The Cleveland A's (or the interchangeable "Athletics") were a

minor league baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

team based in

Cleveland, Mississippi Cleveland is a city and one of two county seats of Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States, the other seat being Rosedale, Mississippi, Rosedale. The Cleveland population was 11,199 as of the 2020 United States census. Cleveland has a large c ...

. In 1935, the Cleveland "Bengals" played a partial season as members of the Class C level

East Dixie League The East Dixie League was an American professional minor league baseball league that operated for two seasons from 1934 to 1935 as a Class C level league. History The East Dixie League was created when the Dixie League split up into the East D ...

. After the East Dixie League folded, the newly named Cleveland franchise joined the 1936 Class D level

Cotton States League The Cotton States League''Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball: The Official Record of Minor League Baseball'' – Lloyd Johnson, Steve McDonald, Miles Wolff (editors). Publisher: Baseball America, 1997. Format: Paperback, 672pp. Language: Engli ...

, as a minor league affiliate of the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, they became the Oakland ...

, adopting the "A's" nickname. The Cleveland teams hosted home minor league games exclusively at Boyle Park in Cleveland.

History

Cleveland, Mississippi first hosted minor league baseball in 1935, when the Cleveland Bengals played briefly as members of the eight–team Class C level

. On June 18, 1935, the Columbus Bengals moved to Cleveland, Mississippi with a record of 36–41 at the time of the move. After compiling a 28–32 record while based in Cleveland, the team placed sixth in the final standings with an overall record of 64–73, playing the season under manager Henry "Slim" Brewer. The Columbus/Cleveland Bengals finished 19.5 games behind the first place Pine Bluff Judges in the final standings. Bengals player Fred Williams led the East Dixie League with 187 total hits. The East Dixie League permanently folded following the 1935 season and Cleveland continued minor league play in a new league. In 1936, Cleveland continued minor league play, when the A's became members of the eight–team Class D level

, playing as a minor league affiliate of the

and adopting the nickname. The Clarksdale Ginners, El Dorado Lions, Greenville Bucks, Greenwood Giants, Helena Seaporters,

Jackson Senators The Jackson Senators was the name of at least two minor league baseball teams that played in Jackson, Mississippi. First team The first known Jackson Senators club competed in the Delta League in 1904. In 1951, club president Emmet Vaughey an ...

and Pine Bluff Judges joined Cleveland in beginning league play on April 22, 1936. The A's ended the 1936 regular season in seventh place in the Cotton States League. With Henry Brewer returning as manager, Cleveland ended the season with a 57–80 record and finished 20.5 games behind the first place Greenwood Chiefs in the final Cotton States League standings. The A's were also managed for part of the season by Mays Copeland and did not qualify for the post season playoffs won by El Dorado. After drawing 8,600 total fans in 1935, the Cleveland franchise did not return to play in the 1837 Cotton States league Cleveland, Mississippi has not hosted another minor league team.

The ballparks

Cleveland hosted minor league home games at Boyle Park. The ballpark had dimensions of (Left, Center, Right): 375–500–375.

Timeline

Year–by–year records

Notable alumni

* Cecil Bolton (1936) * Red Borom (1936) * Mays Copeland (1936, MGR) *

Sherman Edwards Sherman Edwards (April 3, 1919 – March 30, 1981) was an American composer, jazz pianist, and songwriter, best known for his songs from the 1969 Broadway musical ''1776'' and the 1972 film adaptation. Early life Edwards was born in the East ...

(1936) * Bill Nagel (1935) * Culley Rikard (1935–1936) * Fred Williams (1935) * Cleveland Bengals players * Cleveland A's players

References

{{reflist, 2

External links

Cleveland - Baseball Reference
Defunct minor league baseball teams Defunct baseball teams in Mississippi Baseball teams established in 1936 Baseball teams disestablished in 1936 Cotton States League teams Cleveland, Mississippi Philadelphia Athletics minor league affiliates