Alcoa takes down Mascot

 The Calvin McClung Digital Collection recently released several issues of the Mascot Concentrates, a "Magazine for the residents of Mascot and employees of the American Zinc Company of Tennessee to express interesting news and information of the town and draw everyone in Mascot closer together and improve conditions all around."

The August 1920 issue has a round up of baseball happenings.  One of the stories concerns a game between the Alcoa and Mascot teams.

Mascot Concentrates
Vol. II, no. 4, page 19

The Journal and Tribune
Knoxville, Tennessee
July 21, 1920

The Knoxville Sentinel
Knoxville, Tennessee
July 21, 1920

The news stories have a different view on the number of hits compared to the magazine.  They were reporting  on the events of the prior day's game.  The magazine was reporting on a game that was played the previous month.  Also, it never hurts to pad the numbers* for your audience.

* Yes it does hurt.  

1923 and 1924 Knoxville Pioneers photos

I came across these two photos from two different seasons.  The clarity of the images is lacking, but the text is clear enough.

1923 Knoxville Pioneers
from The Sporting News - January 17, 1924

1924 Knoxville Pioneers
from Spalding's Official Base Ball Guide (1925)

Chilhowee Institute vs School of the Evangelists - 1903

I'm doing some research on the early athletic exploits at the School of the Evangelists in south Knox county.  SotE became Johnson Bible College, which is now Johnson University. 

Chilhowee Institute, located in Seymour, became Harrison-Chilhowee Baptist Academy, which is now know as The King's Academy.

In early April of 1903, the two teams met at Kimberlin Heights, home of SotE, with Chilhowee Institute beating the Evangelists, 6-4.

This is the earliest mention of organized sporting events by either school that I've found.  That is not to say that earlier games didn't happen.  I just haven't found records of them.

Knoxville's linen uniforms of 1936

 

The Knoxville News-Sentinel

Sun, Mar 15, 1936

The Knoxville News Sentinel of 1936 showed off the new uniforms of the Knoxville Smokies.  Lighter and cooler.  Not super attractive, but better for the players.

More uniform bits and bobs can be found at Base Ball Stats and Stuff here.

1939 Knoxville Smokies

Earlier this year I was gifted a team photo of the 1939 Knoxville Smokies.  I have not seen this in the local papers or in various baseball guides. 

That season they were part of the class A-1 Southern Association and were managed by Neil Caldwell.  Their team page at BBRef can be found here. The team had eight former or future Major Leaguers on it and they finished with a 79-73 record, finishing 5th in the league.  That was their second and final yeat to be associated with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

MLB Speedway Classic

The MLB Speedway Classic at Bristol is just a few months away.  On August 2, 2025, the Atlanta Braves and the Cincinnati Reds will meet in what is being billed as "the first Major League Baseball game in Tennessee, ever."

I'm sure it will be a rollicking good time, but I need to correct their marketing department.  On August 4, 1944 (almost 81 years to the day), The Birmingham Black Barons and the Chicago American Giants, both teams members of the Negro American League, crossed bats at Smithson Stadium in Knoxville.

In December of 2020 MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred announced that the Negro Leagues now have "Major League" status.  Simple logic says that if the Negro Leagues are Major League, then those players and games played are also to be considered Major League.

It is very possible that an earlier Negro League game was played elsewhere in Tennessee prior to August 4, 1944.  Perhaps in Nashville, Chattanooga, or Memphis.  But for now, we know that a Major League game was played in Knoxville in the summer of '44.


UPDATE

Other researches have put forth credible games that would fit the definition of Major League teams playing in Tennessee.

 My good friend Skip Nipper suggested a game between the Nashville Elite Giants and the St. Louis Stars played at Wilson Park in Nashville on April 26, 1930.  Both teams were part of the Negro National League.

Another researcher, Craig Lammers, reminded me that the Negro Southern League of 1932 is considered a Major League with clubs in both Nashville and Memphis.

And researcher and author Keith Wood chimed in that the Memphis Red Sox played in the Negro National League in 1924 and 1925.

At first Memphis was an associate member of the NNL in 1924.  After the Indianapolis ABCs collapsed near the end of June, they were designated as an associate team, Memphis was elevated to full member status.

The first game played at home for Memphis after becoming full members was against Birmingham on July 11, 1924.

So, just over 101 years before the MLB Speedway Classic will be played out, the Major Leagues had already played their first game in the wonderful state of Tennessee.


ANOTHER UPDATE

John Thorn, MLB Historian, shared his thoughts on Facebook:

And then followed up with this:

Knoxville Baseball Club, 1921

A new season, new uniforms.

from the Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection
link

The Knoxville Sentinel said on March 22, 1921: Uniforms have been chosen for the club. While at home, the team will play in white suits, the stocking being black. Road suits of dark grey and stockings of grey with a red stripe around the calf have been selected.