# Alabama State League

The Alabama State League was a minor league baseball league that played between 1940 and 1950, with an interruption due to World War II. The Alabama State League was a Class D level league. The Alabama State League consisted of teams based exclusively in Alabama, evolving from and into the Alabama-Florida League, as that league added and reduced Florida based franchises.

## History

In 1940, the Alabama-Florida League changed its name to the Alabama State League after the Florida based Panama City Pelicans franchise folded, leaving the league with only Alabama based franchises. After two years, the league shut down due to World War II, but resumed activity in 1946. After another five years of operation, the Alabama-Florida name was brought back for the 1951 season, when the Panama City Fliers franchise joined the league. The Alabama State League was a Class D level league for its duration.
The Alabama State League began play as a six–team league in 1940, with the Andalusia Rams, Brewton Millers, Dothan Browns, Greenville Lions, Tallassee Indians and Troy Trojans as charter members.

## Cities represented

* Andalusia, AL: Andalusia Rams 1940–1941; Andalusia Arrows 1947–1950
* Brewton, AL: Brewton Millers 1940–1941, 1946–1950
* Dothan, AL: Dothan Browns 1940–1941, 1946–1950
* Enterprise, AL: Enterprise Boll Weevils 1947–1950
* Geneva, AL: Geneva Red Birds 1946–1950
* Greenville, AL: Greenville Lions 1940–1941, 1946–1948; Greenville Pirates 1949–1950
* Headland, AL: Headland Dixie Runners 1950
* Ozark, AL: Ozark Eagles 1946–1950
* Tallassee, AL: Tallassee Indians 1940–1941
* Troy, AL: Troy Trojans 1940; Troy Dodgers 1941; Troy Trojans 1946–1947; Troy Tigers 1948–1949
* Tuskegee, AL: Tuskegee Airmen 1941

