Until 1953, New Englanders split their major league loyalties between two teams—the Braves and the Red Sox. With a Beantown pedigree predating the National League’s formation in 1876, the former trekked to the land of beer and bratwurst—Milwaukee—while the latter, consequently, provides a single major league outlet from Boston to Bangor.
St. Patrick’s Day, an unofficial holiday for Irish folks, especially in heavily clover-laden metropolises, brought the luck of the Irish to Bostonians in 1953. Bad luck. Readers of the March 17th edition of the Boston Globe absorbed the words of Joseph F. Dinneen, Jr., who chronicled a last-ditch effort to keep Braves owner Lou Perini in the environs of Boston Common, Faneuil Hall, and Beacon Hill. From the powerful came the pleas—Governor Christian Herter, Mayor John Hynes, and the Boston Chamber of Commerce. Braves fans, of course, chimed in.
“Treated like an orphan son until news of the threatened transfer broke last weekend, the Braves suddenly became the prodigal son everyone wanted to return home—to Boston,” wrote Dinneen.
The Chamber of Commerce’s attempt sourced in dollars and cents, naturally. If the Braves stayed, ticket sales would increase. Or so the theory went. Herter and Hynes joined forces, outlining a strategy for Perini to sell the team so it could remain in Boston. Dinneen recounted the politicos’ missive sent by telegram, which stated, “Removal of the Braves’ franchise from Boston will have a disturbing and far-reaching effect on the city. We appeal to you to reconsider the proposed removal, at least for 1953, so that other arrangements may be worked out and so that an opportunity may be provided other interests to purchase and retain the franchise in Boston.”
The Braves’ autumnal annum in Boston had numbers supporting Perini’s bottom line reasoning for the move to Milwaukee—the team finished last in National League attendance; a 64-89 record was not sufficient to draw the crowds necessary to sustain operations.
Russell Lynch, sports editor of the Milwaukee Journal, ignited Perini’s transplant to the Midwest, which was facilitated, in no small part, by the Braves’ AAA team being in Milwaukee—the Brewers. Perini had vetoed attempts by Bill Veeck to buy the minor league franchise, including one deal that would have resulted in Veeck clearing Milwaukee for the St. Louis Browns by moving the Brewers to Toledo; ultimately, the Browns moved to Baltimore after the 1953 season and became the Orioles.
Inspired, Lynch began a back-and-forth series of telegrams with Perini about blocking Milwaukee from becoming a major league city. In the Globe, Roger Birtwell wrote, “Next Mr. Lynch turned to his typewriter and batted out a few columns. The Milwaukee Journal has 350,000 readers each afternoon and half a million on Sunday. Lynch informed them and their neighbors that Perini—the villain—was keeping major league ball out of Milwaukee.”
Perini, in turn, came to a fork in the road. Keeping the status quo risked heightening the ire of Milwaukeeans and Bostonians alike—the former because their grasp of being a major league city exceeded their reach and the latter because the Braves continued to drain money by underperforming in the National League.
“We had made up our mind that, regardless if we had won the pennant we would go to Milwaukee next year,” said Perini, quoted in the Globe by Clif Keane. Veeck’s maneuvers, however, ignited the transition’s rapidity. Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley said, “I’m sorry it happened. I’m not at all happy about it. If it hadn’t been for that other thing (Veeck) it never would have come to this.” After the 1957 season, O’Malley moved the Dodgers from Brooklyn to Los Angeles.
Milwaukee County Municipal Stadium, initially constructed for the Brewers, became the Braves’ new home. Meanwhile, Perini paid the American Association $50,000 for compensation in moving the Brewers from Milwaukee to Toledo, where the team changed its name to Mud Hens.
Braves field became the habitat for ghosts of Boston baseball milestones, including the 1914 “Miracle Braves,” a brief name change to Bees in the 1930s, and Babe Ruth hitting his last three home runs in one game. A 2012 article by Patrick L. Kennedy on Boston University’s web site states that BU purchased the property for $430,000 in 1953; it was the home stadium for the AFL’s Boston Patriots from 1960 to 1962. Renamed Nickerson Field, the facility hosts the BU men’s and women’s varsity soccer and lacrosse teams. While the right field pavilion endures for Nickerson’s seating, Kennedy explains that BU demolished the grandstands and the left field pavilion—three dormitories and Walter Brown Arena occupy the space. Additionally, the university’s police department inhabits the gatehouse and the Braves front office.
After the 1965 season, the Braves abdicated Milwaukee for Atlanta.
A version of this article appeared on www.thesportspost.com on March 18, 2016.