New York-Penn League (1968-1979)
Tombstone
Born: 1968
Died: 1979
First Game: June 22, 1968 (L 9-7 @ Geneva Senators)
Last Game: August 30, 1979 (L 6-3 vs. Geneva Cubs)
New York-Penn League Champions: 1975
Stadium
Ownership & Affiliation
Owners:
- ????-1978: Newark-Wayne Community Baseball, Inc.
- 1979: Lou Haneles & Mal Fichman
Sale (1979): $1.00 (Newark-Wayne Community Baseball to Haneles & Fichman)11Fleisher, Mark. “Unfounded Rumor”. The Star-Gazette (Elmira, NY). January 13, 1979 [/mfn]
Major League Affiliations:
- 1968-1969: Seattle Pilots
- 1970-1978: Milwaukee Brewers
- 1979: Independent
Attendance
Background
When this scorebook (top right) showed up in the mail this week, I assumed it was from Newark Co-Pilots, the hardscrabble New Jersey city across the Hudson from Manhattan. But upon further review, it turns out that this program is from the small town of Newark Co-Pilots in Western New York (pop. 9,500) which hosted New York-Penn League baseball from the end of the 1960’s until the late 1980’s.
The ball club owed its unusual name to its original Major League parent club, the Seattle Pilots. The Pilots, a doomed American League expansion club, lasted for only one season in 1969. But the Co-Pilots actually began play a year earlier and were the only ball club active in the nascent Seattle Pilots farm system during the summer of 1968.2Ross, Charley. “Wayne County Welcomes Class A Baseball Tonight.” The Democrat and Chronicle (Rochester, NY). June 25, 1968
After the Pilots relocated to Wisconsin in 1970 and became the Milwaukee Brewers, the Co-Pilots retained the now obsolete name for another decade, mostly as a Brewers farm club.
The Newark Co-Pilots played at Colburn Park, a no-frills 2,000-seater with wooden bleachers. Looking at photos today, it’s almost inconceivable that this was a pro ballpark.
Notable Names
The NY-Penn League operates near the bottom of Major League Baseball’s developmental ladder. Most of the Co-Pilots players were teenagers straight out of high school. Only a tiny number among the men who toiled for the Co-Pilots during the 1970’s ever saw time in the Major Leagues. Still, the Brewers developed a number of future stars in Newark Co-Pilots who contributed to Milwaukee’s strong clubs of the early 1980’s, including:
- Robin Yount (Co-Pilots ’73)
- Jim Gantner (Co-Pilots ’74)
- Moose Haas (Co-Pilots ’74)
The End
After the 1978 season, the Brewers pulled out. A Florida-based duo, Lou Haneles and Mal Fichman, bought the Co-Pilots from Newark Co-Pilots-Wayne Community Baseball, Inc. for the sum of $1.00 in January 1979.3Fleisher, Mark. “Unfounded Rumor”. The Star-Gazette (Elmira, NY). January 13, 1979
Operating without a Major League parent club in 1979, Haneles and Fichman ran an ad in The Sporting News that winter that read “Play Pro Baseball in 1979”. The pair cobbled together a roster of cast-offs and broken toys that managed a respectable 32-39 record in the summer of 1979. No player on the 1979 independent squad ever appeared in the Major Leagues. The Co-Pilots disbanded after the 1979 season.
The New York-Penn League returned to Colburn Park in the mid-1980’s with the Newark Orioles (1983-1987).
Newark Co-Pilots Shop
[auction-nudge tool=”listings”]
Links
New York Penn-League Media Guides
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13 Responses
Apparently, the failure of the Co-Pilots didn’t totally dampen the NYPL’s enthusiasm for having a team in a dying Upstate town of 9,000…the Orioles were back in there 1983-1987.
I was fortunate to play in what you decribe as a crummy little ball park in 1972 and again briefly in 1973 at which time I was given my unconditional release to open up the roster for Robin Yount who had held out prior to signing and reporting to Newark.I have both pleasant and unpleasant memories of my time in Newark and as a Co-Pilot.I would never refer to Colburn Park as crummy,quaint perhaps with large mosquito’s hovering about in the thick muggy nights of my youth.I briefly lived my childhood dream in Newark,NY.
Thank you for this. It always nice when someone speaks kindly of your hometown. I was born and grew up in Newark. So many fond memories of attending Co-Piolot games with my dad as a kid. The players were bigger than life as far as we were concerned.
I stayed in contact with Sally(Stevenson) and Digger Beal for many years, and would often visit.I actually married the daughter of Richard Phillips who taught/coached at Newark HS,as did Ruth Phillips.I know that Sally and Digger were part of the the team when the Orioles came to town in the eighties.
