If you wrote a Hollywood script describing the history of the Portland Mavericks (1973-1977) it would be dismissed as unrealistic, sensational, and downright impossible. But as the humorist Dave Berry so often prefaced his own stories… “I am not making this up!”

The Mavericks are truly a Hollywood story come to life. Veteran actor Big Russell’s lifetime love of baseball met up with an unusual opportunity in 1973. The class AAA Beavers were moving to Spokane and the territory could be had for next to nothing. There were no independent teams left in minor league baseball, so Bing decided to start a new one, launching the Portland Mavericks in the single A Northwest League.

The Mavericks roster came from a truly open tryout, 150 has-beens, never-wases and a few refugees who had been left out of organized ball. Playing for $300-400 a month was just fine for this group.

The Mavs played fast and loose and they won games as well as winning over Portland fans who loved baseball regardless of the level. It was this collection of characters and antics that were sometimes more interesting than the game between the lines.

Bing Russell’s son, Kurt was taking a break from acting and was one of the first to sign on.

Hank Robinson, the team’s first manager was suspended for punching an umpire.

Frank Peters, the team’s second manager was a former Orioles prospect who played basketball at Oregon State. But for “The Flake,” managing a baseball team went side-by-side with running restaurants and nightclubs which in turn welcomed many of the players.

The team’s best player was Reggie Thomas who broke the NWL stolen base record with 72 in one season. He also had a famous temper which led to his pulling a gun on manager Peters in the clubhouse.

The Mavericks somehow signed a left-handed catcher, Jim Swanson. No one found that unusual.

And just to add a little big-league flavor, former Yankee ace Jim Bouton mounted his comeback with the Mavs after being blackballed for writing his tell-all book “Ball Four.”

Bing Russell hired baseball’s first female general manager and first Asian-American general manager.

The Mavericks kept on winning and the baseball establishment was not pleased. They advanced to the playoffs 4 times in 5 seasons playing against top young prospects on every other Northwest League team.

There may have been a lot of fun and games away from the diamond, but this team wanted to win badly. Just missing out on the league championship was always a disappointment.

And just like that, it ended in 1978 when the Pacific Coast League muscled its way back into Civic Stadium. Big Russell wouldn’t go without a fight and an arbitrator awarded him a massive (for the time) $206,000 settlement… to go away.

Not many Mavericks went on to major league careers. Jim Bouton did make a comeback with the Braves. Bouton and pitching coach Rob Nelson developed the very successful Big League Chew in the bullpen. Bat boy Todd Field went on to his own highly successful Hollywood career as an actor and director. Boxer Andrew Minsker and future major leaguer John Jaha were also products of the “Little Mavericks” program.

The story of the team itself is well-told in the Netflix documentary “The Battered Bastards of Baseball.”

PORTLAND MAVERICKS Season-by-season and those that wore the famed Maverick “Red & Black.”