Florida East Coast League

Florida East Coast League
ClassificationClass D (1940–1942)
Rookie (1972)
SportMinor League Baseball
First season1940
Ceased1972
PresidentJudge Gordon Lynn (1940)
J. B. Lemon (1941–1942)
No. of teams13
CountryUnited States
Most titles1
Fort Lauderdale Tarpons (1940)
Miami Beach Flamingos (1941)
Orlando Nationals (1942
Melbourne Reds (1972)
Related
competitions		Gulf Coast League

The Florida East Coast League was the name of two American minor league baseball circuits based on the Atlantic coast of Florida. The first edition of the league operated as a Class D level league from 1940 to 1942. The league reformed for the 1972 season as a Rookie level league before folding.

History

The first incarnation of the FECL was as a Class D circuit that played from 1940 through May 14, 1942. It shut its doors, along with many other minor leagues, a few months after the United States entered World War II, and, despite the postwar baseball boom, it was not revived.[1]

The second Florida East Coast League was a Rookie-class "complex league" owned and operated by Major League Baseball clubs. It existed for one season — 1972 — and was intended to provide a second Florida-based league for 18- and 19-year-old players, along with the established Gulf Coast League, which was then concentrated along the west coast of Florida. The FECL of 1972 featured four teams based at minor league training complexes in Cocoa and Melbourne.

FECL teams, 1940–1942

FECL teams, 1972

Standings & statistics

1940 to 1942

1940 Florida East Coast League

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Ft. Lauderdale Tarpons 69 40 .623 -- Herb Thomas
Hollywood Chiefs 62 47 .569 7.0 Jiggs Donahue
Miami Beach Tigers 60 51 .541 10.0 Fred Heimach
West Palm Beach Indians 52 60 .464 18.5 Cecil Downs / Joe Murff
Ft. Pierce Bombers 49 65 .430 22.5 Lance Richbourg / Ray Phelps
Miami Wahoos 42 71 .372 29.0 Max Carey

Playoffs: Ft. Lauderdale 3 games, West Palm Beach 1; Miami Beach 3 games, Hollywood 0.
Finals: Ft. Lauderdale 4 games, Miami Beach 1.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Jack Westley Ft. Laud/Hollywood BA .377 Chet Covington Hollywood W 21
Jack Westley Ft. Laud/Hollywood Runs 96 Chet Covington Hollywood SO 212
Pecky Engel West Palm/Ft.Pierce Hits 158 Gene Bearden Miami Beach ERA 1.63
Jack Westley Ft. Laud/Hollywood RBI 98 Oliver Kelly Miami HR 11
Jack Westley Ft. Laud/Hollywood HR 11 Dale Lynch Miami Beach HR 11

1941 Florida East Coast League

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
West Palm Beach Indians 84 55 .604 -- Harry Hughes
Miami Beach Flamingos 81 58 .583 3.0 Max Rosenfeld
Ft. Pierce Bombers 75 64 .540 9.0 Jim Poole
Ft. Lauderdale Tarpons 66 73 .475 18.0 Herb Thomas / Buster Kinard
Miami Wahoos 63 76 .453 21.0 Archie Martin
Cocoa Fliers 48 91 .345 36.0 Jesse Cleveland / Bill Doak

Playoffs: Miami Beach 3 games, Fort Pierce 1;West Palm Beach 3 games, Ft. Lauderdale 2.
Finals: Miami Beach 4 games, West Palm Beach 2.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
John Douglas Miami BA .385 Gibbs Miller Ft. Lauderdale W 23
John Douglas Miami Runs 111 Milt Rosenstein Miami Beach SO 238
Buster Kinard Ft. Lauderdale Hits 210 Chet Covington Ft. Pierce ERA 1.90
Buster Kinard Ft. Lauderdale RBI 123 Joe Murff Ft.Pierce HR 21

1942 Florida East Coast League schedule

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Orlando Nationals 19 9 .679 -- Robert Overstreet
Miami Beach Flamingos 17 10 .630 1.5 Max Rosenfeld
DeLand Red Hats 13 13 .500 5.0 Bill Cates
Ft. Pierce Bombers 12 14 .462 6.0 Russ Maxcy
Miami Seminoles 12 15 .444 6.5 Harry Hughes
West Palm Beach Indians 9 18 .333 9.5 Al Reitz
Ft. Lauderdale Tarpons 4 3 .571 NA Herb Thomas
Cocoa Fliers 0 4 .000 NA Burl Munsell

Playoffs: None Scheduled.
Cocoa disbanded April 21; Ft. Lauderdale disbanded May 14.
The league disbanded May 14.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Bill Hansen Ft. Pierce BA .370 Larry Baldwin Miami W 6
John Morris Orlando Runs 27 Scott Carey Orlando SO 45
Jim Milner Miami Beach Hits 38 Williard Eckenroth DeLand ERA 1.65
William Tracy DeLand RBI 23 Fred Leonhardt DeLand HR 2
Pete Burnette West Palm Beach HR 2 Armando Dominguez Orlando HR 2

1972

1972 Florida East Coast League

Team standings W L PCT GB Managers
Melbourne Reds 44 15 .746 -- Dave Pavlesic
Melbourne Twins 35 22 .614 8.0 Fred Waters
Cocoa Astros 26 30 .464 16.5 Leo Posada
Cocoa Expos 9 47 .161 33.5 Pat Daugherty

Total league attendance, 966
No playoffs Scheduled.

Player statistics
Player Team Stat Tot Player Team Stat Tot
Dave Edwards Twins BA .313 Kevin Cooney Twins W 8
Randy Bass Twins Runs 47 Paul Howlend Reds W 8
Dave Covert Reds Hits 62 Gary Myers Reds SO 58
Randy Bass Twins RBI 41 Forrest Clemmons Reds ERA 1.86
Randy Bass Twins HR 10

[3]

References

  1. ^ "Miami at bat: A history of baseball in the Magic City". The New Tropic. May 4, 2021.
  2. ^ "1972 Florida East Coast League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  3. ^ Lloyd Johnson; Miles Wolff, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 978-1932391176.
  • Johnson, Lloyd and Wolff, Miles, eds., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3d edition. Durham, N.C.: Baseball America, 2007.