fred Schulte Waterloo 3B 25
Stan Keyes Rock Island HR 20

1925 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Attend Managers
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 74 51 .592 -- 43,429 Bill Speas
Moline Plowboys 73 52 .584 1.0 39,738 Jim Schollenberger
Rock Island Islanders 65 60 .520 9.0 43,157 Preston Gray
Ottumwa Cardinals 61 64 .488 13.0 30,572 Wally Mattick
Dubuque Ironmen 60 65 .480 14.0 46,175 Joe McGinnity / John Armstrong
Waterloo Hawks 59 66 .472 15.0 54,702 Cletus Dixon
Marshalltown Ansons 55 70 .440 19.0 30,442 Frank Boyle
Burlington Bees 53 72 .424 22.0 42,179 Dick Speer /
Whitey Mann / Ed Reichle

Playoffs: None Scheduled.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Como Cotelle Davenport BA .407 Al Piechota Davenport W 19
George Meyer Davenport Runs 130 Ray Harrell Quincy SO 193
Simon Rosenthal Quincy Hits 166 Al Hollingsworth Rock Island ERA 3.11
Ed Hall Davenport HR 28 Torsten Lengquist Davenport PCT .833 10-2
Ed Hall Davenport RBI 151

1926 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Ottumwa Packers 75 45 .625 -- Pat Harkins
Moline Plowboys 71 50 .587 4.5 Jim Shollenberger
Waterloo Hawks 67 52 .563 7.5 Cletus Dixon
Burlington Bees 68 53 .562 7.5 Ed Reichle
Rock Island Islanders 65 55 .542 10.0 Preston Gray
Dubuque Speasmen 56 63 .471 18.5 Bill Speas
Marshalltown Ansons 41 79 .342 34.0 Elmer Lane / Casey Coffin /
Dick Brannigan / Dan O'Leary
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 38 84 .311 38.0 Fred Beck /
Jack Lacy / Dutch White

Playoffs: None Scheduled.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Red Worthington Waterloo BA .389 Alvin Bauer Ottumwa W 25
Les Smith Ottumwa Runs 99 Robert Shanklin Rock Island SO 188
Red Worthington Waterloo Hits 185 Alvin Bauer Ottumwa Pct .862; 25-4
Les Smith Ottumwa HR 20
Nick Conrad Marshalltown SAC 36

1927 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Dubuque Dubs 66 41 .617 -- Bill Speas
Waterloo Hawks 75 47 .615 0.5 Cletus Dixon
Burlington Bees 71 52 .577 4.5 Ed Reichle
Marshalltown Ansons 65 54 .546 8.5 Jim Shollenberger
Moline Plowboys 63 55 .534 10.0 Fritz Mollwitz
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 50 70 .417 24.0 Pete Hughes/ Spoke Emery
Rock Island Islanders 40 75 .348 31.5 Joe Kernan
Ottumwa Packers 41 77 .347 32.0 Pat Harkins

Playoffs: None Scheduled.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Jim Stroner Rock Island BA .380 Duncan Grant Waterloo W 22
James Worth Dubuque Runs 127 Harold McKain Waterloo SO 147
James Worth Dubuque Hits 171 Duncan Grant Waterloo SO 147
Len Koenecke Moline HR 20 Elbert Fisch Dubuque Pct .800; 20-5

1928 to 1933

1928 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Waterloo Hawks 81 41 .664 -- Cletus Dixon
Moline Plowboys 69 54 .561 12.5 Richard Manchester
Rock Island Islanders 67 59 .532 16.0 Lester Patterson
Dubuque Dubs 63 60 .512 18.5 Bill Speas / John Armstrong
Burlington Bees 59 61 .492 21.0 Ed Reichle
Marshalltown Ansons 58 65 .472 22.5 Jim Shollenberger /
George Tomer / Ben Diamond
Ottumwa Packers 48 72 .400 32.0 Preston Gray / Bill Speas
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 45 78 .366 36.5 Spoke Emery / Bob Hasbrook

Playoffs: None Scheduled.

Player Statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Len Koenecke Moline BA .389 Duncan Grant Waterloo W 21
Walter Genin Rock Island Runs 115 Ray Wolf Moline W 21
Len Koenecke Moline Hits 182 Bob Weiland Moline SO 209
Len Koenecke Moline HR 22 Duncan Grant Waterloo Pct .808; 21-5

1929 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Dubuque Tigers 75 51 .595 -- Lester Patterson
Waterloo Hawks 72 54 .571 3.0 Cletus Dixon
Davenport Blue Sox 69 57 .548 6.0 Ed Reichle
Moline Plowboys 63 63 .500 12.0 Richard Manchester
Burlington Bees 62 64 .492 13.0 George Young
Keokuk Indians 60 65 .480 14.5 Ben Diamond
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 58 67 .464 16.5 Bill Speas / Tibb Serre
Rock Island Islanders 44 82 .349 31.0 Walt Genin / Buck Wheat

Playoffs: None Scheduled.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Spot Grant Cedar Rapids BA .368 Albert Eckert Dubuque W 19
Paul Speraw Dubuque Runs 112 H.H. Miller Cedar Rapids W 19
Ed Hendee Davenport Hits 183 Fred Witte Davenport W 19
Ken Storm Waterloo HR 23 Lester Neisslie Moline SO 141
Jack Frost Waterloo AB 547 Johnny Niggeling Waterloo Pct .789;15-4

