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List of defunct and relocated Major League Baseball teams

Throughout the history of Major League Baseball, numerous franchises have moved or become defunct. Many of these franchises played in the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), the two existing major leagues, but other franchises played in one of the eleven major leagues that ultimately went defunct. The classification of the major leagues is based on Major League Baseball's recognition of historical leagues.

Major league baseball emerged in the 1870s, and four major leagues, including the NL, played at least one season of baseball in the nineteenth century. During this period, dozens of franchises were founded, but most went defunct, leaving just twelve NL franchises by the 1892 season. After four of the twelve NL franchises went defunct following the 1899 season, the American League emerged in 1901 with several newly founded franchises. The Federal League (FL) challenged the primacy of the American League and the National League for two seasons, but the FL and all of its franchises went defunct after the 1915 season. Numerous Negro leagues operated during the first half of the twentieth century; seven leagues that operated from 1920 to 1948 were later recognized as major leagues by Major League Baseball.

The Baltimore Orioles went defunct after the 1902 season, representing the most recent time that an NL or AL team ceased operations. No NL or AL team would go defunct or relocate until the relocation of the Boston Braves to Milwaukee following the 1952 season. Several teams moved over the next twenty years, often to the Southern or Western United States, with the last such move taking place in 1971 when the Washington Senators became the Texas Rangers. The Montreal Expos became the Washington Nationals in 2005, the first move in three decades. In 2025, the Oakland Athletics plan to temporarily move to West Sacramento, California, and brand themselves as simply the "A's" and "Athletics" with no city name attached, until they permanently move to Las Vegas in 2028 or later when their new ballpark is completed.[1]

List of defunct and relocated major league franchises since 1892

National, American, and Federal League franchises

These franchises played in the National League, the American League, or the Federal League after the 1891 season and either went defunct or moved. Some franchises appear more than once in the table; for example, the Braves franchise appears twice because they moved to Milwaukee in 1952 and to Atlanta in 1965.

League
The league the franchise was in at the time of their move
First
First year in Major League Baseball
Last
Last year in Major League Baseball
Post-change status
The status of the franchise after moving or becoming defunct
Current status
The current status of the franchise
P
League championships won
WS
World Series victories
^
City would later receive a new franchise
List of defunct and relocated Major League Baseball teams is located in the United States
Buffalo
Buffalo
Chicago
Chicago
Newark
Newark
Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Louisville
Louisville
Boston
Boston
Cleveland
Cleveland
Montreal
Montreal
New York
New York
Seattle
Seattle
Philadelphia
Philadelphia
Baltimore
Baltimore
Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Kansas City
Kansas City
Milwaukee
Milwaukee
St. Louis
St. Louis
Washington
Washington
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The map shows cities that hosted defunct and relocated baseball franchises that played in the National League, the American League, or the Federal League after 1891. A steel pog indicates that the city hosted a defunct franchise from the Federal League. A green pog indicates the city hosted a relocated or defunct franchise from the National League. A red pog indicates the city hosted a relocated franchise from the American League. An orange pog indicates that the city hosted relocated or defunct franchises from multiple leagues.

Negro major league franchises

In 2020, Major League Baseball extended major league recognition to seven Negro leagues:[42]

The listed years in the table below indicate the first and last years that the franchise played in a major league as recognized by Major League Baseball; many franchises existed before or after playing in a major league. Franchises that played only as associate clubs of a major league are not included. From 1924 to 1927, and from 1942 to 1948, the top Negro leagues crowned a champion through the Negro World Series.

List of major league franchises that went defunct prior to 1892

The Boston Reds won pennants in the Players' League and the American Association before going defunct
The Providence Grays won the National League in 1879 and 1884 before folding in 1885

The franchises in the following list went defunct before the 1892 season, and played in the National League, the American Association (AA), the Players' League (PL), the Union Association (UA), or some combination of the four leagues. 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. Note that there have been many cases of multiple distinct franchises sharing the same name.

In 1968–1969, the Special Records Committee, which was established by Major League Baseball, defined the major leagues as consisting of the NA, NL, AA, PL, UA, American League, and Federal League.[43] 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,[44] but NA franchises are not included below unless they later played in the National League.

