








1939 Season |
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The fourth AFL season started with lots of changes: Virgil Trucks was gone, having been sent to Beaumont in the Texas League to test his skills at a higher level. Also gone was former league president George Grant. Grant was fed up with the criticism he received in his handling of the Dothan playoff dispute from the previous season and he resigned. Yam Yaryan, the rotund catcher, manager, and fan favorite of the Andalusia Bulldogs accepted a managing job with the Gadsden Pilots of the Class B Southeastern League. The AFL named Charles T. Laney as their new president. Laney had worked under George Grant prior to his appointment, and he was a logical choice to take over the presidency. His first task as League Prexy was to stabilze two weak franchises: The Union Springs Springers had folded after the 1938 season and in it's place, a franchise was awarded to tiny Tallassee, Alabama. The Evergreen Greenies franchise, which was poorly run from the beginning also folded. New ownership was found just a short drive up Highway 31 in Greenville, Alabama. Tallassee was an interesting choice for an AFL franchise, being only 20 miles Montgomery and their popular Class B Montgomery Rebels of the Southeastern League. The Indians, as the Tallassee team was called, took advantage of their proximity to the state capital and negotiated a farm team deal with the Rebels. Both teams thought that there would be a mutual benefit in that fans could follow the progress of Indians that moved up or Rebels that moved down a notch. The Indians started slowly, struggling to stay out of the cellar, but scratched their way up the league table after free spirit manager Ross "Rosy" Gilhousen was relieved of his managerial duties and allowed to concentrate on playing outfield. Tommy Kane became the new manager. Under Kane, Tallassee started to gel. As July began, the Indians had managed to get within sight of league leading Dothan. On July 15th, the Browns and Indians squared off at Tallassee in a game which would determine not only the league leadership, but the host the upcoming All Star game. A crowd estimated between 4000 and 5000 came to see the game and honor manager Kane, who was given credit for the amazing resurgence. The Indians lost, 13-3, but continued to play well throughout the rest of the season, finishing a close second to Dothan. The Indians carried their hot streak right into the playoffs, where they bested Troy. Andalusia beat Dothan in the other first round playoff, setting up an Andalusia-Tallassee finale. The series went all seven games with Tallassee taking the final game for the playoff championship. The Indians' 1939 season performance would be the beginning of a short but successful run.. |
When folks from other areas of the country
see the name Tallassee, they inevidibly transpose it into Tallahassee,
as in the Florida capital. If you've done this yourself,
you're in good company: The Sporting News annual baseball
guides from the 50's and 60's all credit Tallahassee as
the 1939 AFL champions. Major leaguers playing in the AFL in
1939: Ed Borom and Bob Ferguson of Tallassee, Royce Lint of Andalusia,
and Max Rosenfeld of Panama City, and former major leaguers Ernie
Wingard of Dothan and Paul Karlow of Greenville. The Greenville franchise was owned and managed by Paul Kardow, who pitched for Cleveland in 1936. Kardow soon realised he was in over his head and went back to just being just a pitcher. He finished the season at Greenville....South Carolina. The Panama City Pelicans forfeited a
game in July (the forfeit was later overruled and ordered replayed
by Laney) because their bus broke down on the way to Andalusia
in an area of rural Alabama where there were no phones.
