200:. The field, which has been called "the worst stadium ever in the history of professional baseball", was essentially a city park. It had concrete slab seating, no permanent concessions, no permanent restrooms, no dugouts and no permanent lighting (Leone would spend her own money to install lights for the field). The field also had no infield grass, making the Owls one of the very few American professional baseball teams in history to play their home games on an all-dirt infield. (Dirt infields are common in other parts of the world, such as Asia.) Also, since there was very little parking around the field, Leone paid for off-site parking with shuttle bus service to and from the field.
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The seating would cause financial problems for the team from the very beginning: Fleming Field could only comfortably seat about five hundred people, with potential overflow seating of maybe another three to five hundred. Even if the team sold out every game, they would still be close to last in the
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radio broadcast from a card table at the top of the bleachers with Ryan
Patrick and Mike Hayes calling the action. If it rained they had to throw a tarp over their equipment. The phone line they broadcast on was attached to a nearby tree and "when lightning struck you could hear the crackle in the
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Throughout the season, the Hoot Owls received little to no fan support, drawing only about 5,000 fans for the entire season, or less than 200 per game. Also, Leone was unable to gain support from local businesses; the outfield walls were nearly empty of advertisements, as were the game programs.
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in 1907. Leone and the
Northeast League would immediately start their short relationship off on the wrong foot: she wanted to call the team the Blue Bandits, but the league, who had already come up with the Hoot Owls name and logo for the abortive Mount Vernon team, forced her to name them the
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of first place. It was the worst record of any pro baseball club (major, minor or independent) in 1995, and one of the worst by any team in modern times. Leone had no choice but to fold the club after the 1995 season; Yonkers' spot in the NEL was taken by a team from
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never got off the ground. The league then turned to Adele Leone, a literary agent and
Richard Monaco, a writer. Although it was the fourth-most populous city in New York, Yonkers had not hosted pro ball since having a Class C team in the
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declared the
Yonkers Hoot Owls the "worst team in the history of paid play" of baseball even as players recalled their time fondly, with Pete Bifone recalling, "We sucked. But it was the funnest year of my life."
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system; he not only joined the club as a player but also attempted (mostly in vain) to sell ads for the ballpark and programs. In July, Bifone quit the club in disgust, taking his .329 batting average with him.
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was alleged to have played for the Owls, seven years removed from his last major league contest. However, a 2021 article about the team states that this was actually a different Leo García, an amateur from
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league in attendance. As it would turn out, overflow crowds in
Yonkers were never a problem, especially since general admission tickets were a pricey six dollars, highest-priced in the NEL.
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was named the manager of the club. Most of the players, however, were local residents in their late teens and early twenties; only a handful had any professional experience. Former
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Unable to find a professional-quality stadium in
Yonkers, Leone made plans for the Hoot Owls to play their home games at
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In the end, Yonkers would finish the 1995 season with a disastrous 14–54 (.206) record, last in the six-team league, 37
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When the NEL was formed with six teams (all in New York State), it desired to have a presence in or near
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286:"Fleming Field - Former Home of the Yonkers Hoot Owls - Yonkers New York (North East League)"
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One of the Owls' few good players was Pete Bifone, who had played the year before in the
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159:). The team existed just one season in 1995 and played its home games at
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369:"Pete Bifone Minor & Independent Leagues Statistics & History"
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headsets. I thought I was going to get electrocuted." reported Hayes.
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241:. Either way, he batted just .158 in 25 games for Yonkers.
355:"Leo Garcia Independent Leagues Statistics & History"
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417:Professional baseball teams in New York (state)
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326:"We found them: They're the worst team ever"
402:Northern League (baseball, 1993–2010) teams
211:The broadcast facilities were nonexistent.
422:Defunct baseball teams in New York (state)
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407:Defunct independent baseball league teams
16:New York-based minor league baseball team
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324:Castrovince, Anthony (March 5, 2021).
412:Baseball teams disestablished in 1995
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383:"1995 Yonkers Hoot Owls Statistics"
427:Baseball teams established in 1995
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183:; however, a proposed team in
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264:In March 2021, an article on
151:, playing in the independent
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432:Sports in Yonkers, New York
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147:baseball team based in
185:Mount Vernon, New York
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175:Hoot Owls game program
304:www.indygraveyard.com
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141:The Yonkers Hoot Owls
332:. MLB Advanced Media
224:Former MLB all-star
155:(later known as the
72:League championships
300:"YONKERS HOOT OWLS"
239:Tarrytown, New York
193:Yonkers Hoot Owls.
190:Hudson River League
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149:Yonkers, New York
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36:Yonkers, New York
22:Yonkers Hoot Owls
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306:. Archived from
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246:San Diego Padres
153:Northeast League
87:Northeast League
80:Former league(s)
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121:General Manager
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334:. Retrieved
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308:the original
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163:in Yonkers.
145:minor league
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100:Black, White
261:, in 1996.
232:outfielder
220:1995 season
108:Adele Leone
27:Information
396:Categories
273:References
234:Leo Garcia
226:Paul Blair
116:Paul Blair
254:games out
105:Ownership
62:Disbanded
336:March 6,
42:Ballpark
32:Location
330:MLB.com
266:MLB.com
167:History
143:were a
113:Manager
52:Founded
97:Colors
89:(1995)
129:Media
338:2021
213:WFAS
133:WFAS
75:None
66:1995
56:1995
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