1895: Expelled from Eastern Iowa League Waterloo first hosted minor league play in 1895, when the Waterloo "Indians" team was formed. The new Waterloo team became charter members of the eight-team, independent
Eastern Iowa League. Waterloo joined the
Burlington Colts,
Cedar Rapids Rabbits,
Clinton Bridegrooms,
Dubuque Giants,
Galesburg Trotters,
Ottumwa Brownies and
Rock Island Tri-Cities teams in league play. After beginning play, the 1895 Eastern Iowa league had a tumultuous season, as, three teams were "expelled" from the league, with one of the team being expelled twice and another team folding. Waterloo was one of the three teams expelled from the league. On June 14, 1895, both the Clinton Bridegrooms and the Rock Island Tri-Cities teams were expelled from the Eastern Iowa League. On July 4, 1895, the Clinton Bridegrooms were allowed to rejoin the Eastern Iowa League. Dubuque ended the season 11.0 games ahead of the second place Burlington Colts. After their 1895 season ended in their expulsion from the Eastern Iowa League, Waterloo did not host another minor league team for nine seasons.
1904 to 1907: Waterloo Microbes / Iowa State League Waterloo resumed minor league play in 1904, when the Waterloo "Microbes" were formed. The team became charter members of the
Iowa State League. The Iowa State League had the formal name as the "
Iowa League of Professional Baseball Clubs". Waterloo joined the newly formed league, which was formed as an eight-team,
Class D level league, consisting entirely of franchised based in
Iowa. The Microbes joined the
Boone Coal Miners,
Burlington River Rats,
Fort Dodge Gypsum Eaters,
Keokuk Indians,
Marshalltown Grays,
Oskaloosa Quakers and
Ottumwa Snappers teams in beginning Iowa State League play on May 6, 1904. Waterloo being known by the unique "Microbes" nickname is paralleled by the
Chicago Cubs franchise being referred to by the nickname in select newspapers during the era. Waterloo next was known by the "Cubs" nickname as well. In their first Iowa State League season, the Microbes ended the 1904 season as the league runner up. Waterloo ended the season with a record of 64–43 to finish in second place. The Microbes were managed by James Myers, who led the team to a record of 50–36 in his tenure before being replaced by Charles Cole. Waterloo finished 14-7 playing under Cole and no playoffs were held. Waterloo ended the season seventh place, playing the season under managers Harry Meek and Frank Lohr. With a final record of 56–69, Waterloo ended the season 21.0 games behind the first place Ottumwa Snappers in the final standings, as Ottumwa won their second consecutive league championship, playing under their namesake manager
Snapper Kennedy. After beginning his minor league career in 1896 at age 22, Frisbee played in the major leagues for the 1899
Boston Beaneaters and the 1900
New York Giants as a player, posting a .315 batting average in 26 career games, with his major league career shortened by poor fielding in the outfield and a knee injury. Frisbee had ended the 1905 season serving as the third manager of the year for the
Burlington Flint Hills, having lost both of his parents in 1905. After beginning the 1906 season as the player-manager for Waterloo, he was claimed Burlington as a player during the season but did not play for them. The Microbes continued play and Waterloo finished in seventh place in the 1906 Iowa State League. Compiling a record of 48–76, the Microbes finished next to last in the eight-team Class D level league, playing the season under managers
Charlie Frisbee and his replacement as manager, Ernest Anklam. Waterloo finished the season 36.0 games behind the first place Burlington Pathfinders, managed by Ned Egan, in the final standings. ,
St. Louis Terriers. Ward played for Waterloo in 1906, in his first professional season, batting .270. At age 21, outfielder
Ward Miller made his professional debut with Waterloo in 1906 after graduating from
Northern Illinois University, hitting .278 in 70 games. In eight seasons playing with the
Pittsburgh Pirates (1909),
Cincinnati Reds (1909–1910),
Chicago Cubs (1912–1913),
St. Louis Terriers (1914–1915) and St. Louis Browns (1916–1917), Miller batted .278 with an OBP of .375 and 128 stolen bases in 769 career games. member
Rube Marquard,
New York Giants. Marquard pitched for Waterloo in his first professional seasons after stowing away on a freight train to reach Waterloo for a tryout with the team. In 1907
Baseball Hall of Fame member
Rube Marquard pitched again for Waterloo in his second professional season. Marquard compiled a record of 23–13 with a 2.01
earned run average (ERA) and led the league in victories. After serving for a few years as a batboy for his hometown
