Expansion Timeline 1961-present
| Number | Team | Years Active |
| Irish Baseball Association Era | ||
| 1 | Tramore Sea Lions | 1961-1962 |
| 2 | Waterford Walruses | 1961-1962 |
| 3 | Dublin Baseball Club | 1964-1966 |
| 4 | Waterford Baseball Club | 1964-1966 |
| 5 | Boys Brigade | 1989 |
| 6 | Confederates | 1989 |
| 7 | Belfast Team 1 | 1997 |
| 8 | Belfast Team 2 | 1997 |
| 9 | Chiefs | 1997 |
| 10 | Colts | 1997 |
| 11 | Dodgers | 1997 |
| 12 | Dukes | 1997 |
| Irish Baseball League Era | ||
| 13 | Panthers | 1998-2005 |
| 14 | Dublin Spartans | 1998-present |
| 15 | Dublin City Hurricanes | 1998-present |
| 16 | Belfast North Stars | 1998-present |
| 17 | DiMaggios | 1999-2000 |
| 18 | Dublin Black Sox | 2000-2017 |
| 19 | Blue Devils | 2000-2005 |
| 20 | Greystones Mariners | 2002-present |
| 21 | Tigers | 2003-2005 |
| 22 | Belfast Wolves | 2004-2006 |
| 23 | Trojans | 2004-2005 |
| 24 | Giants | 2005 |
| Baseball Ireland A-League Era | ||
| 25 | Twins United | 2006-2007 |
| 26 | Dublin City Indios | 2008 |
| 27 | Cork Druids | 2008 |
| 28 | Munster Warriors | 2009-2013 |
| 29 | Cavan Comets | 2010-present |
| 30 | West Clare Dolphins | 2010-2016 |
| 31 | Ashbourne Giants | 2014-present |
| 32 | Dublin Tigers | 2014 |
| 33 | Belfast Buccaneers | 2015-present |
| 34 | Belfast Hornets | 2015 |
| 35 | Ulster Red Sox | 2017-2018 |
| 36 | Ashbourne Stags | 2019-present |
| Baseball-Softball Ireland Era | ||
| 37 | Cork Cosmos | 2020-present |
B-Team Expansion Timeline 2006-present
| Number | Teams | Years Active |
| 1 | Dublin Black Sox B | 2006-2016 |
| 2 | Dublin Spartans B | 2006-present |
| 3 | Greystones Mariners B | 2006-present |
| 4 | Dublin City Hurricanes B | 2007-present |
| 5 | Belfast North Stars B | 2013-2014 |
| 6 | Dublin Tigers B | 2014 |
| 7 | Ashbourne Giants B | 2018 |
| 8 | Ashbourne Giants U21 | 2019-present |
Report
The first Irish Baseball Association was started in 1961 with teams in Tramore (Sea Lions) and Waterford (Walruses). The Tramore team lasted two seasons, and in 1964 a Dublin Baseball Club was formd, which played a series of matches between then and 1966 against the Waterford Baseball Club. In 1989, another Association – the Donegal Baseball & Softball Association – started up in the North West. There were two Baseball teams: the Confederates and Boys Brigade, based in Letterkenny. These Associations and teams were for 12-18 years olds.
The Irish Baseball League was started in 1997 after the opening of the O’Malley Baseball Fields in Corkagh Park in Dublin (named after the Irish owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers who donated $100,000 towards the building of the facility).
The first League featured five teams: Chiefs, Colts, Dodgers, Dukes and Belfast, and it was decided after the season to start afresh with all-new teams and a players draft.
In 1998 the first new teams were formed: Panthers, Spartans, Hurricanes and Belfast North Stars. In 1999 the DiMaggios (an Italian team) were added, and in 2000 Black Sox and Blue Devils. DiMaggios folded after the 2000 season. In 2002 Greystones Mariners were added, and in 2003 Tigers (a Cuban team). in 2004 the Trojans and Belfast Wolves were added. In 2005 the Giants became the 10th team, and in 2006 it was decided that the less successful teams (Panthers, Trojans, Giants and Blue Devils) would become B-teams of the Mariners, Black Sox, Hurricanes and Spartans. Tigers folded that year also.
In 2006 the new A-League and B-League were begun, with Twins United a new A-League team, lasting until after the 2007 season. In 2008 Dublin City Indios (a Mexican team) entered the A-League and the Cork Druids became the first team in Munster. The Druids were replaced in 2009 by the Munster Warriors, a combined Cork-Limerick team based in Limerick, and the Indios folded before the season began.
In 2010 Cavan Comets and West Clare Dolphins were added, leaving only Connacht unrepresented. The Munster Warriors folded after the 2013 season, and the Ashbourne Giants, from Co. Meath were added in 2014, along with the Dublin Tigers (a Venezuelan team). The Dublin Tigers folded midway through the season.
In 2015 the Belfast North stars B team was shelved in favour of a three-club Belfast system, with new teams Belfast Buccaneers and Belfast Hornets added to the B-League. The Hornets only lasted one season, although in 2017, with two belfast teams and the Cavan Comets (also from Ulster) in the B-League, it was decided to form an elite Ulster team from the top players of all three teams to play in the A-League. The Red Sox as they became known as, were based in Clones, Co. Monaghan.
