
2023
Whether it be due to teams being displaced by affiliated teams, just simply going out of business, COVID-19, or expansion, the American Association had seen constant change almost from the day it was founded, but 2023 was the first time since 2013 that the AA had fielded the exact same lineup as the year before.
After being bounced in the West Division Finals in 2022, the Kansas City Monarchs claimed their third straight division title (fourth straight if you omit 2020), came back from five runs down in the decisive Game 3 against Sioux City to win the West, then bounced back from a 16-inning loss in Game 1 to win the final three games of the Miles Wolff Cup Finals. The Monarchs spoiled the Chicago Dogs’ first-ever trip to the Finals with a walk-off single in Game 4 from Brian O’Grady, winning KC’s second title in three years and third since 2018.
Final Standings (Click on team name for full schedule)
East Division
| Team | W | L | Win Pct. | GB | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed | Attend. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Milkmen-y | 56 | 44 | .560 | — | 595 | 479 | 85,318 |
| Chicago Dogs-x | 56 | 44 | .560 | — | 572 | 498 | 206,258 |
| Kane County Cougars-x | 49 | 51 | .490 | 7.0 | 476 | 466 | 261,836 |
| Cleburne Railroaders-x | 46 | 54 | .460 | 10.0 | 620 | 587 | 58,817 |
| Lake Country DockHounds | 46 | 54 | .460 | 10.0 | 552 | 575 | 92,914 |
| Gary SouthShore RailCats | 41 | 58 | .414 | 14.5 | 457 | 575 | 148,354 |
West Division
| Team | W | L | Win Pct. | GB | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed | Attend. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Monarchs-y | 59 | 40 | .596 | — | 603 | 508 | 83,608 |
| Sioux City Explorers–x | 52 | 48 | .520 | 7.5 | 493 | 478 | 54,899 |
| Sioux Falls Canaries-x | 52 | 48 | .520 | 7.5 | 566 | 629 | 71,924 |
| Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks-x | 51 | 49 | .510 | 8.5 | 507 | 519 | 155,331 |
| Lincoln Saltdogs | 48 | 52 | .480 | 11.5 | 526 | 552 | 151,265 |
| Winnipeg Goldeyes | 43 | 57 | .430 | 16.5 | 489 | 591 | 178,393 |
Playoffs
East First Round — CHICAGO WINS 2-1
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/6/23 | Chicago 4 at Cleburne 7 | M. Krauza | J. Cavallaro | J. Corbett | 586 |
| 9/8/23 | Cleburne 2 at Chicago 5 | N. Green | J. Tripp | B. Schlitter | 2,521 |
| 9/9/23 | Cleburne 5 at Chicago 12 | S. Lacey | K. Kalich | – | 2,429 |
East First Round — MILWAUKEE WINS 2-1
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/6/23 | Kane County 11 at Milwaukee 2 | T. Beardsley | R. Zimmerman | – | 513 |
| 9/8/23 | Milwaukee 9 at Kane County 7 | F. Bartow | C.J. Eldred | P. Gray | 892 |
| 9/9/23 | Milwaukee 4 at Kane County 0 | K. Mora | K. Kowalczyk | – | 822 |
West First Round — KANSAS CITY WINS 2-0
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/6/23 | Kansas City 9 at Sioux Falls 1 | A. Goudeau | T. Culbreth | – | 936 |
| 9/8/23 | Sioux Falls 0 at Kansas City 4 | M. Hogan | A. Bostick | – | 1,334 |
West First Round — SIOUX CITY WINS 2-0
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/6/23 | Sioux City 8 at Fargo-Moorhead 6 | A. Drury | K. McGovern | S. Rackoski | 1,296 |
| 9/8/23 | Fargo-Moorhead 0 at Sioux City 2 | M. Verburg | C. Davis | S. Rackoski | 533 |
