Tombstone
Born: 1979
Re-Branded: 1987 (Bend Bucks)
First Game: June 19, 1979 (W 15-5 @ Medford A’s)
Last Game: August 31, 1986 (W 8-5 vs. Medford A’s)
Northwest League Champions: 1979
Stadium
Ownership & Affiliation
Owners:
Sale (1981): $63,000 (Gene Davis to Jack & Mary Cain)1Jayne, Greg. “Northwest League keeps evolving”. The Statesman-Journal (Salem, OR). July 17, 2000
Major League Affiliation: Philadelphia Phillies
Attendance
Background
Bend, Oregon hosted a short-season Class A farm club of the Philadelphia Phillies from 1979 to 1986. In 1979 and 1980, Bend’s club was formally known as the Central Oregon Phillies, though some Pacific Northwest press outlets continue to refer to the club as “Bend”.
The Phils won the Northwest League pennant and the playoff championship during their debut season of 1979, besting the Walla Walla Padres two games to one in the playoffs.
After Portland businessman Jack Cain purchased the club from Gene Davis prior to the 1981 season, the team officially changed its name to the Bend Phillies. Jack Cain later transferred ownership of the team to his wife Mary to avoid conflict of interest issues after he became President of the Northwest League, of which the Bend franchise was a member.
Notable Names
The top players to come out of Bend during the Phillies era were shortstops Julio Franco (Central Oregon ’79) and Juan Samuel (Central Oregon ’80). As a 20-year old, Franco led the Northwest League in hits (98) during the championship summer of 1979.
Relief pitcher Jason Grimsley (Bend ’85) won a pair of World Series rings with the New York Yankees in 1999 and 2000. Grimsley pitched in the Majors all the way until 2006, twenty years after the Bend Phillies’ final season.
But, remarkably, Grimsley was not the last Bend Phillies player to play Major League Baseball. That honor goes to the ageless Franco, who played his final game for the Atlanta Braves at age 49 in September 2007. Franco was also the last player born in the 1950’s to play Major League Baseball.
Demise & Aftermath
After a grim 1986 season that saw the team finish last in the NWL with a 21-53 record, Philadelphia ended its working agreement with Bend. Playing as a co-op team without a Major League partner in 1987, the team changed its name to the Bend Bucks. The Bucks became a California Angels farm club in 1988.
Bend remained in the Northwest League until 1994 when the Bend Rockies left town. The city hosted an independent pro team, the Bandits, from 1995 to 1998. Since 2000, the Bend Elks amateur collegiate baseball team has played at Vince Genna Stadium each summer.
Voices
“I graduated from Springfield High in ’64. I have no college and spent eight years shooting pool, playing poker and chasing girls. I got into this for the love of it.”
– Gene Davis, Central Oregon Phillies Owner 1979-1980 (to John Dillin of the Salem Statesman-Journal, July 1980)2Dillin, John. “Baseball in Bend is Penthouse Pets and white Corvettes”. The Statesman-Journal (Salem, OR). July 19, 1980
Bend Phillies Shop
In Memoriam
Field Manager P.J. Carey (Bend ’81) passed away on December 7, 2012 after a battle with prostate cancer. He was 59.
First baseman Greg Jelks (Bend ’82) died during a plane flight from Australia to the United States on January 6, 2017 at age 55.
Pitcher Todd Frohwirth (Bend ’84) died of stomach cancer on March 26, 2017. Frohwirth, who pitched in the Majors from 1987 to 1996, was 54 years old.
Links
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2 Responses
I played on the 1980 team and it was the most memorable years of baseball i had played in my career.
I was the Head Trainer of the 1983 through 1985 Bend Phillies.
I returned in that role on the 1987 Bend Bucks team.
My highlight was retrieving 1 of 14 Ken Griffey Jr. Home Run Baseballs (autographed) who played his rookie season with the Bellingham Mariners that season.