{{Use American English|date=March 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}} {{Infobox Minor League Baseball | name =McCook Braves | firstseason =1956 | lastseason =1959 | allyears = | city =McCook, Nebraska | logo = | uniformlogo = | class level =Class D (1956–1959) | league =Nebraska State League ( 1956–1959) | majorleague =Milwaukee Braves (1956–1959) | nickname ='''McCook Braves''' (1956–1959) | ballpark =Cibola Field/Red Willow County Fairgrounds (1956–1959) | classnum = | classchamps = | leaguenum =1 | leaguechamps =1959 | confnum = | conferencechamps = | divnum = | divisionchamps = | wildcardnum = | wildcardberths = }} The '''McCook Braves''' were a minor league baseball team based in McCook, Nebraska. From 1956 to 1959, the McCook Braves played as members of the short-season Class D level Nebraska State League as an affiliate of the Milwaukee Braves for their duration. The Braves won the 1959 league championship and were preceded in minor league play by the McCook Generals of the previous edition of the Nebraska State League from 1928 to 1932. The Braves hosted home games at the Ciabola Field, which was within the Red Willow County Fairgrounds.
Baseball Hall of Fame member Phil Niekro pitched for the 1959 McCook Braves.
The 1959 McCook Braves are featured in the book ''A False Spring'', written by McCook Braves player Pat Jordan.
==History== McCook first fielded a minor league team in 1903. The '''McCook''' team was a member of the 1903 Central Nebraska League, an Independent level five–team league that folded after one season. The last known standings were published on July 24, 1903, shortly before the Minden and Giltner teams disbanded. The Red Cloud Indians and McCook would disband shortly thereafter. The last known standings had the Holdrege Silver Aces and McCook tied for in first place with identical 19–7 records.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/98701361/|title=24 Jul 1903, Page 1 - The McCook Tribune at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/726715959/|title=No More League Ball|date=July 29, 1903|publisher=Minden Gazette}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/702970395/|title=On The Diamond; Silver Ashes have been doing a few stunts this week|date=July 31, 1903|publisher=Holdrege Weekly Progress}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/league.cgi?id=3a663489|title=1903 Central Nebraska League|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi|title=1903 Holdredge Statistics|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref>
Based in McCook, Nebraska, the McCook Braves were members of the Nebraska State League from 1956 to 1959, having been preceded in an earlier Nebraska State League by the McCook Generals, who played from 1928 to 1932, winning Nebraska State League Championships in 1928, 1929 and 1930. The eight–team Nebraska State League reformed as a Class D level league in 1956 after a 15 season hiatus.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/l-NESL|title=Nebraska State League (NSL) on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nebaseballhistory.com/mccook5659.html|title=McCook Braves 1956-1959|website=www.nebaseballhistory.com}}</ref><ref name="encyc">{{cite book |title=The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball |editor-first1=Lloyd |editor-last1=Johnson |editor-first2=Miles |editor-last2=Wolff |edition=Third |publisher=Baseball America |date=2007 |isbn=978-1932391176}}</ref>
In 1956, it was announced that major league baseball had plans to sponsor a new Class D League in Nebraska with affiliate teams. After the announcement, local McCook Baseball Boosters met with the major league owners. Requirements for a franchise in the Nebraska State League included: cities having a lighted ballpark; selling $5,000 in season tickets and providing another $2,500 for incidental expenses, and the ability to provide transportation to away games. Eleven Nebraska cities agreed to these provisions. The eleven names were put into a hat to draw for one of eight franchises. McCook was one of the cities selected for the new league, along with Superior, Grand Island, Hastings, Lexington, Holdrege, North Platte and Kearney. For the required $5,000 in season tickets, McCook hoped to sell 500 at $10 each, McCook instead exceeded that goal in selling 700.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.mccookgazette.com/story/1648869.html|title=McCook: The land of the free and the home of the Braves|date=July 12, 2010|website=McCook Gazette}}</ref>
