Toledo Mud Hens

Toledo Mud Hens Founded in 1883 Toledo, Ohio
Team logo Cap insignia
Class-level
Current	Triple-A (1946–1955, 1965–present)
Previous	Double-A (1908–1913, 1916–1945) Single-A (1902–1907)
Minor league affiliations
League	International League (1965–present)
Division	West Division
Previous leagues	American Association (1902–1913, 1916–1955)
Major league affiliations
Current	Detroit Tigers (1934–1935, 1949–1951, 1967–1973, 1987–present)
Previous	Minnesota Twins (1978–1986) Cleveland Indians (1932, 1976–1977) Philadelphia Phillies (1974–1975) New York Yankees (1965–1966) Milwaukee Braves (1953–1955) St. Louis Browns (1936–1948) New York Giants (1930)
Minor league titles
League titles (4)	1927 1968 2005 2006
Division titles (6)	1967 2002 2005 2006 2007 2018
Team data
Nickname	Toledo Mud Hens (1902–1913, 1919–1952, 1965–present)
Previous names	Toledo Iron Men (1916–1918) Toledo Sox (1953–1955)
Colors	Navy, red, white, gold
Mascots	Muddy & Muddonna
Ballpark	Fifth Third Field (2002–present)
Previous parks	Ned Skeldon Stadium (1965–2001) Swayne Field (1909–1955) Armory Park (1897–1908) Bay View Park (1896) Whitestocking Park (1894–1895) Olympic Park (1892) Speranza Park (1888–1890) League Park (1883–1885)
Owner(s)/ Operator(s)	Toledo Mud Hens Baseball Club, Inc.
Manager	Doug Mientkiewicz
General Manager	Erik Ibsen

The Toledo Mud Hens are a professional Minor League Baseball team based in Toledo, Ohio. The Mud Hens play in the International League and are affiliated with the Detroit Tigers franchise of Major League Baseball, based about 50 miles (80 km) north of Toledo. They play their home games at Fifth Third Field.

History

Professional baseball had been played off and on in Toledo since 1883, but the Mud Hens era began in 1896 with the "Swamp Angels", who played in the Interstate League. They played in Bay View Park, which was outside the Toledo city limits and therefore not covered by the city's blue laws. The park was located near marshland inhabited by American coots, also known as "mud hens." For this reason, the local press soon dubbed the team the "Mud Hens"—a nickname that has stuck to Toledo baseball teams for all but a few years since. After only one year, though, the team moved to Armory Park.^[1]

A Mud Hens team played in the American Association from its founding in 1903 until the franchise moved to Charleston, South Carolina in 1952. An International League franchise moved to Toledo from Richmond, Virginia in 1965 adopting the Mud Hens name to become the current incarnation of the Mud Hens.

Notable players

• Billy Bean
• Billy Beane
• Moe Berg
• Tony Clark
• Octavio Dotel
• Doug Fister
• Curtis Granderson
• Mike Hessman
• Omar Infante
• Gabe Kapler
• Shane Loux
• Craig Monroe
• Bobby Murcer
• Jeff Newman
• Kirby Puckett
• Max Scherzer
• Mose Solomon
• Casey Stengel
• Tom Underwood
• Jim Walewander
• Phil Weintraub
• Hack Wilson
• Josh Zeid

Season-by-season records

The records of the last five Toledo Mud Hens seasons are listed below.

Current roster

Popular culture

• M*A*S*H character Maxwell Klinger (played by Jamie Farr) hailed from Toledo and often mentioned the Mud Hens as his favorite baseball team throughout the series. He was often seen wearing a Toledo Mud Hens jersey and cap. In fact, Klinger feels so strongly about the Mud Hens that he gets put on KP duty for a month when he hits his mortal enemy Sgt Zelmo Zale, who insulted the Mud Hens. Like Klinger, Farr was born and raised in Toledo. The Mud Hens retired jersey #1 in Farr's honor.
• The title character of the comic strip Crankshaft was a pitcher for the Mud Hens just before World War II when he enlisted in the Army. He invariably wears a Mud Hens cap in the strip, and reminisces often about his playing days. In the summer of 2016 the Mud Hens retired jersey #13 in Crankshaft's honor.
• Lou Brown, manager of the Cleveland Indians in the film Major League, managed in Toledo prior to managing the Indians.
• Richard Pryor's character, Montgomery Brewster, in the 1985 film Brewster's Millions was said to have previously pitched for the Mud Hens.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Toledo Mud Hens.

• List of baseball parks in Toledo, Ohio
• Current and former Toledo Mud Hens players

References

• The Toledo Baseball Guide of the Mud Hens 1883–1943, Ralph Elliott Lin Weber, 1944.
• www.baseball-reference.com

External links

• Toledo Mud Hens web site