Saginaw Bears

The Saginaw Bears was a primary name of the minor league baseball franchises that played in Saginaw, Michigan in various seasons between 1884 and 1951.

Saginaw Bears
1884–1951
(1884, 1889, 1893, 1897–1898, 1900, 1906, 1908–1915, 1919–1926, 1940–1941, 1948–1951)
Saginaw, Michigan
Minor league affiliations
Previous classes
  • Class A (1948-1951)
  • Class B (1919-1926)
  • Class C (1896, 1906, 1911–1912, 1914–1915, 1940–1941)
  • Class D (1897, 1906–1910, 1913)
Previous leagues
Major league affiliations
Previous teams
Minor league titles
League titles 1908, 1909, 1914, 1919
Team data
Previous names
  • Saginaw Greys (1884)
  • Saginaw Alerts (1893)
  • Saginaw Lumberman (1896–1897)
  • Saginaw Braves (1898)
  • Saginaw Salt Eaters (1900)
  • Saginaw Wa-was (1908–1910)
  • Saginaw Krazy Kats (1911)
  • Saginaw Trailers (1912)
  • Saginaw Ducks (1913–1916)
  • Saginaw Aces (1919–1926)
  • Saginaw Athletics (1940)
  • Saginaw White Sox (1941)
  • Saginaw Bears (1948–1950)
  • Saginaw Jacks (1951)
Previous parks
Aces Park (1902–1926)
Saginaw Stadium (1940–1951)

Saginaw teams played as members of the Northwestern League (1884), Michigan State League (1889), Ohio-Michigan League (1893), Michigan State League (1897), International League (1898, 1900), Interstate Association (1906), Southern Michigan League (1906, 1908–1915), Michigan-Ontario League (1919–1926), Michigan State League (1926, 1940–1941) and Central League (1948–1951).

Saginaw was an affiliate of the Chicago White Sox (1941).

Baseball Hall of Fame members John Clarkson (1884) and Jesse Haines (1914–1915) played for Saginaw.

History

Saginaw teams were members of the Central League (1948–1951), Michigan State League (1889, 1897, 1926, 1940–1941) Michigan-Ontario League (1919–1926) Southern Michigan League (1906, 1908–1915) Interstate Association (1906) International League (1898, 1900) Ohio-Michigan League (1893) and Northwestern League (1884).[1]

Minor league baseball firs started in 1884, with the Saginaw Greys.The team had a variety of monikers: Jacks (1951), Bears (1948–1950), White Sox (1941), Athletics (1940), Aces (1919–1926), Ducks (1913–1916), Trailers (1912), Krazy Kats (1911), Wa-was (1908–1910), Salt Eaters (1900), Braves (1898), Lumberman (1896–1897), and Alerts (1893).[1]

The Saginaw Alerts were disbanded on June 11, 1893.[2]

The 1889 Saginaw team finished in 2nd place in the Michigan State League at 59–40.[3]

The 1902 Saginaw White Sox were a Michigan State League team that was relocated to Jackson, Michigan on July 20, 1902.[4]

The 1908-1909 Saginaw Wa-was won consecutive league titles in the Southern Michigan League.[5]

In 1912, the Saginaw Trailers were disbanded with a 19–44 record on July 13, as their ballpark was flooded.[5]

In 1914, the Saginaw Ducks won the Souhern Michigan League Championship with a 90–55 record. in 1915 the league disbanded mid season with the Ducks 31–38.[6]

The Saginaw Aces won the 1919 Michigan-Ontario League Championship, finishing 77–32. The 1922 Saginaw Aces finished 74–58 and lost in the Finals.[7]

The 1940 Saginaw Athletics finished 2nd in the Michigan State at 53–48. The Athletics made the Finals, which were cancelled by weather.[8]

The final Saginaw team, the Saginaw Jacks finished 3rd in the 1951 Central League with a 79–58 record. The Central League folded after the 1951 season.[9]

The ballparks

Saginaw teams played at Aces Park from 1902-1926. It was also known as: Athletic Park (1902–1906), Recreation Park (1908), Burkart Park (1909-1915) and Opportunity Park (1919). Aces Park was located at Davenport Avenue & Mary Street.[10] The park had some misfortune. It was destroyed by fire in 1908 and rebuilt. The ballpark flooded in 1912 and was destroyed by fire again in 1913, to be rebuilt again. Today, the site is a dump yard.[10]

The Saginaw teams from 1940–1951 played at Veterans Memorial Stadium at Holland & 29th Street. In 1948 it was renamed Saginaw Stadium. Today the site is called McKinney Park.[11]

Notable alumni

Baseball Hall of Fame alumni

Notable alumni

References
  1. "Saginaw, Michigan Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com.
  2. "Saginaw Alerts - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.
  3. "Michigan State League - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.
  4. "Saginaw White Sox - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.
  5. "Saginaw Trailers - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.
  6. "Saginaw Ducks - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.
  7. "Saginaw Aces - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.
  8. "Saginaw Athletics - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.
  9. "Saginaw Jacks - BR Bullpen". www.baseball-reference.com.
  10. "Aces Park in Saginaw, MI history and teams on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  11. Sonnenberg, Mike (April 6, 2016). "a Brief History of Minor League Baseball in Saginaw".
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