1930 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 71 55 .564 -- Paul Speraw
Rock Island Islanders 70 56 .556 1.0 Clarence Roper
Davenport Blue Sox 64 61 .512 6.5 Ed Reichle
Moline Plowboys 63 62 .504 7.5 Riley Parker
Waterloo Hawks 63 63 .500 8.0 Cletus Dixon
Burlington Bees 61 65 .484 10.0 George Young
Keokuk Indians 56 70 .445 15.0 Sam Schwartz / Lester Patterson /
Henry Wingfield / John Schinski
Dubuque Tigers 55 71 .437 16.0 Richard Manchester / Ed Woerber

Playoffs: None Scheduled.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Riley Parker Moline BA .376 Delano Wetherell Rock Island W 21
Dick Esrey Moline Runs 114 Delano Wetherell Rock Island So 217
Dick Esrey Moline Hits 183 Walter Murphy Rock Island Pct .667; 10-5
Joe Prerost Waterloo HR 15
John Kerr Cedar Rapids SB 84

1931 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Keokuk Indians 73 51 .589 -- Bob Rice
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 74 52 .587 0.5 Paul Speraw
Moline Plowboys 68 58 .540 6.0 Riley Parker
Burlington Bees 64 60 .516 9.0 Art Mueller
Rock Island Islanders 61 65 .484 13.0 Clarence Roper
Waterloo Hawks 57 68 .456 16.5 Dick Manchester / Babe Thomas
Davenport Blue Sox 53 73 .421 21.0 Ed Reichle / Cletus Dixon
Dubuque Tigers 51 74 .408 22.5 Preston Gray /
Ed Hendee / Elmer Peters

Playoffs: None Scheduled

Player Statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Riley Parker Moline BA .374 Gil Paulsen Burlington W 19
Pep Young Keokuk Runs 125 John Ziegler Cedar Rapids W 19
Dick Esrey Moline Hits 176 Al Gizelbach Burlington SO 185
Malcolm Pickett Moline HR 13 Gil Paulsen Burlington ERA 2.21
Fred Newton Rock Island PCT .750 12-4

1932 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Davenport Blue Sox 78 47 .624 -- Cletus Dixon
Rock Island Islanders 70 56 .556 8.5 George Young/ Riley Parker
Burlington Bees 69 60 .535 11.0 Art Mueller / Jack Tesar
Keokuk Indians 67 61 .523 12.5 Bob Rice
Cedar Rapids Bunnies 65 60 .520 13.0 Paul Speraw
Moline Plowboys 55 66 .455 21.0 Ernie Lorbeer
Waterloo Hawks 52 73 .416 26.0 Doc Bennett
Dubuque Tigers 47 80 .370 32.0 Clarence Roper / Dave Lamb

Playoffs: Rock Island 4 games, Davenport 2.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Brown Braley Keokuk BA .374 Fred Newton Davenport W 20
Harold Patchett Moline Runs 90 Ed Linke Davenport SO 228
Thomas Leonard Rock Island Hits 163 Fred Newton Davenport Pct .800; 20-5
Lawrence Wilbanks Moline HR 9
William Mizeur Cedar Rapids RBI 86

1933 Mississippi Valley League
schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Davenport Blue Sox 82 32 .719 - Cletus Dixon
Rock Island Islanders 64 53 .547 19.5 Riley Parker
Peoria Tractors 62 53 .539 20.5 Paul Speraw / Frank Murphy
Quincy Indians 53 59 .473 28.0 Joe Klugmann
Springfield Senators 43 70 .381 38.5 Clay Hopper
Keokuk Indians 40 77 .342 43.5 Ed Sicking / Ray Caldwell

Playoffs: Davenport 4 games, Rock Island 1

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Como Cotelle Davenport BA .407 Al Piechota Davenport W 19
George Meyer Davenport Runs 130 Ray Harrell Quincy SO 193
Simon Rosenthal Quincy Hits 166 Al Hollingsworth Rock Island ERA 3.11
Ed Hall Davenport HR 28 Torsten Lengquist Davenport PCT .833 10-2
Ed Hall Davenport RBI 151

[4]

References

  1. ^ "Minor League Presidents | MiLB.com History | The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com.
  2. ^ "1922 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  3. ^ "1923 Mississippi Valley League | Baseball-Reference.com". Baseball-Reference.com.
  4. ^ a b c d The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball. Lloyd Johnson & Miles Wolff, editors (Third ed.). Baseball America. 2007. ISBN 978-1932391176.((cite book)): CS1 maint: others (link)
  5. ^ "1924 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  6. ^ "1925 Mississippi Valley League | Baseball-Reference.com". Baseball-Reference.com.
  7. ^ "1926 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  8. ^ "1927 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  9. ^ "1928 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  10. ^ "1929 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  11. ^ "1930 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  12. ^ "1931 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  13. ^ "1932 Mississippi Valley League | Baseball-Reference.com". Baseball-Reference.com.
  14. ^ "1933 Mississippi Valley League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  15. ^ "Top 100 Teams | MiLB.com History | The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com.
  16. ^ "Mississippi Valley League (D) Encyclopedia and History". Baseball-Reference.com.
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