Buffalo Blues

1914:With the creation of the Federal League the Western New York City of Buffalo got another chance at fielding a major league baseball team. The city was previously home to two other top level professional baseball clubs, both of whom were called the Bisons. The first team had moderate success in the National League in the 1880’s followed by a Player’s League team in 1890 that was owned by Connie Mack. The Buffalo franchise did not have an official name and was referred to often as the “BufFeds”. Due to the typical harsh winters in Buffalo, which delayed construction of their stadium. During this road trip Buffalo managed by Larry Schlafly played their first 17 games on the road, playing respectable with a 7-10 record. Finally getting some home games under their belt the BufFeds briefly spent time in first place in June, but it would not last long as they spend most of the season near .500 and finished in fourth place with a record of 80-71. The top player for Buffalo was pitcher Russ Ford, who posted a record of 21-6 and held an ERA of 1.82.

1915:For their second team, the Federal League’s Buffalo franchise adopted the name Buffalo Blues. This may have been because the team had the Blues most of the season, getting off to a 13-28 start that had them in last place as June began. This would lead to a managerial change as Harry Lord replaced Larry Schlafy. The Blues would play much better under Lord, posting a record of 60-49 over their last 109 games, but could not overcome the damage done from the first two months as Buffalo finished in sixth place with a record 74-78. After the Federal League folded, Buffalo would become a successful minor league town, but never again had a Major League Team. The closest Buffalo ever got to returning to the big leagues was when William Shea introduced plans to start the Continental League in 1959. The league would never come to fruition as both the American and National League expanded. Of the eight cities introduced to begin play in the Continental League only Buffalo would not get an expansion team.

Federal League Park 1914-1915