Toledo Sox

Not to be confused with Toledo Blue Stockings.
Toledo Sox
Minor league affiliations
Previous classesTriple-A (1953–1955)
Previous leagues
American Association (1953–1955)
Major league affiliations
Previous teamsMilwaukee Braves (1953–1955)

The Toledo Sox were a minor league baseball team based in Toledo, Ohio. They played in the American Association from 1953 to 1955 at the Triple-A level as an affiliate of the Milwaukee Braves.

History

Entering the 1952 season, Toledo, Ohio, had been home to the Toledo Mud Hens for nearly every season since 1896. Mid-season in 1952, owner Danny Menendez moved the Mud Hens to Charleston, West Virginia,[1] where they competed as the Charleston Senators through 1960.

Starting in 1953, Toledo fielded a replacement franchise in the American Association, the Toledo Sox, which was the former Milwaukee Brewers minor-league team. The Sox played in Toledo through the 1955 season. The first game the team played, in April 1953, was also the first game broadcast on radio by sports announcer Frankie Gilhooley, who went on to broadcast baseball games in Toledo through 2009.[2] Sox manager George Selkirk was named the American Association Manager of the Year in 1953.[3]

In 1956, the Sox moved to Wichita, Kansas, where they competed as the Wichita Braves through 1958. Toledo was without a minor-league team from 1956 through 1964; in 1965, a new Mud Hens team began playing in the Triple-A International League.[4]

Season records

Season Manager(s) W–L Win % Finish Playoffs (games) Ref.
1953 Tommy Holmes
George Selkirk		 90–64 .584 1st of 8 defeated Louisville Colonels, 4–3
lost to Kansas City Blues, 4–3		 [5][6]: 467 
1954 George Selkirk 74–80 .481 6th of 8 did not qualify [6]: 474 
1955 George Selkirk 81–73 .526 5th of 8 did not qualify [6]: 481 

See also

References

  1. ^ Whiteford, Mike (August 17, 2019). "Out of nowhere in 1952, Charleston had a chance for Class AAA baseball". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  2. ^ Husman, John R. (November 19, 2010). "Frank Gilhooley - A Toledo Broadcast Legend". MiLB.com. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  3. ^ "Selkirk the Best". Kansas City Times. November 14, 1953. p. 23. Retrieved July 28, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Toledo, Ohio Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  5. ^ "Yanks, Dodgers in Little Series, Too". Coshocton Tribune. Coshocton, Ohio. UP. October 1, 1953. p. 5. Retrieved July 28, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b c Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 1932391177.