Glens Falls Tigers

• Location: Glens Falls, NY
• League: Eastern League
• Affiliate: Detroit Tigers 1986-1988
• Ballpark: East Field Stadium
• Famous Alumni: John Smoltz, Ken Hill, Lenny Harris, Chris Hoiles

In 1986 the Eastern League team in Glens Falls, NY changed affiliations from the Chicago White Sox to the Detroit Tigers and promptly changed their name from the Glens Falls White Sox to the Glens Falls Tigers. They went 67-71 their first season and had two players on the EL's post-season All-Star Team: C Rey Palacios hit .252/~.363/.416 and led the team in runs (66), doubles (20), homers (16), RBI (66) and walks (81) while P Steve Searcy was 11-6 with a 3.30 ERA and a league-best 139 strikeouts. Bob Schaefer was the manager.

The next year's edition was the worst in the Eastern League. Those Tigers were just 58-79, 28 1/2 games behind the Pittsfield Cubs. Manager Tom Burgess was fired and replaced by a two-manager team of Tom Gamboa and Paul Felix. 19-year-old righty John Smoltz was voted the 9th-best prospect in the league despite a horrible season in which he went 4-10 with a 5.68 ERA and walked almost as many as he fanned (81:86 in 130 innings). Doug Strange made the All-Star team at third after a .302/~.348/.469 campaign.

In 1988 the Tigers were the top team in the league with an 80-57 record, but fell to the Albany Yankees in the playoffs. John Wockenfuss was the manager. The club led the EL in runs (by almost 100) and posted the second-lowest ERA as well. Chris Hoiles, in his second season with the team, made the All-Star Team at catcher after hitting .283/~.381/.500 and tying Jim Wilson for the league home run lead with 17. OF Rob Richie was named MVP of the EL and the #3 prospect in the circuit by Baseball America after hitting .309/~.384/.469. Richie led the league in hits (155), total bases (235) and RBI (82). Joining Richie and Hoiles on the All-Star Team was pitcher Cesar Mejia, who was named Eastern League Pitcher of the Year. Mejia was 14-5 with a 2.43 ERA and led the circuit in shutouts (4). THe only pitcher with a better ERA was Glens Falls reliever Paul Wenson, who threw 115 innings out of the bullpen in 49 games. Wenson was 8-5 with 5 saves and a 2.04 ERA.

In 1989 the franchise was moved closer to Detroit and was placed in London, ON. The London Tigers drew more fans in their first seasons than the Glens Falls Tigers had drew in any two years combined.

Year-by-Year Record

Year	Record	Finish	Manager	Playoffs	Hitting Coach	Pitching Coach
1986	67-71	4th	Bob Schaefer	Lost in 1st round		John Hiller
1987	58-79	8th	Tom Burgess (45-69) / Tom Gamboa / Paul Felix / Tom Gamboa
1988	80-57	1st	John Wockenfuss	Lost in 1st round		Jeff Jones