List of defunct and relocated Major League Baseball teams
Throughout the history of Major League Baseball, numerous franchises have relocated or become defunct. Since the early 20th century, Major League Baseball has consisted of the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), both of which have experienced numerous franchise relocations. Prior to establishment of the American League as a major league in 1901, the National League saw several teams go defunct. In the early 20th century, the Federal League (FL) challenged the primacy of the American League and the National League, but the Federal League and all of its franchises went defunct after the 1915 season.[1] From 1952 to 1971, several major league franchises moved, often relocating from a city with multiple major league franchises. After a period of over thirty years without relocation, the Montreal Expos became the Washington Nationals in 2005.
List of defunct and relocated major league franchises
League | The league the franchise was in at the time of relocation |
First | First year in Major League Baseball |
Last | Last year in Major League Baseball |
Relocation | The status of the franchise after relocating or becoming defunct |
Current | The current status of the franchise |
P | League championships won |
WS | World Series victories |
^ | City would later receive a new franchise |
Team | League | First | Last | Seasons | Relocation | Current | P | WS | Reason for relocation/disbandment | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Louisville Colonels | NL | 1882 | 1899 | 18 | Defunct | Defunct | 1 | 0 | Contraction of National League[2] | [3] |
Baltimore Orioles^ | NL | 1882 | 1899 | 18 | Defunct | Defunct | 3 | 0 | Contraction of National League[2] | [4] |
Cleveland Spiders^ | NL | 1887 | 1899 | 13 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Contraction of National League[2] | [5] |
Washington Senators^ | NL | 1891 | 1899 | 9 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Contraction of National League[2] | [6] |
Milwaukee Brewers^ | AL | 1901 | 1901 | 1 | St. Louis Browns | Baltimore Orioles | 0 | 0 | Poor attendance[7] | [8] |
Baltimore Orioles^ | AL | 1901 | 1902 | 2 | Defunct[9] | Defunct | 0 | 0 | American League wanted a franchise in New York City[10] | [11] |
Indianapolis Hoosiers | FL | 1914 | 1914 | 1 | Newark Peppers | Defunct | 1 | 0 | Federal League wanted a franchise in the New York metropolitan area[12] | [13] |
Kansas City Packers^ | FL | 1914 | 1915 | 2 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Disbandment of Federal League | [14] |
Chicago Whales^ | FL | 1914 | 1915 | 2 | Defunct | Defunct | 1 | 0 | Disbandment of Federal League | [15] |
Baltimore Terrapins^ | FL | 1914 | 1915 | 2 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Disbandment of Federal League | [16] |
St. Louis Terriers^ | FL | 1914 | 1915 | 2 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Disbandment of Federal League | [17] |
Brooklyn Tip-Tops^ | FL | 1914 | 1915 | 2 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Disbandment of Federal League | [18] |
Pittsburgh Rebels^ | FL | 1914 | 1915 | 2 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Disbandment of Federal League | [19] |
Buffalo Blues^ | FL | 1914 | 1915 | 2 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Disbandment of Federal League | [20] |
Newark Peppers | FL | 1915 | 1915 | 1 | Defunct | Defunct | 0 | 0 | Disbandment of Federal League | [13] |
Boston Braves^ | NL | 1876 | 1952 | 77 | Milwaukee Braves | Atlanta Braves | 10 | 1 | Poor attendance and competition with the Boston Red Sox[21] | [22] |
St. Louis Browns^ | AL | 1902 | 1953 | 52 | Baltimore Orioles | Baltimore Orioles | 1 | 0 | Poor attendance and competition with the St. Louis Cardinals[23] | [8] |
Philadelphia Athletics^ | AL | 1901 | 1954 | 54 | Kansas City Athletics | Oakland Athletics | 9 | 5 | Poor attendance and competition with the Philadelphia Phillies[24] | [25] |
New York Giants^ | NL | 1883 | 1957 | 75 | San Francisco Giants | San Francisco Giants | 17 | 5 | Declining attendance and desire for a new ballpark[26] | [27] |
Brooklyn Dodgers | NL | 1884 | 1957 | 74 | Los Angeles Dodgers | Los Angeles Dodgers | 13 | 1 | Declining attendance and desire for a new ballpark[28] | [29] |
Washington Senators^ | AL | 1901 | 1960 | 60 | Minnesota Twins | Minnesota Twins | 3 | 1 | Poor attendance[30] | [31] |
Milwaukee Braves^ | NL | 1953 | 1965 | 13 | Atlanta Braves | Atlanta Braves | 2 | 1 | Declining attendance[32] | [22] |
Kansas City Athletics^ | AL | 1955 | 1967 | 13 | Oakland Athletics | Oakland Athletics | 0 | 0 | Poor attendance and the owner's desire for a larger market[33] | [25] |
Seattle Pilots^ | AL | 1969 | 1969 | 1 | Milwaukee Brewers | Milwaukee Brewers | 0 | 0 | Poor attendance and desire for a larger ballpark[34] | [35] |
Washington Senators^ | AL | 1961 | 1971 | 11 | Texas Rangers | Texas Rangers | 0 | 0 | Poor attendance[36] | [37] |
Montreal Expos | NL | 1969 | 2004 | 36 | Washington Nationals | Washington Nationals | 0 | 0 | Poor attendance and desire for a new ballpark[38] | [39] |
Map of cities that hosted defunct and relocated franchises
List of franchises that went defunct prior to 1892
The franchises in the following list went defunct prior to the 1892 season. These franchises played in the National League, the American Association (AA), the Players' League (PL), the Union Association (UA), or, in some cases, a combination of the four leagues. In 1968-1969, a Special Records Committee established by Major League Baseball defined the major leagues as consisting of the NL, AA, PL, UA, American League, and Federal League.[40] The NL has played continuously since 1876, the AA existed from 1882 to 1891, the UA existed for one season in 1884, and the PL operated for one season in 1890. The Special Records Committee excluded the National Association (NA), which operated from 1871 to 1875, as a major league. Some baseball writers have nonetheless argued that the NA should be considered the first major league,[1] but NA franchises are not included below. Note that there have been many cases of multiple distinct franchises sharing the same name.