East Finals — CHICAGO WINS 2-1
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/11/23 | Chicago 3 at Milwaukee 4 | J. Echevarria | B. Schlitter | – | 491 |
| 9/13/23 | Milwaukee 2 at Chicago 3 | N. Green | F. Bartow | T. Lane | 2,884 |
| 9/14/23 | Milwaukee 2 at Chicago 3 (11 innings) | T. Lane | F. Bartow | – | 1,704 |
West Finals — KANSAS CITY WINS 2-1
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/11/23 | Kansas City 1 at Sioux City 8 | A. Drury | Z. Grotz | – | 420 |
| 9/13/23 | Sioux City 0 at Kansas City 5 | A. Goudreau | M. Verburg | – | 914 |
| 9/14/23 | Sioux City 6 at Kansas City 9 | M. Hartman | S. Rackoski | P. Weigel | 755 |
Miles Wolff Cup Finals — KANSAS CITY WINS 3-1
| Date | Score | W | L | SV | Attend. |
| 9/16/23 | Kansas City 2 at Chicago 3 (16 innings) | B. Warzek | B. Rossman | – | 2,449 |
| 9/17/23 | Kansas City 8 at Chicago 4 | Z. Grotz | A. Faith | – | 2,159 |
| 9/19/23 | Chicago 6 at Kansas City 9 | A. Goudreau | J. Cheshire | P. Weigel | 1,601 |
| 9/20/23 | Chicago 6 at Kansas City 7 | M. Hartman | J. Cavallaro | – | 1,984 |
Finals MVP: Jan Hernandez (Kansas City) — .250/.455/.625, 4 H, 5 R, 2 HR, 6 RBI
Award Winners
| Player of the Year | Chris Herrmann (Kansas City) 94 G, .355/.439/.617, 129 H, 26 2B, 23 HR, 88 RBI |
| Pitcher of the Year | Solomon Bates (Sioux City) 10-6, 3.57 ERA, 20 G, 126.0 IP, 124 K, 1.00 WHIP |
| Rookie Hitter of the Year | Dayson Croes (Winnipeg) 94 G, .351/.412/.423, 135 H, 15 2B, 3 HR, 67 RBI |
| Rookie Pitcher of the Year | Westin Muir (Kane County) 5-3, 3.51 ERA, 20 G, 100.0 IP, 62 K, 1.430 WHIP |
| Defensive Player of the Year | Sam Dexter (Fargo-Moorhead) 100 G, .987 Fld%, 6 errors in 476 chances at SS |
| Manager of the Year | Mike Meyer (Sioux Falls) 52-48 record, playoff berth, 19-game improvement |
Postseason All-Stars
| Catcher | Chris Herrmann (Kansas City) 94 G, .355/.439/.617, 129 H, 72 R, 26 2B, 23 HR, 88 RBI |
| First Base | Mike Hart (Sioux Falls) 85 G, .302/.438/.643, 88 H, 62 R, 21 2B, 26 HR, 69 RBI |
| Second Base | Bryan Torres (MIlwaukee) 91 G, .370/.464/.540, 133 H, 94 R, 24 2B, 11 HR, 67 RBI, 71 SB |
| Third Base | Dayson Croes (Winnipeg) 94 G, .351/.412/.423, 135 H, 61 R, 15 2B, 3 HR, 67 RBI |
| Shortstop | Josh Altmann (Chicago) 98 G, .290/.389/.595, 108 H, 73 R, 26 2B, 26 HR, 88 RBI, 21 SB |
| Outfield | Hill Alexander (Cleburne) 100 G, .286/.378/.528, 108 H, 78 R, 20 2B, 23 HR, 70 RBI, 14 SB |
| Outfield | Max Murphy (Winnipeg) 99 G, .289/.376/.545, 113 H, 66 R, 22 2B, 26 HR, 84 RBI |
| Outfield | Zach Nehrir (Cleburne) 99 G, .289/.367/.462, 117 R, 81 R, 21 2B, 15 HR, 80 RBI, 35 SB |
| Designated Hitter | Jabari Henry (Sioux Falls) 97 G, .265/.434/.502, 86 H, 78 R, 20 2B, 19 HR, 73 RBI, 89 BB |
| Starting Pitcher | Solomon Bates (Sioux City) 10-6, 3.57 ERA, 20 G, 126.0 IP, 124 K, 1.00 WHIP |
| Relief Pitcher | Charlie Hasty (Sioux Falls) 3-3, 2.28 ERA, 44 G, 22 SV, 43.1 IP, 48 K, 1.338 WHIP |
All-Star Game
July 18, 2023 at Franklin Field – Franklin, WI
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
| West | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| East | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | X | 4 | 4 | 0 |
Attendance: 2,255 Box Score
