Syracuse Chiefs
- Location: Syracuse, NY
- League: International League 1934-1955; Eastern League 1956-1957; International League 1961-1996, 2007-2018
- Affiliation: Boston Red Sox 1934-1936; Cincinnati Reds 1937-1938; Pittsburgh Pirates 1940; Cincinnati Reds 1942-1950; Philadelphia Phillies 1954-1955; Detroit Tigers 1956; Minnesota Twins 1961; Washington Senators & New York Mets 1962; Detroit Tigers 1963-1966; New York Yankees 1967-1977; Toronto Blue Jays 1978-1996, 2007-2008; Washington Nationals 2009-2018
- Ballpark: MacArthur Stadium 1934-1996; NBT Bank Stadium 2007-2018
- Famous Alumni: Thurman Munson, Fred McGriff, Cecil Fielder, David Wells, Pat Hentgen, Tony Fernandez, Mickey Lolich, Jimmy Key, Dave Stieb, Tom Henke, Kelly Gruber, Willie Upshaw, Carlos Delgado, Ron Guidry, Denny McLain
Team History[edit]
Before 1930, Syracuse teams had almost always been the Syracuse Stars. When Syracuse re-entered the International League in 1934, they adopted the moniker "Chiefs." They used the name through 1955, when they left the league for the Eastern League. Still named the Chiefs, the team moved to Allentown, PA in 1957. When Syracuse again got a team in the IL in 1960, they were once more the Chiefs. In 1997 they finally (sort of) changed names, becoming the Syracuse SkyChiefs, although that turned out to be just a temporary change. Since 1967 the team has only been affiliated with three different major league clubs - the New York Yankees (1967-1977), Toronto Blue Jays (1978-2008) and Washington Senators (2009-present). After the 2006 season, the Syracuse team returned to the Chiefs moniker.
While the name "Chiefs" was traditionally associated with American Indians (and the team's former logo depicted a native headdress), the post-2006 variant referred to a railroad station chief, an appropriate association given the presence of railroad tracks just behind the left field fence at NBT Bank Stadium. Freight trains could be seen and heard passing by during games. One of the team's two mascots represented an old-timer station chief, dressed in the striped clothing usually associated with 19th century rail workers and the team's logo featured a locomotive.
2019 will be the first time since 1929 that "Chiefs" will not be in the name of Syracuse's nine, as the team will be called the Syracuse Mets [1].
Year-by-Year Record[edit]
Year | Record | Finish | Manager | Playoffs | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1934 | 60-94 | 7th | Andy High (28-40) / Bill Sweeney (32-54) | ||
1935 | 87-67 | 2nd | Nemo Leibold | League Champs | |
1936 | 59-95 | 7th | Nemo Leibold (27-35) / Mike Kelly (32-60) | ||
1937 | 78-74 | 3rd | Mike Kelly | Lost in 1st round | |
1938 | 87-67 | 2nd | Jim Bottomley (6-15) / Dick Porter (81-52) | Lost in 1st round | |
1939 | 81-74 | 5th | Dick Porter | ||
1940 | 71-90 | 7th | Dick Porter | ||
1941 | 70-83 | 6th | Benny Borgmann | ||
1942 | 78-74 | 3rd | Jewel Ens | League Champs | |
1943 | 82-71 | 3rd | Jewel Ens | League Champs | |
1944 | 68-84 | 8th | Jewel Ens | ||
1945 | 64-89 | 7th | Jewel Ens | ||
1946 | 81-72 | 2nd | Jewel Ens | Lost League Finals | |
1947 | 88-65 | 3rd | Jewel Ens | League Champs | |
1948 | 77-73 | 3rd | Jewel Ens | Lost League Finals | |
1949 | 73-80 | 6th | Jewel Ens | ||
1950 | 74-79 | 6th | Bruno Betzel | ||
1951 | 82-71 | 3rd | Bruno Betzel | Lost League Finals | |
1952 | 88-66 | 2nd | Bruno Betzel | Lost in 1st round | |
1953 | 58-95 | 7th | Bruno Betzel | ||
1954 | 79-76 | 4th | Skeeter Newsome | League Champs | |
1955 | 74-79 | 5th | Skeeter Newsome | ||
1956 | 62-77 | 5th | Red McQuillen (19-28) / Joe Torpey (40-46) / Frank Calo (3-3) | ||
1957 | 56-84 overall | -- | Frank Calo | -- | Syracuse moved to Allentown July 13 |
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