The San Francisco Mission Wolves played the tail end of the 1914 season in the West Coast's top minor league, and their story is one of baseball's stranger naming accidents. The club began the year as the Sacramento Sacts under manager Harry Wolverton, and San Francisco sportswriters had taken to calling the team "the Wolves" after him. When the Sacts folded on September 6, 1914 and the league moved the club to San Francisco to finish the season, the informal nickname became the team, playing at Recreation Park as the Mission Wolves, the first professional club to represent the city's Mission District.
The stay was brief but the address mattered. A decade later the district got its own team for good when the Mission Bells arrived in 1926, becoming the Mission Reds of Ike Boone and Ox Eckhardt fame, but the Wolves were there first, a team named for its manager playing out the string in a borrowed city.
What happened next is the real story. After the season, Utah businessman Bill "Hardpan" Lane bought the club and moved it to Salt Lake City as the Bees, where Tony Lazzeri would hit a record 60 home runs in 1925. Lane then moved it again to become the Hollywood Stars in 1926, and in 1936 the franchise settled in San Diego as the original Padres, the club where Ted Williams began his professional career. The one-season Mission Wolves sit in the middle of one of the longest franchise journeys in baseball, a wandering line that began in Sacramento in 1903 and finally came to rest in San Diego.
Retro Baseball Revival celebrates historic baseball teams with unique apparel, honoring their legacy and bringing history to one-of-a-kind clothing with our old school retro baseball tees from defunct Minor League Baseball teams. All of our high quality apparel is designed, printed, and shipped within the USA. This collection features 100% original designs based on the history and nicknames of historic minor league teams.
Our premium lightweight shirts are the hugely popular Bella+Canvas brand 3001 tees. They are much lighter and thinner feeling than a traditional heavyweight tee. They also are more form fitting and feel more snug. These are generally 90% to 100% cotton, although please note that heather colors in this item are 52% cotton.
Size Guide: Fit is true to size or a little snug. Considering ordering one size up if you are normally between sizes.
Brand: Bella Canvas | Product ID: 3001
- Made with 100% Airlume combed and ring-spun cotton, a lightweight fabric (4.2 oz/yd² (142 g/m²)) that is easy to layer, breathable. Perfect for active and leisure wear.
- The retail fit that is perfect for casual and semi-formal settings. The crew neckline adds a classic, neat style that's perfect for accessorizing.
- Bella+Canvas manufactures all its products in the US and internationally in humane, no-sweat-shop, sustainable way and is part of the Fair Labor Association as well as Platinum WRAP certified.
- The tear-away label minimizes skin irritations.
- Fabric blends: Ash and Heather Prism colors - 99% cotton, 1% polyester; Heather and Solid Blend colors - 52% cotton, 48% polyester; Athletic Heather and Black Heather - 90% cotton, 10% polyester.
