Mission Reds

The Mission Reds were a minor league baseball team located in San Francisco, California, that played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) from 1926 through 1937.

Original Missions

In 1914, a failed Sacramento Solons team moved to San Francisco midway through the season and began calling itself the San Francisco Missions. The team took its name from San Francisco's Mission District. It played home games five blocks from Mission San Francisco de Asis, at Recreation Park, located at Valencia and 14th Streets (now the site of a housing project). After one season, however, the San Francisco Missions moved to Salt Lake City, where they became the Salt Lake Bees. During this time period San Francisco supported two professional baseball teams (the San Francisco Seals had been playing in the City since 1903).

Origins in Los Angeles

The Mission Reds were born in Los Angeles in 1909, where they played under the name the Vernon Tigers. The team won two Pacific Coast League pennants during its 18-year stay in Southern California. Declining attendance forced owner Edward Maier to put the team up for sale after the 1925 season. A group of San Francisco businessmen led by Herbert Fleishhacker purchased the Tigers, moved the team to San Francisco for the 1926 season, and called the team the Mission Reds.