The 1956 McCook Braves began play in the Nebraska State League as an affiliate of the Milwaukee Braves. McCook finished 1956 season with a record of 35–28, placing fourth in the Nebraska State League, 6.0 games behind the first place Lexington Red Sox.<ref name="encyc"/> The team scored 454 runs, while allowing 427 runs. Bill Steinecke served as manager and would manage the team for all four seasons. Playing at Cibola Field, McCook had home attendance of 32,224, an average of 1,023 per game.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/roster/t-mb12889/y-1956|title=1956 McCook Braves Roster on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/l-NESL/y-1956|title=1956 Nebraska State League (NSL) on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi|title=1956 McCook Braves Statistics|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> McCook pitcher Richard Allen led the league with 11 wins.<ref name="encyc"/>
The McCook Braves finished sixth in the 1957 Nebraska State League.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi|title=1957 McCook Braves Statistics|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/league.cgi?id=7422a739|title=1957 Nebraska State League|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> McCook ended the regular season with a record of 27–29, playing the season under returning manager Bill Steinecke and finishing 6.5 games behind the champion Grand Island Athletics. Home attendance at Cibola Field was 25,844 an average of 923.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/roster/t-mb12889/y-1957|title=1957 McCook Braves Roster on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/l-NESL/y-1957|title=1957 Nebraska State League (NSL) on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/standings/l-NESL/y-1957|title=1957 Nebraska State League (NSL) Standings on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref name="auto2"/>
In their third season, the 1958 McCook Braves placed second in the Nebraska State League standings. McCook ended the season just 1.0 game behind the champion North Platte Indians in the final standings with a record of 40–23, as Bill Steinecke continued as manager.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/roster/t-mb12889/y-1958|title=1958 McCook Braves Roster on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/l-NESL/y-1958|title=1958 Nebraska State League (NSL) on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/standings/l-NESL/y-1958|title=1958 Nebraska State League (NSL) Standings on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref name="encyc"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi|title=1958 McCook Braves Statistics|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/league.cgi?id=73543135|title=1958 Nebraska State League|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> Cerefino Foy of the Braves led league pitchers with 10 wins.<ref name="encyc"/>
In their final season, The McCook Braves won the 1959 Nebraska State League Championship.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi|title=1959 McCook Braves Statistics|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/league.cgi?id=25d5f848|title=1959 Nebraska State League|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> The Braves ended the 1959 season with a record of 43–19 losses, placing first in the Nebraska State League, finishing 4.0 games ahead of the second place Holdrege White Sox in the six–team league. Bill Steinecke was manager for the fourth consecutive season.<ref name="encyc"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/roster/t-mb12889/y-1959|title=1959 McCook Braves Roster on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/l-NESL/y-1959|title=1959 Nebraska State League (NSL) on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/stats/t-mb12889/y-1959|title=1959 McCook Braves Statistics on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref><ref name="auto4">{{Cite web|url=http://www.nebaseballhistory.com/mccook1959.html|title=McCook Braves 1959|website=www.nebaseballhistory.com}}</ref> McCook led the league in home attendance with 19,788. Frank Saia scored 68 runs to lead the league.<ref name="encyc"/> thumb|Phil Niekro, 1974
Baseball Hall of Fame member Phil Niekro pitched for the 1959 McCook Braves, finishing with a 7–1 record and a 3.12 ERA in 23 games.<ref name="auto"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/phil-niekro/|title=Phil Niekro – Society for American Baseball Research}}</ref>
