2021
Much of the world and the baseball world was drastically different after the hellscape that was 2020 and the American Association was no different. After admirably pushing through a shortened 2020 season with six teams on the sideline, the AA emerged as a 12-team loop once again, but rather different.
The big blow was the loss of the lynchpin St. Paul Saints, who got the call to become the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, ending the Saints’ 15-year run in the AA and 28 years of independent status. Replacing them was a team that was somewhat surprisingly banished from Minor League Baseball, the Kane County Cougars, a natural fit nestled near two other AA clubs in the Chicago area and with a long history of financial success. They wound up inheriting St. Paul’s entire coaching staff to start their independent journey.
A less-surprising change was the folding of the Texas AirHogs after years of tenuous financials and sitting out the 2020 season. The AirHogs weren’t missed by anyone, with two exceptions: their departure left the Cleburne Railroaders marooned two states from their nearest opponent and also left the AA with 11 teams, necessitating a revival of the 2017 travel team arrangement with the Pecos League: enter the Houston Apollos.
With COVID-19 also wreaking havoc to international trade, the Canadian border was closed well into summer, forcing Winnipeg to stay south for a second consecutive summer, setting up shop in Jackson, Tennessee for an awkward arrangement that lasted until they finally went home at the end of July.
Finally, the Kansas City T-Bones, after being sold in early 2020 and sitting out the season, elected to rebrand in a big way, grabbing headlines by evoking the legendary Negro Leagues franchise by taking the moniker of the Kansas City Monarchs.
Oh yeah, the league also decided to expand the playoff field by adding a Wild Card Game between the second and third-place teams in each division.
Once the games finally got underway, the Chicago Dogs took their first-ever division title, outlasting Fargo-Moorhead with their best-ever record to date, though the RedHawks claimed a wild card, as did Milwaukee, who won a franchise-best 59 games. Meanwhile, Kansas City absolutely ran roughshod over the West, winning 69 games, fifth-most in AA history and outpacing Cleburne and Sioux City by 15 games. After melting down in August 2019 to miss the playoffs, the Railroaders nearly repeated the feat, but did make the playoffs for the first time in club history.
Cleburne’s playoff stay lasted all of three hours, as they were shut out in the South Wild Card game, as was Milwaukee (by Fargo-Moorhead) in the North edition. The RedHawks then took down Chicago in a five-game tilt that swung on a late grand slam in the deciding contest. Kansas City, though, encountered zero drama in the most dominant postseason in AA history. They scored double-digit runs (36 in total) in all three games against Sioux City, then brushed aside Fargo-Moorhead in the Finals with only slightly more effort. All told, the Monarchs reigned supreme, scoring 59 runs in a 6-0 postseason to romp to their second Miles Wolff Cup.
Meanwhile, in an incredible footnote, the Houston Apollos ended their existence with a dreadful 17-83 record…but beat the Lincoln Saltdogs in their final two games of the season, knocking Lincoln out of the postseason by a half-game. Did it change anything? Well, the Saltdogs were the only team with a winning record against Kansas City…
Final Standings (Click on team name for full schedule)
North Division
| Team | W | L | Win Pct. | GB | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed | Attend. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Dogs–y | 63 | 37 | .630 | — | 564 | 472 | 155,582 |
| Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks-x | 61 | 38 | .616 | 1.5 | 649 | 464 | 145,553 |
| Milwaukee Milkmen-x | 59 | 41 | .590 | 4.0 | 538 | 465 | 79,741 |
| Winnipeg Goldeyes | 50 | 49 | .505 | 12.5 | 550 | 620 | 52,014* |
| Kane County Cougars | 44 | 55 | .444 | 18.5 | 472 | 501 | 177,705 |
| Gary SouthShore RailCats | 39 | 61 | .390 | 24.0 | 462 | 540 | 137,094 |
South Division
