Florida International League

From BR Bullpen

The Florida International League operated from 1946 through 1954 with teams in the big cities in Florida (Miami, Tampa, St. Petersburg) plus a team in Havana, Cuba. The league was

rated as class C for its first three years then upgraded to class B. Due to the low altitudes, the league was usually dominated by pitchers. In 1952 Gil Torres and Billy Harris each had ERAs under 1. In 1946 when the Cuban Team became a member of the Florida League it made them the first Cuban Team to play in the United States Minor Leagues. The Cuban team showed their talent by winning the League Championship, five straight years, 1946 through 1950. The team also won the play-off title four out of those five years. The Cuban Teams entry in the league made it a true International League. The league was not international in 1954 when Havana left to join the International League. The Florida International League was a stable league as only ten different cities were members during the eight year run.

Contents 1 Cities Represented 2 Team Statistics & Class 2.1 Class C 1946-47-48 2.2 Class B 1949-50-51-52-53-54 3 League Records 1946-1954 4 Hall of Fame Alumni 5 Source

[edit] Cities Represented

• Fort Lauderdale, FL: Fort Lauderdale Braves 1947-1952; Fort Lauderdale Lions 1953
• Havana, Cuba: Havana Cubans 1946-1953
• Key West, FL: Key West Conchs 1952
• Lakeland, FL: Lakeland Pilots 1946-1950; Lakeland Patriots 1951; Lakeland Pilots 1952
• Miami, FL: Miami Sun Sox 1946; Miami Tourists 1947-1948; Miami Sun Sox 1949-1954; Greater Miami Flamingos 1954
• Miami Beach, FL: Miami Beach Flamingos 1946-1952; Miami Beach Flamingos 1954
• St. Petersburg, FL: St. Petersburg Saints 1947-1954
• Tallahassee, FL: Tallahassee Rebels 1954
• Tampa, FL: Tampa Smokers 1946-1954
• West Palm Beach, FL: West Palm Beach Indians 1946-1954

[edit] Team Statistics & Class

[edit] Class C 1946-47-48

1946 Class C
President: Wayne Allen

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Managers
Havana Cubans #	76	41	.650	0	Oscar Rodriguez
Tampa Smokers	76	55	.580	7	Vin Grannell / Frank Pare
Miami Beach Flamingos	64	64	.500	17.5	Max Rosenfeld
West Palm Beach Indians	58	64	.475	20.5	Herb Thomas
Lakeland Pilots	53	74	.417	28	Ray Hunt / Bill Purrin
Miami Sun Sox	53	82	.393	32	Paul Waner

#Havana lost 17 wins due to using an excessive number of class men.

Playoffs: Tampa 3 games, Miami Beach 0; West Palm 3 games, Havana 2.
Finals: Tampa 4 games, West Palm 2.

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Norm Brown	Tampa	BA	.381		Chet Covington	Tampa	W	28
Norm Brown	Tampa	Runs	110		Chet Covington	Tampa	SO	260
Norm Brown	Tampa	Hits	195		Chet Covington	Tampa	ERA	1.66
Nanny Fernandez	Tampa	RBI	79		Roy Valdes	Havana/West Palm	HR	7

1947 Class C
President: Wayne Allen

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Attend	Managers
Havana Cubans	105	45	.700	0	264,813	Oscar Rodriguez
Tampa Smokers	104	48	.684	2	130,242	Tony Cuccinello
Miami Beach Flamingos	88	65	.575	18.5	89,000	Al Leitz
Miami Tourists	74	77	.490	31.5	132,429	Dave Coble /Charles Baron(ovic)
St. Petersburg Saints	71	80	.470	34.5	114,197	Jimmie Foxx / Lou Finney
West Palm Beach Indians	68	86	.442	39	60,473	Harry Hughes
Lakeland Pilots	50	101	.331	55.5	41,926	Bill Perrin
Fort Lauderdale Braves	48	106	.312	59	54,403	Jimmy Zinn / Walter Kopp

