The Toledo Tigers were a Negro National League team that operated during the season, its only season in the league, representing

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

. It played its home games at Toledo's Swayne Field, home of the minor league

Mud Hens The American coot (''Fulica americana''), also known as a mud hen or pouldeau, is a bird of the family Rallidae. Though commonly mistaken for ducks, American coots are only distantly related to ducks, belonging to a separate order. Unlike the we ...

. The team was one of two (the

Milwaukee Bears The Milwaukee Bears were a Negro National League team that operated during the 1923 season. It s only season in the league representing Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founding The team was one of two (the Toledo Tigers being the other) created to fil ...

being the other) created to fill one of the vacancies created in the NNL after the

Cleveland Tate Stars The Cleveland Tate Stars were a Negro league baseball team from 1919 through 1923. They played as an independent (non-affiliated) team from 1919 through 1921, and joined the Negro National League in 1922. In their only season as a full-fledged le ...

and Pittsburgh Keystones had been dropped after the previous season. Its personnel consisted at first of a few veterans and semi-pro players, though it was improved in late May when it merged with the short-lived independent team, the Cleveland Nationals. Operated initially by the NNL, it was taken over by Cleveland businessman Phil Fears after the two teams merged. While its play improved dramatically following the merger, it was under-financed and suffered from poor attendance, and ceased operations in July with a league record of 11–17. After the team disbanded, many of its better players transferred to the St. Louis Stars and Milwaukee Bears for the remainder of the season, in an effort to shore up both franchises. The NNL then invited the Cleveland Tate Stars to rejoin as associate members to play out the Tigers' remaining schedule. When it began operations, Negro leagues veteran "Big Bill" Gatewood managed the team, but after the merger

Candy Jim Taylor James Allen "Candy Jim" Taylor (February 1, 1884April 3, 1948) was an American third baseman and manager in Negro league baseball. In a career that spanned forty years, he played as an infielder in the early years of the 20th century for over a ...

became the player-manager.

References

* *''The Negro Leagues Book'' edited by Dick Clark & Larry Lester Publisher: The Society for American Baseball Research (Cleveland OH) *''The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues'' by James A. Riley Publisher: Carroll & Graf (New York NY) Negro league baseball teams Sports teams in Toledo, Ohio African-American history of Ohio Defunct baseball teams in Ohio Baseball teams established in 1923 {{Ohio-baseball-team-stub