The Buffalo Bisons (known

colloquially Colloquialism (also called ''colloquial language'', ''colloquial speech'', ''everyday language'', or ''general parlance'') is the linguistic style used for casual and informal communication. It is the most common form of speech in conversation am ...

as the Herd) are a

Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

team of the

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

and the Triple-A affiliate of the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

. Located in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...

, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Field, the highest-capacity Triple-A ballpark in the United States. The current Bisons organization was founded in 1979 and assumed the history of previous franchises that also used the Buffalo Bisons name, most notably the 1886–1970 Buffalo Bisons minor league franchise, and the 1879–1885 Buffalo Bisons major league franchise. The team established the

Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame The Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame was started by the Buffalo Bisons organization in 1985 to honor former members of the Buffalo Bisons (1878, 1887–1888), Buffalo Bisons (1879–1885), Buffalo Bisons (1886–1970), Buffalo Bisons (1890), B ...

in 1985 to honor former players, managers and contributors to baseball in Buffalo. The team holds the all-time record for single-season attendance in Minor League Baseball, selling 1,240,951 tickets in 1991 while being considered for

1993 Major League Baseball expansion The 1993 Major League Baseball expansion resulted in Major League Baseball (MLB) adding two expansion teams to the National League (NL) for the 1993 season: the Colorado Rockies and the Florida Marlins (now known as the Miami Marlins). Ba ...

. ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' valued the Buffalo Bisons at $34 million in 2016, making it the 15th-most valuable Minor League Baseball franchise.

History

Mayor James D. Griffin and an investment group purchased the

Jersey City A's The Jersey City A's were a minor league baseball team based in Jersey City, New Jersey which played in the Eastern League for the 1978 season and was the AA affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. History The team changed their name from the Jer ...

of the Double-A class Eastern League for $55,000 in 1978, and the team began play as the Buffalo Bisons at War Memorial Stadium in 1979. This new franchise assumed the history of prior Buffalo Bisons teams that had played in the city from 1877 to 1970. Robert E. Rich Jr. purchased the Bisons for $100,000 in 1983, and upgraded the team to the Triple-A class American Association in 1985 after buying out the Wichita Aeros for $1 million. Rich Jr. grew the team's popularity and was known for his innovative promotional tie-ins, most notably an annual series of post-game concerts by

The Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...

. The Buffalo Bisons moved to the $42.4 million Pilot Field (now Sahlen Field) in downtown Buffalo in the 1988 season. In their first year at the venue after moving from War Memorial Stadium, the Bisons broke the all-time record for Minor League Baseball attendance by drawing 1,186,651 fans during the 1988 season. The team won two division titles and set subsequent attendance records on the heels of their unsuccessful

bid. The team's 1991 single-season attendance of 1,240,951 remains a Minor League Baseball record. The

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

replaced the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

affiliate of the Buffalo Bisons prior to the 1995 season. The team won division titles in 1996 and 1997, and won the final American Association championship in 1997. Bartolo Colón threw the first no-hitter in franchise history on June 20, 1997 against the New Orleans Zephyrs. In wake of the American Association disbanding following the 1997 season, the Bisons joined the

in 1998. The team won the division and league championship in their first season, but lost the Triple-A World Series. The addition of regional rivalries allowed for the creation of the Thruway Cup, an annual competition between the Buffalo Bisons,

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Fie ...

and Syracuse SkyChiefs. The Bisons went on to win division titles in 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, and the league championship at home in 2004. The

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

replaced the

affiliate of the Buffalo Bisons prior to the 2009 season. This era was plagued with poor on-field performance and low attendance. The

replaced the

affiliate of the Buffalo Bisons prior to the 2013 season. To kick off this era, the Bisons scored 27 runs on 29 hits against the Syracuse Chiefs on April 18, 2013, setting records for the most runs and hits in an

game since 1973. The Blue Jays used Sahlen Field as their home field in 2020 after the Bisons season was cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, investing $5 million in upgrading the venue. In conjunction with

's restructuring of Minor League Baseball and the closure of the

, the Bisons joined the newly formed Triple-A East in 2021. Due to renovations at Sahlen Field as well as use of the stadium by the Blue Jays, the Bisons began their 2021 season at Trenton Thunder Ballpark in

Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County, New Jersey, Mercer County. It was the federal capital, capital of the United States from November 1 until D ...

. At their home games, they wore the uniforms of the

Trenton Thunder The Trenton Thunder are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Trenton, New Jersey, and play their home games at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. From 1994 to 2020, it was a Minor League Baseball team of the D ...

and were referred to as such, while on the road they were still known as the Buffalo Bisons. With the reinstatement of the historical league names in 2022, the Bisons were returned to the

Roster

Alumni

Retired numbers

National Baseball Hall of Fame members

International League Hall of Fame members

Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame members

All 25 Seasons Team (2012)

Season-by-season records

Radio and television

Bisons Baseball Network produces all radio broadcasts of Buffalo Bisons games. Their flagship station since 2009 has been

WWKB WWKB (1520 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Buffalo, New York. It broadcasts a sports gambling format and is one of two sports radio stations owned and operated by Audacy, Inc. in the Buffalo market. WWKB's Buffalo sister station WGR pri ...