## Standings & statistics

1940 Alabama State League schedule
| Team standings | W | L | GB | Pct. | Manager |
| Tallassee Indians | 84 | 45 | .651 | – | Steve Bysco |
| Greenville Lions | 71 | 59 | .546 | 13½ | Dick Luckey |
| Dothan Browns | 67 | 62 | .519 | 17 | Cat Milner |
| Troy Trojans | 66 | 63 | .512 | 18 | Ellis Johnson / Harold Fehrenbacher |
| Brewton Millers | 51 | 79 | .392 | 33½ | Yam Yaryan |
| Andalusia Rams | 49 | 80 | .380 | 35 | Bruner Nix / Oscar Mosley |
Playoffs: Greenville 3 games, Troy 2; Dothan 3 games, Tallassee 2. Finals: Dothan 4 games, Greenville 2.
Player statistics :
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| Emory Lindsey | Tallassee | BA | .350 | John Travis | Greenville | W | 20 |
| Felix Jurwiak | Dothan | Runs | 121 | Steve Bysco | Tallassee | W | 20 |
| James Persons | Tallassee | Hits | 172 | Royce Lint | Andalusia | So | 166 |
| Johnny Ostrowski | Troy | RBI | 120 | John Travis | Greenville | ERA | 3.18 |
| Gordon Goodell | Tallassee | HR | 31 |
1941 Alabama State League schedule
| Team standings | W | L | GB | Pct. | Manager |
| Dothan Browns | 79 | 40 | .664 | – | Cat Milner |
| Tallassee Indians | 75 | 45 | .625 | 4½ | Steve Bysco |
| Andalusia Rams | 60 | 60 | .500 | 19½ | Ralph McAdams |
| Brewton Millers | 49 | 68 | .419 | 29 | Lee Head |
| Troy Dodgers / Tuskegee Airmen | 48 | 71 | .403 | 31 | Pudge Powers |
| Greenville Lions | 45 | 72 | .385 | 33 | Ernie Wingard / Herb Thomas |
Troy (37–50) moved to Tuskegee July 31. Playoffs: Dothan 3 games, Andalusia 1; Tallassee 3 games, Brewton 1. Finals: Dothan 4 games, Tallassee 1.
Player statistics :
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| Luther Gunnells | Dothan | BA | .395 | Joe Rivers | Dothan | W | 20 |
| Luther Gunnells | Dothan | Runs | 143 | Francis Mannheim | Tallassee | SO | 184 |
| Ray Knowles | Tallassee | Hits | 199 | Cy Moore | Tallassee | ERA | 2.84 |
| Forrest Austin | Tallassee | RBI | 149 | Forrest Austin | Tallassee | HR | 32 |
1946 Alabama State League
| Team standings | W | L | GB | Pct. | Manager |
| Dothan Browns | 72 | 58 | .554 | – | Frank Martin |
| Geneva Red Birds | 69 | 61 | .531 | 3 | Charles Holly |
| Greenville Lions | 67 | 62 | .519 | 4½ | Dan Miller / William Anderson |
| Brewton Millers | 63 | 65 | .492 | 8 | Ben Catchings |
| Troy Trojans | 60 | 68 | .469 | 11 | Norman DeWeese |
| Ozark Eagles | 55 | 72 | .433 | 15½ | Ray Knapp / Dick Coffman |
Playoffs: Geneva 3 games, Brewton 1; Greenville 3 games, Dothan 1. Finals: Geneva 3 games, Greenville 1.
Player statistics :
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| Emil Bozick | Troy | BA | .354 | James Atkins | Geneva | W | 20 |
| Melvin Schwab | Ozark | Runs | 128 | Max Peterson | Greenville | W | 20 |
| Emil Bozick | Troy | Hits | 178 | Carl Johnson | Dothan | ERA | 2.46 |
| Harold Walther | Green/Gen | RBI | 124 | Earl Johnson | Dothan | SO | 271 |
| Harold Walther | Green/Gen | HR | 17 | Melvin Schwab | Ozark | HR | 17 |
1947 Alabama State League schedule
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Attend | Managers |
| Greenville Lions | 90 | 48 | .652 | – | 40,000 | Sam Demma |
| Brewton Millers | 78 | 59 | .569 | 11½ | 42,000 | Norman Veazey |
| Enterprise Boll Weevils | 77 | 61 | .558 | 13 | 53,000 | Ben Catchings |
| Dothan Browns | 69 | 70 | .496 | 21½ | 50,000 | Frank Martin / Woody Coombs Emory Lindsey |
| Andalusia Arrows | 67 | 71 | .486 | 23 | 62,000 | Robert Engle |
| Ozark Eagles | 65 | 74 | .468 | 25½ | 45,000 | Dolly Lambert |
| Troy Trojans | 58 | 80 | .420 | 32 | 37,000 | Bob Benish |
| Geneva Red Birds | 49 | 90 | .353 | 41½ | 35,000 | Jimmy Francoline / Francis Welker |
Playoffs: Greenville 4 games, Enterprise 3; Brewton 4 games, Dothan 3. Finals: Greenville 4 games, Brewton 3.
Player statistics :
