The Schenectady Blue Jays were an American minor league baseball franchise based in Schenectady, New York, for 12 consecutive seasons, 1946–57. They played as a member of the Class C Can–Am League through 1950, and the Class A Eastern League thereafter. The Blue Jays were affiliated with Major League Baseball's Philadelphia Phillies and played at McNearney Stadium from the middle of 1946 through their final season.The Daily Gazette, Schenectady, New York
Franchise history The Blue Jays were founded at the beginning of the post-World War II boom in minor league baseball. Schenectady had previously been represented by a team in the Negro leagues, the Mohawk Giants (1913–1914),Information at Baseball Reference and by the Schenectady Dorpians, Schenectady Electricians and Schenectady Frog Alleys teams of the New York State League (1895–1904) and the Eastern Association (1909).
The Phillies, purchased during the war by the R. R. M. Carpenter family, began to build out their farm system in 1946 and added Schenectady to their roster of affiliates. The nickname Blue Jays became the Phillies' secondary moniker before the start of the 1944 season and was common to at least two other Philadelphia farm teams, the Class C Salina Blue Jays and Class D Green Bay Blue Jays. The 1946 Schenectady Jays finished seventh in the eight-team Can-Am League. But the 1947 edition, managed by Leon Riley, father of future National Basketball Association player, coach and executive Pat Riley, won the league pennant by 13 games and the playoff championship; it drew over 146,000 fans, almost 60,000 more than the second-most-popular Can-Am League team.
After the 1950 season, the Phillies replaced their Eastern League affiliate, the Utica Blue Sox, with the Schenectady Blue Jays, who moved up two levels to Class A, which was then almost equivalent to today's Double-A ranking. Schenectady won the Eastern League championship in 1956 and finished a strong second in 1957, but attendance had fallen to below 60,000 and the Phillies transferred their affiliation to the Williamsport Grays for 1958, thus ending the Blue Jays' 12-year lifespan.
Year-by-year record Year Record Finish League Attendance Manager Postseason 1946 45–75 Seventh Can–Am League 53,239 Bill Cronin DNQ 1947 86–51 First Can–Am 146,227 Leon Riley League champions 1948 69–68 Fifth Can–Am 146,421 Leon Riley DNQ 1949 58–80 Seventh Can–Am 115,966 Dick Carter DNQ 1950 88–46 Second Can–Am 76,853 Dick Carter Lost to Amsterdam in first round 1951 73–66 Fifth Eastern League 93,559 Leon Riley DNQ 1952 73–65 Fourth Eastern 81,912 Dan Carnevale Lost to Binghamton in first round 1953 86–65 Third Eastern 66,320 Skeeter Newsome Lost to Reading in first round 1954 57–83 Eighth Eastern 45,529 Snuffy StirnweissLew Krausse Sr. DNQ 1955 74–64 Fourth Eastern 73,585 Don Osborn Lost to Allentown in finals 1956 84–54 First Eastern 66,458 Dick Carter League champions 1957 83–57 Second Eastern 59,522 Dick Carter Lost to Reading in first round
Notable alumni
Harry Anderson Ed Bouchee Don Cardwell Chuck Essegian Turk Farrell Pancho Herrera Eddie Kasko Tommy Lasorda Steve Ridzik Jack Sanford Carl Sawatski Barney Schultz
References
External links Q&A with Baseball Historian on Schenectady Blue Jays, The Daily Gazette, Schenectady, New York Information at Baseball Reference Finding Aid to Frank Keetz Professional Baseball Collection (includes material on Schenectady Blue Jays), Schenectady County Historical Society.