# Eastern Illinois League

The Eastern Illinois League was a Class-D league in Minor League Baseball that existed during the 1907 and 1908 baseball seasons. The league president as of 1907 was L. A. G. Shoaff. According to the 1908 Spalding Guide, the league got its start in Pana, IL and the league's "godfather" was Joe Adams, also known as "Old Wagon Tongue." In 1907, teams had a salary limit of $600.

## Cities represented

* Centralia, Illinois: Centralia White Stockings (1907)
* Charleston, Illinois: Charleston Broom Corn Cutters (1907); Charleston Evangelists (1908)
* Danville, Illinois: Danville Speakers (1908)
* Linton, Indiana: Linton (1908)
* Mattoon, Illinois: Mattoon Giants (1907-1908)
* Pana, Illinois: Pana Coal Miners (1907-1908)
* Paris, Illinois: Paris Colts (1907); Paris Parisians (1908)
* Shelbyville, Illinois: Shelbyville Queen Citys (1907-1908)
* Staunton, Illinois: Staunton Speakers (1908)
* Taylorville, Illinois: Taylorville Tailors (1907-1908)
* Vincennes, Indiana: Vincennes Alices (1908)

## Standings & statistics
### 1907 Eastern Illinois League

President: Charles Welvert / L.A.G. Schoaff
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
| Mattoon Giants | 74 | 24 | .627 | -- | Hank O'Day |
| Charleston Broom Corn Cutters | 71 | 49 | .592 | 4.0 | Nig Langdon |
| Taylorville Tailors | 60 | 58 | .508 | 14.0 | Phil Ketter / Mike Ryan |
| Centralia White Stockings / Paris Colts | 51 | 67 | .432 | 23.0 | Red Kelly / Bob Shaw |
| Pana Coal Miners | 51 | 70 | .421 | 24½ | Joe Adams |
| Shelbyville Queen Citys | 50 | 69 | .420 | 24½ | J.B. Young |
Centralia (6-27) moved to Paris June 20.
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| Phil Ketter | Taylorville | BA | .284 |
| Bill Bartley | Charleston | Runs | 51 |
| Phil Ketter | Taylorville | Hits | 111 |
| Andy Lotshaw | Charleston | HR | 10 |
| Grover Lowdermilk | Mattoon | W | 33 |
| Grover Lowdermilk | Mattoon | SO | 458 |
| Grover Lowdermilk | Mattoon | ERA | 0.93 |

### 1908 Eastern Illinois League

President: L.A.G. Schoaff
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Managers |
| Danville Speakers / Staunton | 65 | 27 | .707 | -- | W.C. Dithridge |
| Taylorville Tailors | 56 | 39 | .589 | 10½ | Mike Ryan |
| Shelbyville Queen Citys | 52 | 43 | .547 | 14½ | Joe Adams |
| Vincennes Alices | 47 | 48 | .495 | 19½ | Pop Lloyd |
| Paris Parisians | 43 | 48 | .473 | 21½ | Erickstone / Eckson / Dan Jenkins / Skipper Roberts |
| Pana Coal Miners / Linton | 25 | 70 | .263 | 41½ | Sunday Hawker / Nig Langdon / Butts |
| Mattoon Giants | 32 | 45 | .416 | NA | Lefty Russell / George Kizer |
| Charleston Evangelists | 37 | 37 | .500 | NA | Kid Madden |
#Pana (18-44) moved to Linton July 17, for the second half. Danville (42-18) moved to Staunton July 17, for the second half. Charleston and Mattoon disbanded July 30. Shelbyville disbanded August 20, causing the league to disband.
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| Art Ahring | Charleston | BA | .355 |
| Tom Fleming | Dan/Sta | Runs | 57 |
| Buck Stanley | Paris | Hits | 93 |
| Andy Biltz | Shelbyville | HR | 6 |
| Ralph Grimes | Dan/Sta | W | 19 |
| Joe Jenkins | Par/Pan/Sta | SO | 139 |
| Chet Carmichael | Vincennes | Pct | .800; 16-4 |

## Sources

The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball:Second Edition.