In 2019 the Ashbourne Giants folded their B-team and replaced it with the Ashbourne Stags and an U21 team. After Baseball Ireland and Softball Ireland were merged in 2020 to form Baseball Softball Ireland, a new team in Munster, the Cork Cosmos emerged.
All Irish Baseball Leagues have been for players aged 12 and up, with Women allowed play.
References:
Sources
[1] Anon. (1961) “Tramore Baseball Game | Sea Lions defeat Walruses”. Munster Express. Friday, September 8, 1961. pg. 13.
[2] Anon. (1961) “Tramore Sea Lions Baseball Champions”. Waterford News and Star. Tuesday, September 5, 1961. pg. 5.
[3] Anon. (1961) Picture footnote. Munster Express. Friday, July 28, 1961. pg. 13.
[4] Anon. (1962) “Waterford are Baseball Champions for 1962”. Munster Express. Friday, September 7, 1962. pg. 10.
[5] Anon. (1963) “Tramore Notes : If Present Plans Materialise” Munster Express. Friday, July 26, 1963. pg. 4.
[6] Anon. (1964) “Baseball | Explosions misfired” Waterford News and Star. Friday, September 25, 1964. pg. 13.
[7] Anon. (1966) “Baseball At Top Level | Colour Film of World Series for Waterford” Munster Express. Friday, August 19, 1966. pg. 18.
[8] Anon. (1966) “Baseball | Waterford Bows to Dublin” Munster Express Friday, October 7, 1966. pg. 19.
[9] Anon. (1988) “Baseball | Confederates just hang on in Final.” Donegal Democrat. Friday, November 4, 1988. pg. 26.
[10] O’Toole, Bernie (1997) “It’s a homerun for Irish baseball enthusiats as BERNIE O’TOOLE finds them batting in style | A minority sport” Evening Herald Thursday, June 19, 1997. pg. 22.
Websites
[2] Boston Irish (2008) Baseball in Ireland, really? The lowdown on Baseball in Ireland [Internet] Available from: http://irishbaseballseason.blogspot.com/2007/05/baseball-in-ireland-really-low-down-on.html [Accessed 29 July 2019]
Internet Archive
[2] Panthers Baseball Club | ETeamz | Wayback Machine (2003) Irish Baseball History So Far [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20030907212205/http://www.eteamz.com/panthers-irl/news/index.cfm?id=717896&cat=150587 [Accessed 28 November 2019]
Bibliography
[14] (2008) Chetwynd, Josh. Baseball in Europe: A Country by Country History. pg. 276. North Carolina and London.
Sources
[21] Anon. (2003) “Spartans crowned in Corkagh”. Tallaght Echo. Thursday, October 2, 2003.
[22] Anon. (2003) “Corkagh to host a cracker”. Tallaght Echo. Thursday, September 25, 2003.
Internet Archive
[3] Internet Archive – Irish Baseball and Softball Federation (1999) The 1999 Irish Baseball League Schedule [Internet] Available from: http://web.archive.org/web/19991103022901/http://www.ibsf.ie:80/baseball/Baseball_Schedule_99.htm#Top [Accessed 10 August 2017]
[4] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2003) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20030206112504/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[5] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2003) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20031001124151/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[6] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2004) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20041206085245/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[7] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2005) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20050828155124/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
Sources
[19] Anon. (2008) “Spartans make it three in a row in Irish Championship”. Tallaght Echo. Thursday, October 15, 2008.
[20] Anon. (2014) “Bittersweet for Hurricanes in Final”. Tallaght Echo. Thursday, October 9, 2014.
