1901: When the National League got rid of four teams
it opened the door for a second Major League. Ban Johnson, who was the
President of the minor Western League, decided to step up his league to the
next level. He placed teams in cities that the NL just shunned, and other teams
were placed in NL cities to create a rivalry.
With all this moving around only
two cities survived from the Western League, and that was Detroit which was
about to have a boom thanks to the Automobile Industry, and Milwaukee which was
years away from being a Major League city.
Almost from the start of the season
plans were under way to relocate the Brewers, this resulted in the club
finishing dead last with a 48-89 record. The Brewers would move on to St. Louis
the following season, and become the Browns.
As for Milwaukee they would be a
successful minor league city for years, before, getting another Major League
team in 1953, when the NL's Braves moved from Boston. After the Braves left
Milwaukee without a team again in 1966, the Brewers were re-incarnated in 1970.
Ironically the Brewers
moved from Seattle after just one season as had the original Brewers 68 years
earlier.