†Indicates a franchise that played in the National Association
Timelines
Franchise timeline
This timeline includes all franchises that played in the AL or NL after 1891. Active franchises that did not change cities are listed by their current names, even if they went through a name change at some point. Relocations of franchises are marked in black.
National League franchises American League franchises Other leagues
National League franchises American League franchises Other leagues
Pre-1900 city timeline
This timeline shows the history of major league franchises before 1900. Multiple bars for a city indicates that the city hosted multiple major league franchises at the same time; for example, Philadelphia at times hosted two or three franchises concurrently. Gaps in the bars indicate a change in franchises; for example, there were three different franchises known as the Kansas City Cowboys. Franchise relocations are not tracked by this timeline.
National League Franchise American Association franchise Union Association franchise Player's League franchise
National League Franchise American Association franchise Union Association franchise Player's League franchise
See also
References
- 1 2 Ryczek, William. "Why the National Association Was a Major League". The National Pastime Museum. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- 1 2 3 4 "MLB TO ELIMINATE TWO TEAMS". Wired. AP. 7 November 2001. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- ↑ "Louisville Colonels Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Baltimore Orioles Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Cleveland Spiders Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Washington Senators Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Russell, Doug (2 March 2012). "Milwaukee's first Major League team remembered. No, not them". OnMilwaukee. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- 1 2 "Baltimore Orioles Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ This iteration of the Orioles is sometimes considered to be predecessor of the New York Yankees, but the Yankees themselves treat the Yankees as a separate franchise. Lynch, Mike. "1901-02 Orioles Removed from Yankees History". Sports Reference. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- ↑ Thorn, John. "The House That McGraw Built". Our Game. John Thorn. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
- ↑ "Baltimore Orioles Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Spatz, Lyle (2012). Historical Dictionary of Baseball. Scarecrow Press. p. 161.
- 1 2 "Newark Peppers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Kansas City Packers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Chicago Whales Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Baltimore Terrapins Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "St. Louis Terriers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Brooklyn Tip-Tops Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Pittsburgh Rebels Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ "Buffalo Bisons Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Emery, Tom (31 March 2016). "When the Braves called Boston home". Providence Journal. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- 1 2 "Atlanta Braves Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Jones, Landon (10 December 2014). "How Bill Veeck Invented the Baltimore Orioles". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ Warrington, Robert D. "Departure Without Dignity: The Athletics Leave Philadelphia". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- 1 2 "Philadelphia Athletics Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Goldman, Steven. "What the hell are the Giants doing in San Francisco, anyway?". SBNation. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ "San Francisco Giants Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Hirsch, Paul. "Walter O'Malley Was Right". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ "Los Angeles Dodgers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Hennessy, Kevin. "Calvin Griffith: The Ups and Downs of the last Family-Owned Baseball Team". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ "Minnesota Twins Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Hylon, J. Gordon. "Why Milwaukee Lost the Braves: Perspectives on Law and Culture From a Half-Century Later". Marquette University Law School. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ Rieper, Max (20 January 2016). "Losing a sports team: The relocation of the Kansas City Athletics". SBNation. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ Caple, Jim (24 August 2016). "Seattle Pilots barely remembered, except through Brewers, 'Ball Four'". ESPN. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ "Milwaukee Brewers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Eisen, Jeffrey M. (1987). "Franchise Relocation in Major League Baseball". University of Miami Entertainment & Sports Law Review. 4 (19). Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ "Texas Rangers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Panetta, Alexander (13 September 2014). "Twenty years after historic season cancelled, the 'Montreal Expos' back in first". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
- ↑ "Washington Nationals Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- ↑ Thorn, John (4 May 2015). "Why Is the National Association Not a Major League … and Other Records Issues". MLB.com. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
- 1 2 The Hartford Dark Blues moved to Brooklyn for the 1877 season, becoming the Brooklyn Hartfords.
- 1 2 The St. Louis Maroons relocated to Indianapolis after the 1886 season, becoming the Indianapolis Hoosiers