The Buffalo Bisons are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. The team is located in Buffalo, New York, and is known colloquially as the Herd. The team's colors are scarlet red, reflex blue and white, and their mascot is Buster T. Bison, who has supported the team since 1983. The Bisons organization was founded in 1979 and assumed the history of previous franchises that also used the Buffalo Bisons name, most notably the 1886-1970 Buffalo Bisons minor league franchise, and the 1879-1885 Buffalo Bisons major league franchise.
The Bisons play their home games at Sahlen Field, which is located in downtown Buffalo. After several renovations over the years -- most recently in 2020, when the Toronto Blue Jays invested $5 million in upgrading the venue -- the stadium now boasts a capacity of 16,600 people, making it the highest-capacity Triple-A ballpark in the United States. Sahlen Field opened in 1988 and was originally called Pilot Field.
The Bisons have achieved several notable successes throughout their history. They hold the all-time record for single-season attendance in Minor League Baseball, selling 1,240,951 tickets in 1991 while being considered for 1993 Major League Baseball expansion. The team also won two division titles and set subsequent attendance records on the heels of their unsuccessful 1993 Major League Baseball expansion bid. In addition, the Bisons won the division and league championship in their first season in the International League in 1998, but lost the Triple-A World Series. The team also established the Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985 to honor former players, managers, and contributors to baseball in Buffalo.
