Ottawa Giants Founded in 1951 Ottawa, Ontario |
|
Class-level | |
---|---|
Current | AAA (1951) |
Minor league affiliations | |
League | International League |
Major league affiliations | |
Current | New York Giants (1951) |
Team data | |
Ballpark | Frank Clair Stadium (1951) |
Owner(s)/
Operator(s) |
New York Giants |
Manager | Hugh Poland |
General Manager | Tommy Gorman |
The Ottawa Giants were a professional minor-league baseball team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada that operated in 1951 after the relocation of an existing Triple-A franchise, the Jersey City Giants. It played at Lansdowne Park in Ottawa and finished with a 62–88 record, in seventh place in the eight-team International League and 31 games in arrears of the regular season and playoff champion Montreal Royals. The Ottawa Giants drew 117,411 fans through the Lansdowne Park turnstiles, also seventh in the league.
As radio and television broadcasts of New York City area baseball teams increased, Jersey City's attendance plunged from 337,000 in 1947 to 63,000 in 1950. Ottawa had most recently hosted the Nationals and the Senators of the Class C Border League from 1947–50, leading that league in attendance for three of its four seasons and making the playoffs each year.
The Jersey City franchise was purchased by Tommy Gorman and moved to Ottawa in 1951 becoming the Ottawa Giants, a farm team of the New York Giants. After one season, and disappointing attendance, the Giants (who owned and operated another Triple-A team in the Minneapolis Millers of the American Association) abandoned Ottawa. However, the Philadelphia Athletics were interested in replacing the New Yorkers, and in 1952, the Ottawa Athletics were formed.