Cleveland Naps as a youth, Marquard was recommended to Waterloo for a professional tryout and stowed away on freight trains to reach Waterloo for his tryout in 1906, as he had no money to travel. After a successful tryout Marquard had left the Waterloo team after a dispute with manager Charlie Frisbee over an advance on his salary so he could eat. He had made three successful appearances for the team without any compensation. Marquard made his major league debut in 1908 with the
New York Giants, embarking on his 18-season major league career with the Giants,
Brooklyn Dodgers,
Cincinnati Reds and
Boston Braves. Marquard was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971. At age 30, Frank Boyle became the manager for Waterloo in 1907, beginning a five-season tenure with the franchise that produced two league championships. Previously, Boyle had spent the 1904 to 1906 seasons in the league as the manager of the
Fort Dodge Gypsumites, moving to Waterloo after the Fort Dodge franchise was folded following the 1906 season. After two consecutive seventh-place finishes, Waterloo won the Iowa State League championship in 1907. The franchise continued play in the Iowa State League with a new nickname as the Microbes became known as the "Cubs" for the 1907 season. The Cubs dominated the league with a record of 76–45 and finished in first place in their first season under manager Frank Boyle. Waterloo finished 4.0 games ahead of the second place Burlington Pathfinders in the final standings and 42.0 games ahead of the last place Keokuk Indians. The Iowa State League was renamed following Waterloo's championship in 1907. The "Iowa State League" did not return to play until reorganizing for a final season in 1912 without a Waterloo franchise.
1908 & 1909: Waterloo Lulus / Central Association Having expanded with franchises outside of
Iowa, the Iowa State League changed names in 1908 and became the known as the
Central Association. Waterloo also had a new nickname, as the 1908 Waterloo "Lulus" became a charter member of the newly named league. Waterloo joined the Class D level league with the six other teams other that played with them in the 1907 Iowa State League. One new franchise joined in forming the new league. Waterloo joined the
Burlington Pathfinders,
Jacksonville Lunatics (
Jacksonville, Illinois), Keokuk Indians, Oskaloosa Quakers,
Ottumwa Packers and the
Quincy Gems (
Quincy, Illinois), all who had been members of the 1907 Iowa State League. The
Kewanee Boilermakers based in
Kewanee, Illinois, were a new franchise replacing the
Marshalltown Snappers. The new Central Association began their league schedule on May 7, 1908. ,
Cincinnati Reds, baseball card. In his second season with Waterloo, Gaspar had a 32–4 record and a league leading 2.17 ERA in 1908, as Waterloo won their second consecutive championship. In their first season of play in the newly formed league, the Waterloo Lulus won their second consecutive league championship in the 1908 Central Association. Gaspar operated a photography business called Gaspar Studio in
Le Mars, Iowa and he ran the business full time when his pitching career began to wane following the 1912 season. Gaspar later co-owned and managed the Gaspar-Anderson Bowling Alleys in
Santa Ana, California, where he died in 1940. In defending their league championships from the two prior seasons, the 1909 Waterloo Lulus placed fifth in the eight-team Class D level Central Association. Playing the season under returning manager Frank Boyle, the Lulus had a final record of 64–69 to finish in fifth place in the Central Association final standings. No playoffs were held and first place Burlington finished just 1.0 game ahead of the second place
Hannibal Cannibals (83–53) and 10.5 games ahead of fifth place Waterloo in the standings. Kent later pitched in the major leagues before continuing a career in collegiate coaching. Prior to joining Waterloo, Kent had also played football and graduated from the
University of Iowa in 1907 and had coached the
Iowa Hawkeyes baseball team in 1908. Following his baseball season with Waterloo, Kent became the football coach and baseball coach of the
Carlton College teams in 1909 through 1913. In 1912 and 1913, he pitched for the
Brooklyn Dodgers, appearing in 23 games total. After ending his baseball career in 1914, Kent resumed collegiate coaching. He was the head basketball coach of the
Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team (1913–1918),
Iowa State Cyclones men's basketball (1920–1921) and
Northwestern Wildcats men's basketball teams (1922–1927). He overlapped his basketball coaching with coaching baseball at Iowa, Iowa State and Northwestern. In between, Murray also coached the
Wisconsin Badgers baseball team in 1919 and 1920.