Playoffs: Havana 3 games, Miami 2; Tampa 3 games, Miami Beach 0;
Finals: Havana 4 games, Tampa 0;

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Lamar Murphy	Tampa	BA	.354		Connie Marrero	Havana	W	25
Bitsy Mott	Tampa	Runs	124		Connie Marrero	Havana	SO	251
Manuel Hidalgo	Havana	Hits	200		Connie Marrero	Havana	ERA	1.66
Ned Harris	West Palm	RBI	120		Ned Harris	West Palm	HR	34

1948 Class C
President: Wayne Allen

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Attend	Managers
Havana Cubans	97	57	.630	0	205,967	Oscar Rodriguez
Tampa Smokers	84	67	.556	11.5	101,257	Joe Abreu /Jack Russell
Lakeland Pilots	82	72	.532	15	57,752	Bill Perrin / Chuck Aleno
St. Petersburg Saints	78	73	.517	17.5	137,947	Lou Finney
Miami Tourists	75	78	.490	21.5	107,268	Howard Ermisch / Bill Perrin
West Palm Beach Indians	70	83	.458	26.5	73,443	Rudy Laskowski / Mike Schemer
Miami Beach Flamingos	69	82	.457	26.5	78,742	Harry Chozen / Hector Valle
Fort Lauderdale Braves	55	98	.359	41.5	58,588	Madjeski / Kopp / Miller

Playoffs: Havana 3 games, Lakeland 0; Tampa 3 games, St Petersburg 2;
Finals: Havana 4 games, Tampa 3;

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Louis Vezilich	Tampa	BA	.356		Antonio Lorenzo	Havana	W	23
Tommy Bridges	Miami	Runs	119		Antonio Lorenzo	Havana	SO	275
Bryan Howell	Lakeland	Hits	190		Connie Marrero	Havana	ERA	1.67
Fred Bell	St. Petersburg	RBI	111		Bernardo Fernandez	West Palm	HR	28

[edit] Class B 1949-50-51-52-53-54

1949 Class B
President: Phil O'Connell

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Attend	Managers
Havana Cubans	95	57	.625	0	226,293	Oscar Rodriguez
Miami Sun Sox	87	62	.584	6.5	170,466	Pepper Martin
Miami Beach Flamingos	81	70	.536	13.5	90,682	Joe Medwick
Tampa Smokers	81	72	.529	14.5	105,549	Travis Jackson / Wes Ferrell
West Palm Beach Indians	74	78	.487	21	81,132	Lou Finney
Fort Lauderdale Braves	65	88	.425	30.5	66,544	Chuck Aleno
St. Petersburg Saints	62	86	.419	31	108,397	Hoag / Sullivan / Beazley / Porter
Lakeland Pilots	60	92	.395	35	50,108	Johnny Rizzo

Playoffs: Havana 3 games, Miami Beach 2; Tampa 3 games, Miami 1;
Finals: Tampa 4 games, Havana 0;

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Bill Conroy	Miami Beach	BA	.359		Connie Marrero	Havana	W	25
Carlos DeSouza	Tampa	Runs	116		Connie Marrero	Havana	SO	167
Ted Cieslak	Ft. Lauderdale	Hits	196		Chet Covington	Tampa	ERA	1.46
Art Rebel	Tampa	RBI	115		Chuck Aleno	Ft. Lauderdale	HR	31

1950 Class B
President: Phil O'Connell

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Attend	Managers
Havana Cubans	101	49	.673	0	168,419	Oscar Rodriguez
Miami Sun Sox	98	55	.641	4.5	160,450	Pepper Martin
Tampa Smokers	85	60	.586	13.5	80,626	Art Rebel
Miami Beach Flamingos	77	72	.517	23.5	47,278	Jerry Crosby / Jimmy Outlaw
Fort Lauderdale Braves	70	80	.467	31	60,919	Chuck Aleno
West Palm Beach Indians	67	85	.441	35	57,078	Charlie Small / Rudy Laskowski
Lakeland Pilots	57	93	.380	44	42,588	Charlie Cuellar / William Ankoviak
St. Petersburg Saints	43	104	.293	56.5	77,115	Porter / Cadore / Pruett

