Quote:
Originally Posted by Le Grande Orange
CobaltJays, APujols5, thanks for the replies. Interesting stuff.
I wonder when it changed. That would be useful to know in tracking how the minors have evolved over the years.
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There were independent teams in otherwise affiliated leagues up until at least the early 90s. The Salt Lake Trappers in the Pioneer League and the Miami Miracle in the Florida State League were two famous examples. Salt Lake signed a bunch of more experienced players than the rest of the PL and went on a ridiculous 30-some game winning streak in the late 80s. Miami was owned by Mike Veeck, and was the proving ground for some of his later indy league promotional stunts. The Miami team also exploited a loophole in the draft rules and took part in the June amateur draft at least one year. I think Mike Lansing started his pro career after being drafted by them.
After the emergence of modern indy leagues in the early 90s this practice completely stopped.
I'm fairly sure that all minor leaguers on affiliated teams were owned by the parent club by the early 60s, possibly quite a bit earlier. The PCL in the 50s was the last independent league until the 90s.