James Lawrence Smith (May 15, 1895 – January 1, 1974) was a Major League Baseball

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

often referred to as "Greenfield Jimmy" or "Bluejacket". Smith was a switch hitter and threw right-handed. His major league debut came on September 26, 1914, with the Chicago Chi-Feds. In 1919, he won the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

with the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

, and he went on to play his final game with the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

on September 3, 1922. During

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

, Smith smuggled bootlegged alcohol from various cities into his Greenfield neighborhood. After retiring from baseball, he joined

National Distillers Old Crow is a low-priced brand of Kentucky-made straight bourbon whiskey distilled by Suntory Global Spirits, which also produces Jim Beam and several other brands of whiskey. The current Old Crow product uses the same mash bill and yeast as Ji ...

company as general manager. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery in Pittsburgh.

Family

Smith had four children: Mary Louise, Jimmy Jr., Nora, and Tommy. Jimmy Jr. played baseball for the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

, and some professional baseball in the minor leagues with the Gladewater Bears, a team in the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. Tommy played basketball at Pennsylvania and then attended the

Wharton school of business The Wharton School ( ) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia. Established in 1881 through a donation from Joseph Wharton, a co-founder of Bethlehem Steel, the Wharton ...

. Jimmy Jr. had a son, Jimmy Smith III, who was an All-Ivy League football player at the University of Pennsylvania. Jimmy Smith III signed a contract to play with the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

in 1983 but was released after a knee injury. Smith was the father-in-law of world light heavyweight champion

Billy Conn William David Conn (October 8, 1917 – May 29, 1993) was an American professional Boxing, boxer and Light Heavyweight Champion famed for his fights with Joe Louis. He had a professional boxing record of 63 wins, 11 losses and 1 draw, with 14 win ...

. A rematch against Joe Louis in 1942 had to be abruptly canceled after Conn broke his hand in a much-publicized fight with Smith. Smith's great-granddaughter is swimmer Leah Smith.

References

External links

1917 Champion New York Giants Team Photo

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Jimmy 1895 births 1974 deaths Major League Baseball infielders Chicago Whales players Baltimore Terrapins players 20th-century American sportsmen Pittsburgh Pirates players New York Giants (baseball) players Boston Braves players Duquesne Dukes baseball players Cincinnati Reds players Philadelphia Phillies players Indianapolis Indians players Jersey City Skeeters players Baseball players from Pittsburgh Burials at Calvary Catholic Cemetery (Pittsburgh)