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Kankakee Kanks
Minor league affiliations
ClassClass D (1910, 1912–1914)
LeagueNorthern Association (1910)
Illinois-Missouri League (1912–1914)
Major league affiliations
TeamNone
Minor league titles
League titles (0)None
Team data
NameKankakee Kays (1910)
Kankakee Kanks (1912–1914)
BallparkKankakee State Hospital (1910,1912–1914)

The Kankakee Kanks were a minor league baseball team located in Kankakee, Illinois. Kankakee teams played a member of the Class D level Northern Association in 1910, playing as the Kankakee "Kays" and the Illinois-Missouri League from 1912 to 1914. The Kankakee teams hosted home minor league games on the grounds of the Kankakee State Hospital.

Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Casey Stengel played for the 1910 Kankakee Kays, beginning his first professional season.

History

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Northern Association 1910

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Minor league baseball began in Kankakee, Illinois in 1910, when the Kankakee Kays team became charter members of the Class D level Northern Association. The Clinton Teddies, Decatur Commodores, Elgin Kittens, Freeport Pretzels, Jacksonville Jacks, Joliet Jolly-ites and Muscatine Pearl Finders teams Joined Kankakee as the charter members of the eight–team league, which began play on May 10,1910.[1][2]

In their first season of minor league play, the Kankakee franchise folded during the season. On July 11, 1910, the Kankakee Kays were in third place with a 34–24 record under manager Dan Collins when the franchise disbanded. The Elgin Kittens franchise disbanded on the same day. Less than a week later, the Northern Association completely disbanded on July 17, 1910.[3][1]

Casey Stengel

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Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Casey Stengel made his professional debut for the Kays, playing his first professional game in the season opener on May 10, 1910. At age 19, Stengel hit .251 with one home run, playing in 59 games for Kankakee. [4][5][6]

In talking about playing in Kankakee Casey Stengel said, "We did not draw (fans) and getting paid was quite an adventure." Stengel claimed he had received only half of his $135 per month check when Kankakee had folded in July 1910. Years later, at his birthday party in 1956, the Kankakee Federal Savings and Loan Association presented Stengel with a check. The check was for $483.05, calculated off the original $67.50 owed, plus interest accrued over 46 years. Stengel donated the gift to the Kankakee Little League.[7]

Illinois–Missouri League 1912 to 1914

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After the Kankakee Kays folded following the 1910 season, minor league baseball returned for the 1912 season. On May 16, 1912, the Clinton Champs from Clinton, Iowa, members of the Illinois-Missouri League, moved the franchise to Kankakee with a 2–5 record.[1][8] The Mississippi River flood of 1912 corresponds with the Clinton franchise relocation that year.[9]

Playing the remainder of the 1912 season as the Kankakee Kanks, the team compiled a record of 54–51 while based in Kankakee. The Clinton/Kankakee team finished with an overall record of 56–56, placing fourth in the 1912 Illinois-Missouri League playing under managers Claude Suttles and Fred Wilson. The Kanks joined Illinois–Missouri League members Canton Highlanders, Champaign Velvets, Lincoln Abes, Pekin Celestials and Streator Speedboys in 1912 league play.[1][10][11]

Continuing play in the 1913 Illinois–Missouri League, the Kanks finished in third place. With a 35–51 record under manager Red Kelly, Kankakee finished the season 23.5 games behind the first place Lincoln Abes in the six–team league final standings.[12] A.J. Holtzhouser of Kankakee led the Illinois-Missouri League with 118 total hits.[1][13]

In their final season of minor league play, the 1914 Kankakee Kanks folded before the end of the season.[14] On July 3, 1914, Kankakee had a record of 14–33 when the franchise permanently disbanded. At the time they folded, Kankakee was 17.5 games behind the first place Lincoln Abes, who folded the same day. Kankakee played in 1914 under managers Harry Randall, Gene Connelly, Teddy Raines and William Hinley. The Illinois–Missouri League finished the 1914 season without the Kankakee and Lincoln teams.[15][16][1][17]

The Illinois–Missouri League permanently disbanded after the 1914 season.[1] Kankakee, Illinois has not hosted another minor league team.[18]

Kankakee State Hospital. Kankakee, Illinois

The ballpark

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Kankakee minor league teams played home games at the ballpark adjacent to the Kankakee State Hospital. The ballpark had hosted a game featuring the Leland Giants against a hospital sponsored team in 1907. Because of the ballpark location, patients at the hospital could watch games from the hospital windows. Today, the hospital location is 100 E. Jeffery Street.[6][19][20][21]

Timeline

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Year(s) # Yrs. Team Level League Ballpark
1910 1 Kankakee Kays Class D Northern Association Kankakee State Hospital
1912–1914 3 Kankakee Kanks Illinois-Missouri League
Casey Stengel - New York Yankees - 1957

Year–by–year records

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Year Record Finish Manager Playoffs/notes
1910 34–24 3rd Dan Collins League folded July 17
1912 54–51 4th Claude Suttles / Fred Wilson No playoffs held
1913 35–351 3rd Red Kelly No playoffs held
1914 14–33 2nd Harry Randall / Gene Connelly
Teddy Raines / William Hinley		 Team folded July 3

Notable alumni

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See also

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Kankakee Kanks players
Kankakee Kays players

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 978-1932391176.
  2. ^ "1910 Northern Association (NA) Minor League Baseball on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  3. ^ "1910 Kankakee Kays Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  4. ^ "Casey Stengel Minor & Cuban Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com.
  5. ^ "This Day in History | MiLB.com History | The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com.
  6. ^ a b Montville, Leigh (April 21, 2017). "The Lunatic in Cooperstown". Wall Street Journal – via www.wsj.com.
  7. ^ Casey Stengel: Baseball's Greatest Character, by Marty Appel. Random House LLC, New York(2017) p,23. ISBN 978-1-101-91174-7.
  8. ^ "1912 Clinton Champs/Kankakee Kanks minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  9. ^ Brown, Robert M. (1912). "The Mississippi River Flood of 1912" (PDF). Bulletin of the American Geographical Society. 44 (9): 645–657. doi:10.2307/200812. JSTOR 200812.
  10. ^ "1912 Illinois-Missouri League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  11. ^ "1912 Illinois-Missouri League (IIL) Minor League Baseball Standings on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  12. ^ "1913 Illinois-Missouri League (IIL) Minor League Baseball Standings on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  13. ^ "1913 Kankakee Kanks Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  14. ^ "1914 Kankakee Kanks Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  15. ^ "1913 Kankakee Kanks Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  16. ^ "1914 Kankakee Kanks Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  17. ^ "1914 Illinois-Missouri League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  18. ^ "Kankakee, Illinois Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com.
  19. ^ "Kankakee State Hospital (Historic Asylums)". sites.rootsweb.com.
  20. ^ "Hall of Famer Rube Foster's Kankakee connection". 7 December 2019.
  21. ^ Montville, Leigh (21 April 2017). "The Lunatic in Cooperstown". Wall Street Journal.
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