The Bend Timberhawks were a minor league baseball team located in

Bend, Oregon Bend is a city in and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. It is the principal city of the Bend Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bend is Central Oregon's largest city, with a population of 99,178 at the time of the 2020 U.S ...

. The Timber Hawks were members of the

Class A-Short Season Class A Short Season (officially Short-Season A) was a level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States from 1965 through 2020. In the hierarchy of minor league classifications, it was below Triple-A, Double-A, Class A-Advanced (cre ...

Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Pacific Northwest, Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Maj ...

for a single season in 1978 and were affiliated with the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

History

Professional baseball would be returning to Bend in 1978 with the expansion of the Northwest League. The central Oregon city had hosted the

Bend Rainbows The Bend Rainbows were a minor league baseball team in Bend, Oregon, from 1970 to 1971. They played in the Class A-Short Season Northwest League and were an affiliate of the Triple-A Hawaii Islanders of the Pacific Coast League. Despite their brie ...

for two season from 1970-1971 until the club relocated to Seattle. The franchise had initially been awarded to Dean Taylor, but Taylor sold the club to Doug Emmans prior to the start of the season. The franchise signed a player development contract with the

. The Timber Hawks finished the season with a middling record of 35-37 to finish second in the south division standings. Bend struggled financially as attendance was well below expectations. Owner Doug Emmans was disappointed with community's reception. The club received little support from local businesses and projects for the upcoming season were not positive. Emmans commented on his Timber Hawks' situation; "I want this team to be in a place were people want it. I don't want it to be a bastard child like it was last year." Likewise, the Oakland A's had their doubts about returning to Bend. Emmans engaged in discussions with

Medford, Oregon Medford is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Oregon, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census on April 1, 2020, the city had a total population of 85,824 and a metropolitan area population of 223,259, making the Me ...

as a potential relocation destination. In February of 1979, Jackson County commissioners approved the use of Miles Field for professional baseball. With a stadium deal in place, the franchise was on the move to southern Oregon. Upon moving to Medford, the Timber Hawks moniker in favor of one representative of their parent club Oakland to beomce the

Medford A's __NOTOC__ Medford may refer to: *Medford (surname) Places Canada *Medford, Nova Scotia England *Medford Hall, Staffordshire United States *Medford, Indiana *Medford, Maine *Medford, Massachusetts *Medford, Minnesota *Medford, Missouri *M ...

. Despite the departure of the Emman's franchise, Bend area residents expressed a desire for baseball to return. The Northwest League quickly awarded a new franchise to Bend. In signing a player development contract with the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

, the

Central Oregon Phillies Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

were founded and began play in 1979.

Ballpark

The Timber Hawks played at Vince Genna Stadium located in Bend, Oregon.

Season-by-season record

References

External links

Stats Crew
Bend Timber Hawks {{s-end Sports in Bend, Oregon Defunct Northwest League teams Oakland Athletics minor league affiliates Defunct baseball teams in Oregon 1978 establishments in Oregon Baseball teams established in 1978 Baseball teams disestablished in 1978

History

Ballpark

Season-by-season record

See also

References

External links