1934 Los Angeles Angels season
The 1934 Los Angeles Angels season was the 32nd season in the history of the Los Angeles Angels baseball team. The 1934 team won the Pacific Coast League (PCL) pennant with a 137–50 record, the best record in league history. Jack Lelivelt was the team's manager. The team played its home games at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles.[1]
1934 Los Angeles Angels | |
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Minor league affiliations | |
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Location | |
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Results | |
Record | 137–50 |
League place | 1st |
Other information | |
Manager(s) | Jack Lelivelt |
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The team was selected by Minor League Baseball as the greatest minor league team in baseball history.[2] The 1934 Angels were also selected in 2003 by a panel of minor league experts as the best team in the PCL's 100-year history.[3]
At the end of the regular season, the PCL arranged a seven-game series between the Angeles and an all-star team made picked from the best players on the other PCL teams.[4] The Angels won the series, billed as the "Little World Series", four games to two.[5][6]
Right fielder Frank Demaree won the PCL batting championship with a .383 average and also led the circuit with 173 RBIs, 190 runs scored, and 45 home runs.[7][8] Center fielder fielder Jigger Statz hit .324 and stole 71 bases.[2] Left fielder Marv Gudat appeared in all 188 games for the 1934 Angels and compiled a .333 batting average.[2] All three members of the outfield (Demaree, Staz, and Gudat) were later inducted into the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame.
The team also included three pitchers who won 20 games. Fay Thomas led the team with a 28–4 record (.875 winning percentage), a 2.59 earned run average (ERA) and 204 strikeouts.[9] Thomas was also later inducted into PCL Hall of Fame. Mike Meola compiled a 20–5 record, and Lou Garland went 21–9.[9]
Players
Batting
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
RF | Frank Demaree | 186 | 702 | 269 | .383 | 45 | 173 |
CF | Jigger Statz | 183 | 760 | 246 | .324 | 6 | 66 |
LF | Marv Gudat | 188 | 758 | 242 | .319 | 4 | 125 |
1B | Jim Oglesby | 188 | 725 | 226 | .312 | 15 | 139 |
2B | Jimmie Reese | 180 | 733 | 228 | .311 | 3 | 85 |
C | Gilly Campbell | 145 | 459 | 140 | .305 | 17 | 97 |
3B | Gene Lillard | 171 | 592 | 171 | .289 | 27 | 119 |
SS | Carl Dittmar | 151 | 517 | 152 | .294 | 3 | 73 |
Pitching
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; PCT = Win percentage; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | IP | W | L | PCT | ERA | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fay Thomas | 41 | 295 | 28 | 4 | .875 | 2.59 | 204 |
Lou Garland | 41 | 249 | 21 | 9 | .700 | 2.67 | 91 |
Mike Meola | 42 | 248 | 20 | 5 | .800 | 2.90 | 93 |
John Campbell | 48 | 283 | 19 | 15 | .559 | 2.63 | 80 |
Roy Henshaw | 38 | 196 | 16 | 4 | .800 | 2.76 | 120 |
Emmett Nelson | 29 | 171 | 14 | 5 | .737 | 2.53 | 72 |
Dick Ward | 20 | 137 | 13 | 4 | .765 | 2.63 | 54 |
References
- Jim Gordon. "Wrigley Field (Los Angeles)". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
- Bill Weiss; Marshall Wright. "Top 100 Teams: 1. 1934 Los Angeles Angels". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
- "PCL top 10". Los Angeles Times. March 30, 2003. p. D9 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Fay Thomas, Hermann Drafted; Angels, All-Stars Clash Today". Los Angeles Times. October 3, 1934. pp. II-11, II-12 – via Newspapers.com.
- "All-Stars Lose to Angels as Dittmar Hits Homer in Ninth". Los Angeles Times. October 9, 1934. pp. II-9, II-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- Richard Beverage (2011). The Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League: A History, 1903-1957. McFarland. p. 69. ISBN 0786487887.
- W. R. Bill Schroeder. "The 1934 Los Angeles Angels". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
- "Title Goes To Demaree". Los Angeles Times. October 3, 1934. p. II-12 – via Newspapers.com.
- "1934 Los Angeles Angels Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
Further reading
- "The Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League: A History, 1903-1957", Richard Beverage (McFarland 2011)
- "The Greatest Minor League: A History of the Pacific Coast League, 1903-1957", by Dennis Snelling (McFarland 2011)