The minor league "Detroit Wolverines" were immediately preceded by the
Detroit Wolverines of 1881 to 1888, who played as a major league team in the
National League. In 1888, the team was managed by
Bill Watkins and
Bob Leadley. The Detroit franchise was replaced by the
Cleveland Spiders in the eight–team 1889 National League. Leadley remained in Detroit to manage the 1889 and 1890 minor league Wolverine teams. In 1889, the Detroit Wolverines became members of the
International Association. Joining Detroit in the eight–team league were the
Buffalo Bisons, Hamilton Hams,
London Tecumsehs,
Rochester Jingoes,
Syracuse Stars,
Toledo Black Pirates and
Toronto Canucks. In their first season of minor league play, the Wolverines won the 1889 International Association championship. With a regular season record of 72–39, Detroit placed first in the eight–team International Association league standings, playing under manager Bob Leadley. Detroit finished 6.5 games ahead of the second place Syracuse Stars in the final league standings. After the 1889 Detroit club compiled a their 72–39 record, outfielder
Count Campau, called the team "one of the greatest minor league teams gathered" and stated the team "won the flag so easy that fans stopped going out to see the games." Continuing International Association play in 1890, the Detroit Wolverines won their season opener at Toronto on May 1, 1890. After a parade and ceremonies before the opener, Toronto committed 7 errors in the game, as Detroit won by a score of 10–6. The 1890 Detroit Wolverines played their final International Association season, winning a second consecutive championship in a shortened season. The league began play reduced to six teams and when the International Association folded on July 10, 1890, the Detroit Wolverines were in first place. The Wolverines had continued play under manager Bob Leadley and had a record of 31–19 when the league folded. The Wolverines finished 1.0 game ahead of the second place Saginaw-Bay City Hyphens (32–20) and 1.5 game ahead of the third place Toronto Canucks (30–20) when the International Association folded. After the league folded, Bob Leadley immediately left the Wolverines to become the manager of the
Cleveland Spiders for the remainder of the 1890 season. In 1891, the Detroit Wolverines continued minor league play in a new league, before folding during the season. The Wolverines began the season as members of the eight–team
Northwestern League. The Bay City, Dayton,
Evansville Hoosiers, Fort Wayne,
Grand Rapids Shamrocks,
Peoria Distillers and
Terre Haute Hottentots teams joined Detroit in beginning 1891 league play on May 9, 1891. On June 6, 1891, the Wolverines had compiled a 10–19 record playing under player/manager
Rasty Wright when the franchise folded. In 1894, the minor league Detroit Wolverines were succeeded in Detroit by the
Detroit Creams of the
Western League, who evolved to become today's
Detroit Tigers. ==The ballparks==