The Braves have the distinction of being the longest active franchise in baseball, tracing their roots back to the Boston Red Caps, a National League team created in 1876. Over the next thirty-seven years, the team was also known as the Beaneaters, the Doves, and the Rustlers, before settling on the Braves in 1912.
The Beaneaters dominated the National League in the 1890's, winning four pennants. Many of their stars bolted to the upstart American League in 1901, leaving Boston with a team so bad and out of contention it boggles the mind. During the ten seasons from 1903-1912, the Braves finished 32, 51, 54, 66, 47, 36, 55, 50, 54 and 52 games out of first place.
They made a modest move to fifth the next year, setting the stage for the 1914 "Miracle Braves" — an incredible chapter in baseball lore. Mired in last place on July 18, 1914, the Braves suddenly went on a winning binge, led by sparkplug shortstop Rabbit Maranville. They won thirty-four of forty-four games, climbing over every team in the league, finally surpassing the first place Giants on September 8. When the season ended, the Braves had put ten games between themselves and second place New York. They capped off their "Miracle" season with a four game sweep of the heavily favored Philadelphia Athletics.
The Braves returned to the second division for the next three decades, finally returning to respectability under manager Billy Southworth who had guided the great Cardinal teams of the early '40s. The Braves won the 1948 pennant, mostly on the back of two great pitchers, Warren Spahn and Johnny Sain ("Spahn and Sain and two days of rain" was the Braves rallying cry). They lost the World Series to the Indians.
For the next four years, the Braves lost games, money, and fans to the Red Sox, prompting owner Lou Perini to move the team to Milwaukee for 1953, the first shift of a major league franchise since 1903. The Braves closed out a seventy-seven year run in Boston with a 5-5 tie against the Dodgers at Ebbets Field on September 28, 1952. They left Boston with two World Championships and ten pennants.
Atlanta Braves History
