Bridgeport Orators (baseball)
The Bridgeport Orators were an early minor league baseball team based in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The Bridgeport "Orators" teams played from 1895 to 1912 as members of the Connecticut State League, with the 1896 Naugatuck Valley League season included, as the league remained intact but briefly changed names.
The team became known by the unique "Orators" nickname beginning in 1895, as that was the nickname of Bridgeport team owner and manager, Baseball Hall of Fame member Jim "The Orator" O'Rourke. O'Rourke also served simultaneously as the league president for numerous seasons.
Beginning with the 1895 Bridgeport Orators season, Bridgeport hosted a minor league team in every subsequent season trough 1932, with the exception of the 1915 season that was interrupted by World War I. Aside from the Orators era, Bridgeport minor league teams played under various nicknames as members of the Southern New England League, Eastern League, Connecticut State League, Eastern Association and Eastern League.
The early Bridgeport teams won three championships in 40 seasons of play, with Jim O'Rourke leading the Orators teams to Connecticut State League championships in the 1895, 1896 and 1904 seasons.
In 1903, Jim O'Rourke and his son Jimmy O'Rourke both played for the Bridgeport Orators and became the first known father and son to play together in a professional baseball game.
Baseball Hall of Fame member Ed Walsh managed the 1920 Bridgeport Bears and made the final professional appearances of his pitching career.
The early Bridgeport teams all hosted their home minor league games at the Barnum Grounds through 1897 on property owned by P.T. Barnum. In 1898, Bridgeport began play at Newfield Park, which was built by Jim O'Rourke on property that he owned. The site still hosts baseball today.
In their final season, the 1932 Bridgeport Bears were officially a minor league affiliate of the New York Giants.
History
Early teams
Bridgeport hosted town baseball teams as early as 1866. A Bridgeport native, Jim "The Orator" O'Rourke first played for the Bridgeport Ironsides team during the 1866 season at age 15.1885: First season / Two leagues
Minor league baseball play began in Bridgeport in 1885. In their first season, the Bridgeport team played in two separated leagues during the season. The Bridgeport Giants team first became members of the independent level Southern New England League to begin the season. The Bridgeport "Giants" joined with the Hartford Babies, Meriden Maroons, New Britain and Springfield and Waterbury teams in forming the new league. The league schedule began on May 2, 1895.Bridgeport's 1885 Southern New England League season was a successful beginning, playing under manager Dan Shannon until the team left the league. On August 13, 1885, Bridgeport ended their membership in the league after compiling a 33–25 record. Bridgeton left the Southern New England League and immediately joined another league.
Leaving the Southern New England League on August 13, 1885, Bridgeport immediately became members of the Eastern League, as The Giants began Eastern League play on August 14. The Bridgeport Giants joined the Jersey City Skeeters, Lancaster Lancasters, Newark Domestics, Norfolk, Richmond Virginias, Trenton Trentonians, Washington Nationals, Waterbury and Wilmington Blue Hens teams in the league. The league had begun play on May 1. 1885. The Jersey City, Norfolk, Waterbury and Wilmington franchised did not play complete seasons in the league.
During their tenure in the Eastern League to finish the 1885 season, the Giants compiled a record of 12–17, with Dan Shannon continuing as the manager after the move to the second league. The Washington Nationals won the league championship with a 70–25 record under manager Michael Scanlon.
After their departure from the Southern New England League, the Meriden Maroons won the league title with a 42–21 record. The league Southern New England League folded and reorganized on August 21. Four league members reformed as the Connecticut State League to finish the season, with a New Haven based team beginning play. The Connecticut State League played through September 10, 1885 and Meriden had the best record at 8–2.
1886 & 1887: Eastern League
After joining the league in the middle of the prior season, the 1886 Bridgeport Giants continued play as members of the eight-team Eastern League. The league lost three members during the season and Bridgeport ended the season in fifth place with a record of 33–57. Bridgeport placed last of the five remaining teams when the season ended, as the Long Island, Meriden Maroons and Providence Grays teams folded during the season. The Newark Little Giants won the league championship with a 68–26 record.James Donnelly served as the Bridgeport player/manager during the 1885 season, batting.193 in 13 games and compiling a 3.32 ERA while pitching 19 innings in three games for his team. Bridgeton pitcher and outfielder Joe Brown threw 397 innings for Bridgeton with a 2.23 ERA and had a 13–26 record, starting 40 games with 39 complete games. Playing the outfield, Brown batted.275 with two home runs in 91 games for Bridgeton. Brown had pitched briefly in the major leagues the prior two seasons with a 4–5 overall record for the Chicago White Stockings and Baltimore Orioles, while batting.200 in a utility role.
File:Daniel Webster "Dan" Shannon, 2nd Base, Omaha Omahogs- Lambs, from the Old Judge series for Old Judge Cigarettes MET DP846338.jpg|thumb|left| Dan Shannon,Omaha Omahogs, baseball card. Shannon was a Bridgeport native who served at player/manager of the Bridgeport Giants in 1885 and 1887 before advancing to the major leagues.
Bridgeport continued hosting minor league play in the 1887 Eastern League, but folded during the season despite having a strong team. The Bridgeport Giants played the season in the six-team league with the Danbury Hatters, Hartford, New Haven Blues, Springfield and Waterbury teams joined with Bridgeport in beginning league play on Saturday, April 30, 1887. Bridgeport began the 1887 season with a strong record of 20–5, but the franchise had poor home attendance and eventually folded during the season.