1910 & 1911: Waterloo Boosters / Class B level Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League Waterloo left the Central Association for the 1910 season and became members the eight-team, Class B level
Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League league in 1910, replacing the
Decatur Commodores franchise in the league. Waterloo became known as the "Boosters." In the era, Class B was the equivalent of today's
Class AA level. The returning
Bloomington Bloomers,
Danville Speakers,
Davenport Prodigals,
Dubuque Dubs,
Peoria Distillers,
Rock Island Islanders and
Springfield Senators teams joined with Waterloo in beginning the league schedule on May 4, 1910. The Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League was commonly referred to by the shortened
Three-I League. On June 9, 1910, Waterloo turned a triple play in a 5–1 victory over the Springfield Senators. Shortstop
Bill Leard and first baseman Grover Beiter 1B completed the play in the game at Waterloo. In their first season of play in the higher-level league, the Waterloo Boosters ended the Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League season in fourth place. Ending the season with a record of 59–76, Waterloo ended the season 9.5 games behind the first place Peoria Distillers in the eight-team league. After their exit from the Three-I League, Waterloo did not field a minor league team in 1912, before Waterloo then rejoined their former Class D level league in 1913.
1913 to 1916: Return to Class D level Central Association After not fielding a team in 1912, Waterloo rejoined the eight-team Class D level Central Association in 1913, becoming known as the Waterloo "Jays." With their membership, the Waterloo Jays replaced the
Galesburg Pavers in the league. The Waterloo Jays joined the
Burlington Pathfinders,
Cedar Rapids Rabbits,
Keokuk Indians,
Kewanee Boilermakers,
Monmouth Browns,
Muscatine Wallopers and
Ottumwa Packers teams as the league schedule began play on April 30, 1913. . Andrews was the player-manager for Waterloo from 1913 to 1915, leading the Microbes to the 1914 championship. With the Waterloo team returning to minor league play, Jay "Doc" Andrews became the Waterloo Jays' manager in 1913 at age 39. Becoming the player-manager for Waterloo, Andrews had last managed the 1911 Kewanee Boilermakers, when he hit .348 for Kewanee before remaining with the Boilermakers as a player in 1912. Andrews was mostly a pinch hitter in his playing tenure with Waterloo. Pitcher
Jesse Tannehill played for Waterloo in 1913 at age 38. With Waterloo, Tannehill did not pitch and batted .232 in 46 games playing the outfield. As a major league pitcher, Tannehill won 197 games against 117 losses with a career ERA of 2.80. Tannehill pitched for the
Cincinnati Reds (1894),
Pittsburgh Pirates (1897–1902),
New York Highlanders (1903),
Boston Red Sox (1904–1908),
Washington Senators (1908–1909) and Cincinnati Reds (1911) in his major league pitching career. Tannehill had continued playing for minor league teams as an outfielder after his pitching career was ended due to a series of arm injuries. In 1914, after his season with Waterloo, Tannehill became the player-manager of the
Portsmouth Truckers of the
Virginia League and later he became a coach with the
Philadelphia Phillies. In their return to play in the Class D level league in 1913, the Waterloo Jays finished in last place. Evans batted .279 in 74 games for Waterloo in 1914. The 1914 Waterloo Jays went from last place to first place. Waterloo became the Central Association champion, one season after finishing in eighth place in the eight-team league. Managed by the returning Jay "Doc" Andrews, the Jays ended the season with a final record of 78–51. Finishing in first place, Waterloo ended the season 2.5 games ahead of the second place Burlington Pathfinders and 28.5 games ahead of the eighth place Galesburg Pavers in the final standings. As defending league champions, the 1915 Waterloo Jays ended the Central Association season in seventh place. The Jays began the season under the returning Doc Andrews as manager before Andrews was replaced by player Eddie Brennan as manager. The Jays ended the season with a record of 52–74 and finished 32.5 games behind the first place Burlington Pathfinders in the league standings. A catcher Eddie Brennan took over as the Waterloo manager during the 1915 season, and at age 29 Brennan batted .205 in 103 games for Waterloo.
