New York–Penn League

New York–Penn League

Sport	Baseball
Founded	1939
No. of teams	14
Country	USA
Most recent champion(s)	West Virginia Black Bears
Most titles	Oneonta Yankees (10)
Official website	Official Website

The New York–Penn League is a minor league baseball league which operates in the northeastern United States. It is classified as a "Short-Season A" league; its season starts in June, after major-league teams have signed their amateur draft picks to professional contracts, and ends in early September. The league is divided into the McNamara Division, the Pinckney Division, and the Stedler Division.

As of the 2015 season, the league includes teams in eight different states. In addition to New York and Pennsylvania, from which the league draws its name, the NYPL also has clubs in Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, Vermont, West Virginia, and Connecticut.

The West Virginia Black Bears are the most recent league champions, defeating the Staten Island Yankees on September 15, 2015, by a score of 3-1 to win the series 2-0. It is their first title in their first season in Morgantown and as the Black Bears.

History

Former logo

The league was founded in 1939 with the name Pennsylvania – Ontario – New York League in a hotel in Batavia, New York. This was generally shortened to PONY League. The original teams included the Batavia Clippers, Bradford Bees, Hamilton Red Wings, Jamestown Jaguars, Niagara Falls Rainbows, and Olean Oilers. The Oilers, a Brooklyn Dodgers affiliate, won both the regular-season and playoff championships.

The Hamilton Red Wings folded early in the 1956 season, and with no more teams in Ontario, the league adopted its current name in 1957. The league crossed back into Canada with the formation of the St. Catharines Blue Jays in 1986. They were joined by the Hamilton Redbirds in 1987 and the Welland Pirates in 1989, but all three clubs had moved back to the United States by 2000.

Player limits and requirements

New York–Penn League teams may have no more than 3 players on their active lists that have 4 or more years of prior combined Major League / Minor League service, with the exception of position players changing roles to become a pitcher or a pitcher changing into a position player. Teams may get to eliminate up to one year of time of Minor League service for players who have spent time on the disabled list.

By July 1 of each year, all clubs must have at least 10 pitchers.

Maximum number of players under team control is 35, 30 of those may be active, but only 25 may be in uniform and eligible to play in any given game.^[1]

Current teams

¹ Hosting 2015 New York–Penn League All-Star Game

Current team rosters

• Main article: New York–Penn League rosters

League champions by year

¹co-champions were named in 1998, as torrential rains in Central New York made both Auburn's and Oneonta's fields unplayable

²co-champions were named in 2001, as the championship series was cancelled due to the September 11th attacks with Brooklyn leading one game to none

PONY/NY–Penn League teams (1939–present)

Cities represented

(Current teams in bold)

Connecticut

• Norwich: 2010–present (5 seasons)

Maryland

• Aberdeen: 2002–present (11 seasons)

Massachusetts

• Lowell: 1996–present (17 seasons)
• Pittsfield: 1989–2001 (13 seasons)

New Jersey

• Augusta: 1994–2005 (12 seasons)

New York

• Albany: 2002–present (11 seasons)
• Auburn: 1958–1980, 1982–present (54 seasons)
• Batavia: 1939–1959, 1960–present (70 seasons)
• Binghamton: 1964–66 (3 seasons)
• Brooklyn: 2001–present (12 seasons)
• Corning: 1951–60, 1968–69 (12 seasons)
• Elmira: 1957–61, 1973–95 (28 seasons)
• Geneva: 1958–73, 1977–93 (33 seasons)
• Glens Falls: 1993 (1 season)
• Jamestown: 1939–57, 1962–1973, 1977–2014 (67 seasons)
• Hornell: 1942–57 (16 seasons)
• Little Falls: 1977–88 (12 seasons)
• Lockport: 1942–50 (9 seasons)
• Newark: 1968–79, 1983–87 (17 seasons)
• Niagara Falls: 1939–40, 1970–79, 1982–85, 1989–93 (21 seasons)
• Olean: 1939–59, 1961–66 (27 seasons)
• Oneonta: 1966–2009 (44 seasons)
• Queens: 2000 (1 season)
• Staten Island: 1999–present (14 seasons)
• Utica: 1977–2001 (25 seasons)
• Wappingers Falls: 1994–present (19 seasons)
• Watertown: 1983–98 (16 seasons)
• Wellsville: 1942–1961, 1963–65 (23 seasons)

Ohio

• Youngstown: 1999–present (14 seasons)

Pennsylvania

• Bradford: 1939–42, 1944–57 (18 seasons)
• Erie: 1954–63, 1967, 1981–93, 1995–98 (28 seasons)
• State College: 2006–present (7 seasons)
• Williamsport: 1968–72, 1994–present (24 seasons)

Vermont

• Burlington: 1994–present (19 seasons)

West Virginia

• Morgantown: 2015–present (1 season)

Ontario

• Hamilton: 1939-42, 1946–56, 1988–92 (20 seasons)
• London: 1940–42 (2 seasons)
• St. Catharines: 1986–1999 (14 seasons)
• Welland: 1989–94 (5 seasons)

New York–Penn League Hall of Fame

• Robert Julian (2013)
• Vince McNamara (2013)
• Sam Nader (2013)
• Leo Pinckney (2013)
• Robert Stedler (2013)
• John Elway (2014)
• Randy Johnson (2014)
• Charlie Wride (2014)
• Jim Leyland (2015)
• Don Mattingly (2015)
• Paul Velte (2015)

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to New York–Penn League.

• New York–Penn League