Thetford Mines Pirates

On a side note to the Max Oliveras feature, I am sometimes amazed by cities that once had minor league teams. Looking at Oliveras' minor league playing record, it shows he played for the Pirates AA squad in 1974, that squad called Thetford Mines, Quebec, home.

Now, I'm sure most people have never heard of Thetford Mines before. My wife and I hadn't, until we drove through it last February on our way back home from Quebec City, by way of a cow-shaped observatory (we love that stuff). It didn't really strike me as a minor league city.

It looks like the Thetford Mines team was only a member of the Eastern League for two years, 1974 and 1975. They even won the 1974 league title with Oliveras' help and that of current Brewers manager Ken Macha. But Thetford Mines really wasn't a minor league city, that showed at the gate. The winning season only brought out 22,000 fans, the lowest attendence in the league.

• Photos of Thetford Mines' Stade Bellevue: Digitalballparks.com