Paddy Siglin of Waterloo won the Central Association batting title, hitting .322 on the season. Pitcher
Tom Drohan, played for Waterloo in 1914 and 1915, after having made his major league debut with the 1913
Washington Senators. Drohan had a lengthy tenure of pitching in the league. In 1911, Drohan pitched for the Central Association's
Kewanee Boilermakers, with a record of 19–10. In 1912 with Kewanee he had a record of 24–6. He then returned to the Central Association in 1914 with the Waterloo Jays and went 15–7 that season and 14–17 for Waterloo in 1915. Following his two seasons with Waterloo, Drohan pitched for the Central Association's
Clinton Pilots in 1916, where his brother James Drohan was the manager. Tom Drohan, played for Waterloo in both 1914 and 1915. Drohan had made his major league debut with the 1913
Washington Senators before joining Waterloo. The Waterloo Shamrocks ended the season in fifth place. Waterloo ended the season with a final record of 58–63, finishing 18.0 games behind the first place
Marshalltown Ansons. In the 1911 and 1912 seasons, Zackert pitched briefly for the
St. Louis Cardinals.
1917: Final Central Association season Ned Egan was named as the Waterloo manager for the 1917 season, as the team became known as the Waterloo "Lions." The 1917 season with Waterloo was his final season. Eagan came to Waterloo after managing the 1916
Muscatine Muskies, who finished in last place after 34 Muscatine wins were reversed by the league. Egan had been in the Central Association as a manager since the league began in 1908, winning four league championships the Burlington Pathfinders and Ottumwa Speedboys. Egan managed sixteen total seasons in the minor leagues through the 1917 season with the
Waterloo Lions when he was 39. Following his final season with Waterloo, Ned Egan died on May 6, 1918, at age 40 in
Chicago, Illinois after being signed to manage the 1918
[Milwaukee Brewers. Due to his successes in the minor leagues, Egan was nicknamed as the "
Connie Mack of the minors." Egan was found dead in his room at the
Grand Pacific Hotel having been despondent over his ill health. Egan had sustained a major back injury from a collision while ice skating near his home in
Minnesota. The injury left him unable to manage and he had resigned his 1918 managerial position and 3-year contract with the Milwaukee Brewers. Third baseman
Ralph Miller played for Waterloo both the in 1916 and 1917 seasons. After hitting .250 for Waterloo in 1916, Miller batted .308 For the Lions in 90 games in 1917, before being acquired by the Class B level
Fort Wayne Chiefs for 18 games to finish the season. , New York Yankees. Paschal played for Waterloo in their partial 1917. He compiled a .309 batting average and .857 OPS in his major league career. Outfielder
Ben Paschal played for the Waterloo Lions in 1917, batting .230 in 23 games before finishing the season with the
Muskegon Muskies. Paschal had played briefly with the 1915
Cleveland Indians, appearing in 9 games for Cleveland at age 19. Paschal played on the
1928 World Series champion
New York Yankees and also appeared in the
1926 World Series with the Yankees. In eight major league seasons with Cleveland, the
Boston Red Sox (1920) and the Yankees (1924–1929), Paschal compiled a .309 batting average and .857 OPS in 364 career games. With the Yankees, Paschal was a backup to Baseball Hall of Fame outfielders
Babe Ruth and
Earle Combs as well as
Bob Meusel and was cited as a poor fielder. When the Yankees wore uniform numbers for the first time in 1929, Paschal was issued number 25 as the final man on the New York roster. Waterloo became known as the "Lions" in 1917, and the team played a shortened season, as the Central Association folded on August 7, 1917, before the completion of the league schedule. In the era before every team had a formal nickname, the 1917 Waterloo team was also referred to as the "Loons." During the season, the Central Association experienced great volatility among its member teams, as the
Dubuque Dubs franchise moved
Charles City, Iowa to become the
Charles City Tractorites on July 4, 1917. Both the
Clinton Pilots and
La Crosse Infants teams folded on July 17, 1917. Finally, the Cedar Rapids Rabbits moved to
Clear Lake, Iowa on July 27, 1910, finishing the season as the
Clear Lake Rabbits. After the Central Association lost two teams and had two others relocate, the league schedule was ended prematurely on August 7, 1917, with permission from the
National Association. After the folding of the Central Association in 1917, Waterloo next hosted minor league baseball in 1922 when the
Waterloo Hawks began a tenure of play as members of the Class D level
Mississippi Valley League. ==The ballparks==