1965 Birmingham Barons
The 1965 Birmingham Barons played in the second season of the re-formed, integrated Southern League, as the AA affiliates of the Kansas City Athletics. Unable to capitalize on the on-field success of the 1964 season, manager John McNamara and the '65 Barons finished 54-85, 25½ games out of first place and only 28,001 fans came to watch the team that season. It was the smallest seasonal attendance in the 55-year history of Rickwood Field. Even the World War I-suspended season of 1918 drew 39,202 fans.
As a result, Barons owner Albert Belcher suspended operations, and Rickwood was without professional baseball for the 1966 season. Kansas City A's owner Charlie Finley transferred his Double-A franchise to Mobile. The franchise would return for the 1967 season, but only after Finley had re-christened the team as the Birmingham Athletics.
References
- Cook, Ben (2005). Good Wood: A Fan's History of Rickwood Field. Birmingham, Alabama: R. Boozer Press. ISBN 0-9636128-3-2
- 1965 Birmingham Barons information at Birmingham Pro Sports
- Birmingham Barons information at the Baseball Reference Bullpen