The Waco Cubs were a minor league baseball team based in

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the ...

for six years (1925–1930, 1933). The Cubs were members of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

from 1925 to 1930 and the Dixie League in 1933. They played at

Katy Park Katy Park was a baseball park located in Waco, Texas and was used by many minor league baseball teams as well as the Baylor Bears baseball, Baylor Bears for a short time. Significant Moments * The New York Yankees played an exhibition game again ...

for their entire six-year existence. After the 1930 season, the Cubs were moved from Waco to

Galveston, Texas Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...

and were renamed the

Galveston Buccaneers The Galveston Buccaneers were a Minor League Baseball team that existed from 1931 to 1937. Based in Galveston, Texas, United States, they played in the Texas League. Their home ballpark was Moody Stadium. Notable players include Del Pratt, Beau Be ...

. After the Cubs were re-established in 1933, they were moved mid-season to

Pine Bluff, Arkansas Pine Bluff is the eleventh-largest city in the state of Arkansas and the county seat of Jefferson County. It is the principal city of the Pine Bluff Metropolitan Statistical Area and part of the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Pine Bluff Combin ...

and renamed the "

Judges A judge is an official who presides over a court. Judge or Judges may also refer to: Roles *Judge, an alternative name for an adjudicator in a competition in theatre, music, sport, etc. *Judge, an alternative name/aviator call sign for a membe ...

". While in the Texas League, there were classified as a Class-A team. During their 1933 re-establishment, they were classified as a Class-C team.

History

Texas League (1925–1930)

The earliest predicator to the Cubs were the Waco Navigators who played in the city from 1906 to 1919. The Cubs originated from a

franchise from

that was purchased by a businessman in 1924 and relocated to Waco the following year. The team name "Cubs" was chosen after a contest. In their first season, 1925, the Cubs played two

exhibition games An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

during

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

. The

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

beat the Cubs 7–0 in an exhibition game in 1928. In 1929, the Cubs played an exhibition game against the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

drawing an estimated crowd of 11,000 despite the fact that

, the site of the event, could only hold 4,000 people. In that game, Yankees players

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

and

Lou Gehrig Henry Louis Gehrig (born Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig ; June 19, 1903June 2, 1941) was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1923–1939). Gehrig was renowned f ...

were solicited for autographs while playing in the

field Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

, interrupting the game numerous times. Fans even rushed the field and stole the

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

in that game. The Yankees won that game by a score of 13–3. During the Cubs 1930 season,

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Gene Rye hit three

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s in one

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team ...

. The Cubs were sold in 1931 for

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

23,000 (the same amount the franchise was purchased for in 1930) and was relocated to Galveston, Texas. They were then renamed the "

Buccaneers Buccaneers were a kind of privateers or free sailors particular to the Caribbean Sea during the 17th and 18th centuries. First established on northern Hispaniola as early as 1625, their heyday was from the Restoration in 1660 until about 1688 ...

". For their first five years of existence in the Texas League, the Cubs were managed by former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player

Del Pratt Derrill Burnham "Del" Pratt (January 10, 1888 – September 30, 1977) was a star running back for the University of Alabama before becoming a professional baseball player. Pratt signed with the St. Louis Browns in . He was a star second basema ...

Dixie League (1933)

Without a minor league baseball team for the next two season, Waco was awarded a Dixie League franchise in 1933 and they named the Cubs after the Texas League predicator. For the 1933 season, the Cubs were managed by Archie Tanner. They were classified as a Class-C team. That season, the Cubs hosted the first ever

night game A night game, also called a nighter, is a sporting event that takes place, completely or partially, after the local sunset. Depending on the sport, this can be done either with floodlights or with the usual low-light conditions. The term "night ...

at Katy Park. Mid-season in 1933, the Cubs were moved to

and renamed the "

Notable players

Phil Weintraub Philip Weintraub (October 12, 1907 – June 21, 1987) was an American professional baseball first baseman and outfielder. Weintraub played for 13 minor league teams, for whom he had an aggregate batting average of .337, as well as for the New Yo ...

(1907–1987) - Major League Baseball first baseman & outfielder

References

External links

Waco Cubs at Baseball-Reference
{{Authority control Baseball teams established in 1925 Baseball teams disestablished in 1933 Defunct minor league baseball teams Baseball teams in Waco, Texas Defunct Texas League teams 1925 establishments in Texas 1933 disestablishments in Texas Defunct baseball teams in Texas Dixie League (1933 baseball) teams