The Pennsylvania State League was an American minor league baseball sports league that operated from 1892 to 1895, then became the first Atlantic League. The league member teams were exclusively based in Pennsylvania.
| Classification | Independent (1892–1895) |
|---|---|
| Sport | Minor League Baseball |
| First season | 1892 |
| Ceased | 1895 |
| Replaced by | Atlantic League |
| President | J. Monroe Kreiter (1892) Henry B. Diddlebock (1893) E.K. Meyers (1894) A.L. Johnson (1894) John H. Hanlon (1894–1895) |
| No. of teams | 6 |
| Country | United States of America |
| Most titles | 1 Wilkes-Barre Coal Barons (1892) Johnstown Terrors (1893) Pottsville Colts (1894) Hazleton Quay-kers (1895) |
Cities represented
edit- Allentown, PA: Allentown Colts 1892–1893; Allentown Kelly's Killers 1894; Allentown Goobers 1895; Allentown 1895
- Altoona, PA: Altoona 1892; Altoona Mud Turtles 1893; Altoona 1894
- Ashland, PA: Ashland 1894
- Carbondale, PA: Carbondale Anthracites 1895
- Danville, PA: Danville 1892–1893
- Easton, PA: Easton Dutchmen 1893–1894; Easton 1894
- Harrisburg, PA: Harrisburg Hustlers 1893; Harrisburg Senators 1894–1895
- Hazleton, PA: Hazleton Barons 1894; Hazleton Quay-kers 1895
- Johnstown, PA: Johnstown Johnnies 1892; Johnstown Terrors 1893
- Lancaster, PA: Lancaster Chicks 1894–1895
- Lebanon, PA: Lebanon Pretzel Eaters 1892
- Philadelphia, PA: Philadelphia Colts 1894
- Pottsville, PA: Pottsville Colts 1894–1895
- Reading, PA: Reading Actives 1892; Reading Actives 1893–1895; Reading 1895
- Scranton, PA: Scranton Miners 1892–1893; Scranton Indians 1894
- Shenandoah, PA: Shenandoah 1894; Shenandoah Huns 1895
- Wilkes-Barre, PA: Wilkes-Barre Coal Barons 1892
- York, PA: York White Roses 1893
Standings and statistics
edit1892 Pennsylvania State League
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wilkes-Barre Coal Barons | 24 | 9 | .727 | – | James Randall |
| Allentown Colts | 24 | 12 | .667 | 1.5 | John Hanlon |
| Altoona Colts | 23 | 15 | .606 | 3.5 | Alexander Donahue |
| Johnstown Johnnies | 21 | 15 | .583 | 4.5 | Thayer Torreyson |
| Danville | 9 | 22 | .290 | 14.0 | NA |
| Scranton Miners | 5 | 26 | .161 | 18.0 | NA |
| Reading Actives | 8 | 11 | .445 | NA | NA |
| Lebanon Pretzel Eaters | 4 | 8 | .333 | NA | Bill Sharsig |
Lebanon and Reading disbanded.
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Coleman | Lebanon | BA | .362 | George Shaffer | Altoona | Hits | 99 | |
| George Shaffer | Altoona | Runs | 60 | Jack Drauby | Wilkes-Barre | Runs | 60 |
1893 Pennsylvania State League
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Easton | 70 | 36 | .660 | – | Jay Faatz |
| Johnstown Terrors | 62 | 39 | .614 | 5.5 | Thayer Torreyson |
| Altoona Mud Turtles | 57 | 41 | .582 | 9.0 | Alexander Donahue |
| Allentown Colts | 57 | 46 | .563 | 11.5 | John Hanlon |
| Harrisburg Hustlers | 49 | 52 | .485 | 18.5 | Felix Marks |
| York White Roses | 51 | 55 | .481 | 19.0 | William Stevens / Bill Sharsig |
| Scranton Miners | 45 | 57 | .441 | 23.0 | Martin Swift |
| Danville / Reading Actives |
16 | 81 | .165 | 49.5 | Art McCoy / Elias Maier / William Whitman |
Danville (5–47) moved to Reading July 7.
Playoff: Johnstown 3 games, Easton 2. Easton refused to continue the series.
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fred Betts | Easton | BA | .402 | John Lyston | Altoona/Harrisburg | W | 24 | |
| Herman Pitz | Scranton | Runs | 127 | Jack Fee | Scranton/Allentown | SO | 134 | |
| Fred Betts | Easton | Hits | 150 | Henry Miller | Harrisburg | Pct | .762: 16-5 | |
| Scoops Carey | Altoona | HR | 10 | John Slagle | Easton | Pct | .762: 16-5 | |
| Ace Stewart | Easton | HR | 10 |
1894 Pennsylvania State League
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pottsville Colts | 62 | 44 | .585 | 0 | Phenomenal Smith |
| Harrisburg Senators | 56 | 45 | .554 | 3.5 | Jack Huston |
| Reading Actives | 61 | 50 | .550 | 3.5 | William Whitman |
| Allentown Kelly's Killers / Easton Dutchmen / Ashland |
53 | 46 | .535 | 5.5 | King Kelly / John Milligan |
| Hazleton Barons | 53 | 53 | .500 | 9 | Bill Sharsig |
| Scranton Indians / Shenandoah | 55 | 55 | .500 | 9.0 | Jim Brennan |
| Altoona / Lancaster Chicks | 51 | 54 | .486 | 10.5 | A.T. Bentley / Jim Donahue |
| Easton Dutchmen / Philadelphia Colts | 40 | 74 | .351 | 26.0 | Bill Parks / Charlie Levis |
Easton (8–36) moved to Philadelphia July 4; Altoona (17–31) moved to Lancaster July 7; Scranton (45–28) was replaced by Shenandoah August 12; Allentown (53–29) was replaced by Easton August 16; Easton (0–8) moved to Ashland Sept. 1.
Playoff: Pottsville defeated Harrisburg in a disputed title game.
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Walters | Allentown | BA | .383 | Bill Massey | Scranton/Philadelphia | Hits | 176 | |
| Tom Golden | Pottsville | Runs | 145 | Henry Cole | Altoona/Lancaster | HR | 21 |
1895 Pennsylvania State League
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hazleton Quay-kers | 61 | 44 | .581 | – | Bill Sharsig |
| Carbondale Anthracites | 55 | 48 | .533 | 5.0 | M. Swift |
| Lancaster Chicks | 49 | 54 | .476 | 11.0 | A.T. Bentley |
| Pottsville Colts / Allentown/ Reading |
44 | 64 | .407 | 18.5 | Phenomenal Smith |
| Allentown Goobers | 29 | 28 | .509 | NA | John Milligan |
| Reading | 37 | 27 | .578 | NA | William Whitman |
| Harrisburg Senators | 19 | 16 | .543 | NA | Frank Seiss / Jim Donahue |
| Shenandoah Huns | 1 | 14 | .067 | NA | Jim Brennan / Charlie Levis |
Shenandoah disbanded May 20; Harrisburg disbanded June 20; Reading disbanded July 20; Allentown disbanded July 24; Pottsville (35–33) moved to Allentown July 27; Allentown (5–7) moved to Reading August 10.
Playoff: None Scheduled
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Milligan | Allentown/Reading | BA | .457 | Bill Massey | Carbondale | Hits | 174 | |
| Gus Moran | Hazleton | Runs | 139 |
Sources
editThe Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball: Second Edition.