The Albuquerque Cardinals were a minor league baseball team based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Albuquerque teams played exclusively as a member of the Arizona-Texas League in 1932 and from 1937 to 1941, winning three league championships. The team played as the Albuquerque "Dons" in 1932 before the league folded, resuming play in 1937. The franchise became known as the Albuquerque "Cardinals" while serving as a minor league affiliate of the St Louis Cardinals from 1937 to 1941. The Dons and Cardinals hosted home minor league games at Tingley Field
Minor league baseball first began in Albuquerque in 1915, when the Albuquerque Dukes played one season in the Rio Grande Association. The Albuquerque Dons returned minor league baseball to the city, joining the 1932 Class D level Arizona-Texas League
In 1932, Albuquerque Dons had a record of 57âÂÂ42 and were in first place under Manager Bobby Coltrin when the fiveâÂÂteam league disbanded on July 24, 1932. The Arizona-Texas League did not play for the next four seasons.
In 1937, the Arizona-Texas League reformed. The Albuquerque "Cardinals" took the moniker of their major league affiliate as they joined the Class D level league and won the league championship. The Albuquerque Cardinals played as an affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals in 1937, the first of a fiveâÂÂyear partnership. The Cardinals placed third with an overall record of 56âÂÂ59, playing the season under manager Bill DeLancey. The 1937 regular season standings were led by the El Paso Texans with a 73âÂÂ49 record, followed by Albuquerque (56âÂÂ59), the Bisbee Bees (51âÂÂ71), and Tucson Cowboys (57âÂÂ58). Albuquerque won the secondâÂÂhalf championship, after the Cardinals defeated El Paso in a oneâÂÂgame playoff for secondâÂÂhalf championship to force a final series. El Paso had won the firstâÂÂhalf championship. In the 1937 Finals, the Albuquerque defeated the El Paso 4 games to 3 to capture the 1937 championship. Total home attendance for the Cardinals was 30,110.
The 1938 Albuquerque Cardinals placed third in the fourâÂÂteam ArizonaâÂÂTexas League regular season standings. The Cardinals ended the season with a 67âÂÂ65 record, playing under returning manager Bill DeLancey and did not qualify for the playoff, won by El Paso. Albuquerque had season home attendance of 60,000, averaging 909 per home game. Albuquerque finished 6.0 games behind first place Bisbee in the final standings.
The 1939 Albuquerque Cardinals won their second ArizonaâÂÂTexas League Championship. The Cardinals finished the regular season with a record of 70âÂÂ60, placing second in the overall standings under manager Bill DeLancey, winning the second halfâÂÂstandings of the splitâÂÂseason schedule. In the playoff final, the Cardinals defeated the Bisbee-Douglas Bees 4 games to 2 to claim the 1939 championship. The Cardinals had home season attendance of 100,000.
The 1940 four-team ArizonaâÂÂTexas League became a Class C level league. The Albuquerque Cardinals finished with a record of 60âÂÂ64, placing third in the league, playing the season under manager Jack Farmer. The Cardinals did not play in the post season, won by El Paso over Tucson. The Cardinals finished 6.5 games behind 1st place Tucson in the final overall standings.
1941 was the final season for the Albuquerque Cardinals. The Arizona-Texas League continued as a fourâÂÂteam, Class C level league. The 1941 Cardinals manager was Jimmy Zinn. Under Zinn, the Cardinals finished 63âÂÂ65, placing second in the league and finishing 21.0 games behind the first place Tucson Cowboys (86âÂÂ46). No playoffs were held. The ArizonaâÂÂTexas League folded after the 1941 season.
In 1942, Albuquerque continued play as the Albuquerque Dukes, joining the West Texas-New Mexico League. Today, Albuquerque is home to the Class AAA Albuquerque Isotopes.
The Albuquerque Dons and Albuquerque Cardinals played minor league home games at Tingley Field. Also called "Apprentice Field," the stadium was upgraded in 1937 with a $10,900 Works Progress Administration grant. The ballpark officially opened April 6, 1932. Tingley Field, was named for Mayor Clyde Tingley. St. Louis Cardinals general manager Branch Rickey was present for first game in 1937 and called Tingley Field "one of the finest minor league parks in America". Tingley Field was demolished in 1969. Today, the old ticket booth remains and the site is called Tingley Park, a public park with baseball and softball fields.