The St. Croix Downeasters were a minor league baseball team based in Calais, Maine in partnership with neighboring St. Stephen, New Brunswick. In 1913, the Downeasters played as members of the Class D level New Brunswick-Maine League. The league folded during the season, with the Downeasters in third place.[1] The Downeasters hosted minor league home games at Athletic Field in Calais, Maine.
| St. Croix Downeasters | |
|---|---|
| Minor league affiliations | |
| Class | Class D (1913) |
| League | New Brunswick-Maine League (1913) |
| Major league affiliations | |
| Team | None |
| Minor league titles | |
| League titles (0) | None |
| Team data | |
| Name | St. Croix Downeasters (1913) |
| Ballpark | Athletic Field (1913) |
History
editMinor league baseball began in Calais, Maine in 1913, when the St. Croix Downeasters became charter members of the four–team Class D level New Brunswick-Maine League. The Bangor Maroons, Fredericton Pets and St. John Marathons teams joined the Downeasters in beginning play on June 8, 1913.[1][2]
The team use of the "St. Croix" portion of their nickname ties with local history. Locally, the Saint Croix River separates Calais, Maine and St. Stephen, New Brunswick. The "Downeasters" moniker corresponds to the Downeast nickname for the region, which derived from sailing terminology.[3][4][5][6]
After beginning the season schedule, the New Brunswick-Maine League permanently folded on August 23, 1913.[7] The St. Croix Downeasters were in third place with a record of 31–30 when the New Brunswick-Maine League folded. The Downeasters were managed by Ernest Doyle as St. Croix finished 8.0 games behind the first place Fredericton Pets in the final standings. In the overall final standings, the St. Croix Downeasters finished behind Fredericton (41–24) and the second place Saint John Marathons (41–29) and ahead of the fourth place Bangor Maroons (18–48) in the 1913 New Brunswick-Maine League standings.[3][8][9] St. Croix pitcher Billy Lee led the New Brunswick-Maine League with 118 strikeouts.[3]
The New Brunswick-Maine League did not return to play in 1914 and never reformed.[3]Calais, Maine and St. Stephen, New Brunswick have not hosted another minor league team.[10]
The ballpark
editThe 1913 St. Croix Downeasters were noted to have played minor league home games at Athletic Field. The ballpark was reportedly located Between Calais Avenue & Lafayette Street in Calais, Maine. The referenced location corresponds to the site of today's Thomas DiCenzo Athletic Complex, which includes ballfields.[11][12]
Year–by–year record
edit| Year | Record | Finish | Manager | Playoffs/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1913 | 31–30 | 3rd | Ernest Doyle | League folded August 23 |
| Source: [3] | ||||
Notable alumni
edit- Merwin Jacobson (1913)
- Billy Lee (1913)
- Pat Parker (1913)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "1913 New Brunswick-Maine League (NBML)". StatsCrew.com.
- ^ "1913 New Brunswick-Maine League". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ a b c d e Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 978-1932391176.
- ^ "DOWN EAST English Definition and Meaning". Lexico. Archived from the original on February 27, 2021.
- ^ "Sharks Downeast". St. Croix Historical Society.
- ^ Worth, Richard (21 February 2013). Baseball Team Names: A Worldwide Dictionary, 1869-2011. McFarland. p. 52. ISBN 9780786491247. Retrieved 2021-11-28 – via Google Books.
- ^ "1913 New Brunswick-Maine League Standings". StatsCrew.com.
- ^ "1913 Calais-St. Stephen Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "1913 St. Croix Downeasters Statistics". StatsCrew.com.
- ^ "St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "Athletic Field in Calais, ME minor league baseball history and teams". StatsCrew.com.
- ^ "Students Continue to Improve Calais Athletic Complex". Washington County Community College.