The Mission Reds were a minor league baseball team located in

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

, that played in the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Ba ...

(PCL) from 1926 through 1937.

First Missions team

In early September of 1914, the failed

Sacramento Solons The Sacramento Solons were a minor league baseball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Pacific Coast League during several periods (1903, 1905, 1909–1914, 1918–1960, 1974–1976). The current Sacramento River Cats began pl ...

team moved to San Francisco and renamed itself "Mission", in reference to San Francisco's

Mission District The Mission District (Spanish: ''Distrito de la Misión''), commonly known as The Mission (Spanish: ''La Misión''), is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California. One of the oldest neighborhoods in San Francisco, the Mission District's name is ...

. San Francisco newspapers had dubbed the Sacramento team the "Wolves", in reference to manager Harry Wolverton. The "Wolves" nickname followed them to San Francisco. The Mission club continued to play the Sacramento schedule for the final seven weeks of the 200-plus games season. They staged their home games at

Ewing Field Ewing Field was a baseball park in San Francisco, California. It served as the home of the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League for a single season, 1914. Ewing Field was located in the Richmond District of the city, bounded by Masoni ...

(the 1914 season's regular home of the San Francisco Seals); and at

Oaks Park Oak Park or Oaks Park is the name of several places, including: Australia *Oak Park, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne Ireland * Oak Park, County Carlow, a country estate turned park United States *Oak Park, California (Ventura County) an unincorpo ...

(regular home of the

Oakland Oaks Oakland Oaks may refer to one of the following sport teams, listed chronologically: * Oakland Oaks (PCL), a minor league baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1903 to 1955 *Oakland Oaks (ice hockey), a professional ice hockey t ...

), often playing their Sunday doubleheaders one game on each side of the Bay. The Missions' last home games came on Sunday, October 25, with the morning game in San Francisco and the afternoon game in Oakland. There was newspaper chatter about the Missions moving to Recreation Park for 1915, but by then they had moved to

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

, where they became the

Salt Lake Bees The Salt Lake Bees are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. They are located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and play their home games at Smith's Ballpark. The ballpark o ...

Origins in Los Angeles

The Mission Reds were born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

in 1909, where they played under the name the Vernon Tigers. The team won two Pacific Coast League pennants during its 18-year stay in Southern California. Declining attendance forced owner Edward Maier to put the team up for sale after the 1925 season. A group of San Francisco businessmen led by Herbert Fleishhacker purchased the Tigers, moved the team to San Francisco for the 1926 season, and called the team the Mission Reds.

History in San Francisco

San Francisco's second baseball team during this time period, the Mission Reds, were rivals to the well-established San Francisco Seals. Fans seldom referred to the team by its full name "Mission Reds," preferring instead "the Missions." More often than not, the PCL standings in newspapers listed the team as the "Missions" or "Mission." The terms "Reds" and "Missions" were used synonymously in game reports. Like its short-lived predecessor, the Mission Reds were supposed to represent San Francisco's

. From 1926 to 1930, the team played home games at Recreation Park, also home to the Seals. When the Seals moved to their own ballpark, Seals Stadium (at 16th and Potrero Streets), in 1931, the Missions followed suit. The Mission Reds were unable to establish a fan base during their 12-year stay in San Francisco, nor was the team able to replace the

as the Seals' main rival. To most San Francisco baseball fans, the Missions were the team to watch only when the Seals were on the road. The Missions finished first in the Pacific Coast League just once, in 1929; they lost the post-season series to the

Hollywood Stars The Hollywood Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Pacific Coast League during the early- and mid-20th century. They were the arch-rivals of the other Los Angeles-based PCL team, the Los Angeles Angels. Hollywood Stars (192 ...

. The team had a 1,088-1,117 (.480) overall record. In 1935, Reds manager

Gabby Street Charles Evard "Gabby" Street (September 30, 1882 – February 6, 1951), also nicknamed "The Old Sarge", was an American catcher, manager, coach, and radio broadcaster in Major League Baseball during the first half of the 20th century. As a cat ...

was suspended from the

indefinitely for assaulting an

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per' ...

. In 1938, two years after the Hollywood Stars moved to

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, owner Fleischaker, facing mounting losses on the field and at the gate, moved the Mission Reds back to Los Angeles. He renamed the team the

First Missions team

Origins in Los Angeles

History in San Francisco

References

Further reading