Buffalo Bisons
From BR Bullpen
Note: This page links to the minor league team from 1886-present. For the former National League team from 1879-1885 and Players League team in 1890, click here.
- Location: Buffalo, NY
- League: International League 1886-1887; International Association 1888-1890; Eastern Association 1891; Eastern League 1892-1898; Western League 1899; American League 1900; Eastern League 1902-1911; International League 1912-1970; Eastern League 1979-1984; American Association 1985-1997; International League 1998-present
- Affiliation: Cleveland Indians 1939; Detroit Tigers 1941-1949; Philadelphia A's 1950; Detroit Tigers 1952-1955; Kansas City A's 1957-1958; Philadelphia Phillies 1959-1962; New York Mets 1963-1965; Cincinnati Reds 1966-1967; Washington Senators 1968-1969; Montreal Expos 1970; Pittsburgh Pirates 1979-1982; Cleveland Indians 1983-1984; Chicago White Sox 1985-1986; Cleveland Indians 1987; Pittsburgh Pirates 1988-1994; Cleveland Indians 1995-present
- Ballpark: Olympic Park 1889-1900, 1902-1923; Offermann Stadium 1924-1960; War Memorial Stadium 1961-1987; Dunn Tire Park 1988-present
- Famous Alumni: Richie Sexson, Jay Bell, Moises Alou, Otis Nixon, Hal McRae, Tony Pena, Ron Kittle, Tim Wakefield, Cleon Jones, Johnny Bench
From 1924 to 1960, the Buffalo Bisons played at Offermann Stadium, and in 1961, the club moved to War Memorial Stadium. However, the park was located in a downardly-mobile neighborhood in East Buffalo, and became downright dangerous after the riots that occured in the summer of 1967. The Bisons switched most of their night games to Hyde Park in Niagara Falls, NY for the following seasons, as attendance dwindled to a trickle. On the verge of bankruptcy, the team was awarded to the parent Montreal Expos in June, 1970, and moved to Winnipeg, MB.
Left without baseball for a number of seasons, Buffalo received a new team when the Jersey City A's of the AA Eastern League folded. The new team was an instant success at the gate, as the area around War Memorial Stadium had begun to recover, leading to the city moving up to the AAA American Association in 1985. Since 1988, the Bisons have played their home games in Dunn Tire Park. Since moving to their present home, the team has become one of only two minor league clubs to draw over a million fans in a season (the Bisons have done it six times, the Louisville Redbirds once).
[edit] Year-by-Year Record
| Year | Record | Finish | Manager | Playoffs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1886 | 50-45 | 5th | Jack Chapman | none | |
| 1887 | 63-40 | 2nd | Jack Chapman | none | |
| 1888 | 48-62 | 6th | Jack Chapman | none | |
| 1889 | 41-65 | 7th | Jim White / Jack Rowe / Will White | none | |
| 1890 | 8-16 (14-29 overall) | -- | Louis Bacon | League folded July 10 | Team moved to Grand Rapids June 11 |
| 1891 | 89-35 | 1st | Pat Powers | none League Champs | |
| 1892 | 53-60 | 6th | Ecky Stearns / Dan Shannon | ||
| 1893 | 61-50 | 4th | Jack Chapman | none | |
| 1894 | 64-61 | 5th | Jack Chapman | none | |
| 1895 | 63-61 | 5th | Charles Morton | ||
| 1896 | 70-53 | 2nd | Jack Rowe | Lost League Finals | |
| 1897 | 74-57 | 3rd | Jack Rowe | ||
| 1898 | 62-60 | 4th | Jack Rowe | none | |
| 1899 | 53-70 | 7th (t) | Billy Nash / Jim Garry / Jim Franklin / Dan Shannon | none | |
| 1900 | 61-78 | 7th | Dan Shannon / Jim Franklin / Joe Franklin / George Carey | none | |
| 1902 | 88-45 | 2nd | George Stallings | none | |
| 1903 | 79-43 | 3rd | George Stallings | none | |
| 1904 | 88-46 | 1st | George Stallings | none League Champs | |
| 1905 | 63-74 | 5th | George Stallings | none | |
| 1906 | 85-55 | 1st | George Stallings | none League Champs | |
| 1907 | 73-59 | 2nd | Lew McAllister | none | |
| 1908 | 75-65 | 4th | George Smith | none | |
| 1909 | 72-79 | 5th | George Smith | none | |
| 1910 | 69-81 | 6th | William Smith | none | |
| 1911 | 74-75 | 4th | George Stallings | none | |
| 1912 | 71-78 | 5th | George Stallings | none | |
| 1913 | 78-75 | 4th | Bill Clymer | none | |
| 1914 | 89-61 | 2nd | Bill Clymer | none | |
| 1915 | 86-50 | 1st | Patsy Donovan | none League Champs | |
| 1916 | 82-58 | 1st | Patsy Donovan | none League Champs | |
| 1917 | 67-84 | 6th | Patsy Donovan | none | |
| 1918 | 53-68 | 6th | George Wilson | none | |
| 1919 | 81-67 | 3rd | George Wiltse | none | |
| 1920 | 96-57 | 3rd | George Wiltse | none | |