The team was unable to let the Rams or the league know they
were stranded. The Pelicans would disband after the season, ending
the Florida part of the Alabama - Florida League until their
return in 1951. The league would adopt the new name, the
Alabama State League, in 1940. Luman Harris of Atlanta in the Southern League won a game with only one pitch. The pitch resulted in a bases-loaded fly out with two outs in the 9th. Atlanta won the game in the bottom of the 9th. George Jansco of Jackson (Miss) in the Southeastern League, hits 65 doubles. |
| 1939 Season |
Won |
Lost |
Tie |
PCT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dothan | 74 | 54 | 1 | .578 |
| Tallassee | 73 | 56 | 0 | .566 |
| Andalusia | 70 | 59 | 1 | .543 |
| Panama City | 63 | 64 | 1 | .496 |
| Troy | 62 | 68 | 0 | .477 |
| Greenville | 44 | 85 | 1 | .341 |
| 1939 Shaugnnessey Playoffs |
|---|
| Tallassee defeated Panama City: 3 games to 2, 1 tie |
| Andalusia defeated Dothan, 3 games to 2 |
| Tallassee defeated Andalusia 4 games to 3 |
| Team Name | Managers | Batting Leader | Home Run Leader | RBI Leader | Wins Leader | Losses Leader | ERA Leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andalusia Rams | Bruner Nix | Paul Armstrong .337 | Emmett Manderson 13 | Paul Armstrong 91 | Harry Durheim 17 | Harry Durheim 11 | John Koneff 2.84 |
| Dothan Browns | Ernie Wingard | Ernie Wingard .359 | Ernie Wingard 18 | Ernie Wingard 137 | Jow Beaugez 15 | Joe Beaugez 14 | Charleston Jones 2.50 |
| Greenville Lions | Paul Kardow / Howard Taylor / Charlie Richards | Ralph Morris .300 | Ralph Morris 15 | Emory Lindsey 74 | Paul Mainous 11 | Paul Mainous 14 | Paul Mainous 3.84 |
| Panama City Pelicans | Max Rosenfeld | Forrest Austin .318 | Woody Davis 11 | Woody Davis 111 | Jim Titcomb 12 | Jim Titcomb / Floyd Celey 12 | Forrest Austin 4.21 |
| Tallassee Indians | Ross Gilhousen / Tommy Kane | Cotton Goodell .348 | Cotton Goodell 16 | Malcolm DeWeese 84 | Les Butcher 17 | Les Butcher 9 | Bob Ferguson 3.75 |
| Troy Trojans | Holt Milner | Holt Milner .381 | Bruce Middlebrooks 20 | Holt Milner 119 | Pershing Henderson 14 | Pershing Henderson 14 | Tom Head 2.97 |
| Team Offense | G | AB | R | H | 2 | 3 | HR | TB | AVG | SH | BB | RBI | SB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tallassee | 129 | 4348 | 703 | 1251 | 200 | 39 | 63 | 1718 | .288 | 141 | 457 | 636 | 144 | 526 |
| Troy | 130 | 4455 | 781 | 1255 | 221 | 37 | 104 | 1862 | .282 | 115 | 515 | 689 | 106 | 573 |
| Dothan | 129 | 4529 | 825 | 1271 | 223 | 75 | 56 | 1812 | .281 | 93 | 601 | 747 | 126 | 586 |
| Andalusia | 130 | 4271 | 708 | 1164 | 185 | 54 | 55 | 1622 | .273 | 108 | 553 | 598 | 174 | 637 |
| Panama City | 128 | 4300 | 736 | 1175 | 194 | 57 | 47 | 1624 | .273 | 121 | 560 | 647 | 140 | 581 |
| Greenville | 130 | 4308 | 610 | 1118 | 213 | 27 | 48 | 1529 | .260 | 87 | 471 | 540 | 59 | 574 |
| 1939 Hitting Leaders | Name | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Runs Scored | Jim Cox | Dothan | 126 |
| Hits | Ernie Wingard | Dothan | 180 |
| Doubles | Jim Cox | Dothan | 35 |
| Triples | Woody Davis | Panama City | 19 |
| Home Runs | Bruce Middlebrooks | Troy | 20 |
| Sacrifices | Ed Borom | Tallassee | 19 |
| Bases On Balls | Jim Cox | Dothan | 104 |
| RBIs | Ernie Wingard | Dothan | 137 |
| Stolen Bases | Perrin Shoemaker | Tallassee | 31 |
| Strikeouts | Elmer Bohannon | Troy | 81 |
| Batting Average | Holt Milner | Troy | .381 |
| 1939 Pitching Leaders | Name | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Les Butcher | Tallassee | 39 |
| Innings | Joe Beaugez | Dothan | 253 |
| Wins | Charleston Jones | Dothan | 19 |
| Loses | Joe Beaguez Pershing Henderson Paul Mainous Ed Kramer |
Dothan Troy Greenville Troy |
14 |
| Win Percentage | John Koneff | Andalusia | .909 |
| Strikeouts | Pershing Henderson | Troy | 175 |
| ERA | Charleston Jones | Dothan | 2.50 |
| Runs | Pershing Henderson | Troy | 173 |
| Earned Runs | Pershing Henderson | Troy | 120 |
| Bases On Balls | Pershing Henderson | Troy | 155 |
| Hits | Joe Beaugez | Dothan | 270 |
| Hit Batsmen | Les Butcher | Tallassee | 13 |
| Wild Pitches | Pershing Henderson | Troy |