{{short description|Professional softball team}} {{Use American English|date=February 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2026}} The '''Lexington Stallions''' were a professional [[softball]] team who played at Southland Park in [[Lexington, Kentucky]] in the [[men's professional softball leagues|North American Softball League (NASL)]] during the 1980 season.<ref name="auto3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64671468/lexington-leader/|title=Clipped From Lexington Leader|date=May 22, 1980|pages=20|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64877289/lexington-leader/|title=Clipped From Lexington Leader|date=May 11, 1980|pages=35|via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
==Team history== Kentucky was represented by the [[Kentucky Bourbons]], who played in [[Louisville]] in the first professional league, the American Professional Slo-Pitch League (APSPL), beginning with the founding of that league in 1977.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.softballhistoryusa.com/kentucky-bourbons/|title=Kentucky Bourbons – Softball History USA|website=www.softballhistoryusa.com}}</ref> But 1980 was a year of division in professional softball as the [[Cleveland Stepien's Competitors]], the [[Fort Wayne Huggie Bears]] and Milwaukee broke away from the APSPL to form a new league (North American Softball League) in 1980, under the leadership of Cleveland owner [[Ted Stepien]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64663193/pittsburgh-post-gazette/|title=Clipped From Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|date=April 24, 1980|pages=11|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> The Bourbons continued in the reduced numbers of the APSPL.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64668331/democrat-and-chronicle/|title=Clipped From Democrat and Chronicle|date=March 24, 1980|pages=35|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Stepien placed NASL teams in several APSPL markets, including [[Cincinnati]] and [[Pittsburgh]], also placing a team, the Lexington Stallions, in nearby [[Lexington, Kentucky]].<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64666599/detroit-free-press/|title=Clipped From Detroit Free Press|date=March 8, 1980|pages=33|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64666746/detroit-free-press/|title=Clipped From Detroit Free Press|date=March 8, 1980|pages=37|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Stepien owned many of the NASL teams, including the Stallions.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64306795/the-pittsburgh-press/|title=Clipped From The Pittsburgh Press|date=May 8, 1980|pages=4|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> The owner of the [[Pittsburgh Hardhats (softball)|Pittsburgh Hardhats]] of the APSPL brought a challenge in federal court in an attempt to prevent splitting the young professional sport.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64668298/pittsburgh-post-gazette/|title=Clipped From Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|date=June 19, 1980|pages=61|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name="auto2"/><ref name="auto1"/> Donnie Rardin, a former Bourbon who was now changing teams for the 4th time in the 4 years of professional softball, was brought on by Stepien and would play for and serve as General Manager for Lexington, former Bourbon Dave Bair managed the team, and ex-Bourbons Phil Schroer and Phil Gowdy joined them on the Stallions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64668389/the-courier-journal/|title=Clipped From The Courier-Journal|date=January 10, 1980|pages=37|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64671602/lexington-leader/|title=Clipped From Lexington Leader|date=June 20, 1980|pages=15|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64671577/the-courier-journal/|title=Clipped From The Courier-Journal|date=June 23, 1980|pages=19|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/65304790/the-courier-journal/|title=Clipped From The Courier-Journal|date=July 3, 1979|pages=29|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/65304871/the-courier-journal/|title=Clipped From The Courier-Journal|date=July 3, 1979|pages=8|via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
The Stallions had an unremarkable run in 1980, finishing the season with a 30-32 (.486) record, good for 3rd place in the NASL Western Division, 18 games the [[Milwaukee Schlitz]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.softballhistoryusa.com/category/1980/|title=1980 – Softball History USA|website=www.softballhistoryusa.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64960992/lexington-leader/|title=Clipped From Lexington Leader|date=July 7, 1980|pages=9|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Milwaukee would go on to win the 1980 NASL World Series 5–2 over the [[Detroit Auto Kings]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64604156/the-lexington-herald/|title=Clipped From The Lexington Herald|date=August 2, 1980|pages=20|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> with Ken Parker (.586 BA) of Milwaukee honored as Series MVP. Ron Olesiak (.555, 34 HRs, 124 RBIs) of [[Chicago Nationwide Advertising]] was the NASL league MVP.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.softballhistoryusa.com/category/other/nasl/|title=NASL – Softball History USA|website=www.softballhistoryusa.com}}</ref> Donnie Rardin (.548, 20 doubles, 14 triples) was the lone Stallion to make the all-NASL squad for 1980. Former Bourbons Rardin, Phil Schroer,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64604129/lexington-leader/|title=Clipped From Lexington Leader|date=June 4, 1980|pages=13|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> and Phil Gowdy represented Lexington at the mid-season all-star game in [[Willoughby, Ohio]]. The Stallions also featured former Bourbon Terry Davis, Jim Dunn, who had been signed by the [[Dallas Cowboys]] in 1970, Bendal Bagby,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64959298/lexington-leader/|title=Clipped From Lexington Leader|date=July 3, 1980|pages=17|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64959216/lexington-leader/|title=Clipped From Lexington Leader|date=July 3, 1980|pages=22|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64961034/the-lexington-herald/|title=Clipped From The Lexington Herald|date=June 23, 1980|pages=13|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> and Thom Deskins, who had played minor league baseball in the [[Chicago Cubs]] organization.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=deskin001tho|title=Thomas Deskins Minor Leagues Statistics & History|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64604199/the-lexington-herald/|title=Clipped From The Lexington Herald|date=May 18, 1980|pages=28|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name="auto3"/>
After the season, the NASL and the APSPL officially merged, but only the Milwaukee Schlitz would go to the new United Professional Softball League (UPSL) and the Stallions disbanded. The UPSL folded after the 1982 season, bringing an end to the professional softball era for men in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.softballhistoryusa.com/|title=Softball History USA – This site is dedicated to collecting the history of the great sport of softball.|website=www.softballhistoryusa.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://detroitcaesars.weebly.com/|title=Detroit Caesars|website=Detroit Caesars}}</ref>
==Lexington Stallions record==
{| class="wikitable" |- style="background: #F2F2F2;" ! Year !! Record !! Pct !! Finish !! Division !! Playoffs !! League |- align=center | 1980 || 30-32 || ..486 || 3rd || Midwestern || - || NASL |- align=center |}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[https://www.angelfire.com/sd/slopitch/pro.html Softball History Data] *[https://www.softballhistoryusa.com/ Softball History USA] *[https://detroitcaesars.weebly.com/detroit-auto-kings.html Detroit Auto Kings Online Home] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204111633/https://detroitcaesars.weebly.com/detroit-auto-kings.html |date=2020-12-04 }} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20190324200635/https://www.teamusa.org/usa-softball/national-softball-hall-of-fame National Softball Hall of Fame]
[[Category:Softball teams in Kentucky]] [[Category:Sports clubs and teams established in 1980]] [[Category:Men's professional softball teams]] [[Category:Sports clubs and teams disestablished in 1980]]