| 1921 | 99-69 | 3rd | George Wiltse | none | |
| 1922 | 95-72 | 3rd | George Wiltse | none | |
| 1923 | 83-81 | 5th | George Wiltse | none | |
| 1924 | 84-83 | 3rd | George Wiltse / Bill Webb | none | |
| 1925 | 78-84 | 4th | Bill Webb | none | |
| 1926 | 92-72 | 4th | Bill Clymer | none | |
| 1927 | 112-56 | 1st | Bill Clymer | none League Champs | |
| 1928 | 92-76 | 2nd | Bill Clymer | none | |
| 1929 | 83-84 | 5th | Bill Clymer | none | |
| 1930 | 74-91 | 6th | Bill Clymer (31-30) / Jim Cooney (43-61) | none | |
| 1931 | 61-105 | 8th | James Cooney | none | |
| 1932 | 91-75 | 3rd | Ray Schalk | none | |
| 1933 | 83-85 | 4th | Ray Schalk | League Champs | |
| 1934 | 76-77 | 5th | Ray Schalk | ||
| 1935 | 86-67 | 3rd | Ray Schalk | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1936 | 94-60 | 1st | Ray Schalk | League Champs | |
| 1937 | 74-79 | 5th | Ray Schalk | ||
| 1938 | 79-74 | 4th | Steve O'Neill | Lost League Finals | |
| 1939 | 82-72 | 3rd | Steve O'Neill | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1940 | 76-83 | 6th | Steve O'Neill | ||
| 1941 | 88-65 | 3rd | Al Vincent | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1942 | 73-80 | 7th | Al Vincent | ||
| 1943 | 66-87 | 7th | Greg Mulleavy | ||
| 1944 | 78-76 | 4th | Bucky Harris | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1945 | 64-89 | 6th | Bucky Harris | ||
| 1946 | 78-75 | 5th | Gabby Hartnett | ||
| 1947 | 77-75 | 4th | Paul Richards | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1948 | 71-80 | 6th | Paul Richards | ||
| 1949 | 90-64 | 1st | Paul Richards | Lost League Finals | |
| 1950 | 56-97 | 8th | Frank Skaff / Ray Schalk | ||
| 1951 | 79-75 | 4th | Specs Toporcer / Coaker Triplett | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1952 | 71-83 | 5th | Jack Tighe / Schoolboy Rowe (May 7-May 20) | ||
| 1953 | 87-65 | 3rd | Jack Tighe | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1954 | 71-83 | 6th | Billy Hitchcock | ||
| 1955 | 65-89 | 6th | Dan Carnevale | ||
| 1956 | 64-87 | 8th | Phil Cavarretta | ||
| 1957 | 88-66 | 2nd | Phil Cavarretta | League Champs | |
| 1958 | 69-83 | 7th | Phil Cavarretta | ||
| 1959 | 89-64 | 1st | Kerby Farrell | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1960 | 78-75 | 4th | Kerby Farrell | ||
| 1961 | 81-67 | 3rd | Kerby Farrell | League Champs | |
| 1962 | 73-80 | 6th | Kerby Farrell | ||
| 1963 | 74-77 | 8th | Kerby Farrell | ||
| 1964 | 80-69 | 3rd | Whitey Kurowski | lost in 1st round | |
| 1965 | 51-96 | 8th | Sheriff Robinson (30-79) / Kerby Farrell (21-17) | ||
| 1966 | 72-74 | 5th | Red Davis | ||
| 1967 | 63-76 | 7th | Lou Fitzgerald (30-36) / Don Zimmer (33-40) | ||
| 1968 | 66-81 | 7th | Wayne Terwilliger | ||
| 1969 | 58-78 | 7th | Hector Lopez | ||
| 1970 | 9-29 | -- | Clyde McCullough | moved to Winnipeg on June 4 | |
| 1979 | 72-67 | 4th | Steve Demeter | none | |
| 1980 | 67-70 | 5th | Steve Demeter | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1981 | 56-81 | 7th | Johnny Lipon | ||
| 1982 | 55-84 | 8th | Tommy Sandt | ||
| 1983 | 74-65 | 3rd | Al Gallagher | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1984 | 72-67 | 5th | Jack Aker | ||
| 1985 | 66-76 | 7th | John Boles | ||
| 1986 | 71-71 | 5th | Jim Marshall | ||
| 1987 | 66-74 | 5th | Orlando Gomez (13-28) | Steve Swisher (53-46) | ||
| 1988 | 72-70 | 6th | Rocky Bridges | ||
| 1989 | 80-62 | 2nd | Terry Collins | ||
| 1990 | 85-62 | 3rd | Terry Collins | Lost 1 game playoff for East title | |
| 1991 | 81-62 | 1st | Terry Collins | Lost League Finals | |
| 1992 | 87-57 | 1st | Marc Bombard | Lost League Finals | |
| 1993 | 71-73 | 4th | Doc Edwards | ||
| 1994 | 55-89 | 8th | Doc Edwards | ||
| 1995 | 82-62 | 2nd | Brian Graham | Lost League Finals | |
| 1996 | 84-60 | 1st | Brian Graham | Lost in 1st round | |
| 1997 | 87-57 | 1st | Brian Graham | League Champs | |
| 1998 | 81-62 | 1st | Jeff Datz | League Champs | |
| 1999 | 72-72 | 9th | Jeff Datz | ||
| 2000 | 86-59 | 1st | Joel Skinner | Lost in 1st round | |
| 2001 | 91-51 | 1st | Eric Wedge | Lost in 1st round | |
| 2002 | 87-57 | 2nd | Eric Wedge | Lost League Finals | |
| 2003 | 73-70 | 8th | Marty Brown | ||
| 2004 | 83-61 | 1st | Marty Brown | League Champs | |
| 2005 | 82-62 | 2nd | Marty Brown | Lost in 1st round | |
| 2006 | 73-68 | 7th | Torey Lovullo | ||
| 2007 | 75-67 | 6th | Torey Lovullo |