†Indicates a franchise that played in the National Association prior to joining the National League

Timelines

Franchise and league timeline

This timeline includes all franchises (including non-defunct franchises) that played in the AL or NL after 1891; it also shows the eleven historical leagues during the period in which each is considered a major league by Major League Baseball. Only major and recent name changes are marked in blue. Franchise moves 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 (including non-defunct 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 franchises known as the Kansas City Cowboys. Franchise moves 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

Notes

  1. ^ Although the history of the New York Yankees can be traced back to the 1901–1902 Baltimore Orioles, that iteration of the Orioles is considered a separate franchise from the Yankees by Baseball-Reference.com,[10] official Major League Baseball historian John Thorn,[11] and the official Yankees website.[12]
  2. ^ a b The Newark Dodgers and the Brooklyn Eagles merged in 1936, becoming the Newark Eagles.
  3. ^ a b The Hartford Dark Blues moved to Brooklyn for the 1877 season, becoming the Brooklyn Hartfords.
  4. ^ a b The St. Louis Maroons relocated to Indianapolis after the 1886 season, becoming the Indianapolis Hoosiers

References

  1. ^ Drellich, Evan; Rosenthal, Ken (April 4, 2024). "Oakland A's to play in Sacramento's Sutter Health Park beginning in 2025 ahead of move to Las Vegas". The Athletic.
  2. ^ "Louisville Colonels Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d "MLB TO ELIMINATE TWO TEAMS". Wired. AP. 7 November 2001. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  4. ^ "Baltimore Orioles Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  5. ^ "Cleveland Spiders Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Washington Senators Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Baltimore Orioles Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  8. ^ Russell, Doug (2 March 2012). "Milwaukee's first Major League team remembered. No, not them". OnMilwaukee. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  9. ^ "Baltimore Orioles Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  10. ^ Lynch, Mike (July 21, 2014). "1901-02 Orioles Removed from Yankees History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 20, 2021. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  11. ^ "Baseball-Reference.com removes 1901-02 Baltimore Orioles from Yankees history". Society for American Baseball Research. Archived from the original on October 30, 2021. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  12. ^ "Yankees Timeline - 1900s". Yankees.com. MLB Advanced Media. Archived from the original on April 7, 2019. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
  13. ^ Thorn, John. "The House That McGraw Built". Our Game. John Thorn. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  14. ^ a b "Newark Peppers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  15. ^ Spatz, Lyle (2012). Historical Dictionary of Baseball. Scarecrow Press. p. 161.
  16. ^ "Kansas City Packers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  17. ^ "Chicago Whales Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  18. ^ "Baltimore Terrapins Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  19. ^ "St. Louis Terriers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  20. ^ "Brooklyn Tip-Tops Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  21. ^ "Pittsburgh Rebels Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  22. ^ "Buffalo Bisons Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  23. ^ a b "Atlanta Braves Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  24. ^ Emery, Tom (31 March 2016). "When the Braves called Boston home". Providence Journal. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  25. ^ Jones, Landon (10 December 2014). "How Bill Veeck Invented the Baltimore Orioles". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  26. ^ a b "Philadelphia Athletics Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  27. ^ Warrington, Robert D. "Departure Without Dignity: The Athletics Leave Philadelphia". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  28. ^ "San Francisco Giants Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  29. ^ Goldman, Steven. "What the hell are the Giants doing in San Francisco, anyway?". SBNation. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  30. ^ "Los Angeles Dodgers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  31. ^ Hirsch, Paul. "Walter O'Malley Was Right". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  32. ^ "Minnesota Twins Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  33. ^ Hennessy, Kevin. "Calvin Griffith: The Ups and Downs of the last Family-Owned Baseball Team". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  34. ^ 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.
  35. ^ Rieper, Max (20 January 2016). "Losing a sports team: The relocation of the Kansas City Athletics". SBNation. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  36. ^ "Milwaukee Brewers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  37. ^ Caple, Jim (24 August 2016). "Seattle Pilots barely remembered, except through Brewers, 'Ball Four'". ESPN. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  38. ^ "Texas Rangers Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  39. ^ Eisen, Jeffrey M. (1987). "Franchise Relocation in Major League Baseball". University of Miami Entertainment & Sports Law Review. 4 (19). Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  40. ^ "Washington Nationals Team History & Encyclopedia". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  41. ^ 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.
  42. ^ Castrovince, Anthony (December 16, 2020). "MLB adds Negro Leagues to official records". MLB.
  43. ^ Thorn, John (4 May 2015). "Why Is the National Association Not a Major League … and Other Records Issues". MLB.com. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
  44. ^ Ryczek, William. "Why the National Association Was a Major League". The National Pastime Museum. Retrieved 26 September 2017.