Twin Falls Cowboys

The Twin Falls Cowboys were a Class C minor league baseball team from 1939 to 1942 and 1946 to 1951 in the Pioneer League. Their affiliation was with the Seattle Rainiers in 1939, and later the New York Yankees from 1946 to 1951. The Cowboys played at Jaycee Field in Twin Falls, Idaho, located in the northeast corner of the city's Harmon Park.[1][2]

Twin Falls Cowboys
(1939–42, 1946–51)
Twin Falls, Idaho
Minor league affiliations
Previous classesClass C
Previous leagues
Pioneer League (1939–42, 1946–51)
Major league affiliations
Previous teams
Minor league titles
League titles (3)
  • 1939
  • 1947
  • 1948
Team data
Previous parks
Jaycee Field

History
1939 championship team

The Cowboys' home ballpark was constructed during the spring of 1939, as a WPA project costing $30,000.[3] The team's first Pioneer League game was played on May 2, 1939, when they lost an away game to the Pocatello Cardinals by a score of 17–1.[4] The Cowboy's first home game in Twin Falls was played on May 5, when the Cowboys again lost to the Cardinals, 6–3.[5]

Statistics for the team between the 1939 and 1949 seasons are incomplete; also, the league did not operate from 1943 to 1945 due to World War II. Records do show that the Cowboys were the Pioneer League champions three times; 1939, 1947, and 1948.[6]

The Cowboys were second in the Pioneer League in 1950, posting a 76–50 record under manager Wally Berger.[7] Ray Posipanka hit 32 home runs for the Cowboys, leading the team; Svend Jessen contributed 25 more home runs en route to posting a league leading 141 team home runs during the 136 game season.

Second baseman Don Trower took over as manager in the 1951 season, in which the Cowboys went 71–68.[7] However, the team lost its biggest offensive threat in Dick Conway, a 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) tall catcher from Lynn, Massachusetts. Conway, 19, was in his first season of professional baseball and leading the Pioneer League in home runs (12) at the time of his death. He was killed during a pre-game warm-up in Ogden, Utah, on June 29, 1951,[8] when he was struck over the heart by a throw from Trower while distracted; he died within minutes of the impact.[9]

In 1952, the Magic Valley Cowboys became Twin Falls' team in the Pioneer League; meanwhile the Boise Yankees became New York's minor league affiliate in the Pioneer League.

Season records
Season[6]Manager(s)W–LWin %FinishPlayoffsRef
1939 Eddie Leishman
Wes Schulmerich
Charles Wry		72–52.5811stchampions[10]
1940 Frank Tobin
Ray Jacobs		53–76.4116thnone[11]
1941 Andy Harrington39–90.3026thnone[12]
1942 Tony Robello51–67.4325thnone[13]
1943–45league paused due to World War II
1946 Earl Bolyard72–56.5632ndlost in finals[14]
1947 77–60.5622ndchampions[15]
1948 Charlie Metro75–51.5952ndchampions[16]
1949 78–47.6241stlost in first round[17]
1950 Wally Berger76–50.6032ndlost in finals[18]
1951 Don Trower71–68.5114thlost in finals[19]

The league did not hold playoffs in 1939; the Cowboys became champions by finishing first in league standings.[20]

All-stars
Season[21]Name & Position
1939Ernest "Ernie" Bishop, 2B
Joseph "Joe" McNamee, C
Charles Wry, P
1940Pete Hughes, OF
1947Jack Radtke, 2B
George Leyrer, OF
Charles "Chuck" Balassi, OF
Harold "Hal" Danielson, C
Walter Eads, P
Earl Bolyard, Mgr.
1948Gil McDougald, 2B
Harold "Hal" Danielson, C
Dale Maycock, P
1949Svend "Red" Jessen, 1B
Bill Renna, OF
Otto Schroeder, P
1950Svend "Red" Jessen, 1B
Ray Posipanka, 3B
Ivan Abromowitz, P
1951Vern Campbell, OF
James "Jim" Russell, P

Notable players

See also
  • Twin Falls Cowboys players

References
  1. Matthews, Mychel (January 28, 2016). "Hidden History: Twin Falls' 1st Baseball Team, the Irrigatiors". magicvalley.com. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  2. Matthews, Mychel (March 23, 2017). "Hidden History: The Cowboys baseball team". magicvalley.com. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  3. "Workers Push Ballyard Job At Twin Falls". The Salt Lake Tribune. Tribune Intermountain Service. March 26, 1939. Retrieved August 11, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  4. "Cardinals Run Wild, Cop 17-1 Contest". The Salt Lake Tribune. Tribune Intermountain Service. May 3, 1939. Retrieved August 11, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  5. "Pocatello 6, Cardinals 3". The Post-Register. Idaho Falls, Idaho. May 7, 1939. Retrieved August 11, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  6. "Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  7. "Twin Falls, Idaho Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-11-09.
  8. "Young Ballplayer Killed When Hit By Thrown Ball Prior to A Game". The Daily Standard. Sikeston, Missouri. AP. June 30, 1951. Retrieved August 15, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  9. Gorman, Robert M.; Weeks, David (2009). Death at the Ballpark: A Comprehensive Study of Game-related Fatalities of Players, Other Personnel and Spectators in Amateur and Professional Baseball, 1862-2007. McFarland & Company. ISBN 9780786452545. Retrieved 2015-11-09.
  10. "1939 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  11. "1940 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  12. "1941 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  13. "1942 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  14. "1946 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  15. "1947 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  16. "1948 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  17. "1949 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  18. "1950 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  19. "1951 Twin Falls Cowboys". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  20. "Twin Falls Cowboys Win Pioneer League". Nevada State Journal. Reno, Nevada. September 18, 1939. Retrieved August 11, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
  21. "All-Star Teams 1939-present". milb.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.

Further reading
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