The Nebraska State League folded permanently after the completion of the 1959 season. McCook and the other 1959 league franchises, the Hastings Giants, Holdrege White Sox, Grand Island Athletics, Kearney Yankees and North Platte Indians, all permanently folded as well.<ref name="encyc"/> For the duration of the league, McCook was second only to Grand Island in attendance.<ref name="auto2"/><ref name="encyc"/> McCook, Nebraska has not hosted another minor league franchise.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi|title=McCook, Nebraska Encyclopedia|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> thumb|(2010) McCook, Nebraska
==The ballpark== The McCook Generals were noted to have played at the Red Willow County Fairgrounds. After their demise, the semi-pro McCook Cats of the early 1950s had played in Eastside Park (called '''Felling Field''' today). When the McCook Braves franchise was established, a new field was immediately constructed at the Red Willow County Fairgrounds with help from local clubs and organizations. The field was dubbed '''Cibola Field''' after the seven cities of Cibola. The ballpark had a capacity of 2,500 (1956) and 1,000 (1959).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nebaseballhistory.com/mccook1956.html|title=McCook Braves 1956|website=www.nebaseballhistory.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statscrew.com/venues/v-1625|title=Cibola Stadium in McCook, NE history and teams on StatsCrew.com|website=www.statscrew.com}}</ref> Still in use today as host to the Red Willow County fair, the Willow County Fairgrounds are located on West 5th Street in McCook.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nebraskatravelerguide.com/activity/red-willow-county-fairgrounds/|title=Red Willow County Fairgrounds - Nebraska|website=Nebraska Traveler}}</ref><ref name="auto2"/>
==Media== The 1959 McCook Braves season is chronicled in the book ''A False Spring'', written by McCook player Pat Jordan. Jordan eventually retired from baseball to become a writer and an author.{{ISBN|0-80-327626-5}}<ref name="auto4"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://vault.si.com/vault/1973/06/11/big-sky-big-dream|title=Big Sky, Big Dream|first=Pat|last=Jordan|website=Sports Illustrated Vault | SI.com}}</ref>
==Timeline== {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size: 95%;" ! Year(s) !! # Yrs. !! Team !! Level !! League!!Affiliate |- |1903||1||McCook||Independent||Central Nebraska League||rowspan=2|None |- |1928–1932|| 5 || McCook Generals ||rowspan=2| Class D || rowspan=2|Nebraska State League |- |1956–1959|| 4 || McCook Braves||Milwaukee Braves |}
==Year–by–year records== {| class="wikitable" |- style="background: #F2F2F2;" ! Year !! Record !! Finish !! Manager !! Playoffs |- align=center | 1956 || 35–28 || 4th || Bill Steinecke || No playoffs held |- align=center | 1957 || 27–29 || 6th || Bill Steinecke || No playoffs held |- align=center | 1958 || 40–23 || 2nd || Bill Steinecke || No playoffs held |- align=center | 1959 || 43–19 || 1st || Bill Steinecke || '''League Champions''' |- align=center |} thumb|Elrod Hendricks, 1968
==Notable alumni== *Phil Niekro (1959) Inducted Baseball Hall of Fame, 1997 {{Div col|colwidth=18em}} *Luis Alcaraz (1959) *Les Barnhart (1928) *Andy Bednar (1929) *Doc Bennett (1929–1931, MGR) *Bruce Brubaker (1959) *Elrod Hendricks (1959) Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame *Ron Hunt (1959) 2x MLB All-Star *Pat Jordan (1959) Author, ''A False Spring''. *Mike Kreevich (1930) *Hector Martinez (1957) *Harry Matuzak (1931) *Hugh Mendez (1959) *Spud Owen (1930) *Harlan Pyle (1928) *Merritt Ranew (1957) *Bill Steinecke (1956–1959, MGR) *John Stoneham (1928) *George Washington (1931) {{Div col end}}
==See also== * McCook Braves players
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/team.cgi?city=McCook&state=NE&country=US McCook - Baseball Reference]
Category:Red Willow County, Nebraska Category:Baseball teams established in 1956 Category:Defunct minor league baseball teams Category:Baseball teams disestablished in 1959 Category:1956 establishments in Nebraska Category:1959 disestablishments in Nebraska Category:Defunct baseball teams in Nebraska Category:Professional baseball teams in Nebraska Category:Milwaukee Braves minor league affiliates Category:Nebraska State League teams