The Bridgeport Giants folded on July 6, 1887, after winning the first half pennant in the league standings. Bridgeport ended their Eastern League season with an overall record of 35–15, playing the shortened season under manager Dan Shannon, who returned to the team. After Bridgeport folded, no league playoffs were held, and the league had a tumultuous season as Hartford also folded during the season. Earlier, the Springfield was "expelled" from the league on May 26, 1887. On July 20, 1887, the New Haven Blues folded from the league, which saw the remaining Danbury and Waterbury teams play through September 13.
After Bridgeport folded, the Oshkosh, Wisconsin franchise of the Northwestern League obtained Dan Shannon, Tug Wilson and Tom Lovett from Bridgeport roster. Lovett proceeded to pitch to a 20–2 record as Oshkosh won the league championship with Baseball Hall of Fame member Frank Selee as manager.
Dan Shannon was a Bridgeport native, who batted.286 with 46 stolen bases in 49 games for the Giants in 1887 before moving to play for Oshkosh. After his player/manager stint with the Bridgeport Giants, Shannon advanced to the major leagues. A second baseman, Shannon served as the player/manager for the Louisville Colonels and the Washington Statesmen. He also was a player only for the Philadelphia Athletics and the New York Giants in between his managerial stints. In 1899, while serving as the manager for the Buffalo Bisons in the International League, Shannon was fired by team ownership for "drunkenness." In 1913, Shannon died at age 48 in Bridgeport.
In his final professional season at age 28, Joe Brown returned to Bridgeport and played mostly as an outfielder while pitching in just 5 games. Brown batted.360 in 44 games in the shortened 1887 Bridgeport season.
1888: First Connecticut State League season
After folding the prior season, the Bridgeport Giants reformed, and the team joined a new league in 1888 before relocating. The franchise played their first season as members of the Connecticut State League in 1888. The 1888 Connecticut State League season was short lived. The Giants joined with the Ansonia Cuban Giants, Danbury Hatters, Meriden, Norwalk and Waterbury teams in league play, as the season began on April 25, 1888.During the Connecticut State League season, Bridgeport relocated in May and continued play after becoming the Stamford team. Stamford folded on June 27 and the league and folded for the season on July 25, 1888. The Bridgeport/Stamford was credited with a 9–9 overall record in the recorded standings as Meriden won the Connecticut State League title with a 9–3 record.
The Connecticut State League did not return to play in 1889, and Bridgeport was without a minor league team for the next six seasons.
1895: Beginning of O'Rourke Bridgeport era / League championship
The Connecticut State League reformed in the summer of 1895, with Jim O'Rourke organizing the league and serving as its president. A Bridgeport native, O'Rourke was a notable former major league player, who pursued a law degree while still continuing his baseball career. O'Rourke graduated from Yale Law School in 1887 with an LL.B.. He began practicing law in Bridgeport as time allowed between baseball commitments, With his law degree, O'Rourke became known by the nickname "Orator Jim." O'Rourke had been a major league baseball player and manager and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945. O'Rourke had worked as an umpire in 1894 wanting to stay close to baseball. But he disliked umpiring and chose to form the Bridgeport team in his hometown for the 1895 season.O'Rourke had played mostly in the outfield and sporadically around the infield while playing in the major leagues for 22 seasons, through the 1893 season. He retired with a.310 career batting average, compiling 2,639 hits, 1,208 RBIs, 62 home runs and 229 stolen bases in 1,999 career games. played with the Middletown Mansfields, Boston Red Stockings, Providence Grays, Boston Red Caps, Buffalo Bisons, New York Giants, New York Giants , New York Giants and Washington Senators. He also served as a player/manager for Buffalo in 1884 and Washington in 1893.
The 1895 Bridgeport team played as members of the four-team Connecticut State League, with O'Rourke also serving as the team's player/manager. In the era, the league was sometimes referred to as the shorter and interchangeable "Connecticut League." O'Rourke had been instrumental in forming the league for the 1895 season and reviving minor league baseball in Bridgeton and the neighboring region. The Bridgeport "Victors" were joined by the Hartford Bluebirds, Meriden Silvermen and Waterbury Brassmen in forming the Connecticut State League, and the league began play on July 2, 1895.
The 1895 season was the beginning of Jim O'Rourke owned Bridgeport teams, as he began serving as the Bridgeport player/manager, In his first season, O'Rourke led Bridgeport to the league championship in his first season with the team. The Victors were credited with an 8–3 final record, finishing 2.0 games ahead of the second place Meriden Silvermen in the final league standings.
In 1895, Harry Herbert was signed by Jim O'Rourke and began a four-year tenure with Bridgeton, becoming the first African American in the league.
Another Bridgeport native, Billy Lush played for his hometown team in 1895 at age 21. After his play with Bridgeport, Lush then made his major league debut with the Washington Senators at the end of the 1895 the season. Lush played in the major leagues through the 1904 season. Lush became the Yale College collegiate baseball coach beginning in 1905, with famed football pioneer Walter Camp as an advisor. Lush coached the 1905 Yale team to the Ivy League championship in his first season. Yale is located in nearby New Haven, Connecticut. Lush was the player/manager of the Plattsburgh minor league franchise in 1905 and 1906, where one of his players in 1906 was Baseball Hall of Fame member Eddie Collins. In February 1906, Yale extended Lush, giving him a three-year contract. Lush remained in charge of the Yale baseball team in 1906 and 1907. After leaving Yale, Lush became the basketball coach at the United States Naval Academy in the 1908–09 basketball season. In February 1909, he was rehired as Yale's baseball coach after a one-season hiatus. He remained as the baseball coach at Yale through the 1911 season. In 1916, Lush returned to Bridgeport when he purchased majority ownership in his hometown Bridgeport team from Gene McCann.