Columbus has had a professional baseball team since at least 1875

TL;DR

Columbus has hosted a professional baseball team since at least 1875, starting with the Columbus Buckeyes. The team was part of the International Association for Professional Base Ball Players.

Key points

Columbus has had a professional baseball team since 1875
The first team was the Columbus Buckeyes
The Buckeyes were part of the International Association for Professional Base Ball Players
The Columbus Senators followed the Buckeyes
The Senators played at Recreation Park and Neil Park

Columbus BuckeyesColumbus Senators

Pictured is the 1890 Columbus Buckeyes team.

Professional baseball in Columbus dates back to at least 1875, when the Columbus Buckeyes team was Columbus’ local affiliate in the International Association for Professional Base Ball Players.

They were followed by the Columbus Senators, who played their games at Recreation Park in German Village and Neil Park on Cleveland Avenue.

Players stand while the flag is raised at a game at Neil Park shortly before the team became the Red Birds, and play moved to the new stadium on Mound Street.

The Senators had Columbus’ first Black baseball player in 1887, 50 years before Jackie Robinson integrated the Brooklyn Dodgers. The Columbus Dispatch reported four Black players among Ohio teams in these early years, including Columbus’ J. Higgins, who played briefly before a color line excluded Black players from the recognized professional leagues by the end of the decade.