 | Notable Events in
Pacific Coast League History | |
|
| 1903 |
The first PCL season begins with each team scheduled for over 200 games. Inaugural members include: Los Angeles, Oakland, Portland, Sacramento, San Francisco & Seattle. |
| 1904 |
The Pacific Coast League becomes an official member of Minor League Baseball (the National Association). |
| 1906 |
The city of San Francisco is destroyed by an earthquake and fire, forcing the PCL to suspend operations in the city. |
| 1912 |
August 8 - Los Angeles' Heinie Heitmuller dies of typhoid fever while leading the PCL with a .347 bating average. |
| 1916 |
Oakland pitcher Jimmy Claxton becomes the first black player in organized baseball history. Claxton, who had been believed to be Native American, was released after two appearances once his race was discovered |
| 1920 |
Five San Francisco players are banned from organized baseball after conspiring to "throw" games. |
| 1930 |
June 10 - Sacramento plays the PCL's first night game. |
| 1933 |
July 25 - Joe DiMaggio hits in his 61st consecutive game, setting the PCL record (he would later set the Major League record with hits in 56 straight games in 1941). |
| 1934 |
The L.A. Angels finish the season with 137 wins, the most victories ever in organized baseball. |
| 1936 |
The PCL institutes a four-team playoff system after several seasons in a two-team format. |
| 1938 |
Bob Cobb purchases the Mission club to move the team to Hollywood. Future part owners of the club included movie stars George Burns, Gene Autry, Gary Cooper, Bing Crosby, Grace Allen and Barbara Stanwyck. |
| 1941 |
The first PCL All-Star Game is held with the South Team defeating the North squad, 3-1. |
| 1949 |
The Hollywood Stars become the first professional baseball team to wear batting helmets. |
| 1950 |
San Francisco owner Paul Fagan bans peanuts from the Seals' ballpark, citing the expense in cleaning up the empty husks. The ban is lifted after 24 hours after pressure from fans and fellow PCL executives. |
| 1956 |
The Pacific Coast League adds its first international club as the Oakland club is replaced by Vancouver. |
| 1958 |
Los Angeles and San Francisco are elevated to Major League Baseball and are replaced in the PCL by Spokane and Phoenix. Territorial rules force Hollywood out of the loop as well and the team moves to Salt Lake City. |
| 1960 |
The Phoenix clubs moves to Tacoma, making the Rainiers the longest tenured current PCL member. |
| 1969 |
Major League Baseball expands to Seattle and San Diego, ending their run in the PCL. Tucson and Eugene join the League as replacements. |
| 1974 |
In a span of 14 days, two PCL games see opponents combined for 14 HR in each contest, setting a PCL single game record. |
| 1981 |
Mike Marshall (Albuquerque) wins the League's Triple-Crown with a .373 average, 34 HR, and 137 RBI. |
| 1981 |
The Ogden franchise moves to Edmonton. |
| 1982 |
Edmonton's Ron Kittle sets modern day (short schedule) PCL records with 50 HR and 144 RBI. |
| 1983 |
Las Vegas replaces Spokane on the PCL's roster of clubs. |
| 1988 |
The Hawaii Islanders club moves to the mainland, ending up in Colorado Springs. |
| 1989 |
August 16 - Vancouver's Tom Drees pitches his third no-hit game of the season. |
| 1994 |
Salt Lake (City) returns to the PCL, replacing Portland. |
| 1998 |
The Pacific Coast League grows to 16 teams with the addition of former American Association clubs Iowa, Nashville, New Orleans, Oklahoma (City), and Omaha and an expansion team in Memphis. The Phoenix territory is elevated to the Major Leagues and is replaced by Fresno. |
| 1998 |
Las Vegas Triple-A World Series began. The event, matching the Champions of the IL and the PCL, was held from 1998-2000. |
| 2000 |
The defending PCL champion Vancouver Canadians move to Sacramento. |
| 2001 |
Triple-A Baseball returns to Portland as the Beavers replace Albuquerque. |
| 2001 |
July 7 - Tacoma's John Halama throws the first 9-inning no-hitter in PCL history, a 6-0 win over Calgary. |
| 2001 |
Sacramento sets a PCL attendance record by drawing 901,214 fans. The per-game attendance (12,517) also sets a PCL record |
| 2003 |
Albuquerque returns to the PCL, replacing Calgary. |
| 2003 |
The PCL sets an all-time attendance record of 7.08 million fans, becoming the first Minor League to top the 7 million mark. |
| 2005 |
The Edmonton franchise moves to Round Rock, Texas, switching their affiliation to the Houston Astros. New Orleans becomes affiliated with the new Washington Nationals. |
| 2005 |
The New Orleans Zephyrs are forced to cancel their final three home games due to Hurricane Katrina. The Zephyrs came back strong by setting a new Opening Day attendance record in 2006. |
| 2006 |
The Tucson Sidewinders defeat IL Champion Toledo 5-2 in the first Bricktown Showdown Triple-A Championship Game. |
