The Fremont Reds were a minor league baseball team based in

Fremont, Ohio Fremont is a city in and the county seat of Sandusky County, Ohio, United States, located along the banks of the Sandusky River. It is about 35 miles from Toledo and 25 miles from Sandusky. It is part of the Toledo metropolitan area. The populat ...

. From 1936 to 1941, Fremont teams played as members of the Class D level

Ohio State League The Ohio State League was a minor league baseball league that operated in numerous seasons between 1887 and 1947, predominantly as a Class D level league. League franchises were based in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. Histo ...

, winning two league championships. The Fremont Reds were an affiliate of the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

from 1936 to 1938, before playing from 1939 to 1941 as the Fremont "Green Sox." The Fremont Reds and Green Sox teams hosted home minor league games at Anderson Field, which is still in use today.

History

The 1936 Fremont Reds began minor league baseball play as members of the six–team Class D level

. The "Reds" nickname reflected the franchise being an affiliate of the

. The

Fostoria Cardinals Fostoria may refer to: * Fostoria Glass Company 1887-1990s * ''Fostoria dhimbangunmal'', a dinosaur Places in the United States: * Fostoria, Iowa * Fostoria, Kansas * Fostoria, Michigan * Fostoria, Ohio * Fostoria, Pennsylvania Fostoria is an un ...

, Mansfield Tigers, New Philadelphia Red Birds, Sandusky Sailors and

Tiffin Mud Hens Tiffin is a city in and the county seat of Seneca County, Ohio, United States. Developed along the Sandusky River, which flows to Lake Erie, Tiffin is about 55 miles southeast of Toledo. The population was 17,963 at the 2010 census. On May 27, 1936, in a game at Redbird Park in Fostoria, the Fostoria Cardinals defeated the Fremont Reds by a score of 27–12. The Reds finished the season 19.5 games behind the first place Tiffin Mud Hens in the final Ohio State League regular season standings. Continuing play in the 1937 Ohio State League season as a Cincinnati Reds affiliate, the 1937 Fremont Reds finished a distant fifth place in the six–team league. With a record of 36–55 under player/manager Harold Bohl, the Reds finished 27.0 games behind the first place Mansfield Red Sox in the final standings. The 1938 Fremont team changed monikers during the season and won the Ohio State League Championship. The Ohio State League played the 1938 season as a four–team league and Fremont changed monikers from "Reds" to become the "Freemont Green Sox" on June 18, 1938. Fremont ended the regular season with a record of 51–43, placing second in the regular season standings. Managed by

Chappie Geygan James Edward Geygan (June 3, 1903 – March 15, 1966) was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball. Born in Ironton, Ohio, he played for the Boston Red Sox from 1924 to 1926. He died at age 62 in Columbus, Ohio. He managed in the minor lea ...

, the Green Sox finished 3.0 games behind the first place Fostoria Red Birds. In the Ohio State League finals, Fremont swept Fostoria 3 games to 0 to win the 1938 Ohio State League Championship. The Fremont Green Sox' uniforms were white flannel, trimmed in green piping, with black belts. The caps were solid green and stockings were green and white. The Fremont Green Sox finished in third place as the 1939 Ohio State League returned to a six–team league. Fremont again qualified for the playoffs with a regular season record of 66–63, playing under returning manager Chappie Geygan, finishing the regular season 1.5 games behind the first place

Findlay Oilers The Findlay Oilers are the athletic teams that represent the University of Findlay, located in Findlay, Ohio, in NCAA Division II intercollegiate sporting competitions. The Oilers currently compete as members of the Great Midwest Athletic Confer ...

. The Green Sox lost in first round of the playoffs, as the eventual champion Lima Pandas beat Fremont 2 games to 1. The Fremont Green Sox finished in last place in the 1940 Ohio State League. With a 43–75 regular season record under managers

Ray Caldwell Raymond Benjamin Caldwell (April 26, 1888 – August 17, 1967) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Cleveland Indians from 1910 to 1921. He was known f ...

and Luke Sewell, Fremont placed sixth in the six–team league. Fremont finished the season 41.5 games behind the first place Lima Pandas. In their final season of play, the 1941 Fremont Green Sox won the Ohio State League Championship. With a record of 67–34 record under returning manager Chappie Geygan, Fremont finished the regular season in first place, as the league held no playoffs. Fremont was 4.0 games ahead of the second place Mansfield Braves in the final standings. Fremont pitcher Lloyd Fisher led the Ohio State League with an 18–3 record. Fischer was traded to the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

for two players and cash. After the 1941 season concluded, the Ohio State League ceased play until 1944 due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Fremont did not field a franchise in the league when the Ohio State League reformed in 1944. Fremont, Ohio has not hosted another minor league team.

The ballpark

The Fremont Reds and Fremont Green Sox teams hosted home minor league games at Anderson Field. Today, the site is still in use as a public park. In 1996, three youth league fields were built on the site of Anderson Field. Today, the site is called "Anderson Fields," located at 1313 Oak Harbor Road in Fremont, Ohio.

Timeline

Year–by–year records

Notable alumni

(1940, MGR) *

(1938-1939, 1941, MGR) *

Ed Klieman Edward Frederick "Specs" Klieman (March 21, 1918 – November 15, 1979) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) in all or portions of eight seasons (1943–1950) for the Cleveland Indians, Washingt ...

(1937) *

Al LaMacchia Alfred Anthony LaMacchia (July 22, 1921 – September 15, 2010) was a professional baseball player and scout. He was a right-handed pitcher who spent 14 years in the minor leagues where he accumulated a record of 159–117 and spent parts of thr ...

(1939) * Bill Ramsey (1941) *

Emil Verban Emil Matthew Verban (his original Serbian name is Vrban; August 27, 1915 – June 8, 1989) was a second baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1944–1946), Philadelphia Phillies (1946–1948), Chicago Cubs (1948 ...

(1936)

References

{{reflist

External links

Fremont - Baseball Reference1938 Green Sox team photo
Defunct minor league baseball teams Professional baseball teams in Ohio Defunct baseball teams in Ohio Baseball teams established in 1936 Baseball teams disestablished in 1938 Cincinnati Reds minor league affiliates Ohio State League teams Fremont, Ohio Sandusky County, Ohio 1938 disestablishments in Ohio