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“Washington Baseball and the 1924 World Series”  Photo Gallery
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Before we put the 2023 World Series too far into our rearview mirrors, I thought this might be a good time to recall the history of baseball in D.C. and how the city of Washington is intertwined with this year’s World Series champion Texas Ranger, the Minnesota Twins, and even the city of Montreal. Here’s what I wrote about Washington baseball history a couple years ago:

The Confusing History of Baseball In Washington, D.C!

“Washington: First in war, first in peace…and last in the American League!” -San Francisco Chronicle columnist Charley Dryden

There’s understandably a lot of confusion about major league baseball in Washington, D.C. Which franchise version are we in now? The second? The third? Were they originally called the Senators or the Nationals? And just how do the Twins, Rangers, and Expos fit in? 

Actually, the history of baseball in Washington, D.C. is so confusing that I think it’s time for a short “refresher course.” As your friendly Baseball History Comes Alive editor, I think the duty falls upon me to clear some of this up!

OK students, before we start, let’s tackle the name: The team was officially known as the Senators from 1901-1904, then the Nationals from 1905-1955, then the Senators again from 1956-1960. But over this time, they were always commonly referred to as the Senators. 

(In the featured photo above, we see a beautiful color restoration by Chris Whitehouse of They Played in Color. That’s the great Hall-of-Famer Walter Johnson shaking hands with President Calvin Coolidge from the 1924 World Series, with Washington owner Clarke Griffith on the right. The 1924 Senators team photo is from Getty Images. Player IDs are available upon request) 

Let’s start our review of Washington baseball history with the “original” Washington Senators. The National League had abandoned their Washington franchise in 1900, so when the American League declared itself a major league in 1901, they moved the Western League Kansas City Blues to Washington.  Newly christened as the “Senators,” they became one of the original eight American League teams.

The Senators began their history as a perennially losing team, at times so inept that the above quote by Charley Dryden turned them into a national joke. Then in the early 1910s, things started to change with the arrival of star players like Goose Goslin, Sam Rice, Joe Cronin, Bucky Harris, Heinie Manush, Joe Judge, and one of the game’s all-time greats, Walter Johnson.  During this period they were one of the league’s more successful franchises, but there were no post-season appearances. 

The team’s fortunes finally changed in the 1920s as they won American League pennants in 1924 and 1925, and the original Senators’ only World Series championship in 1924, defeating the Giants four-games-to-three. It’s a classic World Series, always remembered for the Freddie Lindstrom “Pebbles Game” in the decisive Game Seven.

Another pennant followed in 1933 and a World Series loss to the Giants. This short-lived success was followed by more years of mediocrity which included six last-place finishes in the 1940s and 1950s.

Now let’s fast forward to the “modern” era when the Senators moved to Minnesota to become the Twins in 1960:

Last April marked the sixty-second anniversary of the first game played by the Minnesota Twins, April 21, 1961. The Twins, formerly known as the original Washington Senators, lost their first game at Metropolitan Stadium 5-3. They drew 1,256,723 fans their first year in Minneapolis, much better than the previous year’s attendance in Washington of 743,404, the worst gate in the American League.

Now here’s a quiz, students: Who beat the Twins – the former Washington Senators – in that first game? Give up? Would you believe me if I told you the Twins lost to…none-other-than…the Washington Senators!!

That’s right. Baseball – in its infinite wisdom – moved the original Washington Senators to Minnesota to become the Minnesota Twins due to falling attendance, while at the same time, started an expansion team in Washington…named the Washington Senators! But wait…it gets even more confusing!

This “second” Senators franchise lasted in D.C. until 1972, when they also moved, this time to Texas, where they became the Texas Rangers with Ted Williams as their first manager. The city of Washington, D.C. was without a team until the Montreal Expos moved there in 2005, and became…you got it!…the third and current incarnation of baseball in Washington, this time known as the Washington Nationals, a name sometimes used by the original Washington Senators. 

That begs the question, “Where did the Expos come from?” They were a product of the 1969 major league expansion. They were in Montreal for 36 years and posted a 2753-2943 record over that time with no pennants. Of course, as we all know, the city of Washington finally experienced another World Series championship in 2019, with the current Expos-derived version of the team, the Nationals.  

So let’s recap:  How many pennants and World Series championships are we talking about here connected to either the city of Wahington or one of the Senators’ franchises? The original Senators won pennants in 1924, 1925, and 1933, with a World Series championship in 1924. Then, after the move to Minnesota, the Senators/Twins won pennants in 1965, 1987, and 1991, with World Series championships in ’87 and ’91. The second version Washington Senators/Texas Rangers won pennants in 2010 and 2011 [and the 2023 World Series].  And the third installment Expos/Nationals won a pennant and World Series championship in 2019. 

Are you confused yet? Well, I sure am…and you probably are, too. You’d have to be a baseball genius to keep this all straight. Anyway, I hope today’s history lesson helps. 

Gary Livacari 

Information: Excerpts edited from Washington Senators Wikipedia page