Montreal Royals
Montreal Royals 1896–1960 Montreal, Quebec | |||
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| League | International League (1928–1960) | ||
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Previous parks | Delorimier Downs | ||
The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team in Montreal, Quebec, from 1897–1917 and 1928–60. A member of the International League, the Royals were the top farm club (Class AAA) of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1939; pioneering African-American player Jackie Robinson was a member for the 1946 season. The 1946 Royals were recognized as one of the 100 greatest minor league teams of all time.[3]
Contents
1 History
2 Titles
3 Montreal Royals records
4 Montreal Royals managers
5 Notable former players
6 References
History
1948 Team
Delorimier Stadium, seen here in 1950, was the home of the Montreal Royals.
In 1928, George Stallings, a former Major League Baseball executive and Southern United States planter, formed a partnership with Montreal lawyer and politician Athanase David and businessman Ernest Savard to resurrect the Montreal Royals. Among the team's other local affluent notables were close friends Lucien Beauregard, Romeo Gauvreau, Hector H. Racine, and Charles E. Trudeau. Trudeau, businessman and father of future Prime Minister of Canada Pierre Trudeau, would remain on the Montreal Baseball Club Inc. Board of Directors until his death in 1935.[4] Together these men financed and built Delorimier Stadium (also known as Montreal Stadium, Hector Racine Stadium and Delorimier Downs) [5] at Delorimier Avenue and Ontario Street in east-end Montreal to serve as the team's home field.
This version of the Montreal Royals enjoyed great success, particularly after it became the top farm team of the Dodgers in 1939. The Royals launched the baseball careers of Sparky Anderson, Gene Mauch, Roberto Clemente and the man who broke Major League Baseball's color barrier with Montreal in 1946, Jackie Robinson. Other Royals' players of note include Duke Snider, Don Drysdale, Chuck Connors, Walter Alston, Roy Campanella, Johnny Podres and the winningest pitcher in the history of the team, Tommy Lasorda.[6]
The team holds a unique place in baseball history for being the first major-league affiliate to break the so-called "baseball color barrier". On October 23, 1945, two members of the Brooklyn National League Baseball Club Inc. Board of Directors, Montreal Royals owner and team president, Hector Racine, and Brooklyn Dodgers general manager, Branch Rickey, signed Jackie Robinson, an African-American.[7][8] Robinson played with the Royals during the 1946 season. John Wright and Roy Partlow, black pitchers, also played with the Royals that year.[9]
During that season, Robinson faced the race-related resistance from his manager (a Mississippian, Clay Hopper) and teammates but soon won them over with his masterful play (beginning with his spectacular debut in the opening game against the Jersey City Giants) and courage facing hostile crowds and opponents. As for his home city, he was welcomed immediately by the public, who followed his performance that season with intense adoration. For the rest of his life, Robinson remained grateful to the people of Montreal for making the city a welcoming oasis for him and his wife during that difficult 1946 season. They lived in an apartment in a white neighborhood of Montreal that summer.[10]
Statue at Montreal's Olympic Stadium of the Royals' most famous player, Jackie Robinson made by sculptor Jules Lasalle.
Robinson then left to play for the Dodgers the following year, but not before winning the Little World Series and being chased by exultant Montreal fans right to the train as he left. In Ken Burns' documentary film Baseball, the narrator quotes Sam Maltin, a stringer for the Pittsburgh Courier: "It was probably the only day in history that a black man ran from a white mob with love instead of lynching on its mind."
The Royals continued through the 1960 season, two years after the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles. On September 13, 1960 Dodgers President Walter O'Malley announced that due to weak attendance, the Dodgers were ending their 21-year affiliation with the team. While a new affiliation with the Minnesota Twins was arranged, efforts to keep the team in Montreal failed, and the franchise was relocated to Syracuse, New York for 1961, where it has played as the Syracuse Chiefs since. Montreal would gain an MLB team, the Expos, in 1969; "Royals" was suggested as a nickname for that team but was taken instead by the new American League club in Kansas City.
Titles
The Royals won the Governors' Cup, the championship of the IL, 7 times, and played in the championship series 11 times. For more details on their playoff history, please see Montreal Royals Accomplishments.
- 1935 – Lost to Syracuse
- 1941 – Defeated Newark
- 1945 – Lost to Newark
- 1946 – Defeated Syracuse
- 1948 – Defeated Syracuse
- 1949 – Defeated Buffalo
- 1951 – Defeated Syracuse
- 1952 – Lost to Rochester
- 1953 – Defeated Rochester
- 1954 – Lost to Syracuse
- 1958 – Defeated Toronto
Montreal Royals records
Royals and Jackie Robinson memorial at former location of Delorimier Stadium.
