Minor league baseball team
The Dallas–Fort Worth Spurs were an American minor league baseball team in the Texas League from 1965–1971.[ 1] The team played in Turnpike Stadium in Arlington, Texas .[ 2]
The Spurs were created when the Triple-A Dallas Rangers moved to Vancouver, British Columbia , in 1965 .[ 3] With the opening of Turnpike Stadium, the Double-A Texas League's Fort Worth Cats , an affiliate of the Chicago Cubs , moved into the new venue and adopted the regional Dallas-Fort Worth designation and the Spurs nickname.[ 2]
The Spurs were affiliated with the Cubs (1965–1967),[ 4] Houston Astros (1968)[ 5] and Baltimore Orioles (1969–1971).[ 6] [ 7]
As a Cubs' affiliate, the Spurs groomed future Major League players Don Kessinger ,[ 4] Chuck Hartenstein ,[ 4] Joe Niekro ,[ 8] Fred Norman [ 8] and Bill Stoneman .[ 9] The club's one season in the Houston organization was lean in terms of prospects, with Fred Stanley and Danny Walton enjoying the longest big-league careers.[ 5] During their affiliation with Baltimore, the Spurs featured Don Baylor ,[ 6] Bobby Grich ,[ 6] Enos Cabell [ 7] and Wayne Garland ,[ 7] along with managers Cal Ripken Sr. [ 7] and Joe Altobelli [ 6] and batboy Cal Ripken Jr.
The Spurs set many Texas League attendance records, especially after Turnpike Stadium expanded to a capacity of 20,500 in 1970.[ 10] The Dallas-Fort Worth area was considered a prime location for an expansion team or a re-located franchise. Indeed, Turnpike Stadium had been built specifically to attract a major-league team to the Metroplex. That dream nearly came to fruition when the National League expanded in 1969 . But the league instead expanded to Montreal , with the Expos .[ 11]
Two years later, the struggling Washington Senators received American League permission to transfer to the area in 1972 as the Texas Rangers ,[ 12] who moved into Turnpike Stadium (expanded and renamed Arlington Stadium ).[ 13]
Yearly record
References
^ Franchise History since 1902 Archived 2008-10-06 at the Wayback Machine at texas-league.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. 12/30/09
^ a b The History of Baseball in Fort Worth at fwcats.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. Archived August 25, 2009, at the Wayback Machine 12/30/09
^ Pacific Coast League (AAA) Encyclopedia and History at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. Archived 12/30/09
^ a b c "1965 Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs" . Baseball Reference. Retrieved 15 May 2018 .
^ a b "1968 Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs" . Baseball Reference. Retrieved 15 May 2018 .
^ a b c d 1969 Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs Archived 2012-04-16 at the Wayback Machine at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. 12/30/09
^ a b c d 1971 Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs Archived 2013-09-18 at the Wayback Machine at baseball-reference.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. 12/30/09
^ a b "1966 Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs" . Baseball Reference. Retrieved 15 May 2018 .
^ "1967 Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs" . Baseball Reference. Retrieved 15 May 2018 .
^ A look at historic stadiums in Dallas-Fort Worth area at pe.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. Archived December 31, 2009, at archive.today 12/30/09
^ The Team That Nearly Wasn’t: The Montreal Expos Archived 2009-01-16 at the Wayback Machine by Maury Brown at hardballtimes.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. 12/30/09
^ Historical Moments Archived 2010-01-06 at the Wayback Machine at sportsencyclopedia.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. 12/30/09
^ Arlington Stadium at ballparks.com, URL accessed December 30, 2009. Archived 2010-01-02 at the Wayback Machine 12/30/09