Boston Red Stockings
Encyclopedia
The color red has been used in the names and commonly in the uniforms of several professional baseball teams in Boston, Massachusetts.
- Boston's first professional baseball club was established 1871 by Boston businessman Ivers Whitney AdamsIvers Whitney AdamsIvers Whitney Adams was an American baseball executive and businessperson, and founder of the first professional baseball team in Boston, the Boston Red Stockings.- Baseball :...
, and was nicknamed the Boston Red Stockings. Player-manager Harry Wright was brought to Boston to manage Boston's first-ever baseball team by Adams. He brought the nickname, the eponymous uniform, and three teammates from the Cincinnati Red StockingsCincinnati Red StockingsThe Cincinnati Red Stockings of were baseball's first fully professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players 1867–1870, a time of a transition that ambitious Cincinnati,...
when the Ohio team folded.- The Atlanta BravesAtlanta BravesThe Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
of the National LeagueNational LeagueThe National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
are that Boston ballclub (established 1871) after a few name changes and two relocations.
- The Atlanta Braves
- The Boston Reds of the Union AssociationUnion AssociationThe Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for only one season in 1884. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season...
in 1884. The team was also called the "Unions". - The Boston Red Stockings of the Players LeaguePlayers LeagueThe Players' National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs, popularly known as the Players' League , was a short-lived but star-studded professional American baseball league of the 19th century...
in 1890 and the American AssociationAmerican Association (19th century)The American Association was a Major League Baseball league that existed for 10 seasons from to . During that time, it challenged the National League for dominance of professional baseball...
in 1891. The team was called "Reds" more often than "Red Stockings". - The Boston Red SoxBoston Red SoxThe Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
, established 1901 and still active. The club adopted the name "Red Sox" in 1908 after their intra-city rivals temporarily dropped the red trim from their uniforms. They were called "Red Sox" from that time, never "Red Stockings" or "Reds".