Playoffs: Havana 3 games, Tampa 0; Miami 3 games, Miami Beach 0;
Finals: Miami 4 games, Havana 1;

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Chuck Aleno	Ft. Lauderdale	BA	.314		Labe Dean	Miami	W	24
Manuel Hidalgo	Havana	Runs	106		Antonio Lorenzo	Havana	SO	177
Manuel Hidalgo	Havana	Hits	188		Julio Moreno	Havana	ERA	1.47
Jack Tanner	Lake/Ft.La	RBI	101		Jack Tanner	Lake/Ft. La	HR	27

1951 Class B
President: Phil O'Connell

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Attend	Managers
Tampa Smokers	90	50	.643	0	92,449	Ben Chapman
St. Petersburg Saints	83	56	.597	6.5	139,464	Art Rebel
Miami Sun Sox	77	61	.568	12	128,107	Pepper Martin
Lakeland Patriots	71	68	.511	18.5	81,878	Roy Hughes
Havana Cubans	68	71	.489	21.5	83,051	Dolf Luque
Miami Beach Flamingos	66	74	.471	24	42,194	Buzz Dozier
West Palm Beach Indians	64	75	.460	25.5	64,425	Rudy Laskowski / Mel Held
Fort Lauderdale Braves	38	102	.271	52	32,739	Brown / Goosetree / Aleno

Playoffs: St. Petersburg 3 games, Lakeland 2; Miami 3 games, Tampa 1;
Finals: St. Petersburg 4 games, Miami 0;

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Ted Cieslak	Lakeland	BA	.332		Woody Rich	St. Petersburg	W	25
Carlos Bernier	Tampa	Runs	124		Hooks Iott	ST. Petersburg	SO	273
Frank Smith	West Palm	Hits	162		Hooks Iott	St. Petersburg	ERA	2.00
Earle Brucker	Miami	RBI	90		Jack Tanner	Ft. Lauderdale	HR	19

1952 Class B
President: Henry S. Baynard

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Attend	Managers
Miami Sun Sox	104	48	.684	0	121,203	Max Macon
Miami Beach Flamingos	103	49	.678	1	57,533	Pepper Martin
Tampa Smokers	85	68	.556	19.5	75,608	Joe Medwick /Oscar Rodriquez
St. Petersburg Saints	84	70	.545	21	91,390	Dozier / Held / Herring
Havana Cubans	76	77	.497	28.5	81,463	Fermin Guerra
West Palm Beach Indians	68	85	.444	36.5	60,725	Billy Holm / Bill Harris
Lakeland Pilots	51	103	.331	54	43,909	Rip Sewell / Bud Bates
Fort Lauderdale # / Key West	40	111	.265	63.5	44,482	Joe Lutz

#Ft Lauderdale was taken over by the league June 1, then moved to Key West June 20.
Playoffs: Miami 3 games, Tampa 2; Miami Beach 3 games, St. Petersburg 2;
Finals: Miami 4 games, Miami Beach 3;

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Jesse Levan	Miami Beach	BA	.334		Billy Harris	Miami	W	25
Vince Gonzales	Tampa	Runs	93		Hooks Iott	ST. Petersburg	SO	210
Jesse Levan	Miami Beach	Hits	192		Billy Harris	Miami	ERA	0.83
Jesse Levan	Miami Beach	RBI	87		Bill Wilson	ST. Petersburg	HR	15

1953 Class B
President: Phil O'Connell

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Attend	Managers
Fort Lauderdale Lions	92	46	.667	0	61,330	Pepper Martin
Miami Sun Sox	76	58	.567	14	67,572	Doc Alexson
St. Petersburg Saints	72	62	.537	18	33,385	Bill Herring /William Seal
Havana Cubans	63	69	.477	26	23,460	Armando Marsans
West Palm Beach Indians	57	80	.416	34.5	52,077	Whitey Platt / Bill Harris
Tampa Smokers	46	91	.336	45.5	39,234	Ben Chapman /Art Rebel

Playoffs: Ft. Laudedale 3 games, Havana 1; St. Petersburg 3 games, Miami 0;
Finals: Ft. Lauderdale 4 games, St. Petersburg 2.

