Best Record: 1973 (101-61)
Worst Record: 1920 (26-99)
Playoff Appearances: 4
Championships: 0
The Boston Rebels are one of the least successful franchises in the NBL. They have been consistently in debt for the past 25 years, and are among the 13 teams (including 3 original teams) who have yet to win a World Series. They have only appeared in the World Series one time, a 1971 appearance in which they lost to the San Francisco Seals. They have lost 100 games three times in their history (100 in 1938, 101 in 1944 and 111 in 1937), but their 1920 record of 26-99 is counted as their worst ever due to the fact that they played less games at the time, therefore their winning percentage was lower than any of their 100-loss seasons.
The Rebels finished with a few winning records in the early part of their history, but never finished closer than 10 games out of first place until 1957. They had a few close races in the late 1950s, but fell short each time. They finally broke through in 1970 with their first ever playoff appearance, the last of the original teams to do so. They were bounced in the Championship Series by the Atlanta Colonels that year, and made it to the World Series in 1971 before losing to the Seals. They missed the playoffs in 1972 but then returned in 1973, losing in the ABC Championship Series again to the Cincinnati Silverbacks. Their fourth and final (to date) playoff appearance came in 1981, when they finally won a playoff series by taking down the Toronto Giants in the ABC Division Series before losing to the San Diego Sharks in the ABC Championship Series.
Outlook for 1990:
Since that 1981 playoff appearance, they have just polished off their 8th losing season in a row. Nobody knows when (or if) this team will ever win consistently, but not much will be expected out of them in 1990.
Current Manager:
Jeff Moyer has managed the team for two years now and is planning on being back in 1990. Moyer pitched for 15 years for the Seals, Silverbacks and Knights, retiring in 1977. He was the original manager of the Miami Gators, leading them for three years before being fired. After taking the 1987 season off, he was hired by the Rebels and has been with them ever since.
Hall of Famers
James Gunther, P, 1925-1941
James Gunther had some ups and downs in his first season in 1925 with the Rebels. He improved over the years and became a consistent starter for a team devoid of star power and overall success. Following the 1933 seasons, the Rebels flipped him to the Connecticut Coyotes, where he pitched until his retirement in 1941. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1947, his first year of eligibility. He never coached on the professional level, but was a college baseball coach and adjunct professor at Boston College for many years.
Mike Harding, P, 1929-1943
Mike Harding began his career in 1929 with the Charlotte Roadrunners. After two seasons, he was traded to the Rebels, where he spent the rest of his career. He was a very good pitcher on a not-so-good Boston team, sharing the starting rotation for three years with the only other Hall of Famer (to date) with a Boston cap on his plaque, James Gunther. Harding remained with the Rebels until he retired in 1943. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1951, his third year on the ballot. However, he never lived to see it as he died in a motorcycle accident in 1949. His father, Glenn Harding, pitched for the inaugural Cincinnati Silverbacks team in 1895, and then for the Cleveland Blue Sox from 1896 to 1902. The older Harding was the Baltimore Browns' pitching coach from 1915-1934 and was his late son's representative at his Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 1951.