Websites
[17] Baseball Ireland (2012) Schedule [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?search_year=2012&search_team= [Accessed 21 September 2016]
[18] Baseball Ireland (2017) Fixture & Results – League Tables [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2016 [Accessed 21 September 2016]
[19] Baseball Ireland (2017) Fixture & Results – League Tables [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2017 [Accessed 4 September 2017]
[20] Baseball Ireland (2017) Playoff Results [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?league=Playoffs&search_year=2017 [Accessed 25 September 2017]
[21] Tallaght Echo (2016) “Hurricanes successfully defend National crown” [Internet] Available from: http://www.echo.ie/sport/article/hurricanes-successfully-defend-national-crown [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[22] Baseball Ireland (2018) Fixture & Results – League Tables [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2018 [Accessed 17 September 2018]
[23] Baseball Ireland (2018) Fixture & Results – Playoff Fixtures [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?league=Playoffs&search_year=2018 [Accessed 1 October 2018]
Internet Archive
[8] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2006) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20061026024439/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[9] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2007) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20071006034356/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[10] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2008) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20081017051201/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[11] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2009) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20090926041555/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[12] – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2010) Ladder [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/save/_embed/http://websites.sportstg.com/nfnn/rpt_ladder.cgi?results=N&round=18&client=1-7884-0-108844-0&pool=1 [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[13] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2011) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20110716140650/http://www.baseballireland.com/spulse.html [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[14] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2013) 2013 League Tables [Internet] Available from: http://web.archive.org/web/20131015095707/http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2013 [Accessed 19 June 2018]
[15] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2014) 2014 League Tables [Internet] Available from: http://web.archive.org/web/20141219024651/http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2014 [Accessed 19 June 2018]
[16] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2015) 2015 League Tables [Internet] Available from: http://web.archive.org/web/20150925005924/http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2015 [Accessed 1 March 2018]
Social Media
[24] Dublin Spartans Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1308998669133659 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[25] Dublin Spartans Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/dublinspartans/posts/1758906561024919 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[26] Dublin Spartans Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/dublinspartans/posts/1759225940992981 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
Websites
[27] Baseball Ireland (2019) League Tables [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2019 [Accessed 9 September 2019]
[28] Baseball Ireland (2019) Playoff Fixtures [Internet] Available from:http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?league=Playoffs&search_year=2019 [Accessed 6 October 2019]
Websites
[29] Baseball Ireland (2017) Baseball Ireland Logo Car Sticker [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/images/carsticker.jpg [Accessed 1 May 2017]
[30] Baseball Ireland (2011) Schedule [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?search_year=2011&search_team= [Accessed 21 September 2016]
[31] Baseball Ireland (2012) Schedule [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?search_year=2012&search_team= [Accessed 21 September 2016]
[32] Baseball Ireland (2013) Schedule [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?search_year=2013&search_team= [Accessed 21 September 2016]
[33] Baseball Ireland (2014) Schedule [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?search_year=2014&search_team= [Accessed 21 September 2016]
[34] Baseball Ireland (2015) Schedule [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?search_year=2015&search_team= [Accessed 21 September 2016]
[35] Baseball Ireland (2017) Fixture & Results – League Tables [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2016 [Accessed 21 September 2016]
[36] Baseball Ireland (2017) Fixture & Results – League Tables [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2017 [Accessed 4 September 2017]
[37] Baseball Ireland (2017) Playoff Results [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?league=Playoffs&search_year=2017 [Accessed 25 September 2017]
[38] Belfast Times (2016) BASA Update – Northstars draw first blood [Internet] Available from: http://www.belfasttimes.co.uk/basa-update-northstars-draw-first-blood/ [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[39] Tallaght Echo (2016) “Hurricanes successfully defend National crown” [Internet] Available from: http://www.echo.ie/sport/article/hurricanes-successfully-defend-national-crown [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[40] Belfast North Stars Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/NorthstarsBB/posts/930378163734109 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[41] Belfast North Stars Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/NorthstarsBB/posts/919785874793338 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[42] Belfast North Stars Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1308998669133659&id=111542168879321 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[43] Dublin Spartans Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/dublinspartans/posts/1759331540982421 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[44] Dublin Spartans Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/dublinspartans/posts/1758906561024919 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[45] Dublin Spartans Facebook Page (2016) Facebook Post [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/dublinspartans/posts/1759225940992981 [Accessed 27 October 2016]
[46] Baseball Ireland (2017) Fixture & Results – League Tables [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2018 [Accessed 17 September 2018]
[47] Baseball Ireland (2018) Fixture & Results – Playoff Fixtures [Internet] http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?league=Playoffs&search_year=2018 [Accessed 1 October 2018]
[48] Greystones Mariners Facebook Page (2018) Post September 16 2018: “The Mariners B advanced to the B League Finals yesterday after sweeping the Belfast Northstars 14-7 and 13-6 in a dramatic 9 inning game!” [Internet] Available from: https://www.facebook.com/GreystonesMariners/posts/1799078143479706 [Accessed 1 October 2018]
Internet Archive
[49] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2006) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20061026024439/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[50] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2007) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20071006034356/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[51] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2008) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20081017051201/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[52] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2009) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20090926041555/http://www.baseballireland.com/adult_league.htm [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[53] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2011) Adult League [Internet] Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20110716140650/http://www.baseballireland.com/spulse.html [Accessed 24 March 2017]
[54] Baseball Ireland – Wayback Machine Internet Archive (2015) 2015 League Tables [Internet] Available from: http://web.archive.org/web/20150925005924/http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2015 [Accessed 1 March 2018]
Websites
[55] Baseball Ireland (2019) League Tables [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/tables.php?search_year=2019 [Accessed 9 September 2019]
[56] Baseball Ireland (2019) B League Fixtures [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?league=B&search_year=2019 [Accessed 9 September 2019]
[57] Baseball Ireland (2019) Playoff Fixtures [Internet] Available from: http://www.baseballireland.com/schedule_new.php?league=Playoffs&search_year=2019 [Accessed 6 October 2019]
Acknowledgements
Thanks to Peter Kavanagh, Baseball Ireland & Peter Mullin, Dublin Black Sox, Gabriel McCloyne (Donegal) and Hugh Mulcahy.
About this document
Researched, compiled and written by Enda Mulcahy for the
Eirball | Irish North American and World Sports Archive
Last Updated: 6 March 2020
(c) Copyright Enda Mulcahy and Eirball 2020
You may quote this document in part provided that proper acknowledgement is given to the authors. All Rights Reserved.