Monroe Drillers

Beginning in 1931 the Monroe Twins and White Sox teams played Cotton States league home games at the Casino Park ballpark.

[4] The Monroe Drillers joined the Brookhaven Truckers, Hattiesburg Hubman, Jackson Senators, Laurel Lumberjacks and Vicksburg Hill Billies teams in resuming league play on May 8, 1924.

Managed by Pep Ripperton and Bill Wise, Monroe ended the season 5.5 games behind of the first place Hattiesburg Hubman in the Cotton States League final standings.

[6][4][10][4] The 1925 Monroe Drillers continued play in the eight-team Cotton States League and ended the season with a sixth-place finish.

[11][11][12] The Drillers ended the season with a record of 56–65 to place sixth in the league standings, playing under returning managers Bill Wise and Paul Trammell.

[23] The Monroe Drillers continued play in the eight-team, Class D level Cotton States League, finishing in second place in 1927.

Pitcher Phil Hensiek of Monroe led the Cotton States League with a winning percentage of .759, compiling a record of 22–7.

[28][29] Monroe placed sixth in the eight-team league final season standings with a record of 64–56, managed by the returning Eddie Palmer.

[4] The 1929 Monroe Drillers continued their Class D level Cotton States League membership as both the Hattiesburg Pinetoppers and Meridian Mets franchises relocated during the season.

[31][32] The Monroe Drillers placed sixth in the eight–team league with a record of 55–63, playing the season under managers Art Ewoldt, John Kane and Tillie Metteer.

[34][35] The Drillers ended the season with a record of 67–61 and placed second in the final standings, managed by Jim Bagby and Clarence Huber.

Monroe finished 13.0 games behind the first place El Dorado Lions in the final regular standings as the league ended the season with six teams.

[36] Monroe Did not qualify for the playoffs, as El Dorado and the Pine Bluff Judges won the pennants in the split season schedule.

[4] Dick Luckey, who split the Cotton States League season between the folded Alexandria Reds and Monroe, won the batting title, hitting .358.

[4] With their fifth-place finish, the Twins had a final regular season record 30–66 and managed by Eddie Palmer, Ted Jourdan and Frank Meyers.

With his hiring, Taitt began a four-year tenure as manager after having begun the 1938 season as a player with the Shreveport Sports in the Texas League.

In the final, the White Sox won the championship when they defeated the pennant winning Greenville Bucks 4 games to 2.

[64][4] After joining the team at age 35, Monroe player/manager Doug Tait hit .358 with a .483 OBP while appearing in 68 games for the White Sox.

[66][67] In the eight-team league, Monroe ended the regular season with a record of 92–46, finishing in first place, managed by the retuning Doug Taitt.

In the playoffs, the White Sox lost in first round 3 games to 2 to the Hot Springs Bathers, a Detroit Tigers affiliate.

[70][71] Monroe ended the regular season with a record of 82–45 winning their second consecutive pennant with a first-place finish under returning player/manager Doug Taitt.

The White Sox finished 8.0 games ahead of the second place El Dorado Lions in the final regular season standings in the eight-team Class C level league.

In the final, Monroe won the league championship by defeating El Dorado 4 games to 1. to claim their second title in three seasons.

[72][73] The White Sox won the pennant in 1941, with a first-place finish in the eight-team league, compiling a final regular season record of 83–55, playing under returning manager Doug Taitt.

In the Class C level league, Monroe finished 5.5 games ahead of the second place Hot Springs Bathers in the regular season standings.

In the four-team playoffs, Monroe was unable to defend their league championship as the lost to the Vicksburg Hill Billies 3 games to 2 in the first round.

[4] Dave Philley played for the 1941 Monroe White Sox in their final partial season before embarking on a lengthy major league career.

[75] Following his tenure with Monroe, Philley made his major league debut with the Chicago White Sox at the end of the 1941 season.

[76] After his military service, Philley resumed play in the major leagues until his final season with the 1962 Boston Red Sox.

[83] Besides hosting games, baseball teams trained at the site in the era and utilized the adjacent pool that continued natural spring water.

(1937) Life Magazine . Oil pumping. Monroe, Louisiana.
(1933) Sam West , St. Louis Browns , Goudey baseball card. West hit .341 playing for the Drillers in 1925. A four-time major league all-star, West played in the first 1933 Major League Baseball All-Star Game .
(1921) Jim Bagby Sr. , Cleveland Indians . Bagby pitched and managed with Monroe in his final professional season in 1930 at age 40. He won 31 games for the 1920 World Series Champion Cleveland Indians.
(1924) Joe Martina & family. Washington Senators . July 21, 1924. At age 40, Martina pitched for Monroe in 1930 en route to his 322 career minor league victories.
(1947) Wally Moses , Boston Red Sox . A 2-time major league All-Star, Moses played for Monroe in 1932
(1929) Doug Taitt . Taitt was the player-manager for the Monroe White Sox from 1938 to 1941. He led the team to three consecutive league pennants and two league championships.
(1955) Dave Philley , Baltimore Orioles . Holding his team "Most Valuable Player" trophy. Philley played for Monroe in 1941, before making his major league debut later in the season.