| Year | Wins | Losses | Percentage | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1897 | 49 | 76 | .392 | 7th |
| 1898 | 68 | 48 | .586 | 1st |
| 1899 | 62 | 51 | .549 | 2nd |
| 1900 | 54 | 72 | .429 | 7th |
| 1901 | 65 | 67 | .492 | 6th |
| 1902 | 59 | 77 | .434 | 6th |
| 1903 | 37 | 95 | .280 | 7th |
| 1904 | 67 | 62 | .519 | 5th |
| 1905 | 56 | 80 | .412 | 6th |
| 1906 | 57 | 83 | .407 | 7th |
| 1907 | 46 | 85 | .351 | 8th |
| 1908 | 64 | 75 | .461 | 5th |
| 1909 | 68 | 83 | .450 | 6th |
| 1910 | 71 | 80 | .470 | 5th |
| 1911 | 72 | 80 | .474 | 5th |
| 1912 | 71 | 81 | .467 | 6th |
| 1913 | 74 | 77 | .490 | 5th |
| 1914 | 60 | 89 | .403 | 7th |
| 1915 | 67 | 70 | .489 | 5th |
| 1916 | 75 | 64 | .539 | 3rd |
| 1917 | 56 | 94 | .373 | 7th |
| 1928 | 84 | 84 | .500 | 5th |
| 1929 | 88 | 79 | .527 | 4th |
| 1930 | 96 | 72 | .571 | 3rd |
| 1931 | 85 | 80 | .515 | 4th |
| 1932 | 90 | 78 | .536 | 4th |
| 1933 | 81 | 84 | .490 | 6th |
| 1934 | 73 | 77 | .487 | 6th |
| 1935 | 92 | 62 | .597 | 1st |
| 1936 | 71 | 81 | .467 | 6th |
| 1937 | 82 | 67 | .550 | 2nd |
| 1938 | 69 | 84 | .451 | 6th |
| 1939 | 64 | 88 | .421 | 7th |
| 1940 | 80 | 80 | .500 | 5th |
| 1941 | 90 | 64 | .584 | 2nd |
| 1942 | 82 | 71 | .536 | 2nd |
| 1943 | 76 | 76 | .500 | 4th |
| 1944 | 73 | 80 | .477 | 6th |
| 1945 | 95 | 58 | .621 | 1st |
| 1946 | 100 | 54 | .649 | 1st |
| 1947 | 93 | 60 | .608 | 2nd |
| 1948 | 94 | 59 | .614 | 1st |
| 1949 | 84 | 70 | .545 | 3rd |
| 1950 | 86 | 67 | .562 | 2nd |
| 1951 | 95 | 59 | .617 | 1st |
| 1952 | 95 | 56 | .629 | 1st |
| 1953 | 89 | 63 | 586 | 2nd |
| 1954 | 88 | 66 | .571 | 2nd |
| 1955 | 95 | 59 | .617 | 1st |
| 1956 | 80 | 72 | .526 | 4th |
| 1957 | 68 | 86 | .442 | 8th |
| 1958 | 90 | 63 | .588 | 1st |
| 1959 | 72 | 82 | .468 | 6th |
| 1960 | 62 | 92 | .403 | 8th |
Montreal Royals managers
| Year(s) | Name |
|---|---|
| 1897 | George Weidman |
| 1897–1902 | Charles Dooley |
| 1903 | Gene DeMontreville |
| 1904 | Charlie Atherton |
| 1904 | Ed Barrow |
| 1905–1906 | James Bannon |
| 1906–1907 | Malachi Kittridge |
| 1907 | James Morgan |
| 1908–1909 | Doc Casey |
| 1910 | Ed Barrow |
| 1911 | Edward J. McCafferty |
| 1912 | Billy Lush |
| 1912–1914 | Kitty Bransfield |
| 1914–1917 | Dan Howley |
| 1928 | George Stallings |
| 1928–1932 | Ed Holly |
| 1932–1933 | Doc Gautreau |
| 1933–1934 | Oscar Roettger |
| 1934–1936 | Frank Shaughnessy |
| 1936 | Harry Smythe |
| 1937–1938 | Walter "Rabbit" Maranville |
| 1938 | Alex Hooks |
| 1939 | Burleigh Grimes |
| 1940–1942 | Clyde Sukeforth |
| 1943 | Fresco Thompson |
| 1944–1945 | Bruno Betzel |
| 1946–1949 | Clay Hopper |
| 1950–1953 | Walter Alston |
| 1954 | Max Macon |
| 1955–1957 | Greg Mulleavy |
| 1957 | Al Campanis |
| 1957 | Al Ronning |
| 1957 | Tommy Holmes |
| 1958–1960 | Clay Bryant |
Notable former players
Joe Altobelli - World Series-winning manager
Roy Campanella - Major League Baseball Hall of Famer
Roberto Clemente - Major League Hall of Famer
Chuck Connors - Major League first baseman and pinch-hitter
Don Drysdale - Major League Hall of Famer
George Gibson – Major League catcher and manager
Jim Gilliam - Major League infielder
Al Gionfriddo - Major League outfielder
Carl Furillo - Major League outfielder[11]
Tommy Lasorda - Major League Hall of Famer
Sam Nahem - Major League pitcher
Don Newcombe - Major League pitcher
Goody Rosen – Major League All Star outfielder
Jackie Robinson – Major League Hall of Famer
Duke Snider - Major League Hall of Famer
References
Notes
^ "1938 Montreal Royals". Baseball Reference. Retrieved November 23, 2015..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ "1937 Montreal Royals". Baseball Reference. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
^ "Top 100 Teams". MiLB.com. 2001. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
^ "Canadian Broadcasting Corporation : Charles Trudeau ownership". CBC News.
^ Baseball Reference: Delorimier Downs
^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2006-08-24. Retrieved 2006-08-25.CS1 maint: Archived copy as title (link)
^ General Baseball History: Baseball's Negro Leagues
^ Society for American Baseball Research: Quebec
^ Hill, Benjamin (2007-02-14). "Forgotten members of the 'great experiment': Roy Partlow, John Wright lost in Dodgers' 1946 Minor League integration". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved 2009-03-17.
^ "US to honor Robinson's Montreal home". FOXSports.com. Associated Press. February 27, 2011. Retrieved 2011-02-27.... the apartment the couple called home in the summer of 1946.
^ Reed, Ted (2011). Carl Furillo: Brooklyn Dodgers All-Star. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co. pp. 21–24. ISBN 978-0-7864-4709-1.
Sources
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Brown, William (foreword by Ken Singleton) Baseball's Fabulous Montreal Royals (1996) Robert Davies Publishing
ISBN 1-895854-64-4
