Rayne sits in the rice-growing prairies of Acadiana, where the long-billed blackbirds known locally as rice birds shadowed the harvest each fall. The team carried that name when it became a charter member of the Class D Louisiana State League in 1920, lined up beside the Abbeville Sluggers, Alexandria Tigers, Lafayette Hubs, New Iberia Sugar Boys, and Oakdale Lumberjacks. The franchise folded along with the rest of the league on July 14 of its first season. The Rice Birds name was revived later in the Evangeline League from 1935 to 1941 (with affiliations to the White Sox and Dodgers) before disbanding for good.

Part of our Defunct Baseball collection, inspired by the vintage Minor League teams of yesteryear.