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Jim Williams	Ft. Lauderdale	BA	.336		Billy Harris	West Palm	W	18
Johnny Davis	Ft. Lauderdale	Runs	117		Hal Brown	Ft. Lauderdale	SO	151
Jesse Levan	Ft. Lauderdale	Hits	175		Hooks Iott	St. Petersburg	ERA	1.99
Johnny Davis	Ft. Lauderdale	RBI	136		Johnny Davis	Ft. Lauderdale	HR	35

1954 Class B
President: Dale Miller

Team Name	W	L	PCT	GB	Attend	Managers
St. Petersburg Saints	64	37	.634	0	30,759	Rudy Laskowski
Miami Beach/Miami#	63	39	.618	1.5	14,407	Pepper Martin
West Palm Beach	47	51	.480	15.5	23,247	Gil Torres
Tallahassee Rebels	22	76	.224	40.5	12,151	George/Meriwether/Doolittle/Harvey/Cuellar
Miami Sun Sox ##	13	12	.520	NA	1,773	Doc Alexson
Tampa Smokers ##	17	11	.607	NA	6,134	Art Rebel

##Tampa & Miami disbanded May 5.
#Miami Beach moved to Miami May 22.
The League disbanded July 27.

Player	Team	Stat	Tot		Player	Team	Stat	Tot
Jesse Levan	Miami/Miami	BA	.348		Stan Milankovich	St. Petersburg	W	18
Bill Wilson	St. Petersburg	Runs	96		Bobby Hines	Miami/Miami	SO	95
Jesse Levan	Miami/Miami	Hits	130		Bill Tosheff	St. Pete/Tampa	ERA	2.61
Bill Wilson	St. Petersburg	RBI	109		Jesse Levan	Miami/Miami	HR	23

[edit] League Records 1946-1954

Batting
Player	Team	Stat	Tot	Yr		Player	Team	Stat	Tot	Yr
Bitsy Mott	Tampa	RUNS	124	47		Norm Brown	Tampa	BA	.381	46
Byron Bridges	Miami	AB	643	48		Manuel Hildago	Havana	HITS	200	47
Johnny Davis	Ft. Lauderdale	RBI	136	53		Gil Torres	Havana	2B	44	48
Carlos Bernier	Tampa	3B	21	51		Johnny Davis	Ft. Lauderdale	HR	35	53
Peter Kantor	Lakeland	STR	26	48		George Spears	Tampa	SAC	27	49
Carlos DeSouze	Tampa	SB	58	49		Gene Hassell	St. Petersburg	BB	143	53
Willard Davis	Miami	SO	120	53

Pitching
Player	Team	Stat	Tot	Yr		Player	Team	Stat	Tot	Yr
Antonio Garcia	Lakeland	GA	57	47		Chet Covington	Tampa	W	28	46
Charles Miller	Ft. Laud	L	23	48		Charles Morant	Miami Bea	PCT	.938 15-1	52
Bill Harris	Miami	ERA	0.83	52		Gil Torres	Miami	ERA	0.86	52
William Stanton	Miami	IP	339	48		Vincent Lopez	Miami	WS	17	50
Bill Harris	Miami	ShO	12	52		Gil Torres	Miami	Sho	12	52
Antonio Lorenzo	Havana	SO	275	48		Leonard Goicoechea	St. Pete	BB	178	48

[edit] Hall of Fame Alumni

• Jimmie Foxx, 1947 St. Petersburg Saints
• Joe Medwick, 1949 Miami Beach Flamingos; 1952 Tampa Smokers
• Paul Waner, 1946 Miami Sun Sox

All three after their major league experience.

[edit] Source

The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball: Second Edition
User created Image not original

• [1] Article on the Florida International League in The Harball Times.