Greenville Spinners

Greenville Spinners
1907–1972 (1907–1912, 1919–1931, 1938–1942, 1946–1952, 1954–1955, 1961–1972) Greenville, South Carolina
Minor league affiliations
Previous classes	Class A (1961–1972) Class B (1951–1955) Class A (1946–1950) Class B (1938–1942) Class D (1931) Class B (1921–1930) Class C (1919–1920) Class D (1907–1912)
League	Western Carolinas League (1962–1972)
Previous leagues	South Atlantic League (1961–1962) Tri-State League (1951–1955) South Atlantic League (1938–1950) Palmetto League (1931) South Atlantic League (1919–1930) Carolina Association (1908–1912) South Carolina League (1907)
Major league affiliations
Previous teams	Texas Rangers (1972) Boston Red Sox (1967–1971) New York Mets (1965–1966) Milwaukee Braves (1963–1964) Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers (1947–1950, 1961–1962) Chicago White Sox (1946) Washington Senators (1939–1941)
Minor league titles
League titles	7 (1910, 1926, 1927, 1930, 1948, 1963, 1970)
Team data
Previous names	Greenville Rangers (1972) Greenville Red Sox (1967–1971) Greenville Mets (1965–1966) Greenville Braves (1963–1954) Greenville Spinners (1908–1912, 1919–1931, 1938–1942, 1946–1955, 1961–1962) Greenville Edistoes (1907)
Previous parks	Meadowbrook Park

The Greenville Spinners was a primary name of the minor league baseball teams located in Greenville, South Carolina between 1907 and 1972. Greenville teams played as members of the South Carolina League in 1907, Carolina Association (1908–1912), the South Atlantic League (1919–1930, 1946–1950 and 1961–1962), the Palmetto League in 1931, and the Tri-State League (1954–1955).

Greenville was an affiliate of the Washington Senators (1939–1941), Chicago White Sox (1946), Brooklyn Dodgers (1947–1950) and Los Angeles Dodgers (1961–1962).

Baseball Hall of Fame members Tommy Lasorda (1949) and Nolan Ryan (1966) played for Greenville teams, as did Greenville native Shoeless Joe Jackson (1908).

24 1908 Greenville Spinners Baseball Team

Greenville Spinners

A native of the Greenville, South Carolina area, Shoeless Joe Jackson played for the 1908 Greenville Spinners. Jackson hit .346 to lead the Carolina Association, while earning a salary of $75.00 a month. In August, 1908, Jackson's contract was purchased by the Connie Mack of the Philadelphia Athletics for $900.00. Jackson immediately reported to the Athletics and made his major league debut. Today, there is a museum and numerous locales honoring Jackson in Greenville.

Tommy Lasorda pitched for the Greenville Spinners in 1949 at age 21. Lasorda compiled a 7-7 record and a 2.93 ERA with 138 walks and 158 strikeouts in 178 innings for the Brooklyn Dodgers affiliate.

Greenville Braves

The team moved to the low Class A Western Carolinas League and became an affiliate of the Milwaukee Braves in 1963 and 1964 and changed their name to the Greenville Braves. This two-year affiliation was brief, but produced the 1963 playoff champions of the WCL. When the New York Mets replaced the Braves as the team's parent in 1965, the nickname was changed.

Greenville Mets

As a New York Mets affiliate, they were called the Greenville Mets during the 1965 and 1966 seasons in the Class A Western Carolinas League. This team produced future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher and strikeout king Nolan Ryan as well as another hurler, Jerry Koosman, who would go on to star on the New York Mets' 1969 "Miracle Mets" team.

Nolan Ryan pitched for the 1966 Greenville Mets in his second professional season. At age 19, Ryan had a 17–2 record with a 2.52 ERA, adding 272 strikeouts in 183 innings for Greenville. Overall, Ryan had 307 strikeouts in the minor leagues in 1966, before being called up to the New York Mets in September, 1966.