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| Perry Roberts | Greenville | BA | .389 | Max Peterson | Greenville | W | 27 |
| Ben Catchings | Enterprise | Runs | 126 | Max Peterson | Greenville | SO | 266 |
| Perry Roberts | Greenville | Hits | 228 | Max Peterson | Greenville | ERA | 2.02 |
| Perry Roberts | Greenville | RBI | 152 | Andy Archipoli | Ozark | HR | 24 |
1948 Alabama State League
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Attend | Managers |
| Troy Tigers | 83 | 41 | .669 | – | 40,242 | Bob Benish |
| Greenville Pirates | 80 | 46 | .635 | 4 | 30,424 | Walt Tauscher |
| Dothan Browns | 64 | 62 | .508 | 20 | 57,638 | Cat Milner |
| Ozark Eagles | 61 | 65 | .484 | 23 | 36,500 | Frank Martin |
| Brewton Millers | 58 | 68 | .460 | 26 | 29,227 | Joe Beaugez / Bill McGhee |
| Enterprise Boll Weevils | 57 | 67 | .460 | 26 | 39,416 | Dolly Lambert / Richard Bixby |
| Geneva Red Birds | 54 | 72 | .429 | 30 | 36,781 | Harold Ferenbacher |
| Andalusia Arrows | 45 | 81 | .357 | 39 | 40,000 | John George / Charlie Wilcox |
Playoffs: Dothan 4 games, Troy 2; Greenville 4 games, Ozark 3. Finals: Dothan 4 games, Greenville 0.
Player statistics :
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| Bill McGhee | Brewton | BA | .356 | Frank Hill | Dothan | W | 22 |
| John Burns | Greenville | Runs | 108 | Frank Hill | Dothan | SO | 209 |
| Bill Godwin | Ozark | Hits | 157 | Richard Gilkerson | Troy | ERA | 1.69 |
| Glen Lindermuth | Greenville | RBI | 107 | John Powell | Andalusia | HR | 17 |
1949 Alabama State League schedule
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Attend | Managers |
| Greenville Pirates | 83 | 44 | .654 | – | 23,443 | Walt Tauscher |
| Ozark Eagles | 82 | 45 | .646 | 1 | 25,804 | George Hennessey |
| Enterprise Boll Weevils | 63 | 61 | .508 | 18½ | 30,603 | Russell Taylor |
| Andalusia Arrows | 59 | 65 | .476 | 22½ | 39,958 | Manny Russo / Robert Engle |
| Dothan Browns | 57 | 68 | .456 | 25 | 32,471 | Joe Cavosie / James Coller / Daniel Long |
| Geneva Red Birds | 56 | 69 | .448 | 26 | 23,775 | Carl Wollgast |
| Brewton Millers | 51 | 73 | .411 | 30½ | 25,533 | Joe Szuch / Norman Veazey |
| Troy Tigers | 49 | 75 | .395 | 32½ | 18,323 | Cat Milner |
Playoffs: Greenville 4 games, Enterprise 1; Andalusia 4 games, Ozark 1. Finals: Andalusia 4 games, Greenville 1.
Player statistics :
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| Roy LeFevre | Greenville | BA | .321 | Carl Wollgast | Geneva | W | 22 |
| George Hughes | Ozark | Runs | 114 | Spencer Davis | Ozark | SO | 220 |
| Roy LeFevre | Greenville | Hits | 151 | Carl Wollgast | Geneva | ERA | 1.89 |
| Doug Walker | Ozark | RBI | 107 | Tom McBride | Geneva/Ozark | HR | 15 |
1950 Alabama State League
| Team standings | W | L | PCT | GB | Attend | Managers |
| Enterprise Boll Weevils | 76 | 49 | .608 | – | 23,269 | Paul O'Dea |
| Dothan Browns | 72 | 53 | .576 | 4 0 | 51,665 | Shovel Hodge |
| Headland Dixie Runners | 68 | 56 | .548 | 7½ | 27,121 | John A. McPherson |
| Greenville Pirates | 65 | 61 | .516 | 11½ | 17,106 | Mickey O'Neil |
| Andalusia Arrows | 63 | 62 | .504 | 13 | 43,163 | Bubba Ball |
| Brewton Millers | 54 | 72 | .429 | 22½ | 24,397 | Cat Milner / Cotton McCaskey Sam Demma |
| Geneva Red Birds | 52 | 73 | .416 | 24 | 14,194 | Johnny Grodzicki / Robert Comiskey |
| Ozark Eagles | 51 | 75 | .405 | 25½ | 17,779 | Julian Morgan |
Playoffs: Headland 4 games, Enterprise 3; Dothan 4 games, Greenville 2. Finals: Dothan 4 games, Headland 1.
Player Statistics :
| Player | Team | Stat | Tot | Player | Team | Stat | Tot |
| John A. McPherson | Headland | BA | .405 | David Hataway | Andalusia | W | 23 |
| Joe Harper | Headland | Runs | 138 | Thomas Stone | Headland | SO | 246 |
| John A. McPherson | Headland | Hits | 197 | James Pomykala | Greenville | ERA | 2.19 |
| John A. McPherson | Headland | RBI | 132 | Lamar Bowden | Dothan | HR | 15 |