| Team | W | L | Win Pct. | GB | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed | Attend. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Monarchs-y | 69 | 31 | .690 | — | 664 | 468 | 102,257 |
| Cleburne Railroaders-x | 54 | 46 | .540 | 15.0 | 580 | 553 | 56,201 |
| Sioux City Explorers-x | 53 | 46 | .535 | 15.5 | 525 | 496 | 59,802 |
| Lincoln Saltdogs | 53 | 47 | .530 | 16.0 | 525 | 512 | 149,204 |
| Sioux Falls Canaries | 36 | 64 | .360 | 33.0 | 546 | 621 | 82,932 |
| Houston Apollos | 17 | 83 | .170 | 52.0 | 406 | 772 | —^ |
*Winnipeg played 33 home games in Jackson, TN due to COVID-19 border closing
Attendance: 16,785 (33 games) in Jackson, 35,229 (18 games) in Winnipeg
^Houston served as a travel team to balance schedule with no home games played
Playoffs
North Wild Card — FARGO-MOORHEAD WINS 1-0
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/8/21 | Milwaukee 0 at Fargo-Moorhead 5 | M. Tomshaw | D. Holmberg | – | 1,180 |
South Wild Card — SIOUX CITY WINS 1-0
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/8/21 | Sioux City 4 at Cleburne 0 | P. Ledet | J. Sanchez | M. Kuhns | 1,130 |
North Division Series — FARGO-MOORHEAD WINS 3-2
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/10/21 | Fargo-Moorhead 9 at Chicago 4 | B. Helton | C. Friedrich | – | 2,204 |
| 9/11/21 | Fargo-Moorhead 1 at Chicago 7 | J. Kipper | R. Flores | – | 2,510 |
| 9/14/21 | Chicago 5 at Fargo-Moorhead 6 | L. Lind | J. Kinley | – | 938 |
| 9/15/21 | Chicago 11 at Fargo-Moorhead 1 | C. Friedrich | B. Helton | – | 886 |
| 9/16/21 | Chicago 6 at Fargo-Moorhead 10 | L. Lind | C. Booser | A. DuBord | 786 |
South Division Series — KANSAS CITY WINS 3-0
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/10/21 | Sioux City 2 at Kansas City 11 | M. Hall | B. Adcock | – | 2,848 |
| 9/11/21 | Sioux City 6 at Kansas City 11 | C. Diaz | Z. Hedges | – | 2,548 |
| 9/13/21 | Kansas City 14 at Sioux City 2 | J. Donatella | J. Labourt | – | 888 |
American Association Finals — KANSAS CITY WINS 3-0
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/17/21 | Kansas City 8 at Fargo-Moorhead 4 | M. Hall | M. Finkelnburg | – | 843 |
| 9/18/21 | Kansas City 7 at Fargo-Moorhead 5 | C. Diaz | B. Helton | J. McGrane | 1,134 |
| 9/20/21 | Fargo-Moorhead 1 at Kansas City 8 | K. Sampson | M. Tomshaw | – | 3,354 |
Finals MVP: Gabriel Guerrero (Kansas City) — .429/.467/.643, 6 H, 2 R, 2 2B, 6 RBI
Award Winners
| Player of the Year | Adam Brett Walker (Milwaukee) 100 G, .320/.369/.636, 132 H, 29 2B, 33 HR, 101 RBI |
| Pitcher of the Year | Myles Smith (Milwaukee) 13-4, 3.38 ERA, 20 G, 2 CG, 111.1 IP, 134 K, 1.446 WHIP |
| Rookie Hitter of the Year | Wyatt Ulrich (Sioux Falls) 88 G, .327/.402/.412, 119 H, 16 2B, 1 HR, 37 RBI, 20 SB |
| Rookie Pitcher of the Year | Nate Hadley (Milwaukee) 1-1, 1.56 ERA, 35 G, 13 SV, 40.1 IP, 44 K, 0.992 WHIP |
| Defensive Player of the Year | Chase Harris (Sioux City) 87 G, .986 Fld%, 3 errors in 211 chances, 5 OF assists |
| Manager of the Year | Joe Calfapietra (Kansas City) 69-31 record, Miles Wolff Cup champions |
Postseason All-Stars
| Catcher | Ryan Lidge (Chicago) 80 G, .312/.415/.433, 88 H, 41 R, 16 2B, 6 HR, 45 RBI |
| First Base | Kyle Martin (Winnipeg) 99 G, .280/.371/.609, 104 H, 76 R, 25 2B, 31 HR, 106 RBI |
| Second Base | Ryan Grotjohn (Kansas City) 91 G, .329/.436/.523, 109 H, 76 R, 22 2B, 10 HR, 60 RBI, 12 SB |
| Third Base | Jose Sermo (Sioux City) 91 G, .298/.455/.660, 93 H, 78 R, 20 2B, 29 HR, 86 RBI, 18 SB |
| Shortstop | Josh Altmann (Lincoln) 85 G, .305/.374/.635, 102 H, 69 R, 21 2B, 29 HR, 72 RBI, 20 SB |
| Outfield | Jordan George (Fargo-Moorhead) 92 G, .332/.436/.551, 111 H, 64 R, 23 2B, 16 HR, 80 RBI |
| Outfield | Gabriel Guerrero (Kansas City) 100 G, .319/.355/.485, 127 H, 73 R, 12 2B, 18 HR, 86 RBI |
| Outfield | Adam Brett Walker (Milwaukee) 100 G, .320/.369/.636, 132 H, 80 R, 29 2B, 33 HR, 101 RBI |
| Designated Hitter | Ramon Hernandez (Cleburne) 96 G, .324/.377/.573, 125 H, 74 R, 23 2B, 21 HR, 100 RBI |
| Starting Pitcher | Myles Smith (Milwaukee) 13-4, 3.38 ERA, 20 G, 2 CG, 111.1 IP, 134 K, 1.446 WHIP |
| Relief Pitcher | James Pugliese (Lincoln) 3-3, 2.47 ERA, 42 G, 25 SV, 43.2 IP, 46 K, 1.420 WHIP |
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