Jerry Koosman played on the 1965 club, posting a 5–11 won/lost record and an earned run average of 4.71. But Ryan dominated the 1966 Western Carolinas League in 1966. The Greenville Mets also produced future MLB players Duffy Dyer, Ed Figueroa and Dick Selma, among others.

The Mets moved to the Florida State League in 1967 and the Boston Red Sox became parents of the Greenville WCL club.

Year	Record	Finish	Attendance	Manager
1965	44–80	Eighth	30,250	Ken Deal
1966	86–40	Second	59,078	Pete Pavlick

Greenville Red Sox

The Greenville Red Sox was the name of an American minor league baseball franchise representing Greenville, South Carolina, that played for five seasons, 1967–1971, in the Class A Western Carolinas League. It played its home games at Meadowbrook Park.

When the Mets vacated Greenville after the 1966 season, the Boston Red Sox, seeking to replace the Oneonta Red Sox as its third full-season Class A farm club, took the Mets' place. The Greenville Red Sox produced future Major League Baseball players such as Rick Burleson, Cecil Cooper, Billy Conigliaro, John Curtis, Bo Díaz, Dwight Evans, Mike Garman, Mike Nagy, Don Newhauser, Ben Oglivie and Dick Pole during their five years of existence. The team won one league championship, in 1970. Attendance ranged between 41,000 and 59,000 – in the middle to lower tier of WCL franchises of the time.

When Red Sox decided to trim their farm system for 1972 – they had two other full-season Class A affiliates, the Winston-Salem Red Sox and the Winter Haven Red Sox – the Texas Rangers replaced them in Greenville, and renamed the team.

Year	Record	Finish	Attendance	Manager
1967	59–61	Third	43,053	Matt Sczesny
1968	68–54	Third	59,368	Matt Sczesny
1969	56–68	Sixth	52,991	Bill Slack
1970	77–52	First	46,245	Rac Slider
1971	62–63	Third	41,402	Rac Slider

Later teams

The Greenville Rangers played in Greenville only for the 1972 season and no team called the city home until the new version of the Greenville Braves moved to town in 1984 as a member of the Southern League. That team left town after the 2004 season and became the Mississippi Braves. The Capital City Bombers then moved in for the 2005 season, first as the Greenville Bombers and then the Greenville Drive.

Notable Greenville alumni

Baseball Hall of Fame alumni

• Tommy Lasorda (1949) Inducted, 1997

• Nolan Ryan (1966) Inducted, 1999

Notable alumni

• Tim Blackwell (1971)

• Rocky Bridges (1948) MLB All-Star

• Rick Burleson (1971) 4 x MLB All-Star

• Cecil Cooper (1969) 5 x MLB All-Star

• Como Cotelle (1940)

• John Curtis (1969)

• Bo Diaz (1971) 2 x MLB All-Star

• Duffy Dyer (1966)

• Dwight Evans (1970) 8 x Gold Glove; 3 x MLB All-Star

• Cito Gaston (1964) MLB All-Star; Manager: 2 x World Series Champion – Toronto Blue Jays (1992–1993)

• Oscar Grimes (1950) MLB All-Star

• Jerry Koosman 91965) 2 x MLB All-Star

• Clem Labine (1947) 2 x MLB All-Star

• Pepper Martin (1947) 4 x MLB All-Star

• Ray Moore (1948)

• Danny O'Connell (1948)

• Ben Oglivie (1969) 3 x MLB All-Star; 1980 AL Home Run Leader

• Sherry Robertson (1941)

• Mickey Vernon (1938) 7 x MLB All Star; 2 x NL Batting Title (1946, 1953)

• Dixie Walker (1930) 5 x MLB All-Star; 1944 NL Batting Title

• Harry Walker (1938) 2 x MLB All-Star; 1947 NL Batting Title

• Tillie Walker (1928–1929) 1918 Al Home Run Leader

External links

• Baseball Reference
• Bullpen wiki page
• Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, eds., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3d edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007.