History of Louisville, Kentucky charter member. While the Grays were a relatively short-lived team, playing for only two years, they began a much longer lasting relationship between the city and baseball. In 1883, John "Bud" Hillerich made his first baseball bat from white ash in his father's wood shop. The first bat was produced for Pete "The Gladiator" Browning of the Louisville Eclipse (minor league team). The bats eventually become known by the popular name, "Louisville Slugger", and the local company Hillerich & Bradsby rapidly became one of the largest manufacturers of baseball bats and other sporting equipment in the world. Today, Hillerich &
Louisville Bats Louisville Bats The Louisville Bats are a professional Minor League Baseball team based in Louisville, Kentucky. They play in the International League as the Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. The Bats play their home games at Louisville Slugger Field which opened in 2000. The team previously played at Old Cardinal Stadium from 1982 to 1999. The Bats began play as the Louisville Redbirds as members of the Triple-A American Association in 1982. They became the Louisville RiverBats when they joined the International League in 1998. Louisville won the American Association championship in 1984, 1985, and 1995 as the top