I was the groundskeeper at Colburn Park from 1970 thru 1975 and your description of Colburn Park is perhaps fitting, but I was never concerned about bad hops in the wooden bleachers. The playing field was as good as there was in the NY-Penn at that time, due primarily to the grounds crew’s hard work and attention to detail. The facilities may not have been been much, but I did not have much control over that. Our grounds crew transformed Colburn park every night in the 30 minutes we had before game time. At game time, the playing field was impeccable, and many times was praised by visiting players and managers. Home plate was smooth and hard and the batters boxes held up all game. The mound was perfect and the infield was smooth and well watered, maybe a bit hard as Robin Yount would constantly tell me. Times were different then. Players made $600 a month and lived with families in the community. The original uniforms for the Co Pilots were worn from 1969 thru 1975 at least. Now 8th grade travel teams get 2 or 3 uniforms a year. I remember Mike Duncan, and I agree with him that there were probably many good times and bad for a rookie in minor league baseball in 1972, but I bet when he was called to the mound at Colburn Park, there wasn’t a big hole in front of the rubber.
Tom,i remember you well,and I never had any complaints about the ball field since I came from a small farming town with a similar field with less bleachers. I actually kept in contact with Sally Beal(Stevenson) for many years and became friends with Digger and to make a long story short I married Richard Phillips daughter and I did not know he helped with groundskeeping while I was there playing all those many years before, so I guess it is a small world after all. I once kept up with all the teammates through Sally but that diminished over time and unfortunately she’s passed away in Florida several years ago along with Digger, who were both important in my life and I treasure the memories to this day I hope you are well when you read this, God bless
Tom, I played there in 1970. I was a pitcher and you’re right, the mound was always perfect. I enjoyed my time in Newark. People treated us like family. I boarded with an older lady. Had a nice room and a good breakfast every day. Think I paid her $40 a week. Good memories.
Hello Tom,i hope this finds you well.I have been trying to locate pictures of myself and the 72-73 team.I have stumbled across a couple from the Courier Gazette but was wondering if you have any pictures that you’ve kept either from the newspaper clippings or personally at the ballpark, thanks…God Bless
Not one of you mentioned the oddest part of playing in the park. I umpired there during the 1977 Season. All games in the league started in the early evening (7:00 or so), not NEWARK! Start time was 5 or 5:30 as I remember. Why, simple, the sun set directly in center field so we had to stop for 45 to 60 minutes to let the sun set behind the LARGE TREE in center field before we could resume play. Hard enough to hit a baseball or call a pitch when you are not blinded by the sun. This is where the importance of the BREWERS being the sponsor becomes very important! While the concessions offered everything you wanted, during the delays the most pushed item for sale was liquid! Needless to say, the fans were a little rowdy upon the resumption of play!! But I loved every minute!
Hi Mike Duncan,
This is Tom Hausman again. Not sure how I got back to this post, but I see you were here recently. I am doing very well. I have been blessed. I just got back from visiting my soon to be 2 year old granddaughter and her little 8 week old sister. Best part is they live only 5 minutes away. Unfortunately, I do not have any photos of some of the Co Pilot teams. I’m sure there were photos in the Courier Gazette as you mentioned, but I don’t have any good “glossies” to share. Mr. Phillips was my neighbor, teacher and best of all varsity baseball coach. He taught me so much about the game. Kim and Danny were a little younger than I was, and I knew that you and Kim had married.
I still reflect on those wonderful years with the Co Pilots. It was an 80 hour work week, but who cared. I think you were there early in 73 before Robin Yount signed. We were so rough, Matt Galante had morning work outs. You thought they were rough as a player. Just imagine what it was like for me. Finish the field after the game, clean up the clubhouse, wash a set of sanis and towels at the laundrymat that night, and then be back for practice next morning.
I did play baseball 4 years at Wake Forest from 1972 thru 1975. It was wonderful. Of all the things I learned working in minor league baseball was that I wasn’t going to be good enough to play professional baseball. Every kid wants to be a big leaguer, right? You should be proud that you were a professional ball player. That is pretty cool. You were a fine player. I saw talented minor leaguers like yourself show up in Newark from all over the country all chasing that dream. Many were just out of high school, and some were from Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. I would ask myself while I was working at Colburn park and getting my degree, what are these guys going to do next year. Play in Newark again or maybe Danville then get released. I realized I never wanted to or would never have to deal with the heartbreak you and so many others must have dealt with. So when I graduated, I was done with baseball. No regrets, just so many fond memories.
I hope this makes it way to you Mike and I know that you too have so many fond memories and some not so great. In the whole scheme of things, playing at Colburn Park wasn’t so bad was it.
Best of luck to you.
Thanks so much for the reply Tom, I’m happy to know you’ve had a good life and i do recall you going to WF.I look back now and wish i was more dedicated,but the people i got to meet,the places i got to visit are still with me today.I have had a good life and the best part is i now know Jesus,take care,God Bless..Michael Ray Duncan
Hi Garry McGrath,
I remember you too. That was Sandy Johnson’s first club. He managed in 1972 also. You guys were pretty good as I remember. Pete Garcia was on that club wasn’t he. You probably remember my brother, Jim more than me. He ran the clubhouse, and I worked mostly on the field.
Thanks Garry for the message,but we were terrible and Garcia was on the 73 team.I have both good and not so good memories of my time in Newark,living with Sally and John Stevenson,Z on 88, Freddie’s,big mosquitoes,muggy day’s and nights but mostly fond memories of the town,the friendly welcoming community and the small town atmosphere which I had came from my whole life so it felt comfortable. I wouldn’t change a thing, I have had a good life with many wonderful memories, take care, God bless