, a clear-channel station in Buffalo. Select games are simulcast on WGR in Buffalo and CJCL in Toronto. Games were previously carried by WUFO/ WXRL (1983), WEBR (1984), WBEN (1985–1988) and WGR (1989–2008). Live video streams of all Buffalo Bisons games have aired on the MiLB.TV subscription service since 2013, and free via the Bally Live app since 2023. Select games have been televised on WNYO since 2023. Games were previously televised on WNYB (1988–1989, 1996), Empire Sports Network (1991–1995, 1997–2004), Time Warner Cable SportsNet (2007–2016), Spectrum Sports (2017) and WNLO (2019–2022). Pat Malacaro has served as the team's play-by-play announcer since 2018. Pete Weber served as play-by-play announcer from 1983 to 1995, and is the current play-by-play announcer for the

Nashville Predators The Nashville Predators (colloquially referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Predators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Divisio ...

. Jim Rosenhaus served as play-by-play announcer from 1996 to 2006, and is the current play-by-play announcer for the

Cleveland Guardians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...

. Ben Wagner served as play-by-play announcer from 2007 to 2017, and is the current play-by-play announcer for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

, after serving 6 years as play-by-play announcer of the

. Duke McGuire has served as the team's color commentator since 1996, and previously worked as the team's in-stadium public address announcer from 1979 to 1995. John Murphy served as color commentator from 1985 to 1988, and is the current play-by-play announcer for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

. Greg Brown served as color commentator from 1989 to 1993, and is the current play-by-play announcer for the

. Weber, McGuire and Rosenhaus were inducted into the

for their broadcast work.

Culture

Mascots

Donald Palmer was an acrobatic

batboy In baseball, a bat boy or bat girl is an individual who carries baseball bats to the players on a baseball team. Duties of a batboy may also include handling and preparing players’ equipment and bringing Baseball (ball), baseballs to the umpi ...

who performed for the Buffalo Bisons as "The Butcher" from 1979 to 1988. Earl Howze, Jr. was a

beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...

vendor who performed for the Buffalo Bisons as "The Earl of Bud" from 1979 to 1997. He was known for dancing to the song "

Tequila Tequila (; ) is a liquor, distilled beverage made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, Jalisco, Tequila northwest of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Guadalajara, and in the Jaliscan Highlands (''Los Altos (Jal ...

" atop the venue's dugouts, with a routine similar to the one made famous by Paul Reubens in the 1985 film '' Pee-wee's Big Adventure''. The Buffalo Bisons honored him at an August 2012 game, with every fan in attendance receiving a bobblehead of his likeness. Howze, Jr. also performed for the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Con ...

Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, colloquially known as The Aud, was a multipurpose indoor arena in downtown Buffalo, New York. Opened on October 14, 1940, it was home to the Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball, Canisius Golden Griffins (Nationa ...

. Tom Girot is a

vendor who has performed for the Buffalo Bisons as " Conehead" since 1979. The Buffalo Bisons honored him at a July 2018 game, with a beer launched in his likeness called Conehead IPA by Resurgence Brewing Company. Girot has also performed for the

at Frontier Field and the

at Sahlen Field. Buster T. Bison has been the official mascot of the Buffalo Bisons since 1983. He was later joined by his cousin Chip in 1994, and his future wife Belle in 2006. Tracey B. Wilson was an actress who performed for the Buffalo Bisons as the

mime A mime artist, or simply mime (from Greek language, Greek , , "imitator, actor"), is a person who uses ''mime'' (also called ''pantomime'' outside of Britain), the acting out of a story through body motions without the use of speech, as a the ...

"Loud Mouth" from 1993 to 1999. Buffalo Bisons games since 2011 have featured the

Wing A wing is a type of fin that produces both Lift (force), lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform (aeronautics), planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-d ...

Cheese Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk (usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats or sheep). During prod ...

& Carrot (WCC) mascot race between costumed representations of various local foods just prior to the sixth-inning.

Music

"Stampede" has been the official

fight song A fight song is a rousing short song associated with a sports team. The term is most common in the United States and Canada. In Australia, Mexico, and New Zealand, these songs are called the team anthem, team song, or games song. First associated ...

of the Buffalo Bisons since their inaugural season at Sahlen Field in 1988.

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...

's recording of " The Best" is played after every Buffalo Bisons home victory at Sahlen Field. A parody of the

Gary Glitter Paul Francis Gadd (born 8 May 1944), better known by his stage name Gary Glitter, is an English former singer who achieved fame and success during the 1970s and 1980s. His career ended after he was convicted of downloading child pornography i ...

song "

Rock and Roll Part 2 "Rock and Roll" is a song by the English singer Gary Glitter, released in 1972 from his debut studio album, '' Glitter''. Co-written by Glitter and Mike Leander, the song is in two parts: Part 1 is a vocal track with a "Rock and Roll, Rock" ch ...

" featuring lyrics referencing Irv Weinstein was played at Sahlen Field during the seventh-inning stretch of Buffalo Bisons games in the 1990s.

References

External links

Official website
{{Portal bar, Baseball 1979 establishments in New York (state) Baseball teams established in 1979 Chicago White Sox minor league affiliates Cleveland Guardians minor league affiliates American Association (1902–1997) teams Eastern League (1938–present) teams International League teams New York Mets minor league affiliates Pittsburgh Pirates minor league affiliates Toronto Blue Jays minor league affiliates Triple-A East teams