The Nashville Vols were a Minor League Baseball team that played in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

, from 1901 to 1963. Known only as the Nashville Baseball Club during their first seven seasons, they were officially named the Nashville Volunteers (often shortened to Vols) in 1908 for the state's nickname, ''The Volunteer State''. The Vols played their home games at Sulphur Dell, which was known as Athletic Park until 1908. The Volunteers played as charter members of the

Southern Association The Southern Association was a higher-level minor league in American organized baseball from 1901 through 1961. For most of its existence, the Southern Association was two steps below the Major Leagues; it was graded Class A (1902–1935), Cla ...

(SA) from 1901 to 1961. They were classified as Class B (1901), Class A (1902–1935), Class A1 (1936–1945), and Double-A (1946–1961). During their 61 seasons in the circuit, the Vols won eight SA pennants, nine SA playoff championships, and four

Dixie Series The Dixie Series was an interleague postseason series between the playoff champions of Minor League Baseball's Southern Association (SA) and Texas League (TL). The best-of-seven series was held at the conclusion of each season from 1920 to 1 ...

championships. The 1940 Vols were recognized as one of the 100 greatest minor league teams of all time. After sitting out the 1962 season, the club returned for a final campaign as a part of the Double-A

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

in 1963. Nashville served as a farm club for eight

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

franchises across 29 seasons and were unaffiliated in the other 33 seasons. A total of 26 managers led the club and its over 1,200 players. Through 62 seasons, the Vols played 9,015 regular season games and compiled a win–loss record of 4,569–4,446. They had a postseason record of 108–74. Combining all 9,197 regular season and postseason games, the Vols had an all-time record of 4,677–4,520.

History

Prior professional baseball in Nashville

Nashville has hosted Minor League Baseball teams since the late 19th century. The city's

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

history dates back to 1884 with the formation of the

Nashville Americans The Nashville Americans were a minor league baseball team that played in the Class B Southern League from 1885 to 1886. They were located in Nashville, Tennessee, and played their home games at Sulphur Spring Park, later known as Sulphur Dell ...

, who were charter members of the original Southern League from 1885 to 1886 and played their home games at Sulphur Spring Park, later renamed Athletic Park and Sulphur Dell. This ballpark was the home of Nashville's minor league teams through 1963. In 1887, Nashville's Southern League team was called the Nashville Blues. The Nashville Tigers competed for the city in the same league from 1893 to 1894. In 1895, the

Nashville Seraphs The Nashville Seraphs, often known as the Nashvilles, were a minor league baseball team that played in the Class B Southern League in 1895. They were located in Nashville, Tennessee, and played their home games at Athletic Park, later known ...

won the city's first professional championship in the Southern League. The

Nashville Centennials The Nashville Centennials were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Class C Central League in 1897. They were located in Nashville, Tennessee, and were named in reference to the celebration of the one-hundredth anniversary of Tennes ...

played in the

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consi ...

in 1897 but relocated to

Henderson, Kentucky Henderson is a home rule-class city along the Ohio River and is the county seat of Henderson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 28,757 at the 2010 U.S. census. It is part of the Evansville Metropolitan Area, locally known as t ...

, during the season before the league's collapse.

Early days (1901–1933)

After the city's three-year absence from professional baseball, the Nashville Baseball Club was formed in 1901 as a charter member of the Class B

. The team did not receive their official moniker, the Nashville Volunteers, until 1908. The Nashville club played their home games at Athletic Park ( Sulphur Dell). Before the start of the inaugural season, Nashville participated in a three-game exhibition series against the

Vanderbilt Commodores baseball The Vanderbilt Commodores baseball team is an American National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) college baseball team. From Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, the team participates in the Eastern division of the Southeastern Co ...

team. Nashville won all three games. The team began the regular season in Chattanooga, sweeping the

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

in three games, before returning home to Athletic Park for the home opener. The game's lineup, led by

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the s ...

Ike Fisher, consisted of second baseman

Ed Abbaticchio Edward James Abbaticchio (April 15, 1877 – January 6, 1957) was the first Major League Baseball player and first professional football player of Italian ancestry. Baseball Born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, Abbatticchio was primarily a shortstop ...

right fielder A right fielder, abbreviated RF, is the outfielder in baseball or softball who plays defense in right field. Right field is the area of the outfield to the right of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the ...

Doc Wiseman,

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

Ike Fisher,

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

James Ballantyne, center fielder Lang,

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

Tom Parrott,

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

George Reitz,

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

Snapper Kennedy, and

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

Ted Corbett. Over 2,000 people witnessed the 9–7 Nashville loss. By July 4, they were in second place (31–21), one game behind the

Little Rock Travelers The Little Rock Travelers were an American minor league baseball team located in Little Rock, Arkansas, and members (1902–1910, 1915–1958, 1960–1961) of the Southern Association, which as a Class A, A1 or Double-A circuit was typically two ...

. By mid-August, Nashville had moved into first, leading the

Memphis Egyptians The Memphis Chicks were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Southern Association from 1901 to 1960. They were located in Memphis, Tennessee, and played their home games at Russwood Park. Known originally as the Memphis Egyptians and M ...

by two games. Teams throughout the circuit expressed dissatisfaction with the league's umpires. After a number of games were protested and teams' records adjusted, the Nashville club was declared the Southern Association's first champions. The team repeated their success in 1902 by once again being declared league champions. The Nashville Club's final record was 82–42, six-and-a-half games ahead of Little Rock. From 1903 to 1907, the Nashville club was unable to muster anything better than a fifth-place finish. 1904 was their only winning season and by 1907 the team was in last place. Still lacking an official team name, the club was referred to as the Finnites when Mickey Finn managed the team from 1905 to 1906, the Dobbers when John Dobbs managed the team in 1907, and the Senators, probably due to the nearby

Tennessee State Capitol The Tennessee State Capitol, located in Nashville, Tennessee, is the seat of government for the U.S. state of Tennessee. It serves as the home of both houses of the Tennessee General Assembly–the Tennessee House of Representatives and the Tenn ...

building which overlooked Athletic Park. 1908NashvilleVols2

In 1908, ''

Nashville Tennessean ''The Tennessean'' (known until 1972 as ''The Nashville Tennessean'') is a daily newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee. Its circulation area covers 39 counties in Middle Tennessee and eight counties in southern Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett, ...

'' sports writer

Grantland Rice Henry Grantland "Granny" Rice (November 1, 1880July 13, 1954) was an early 20th-century American sportswriter known for his elegant prose. His writing was published in newspapers around the country and broadcast on the radio. Early years Rice wa ...

held a contest to name the team. The public was invited to mail in votes for one of three team names: the Limerocks (from the abundance of

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

in and around Nashville), the Rocks, and the Volunteers (from the state's nickname, The Volunteer State). The winner and new official team name was the Volunteers, though this was often shortened to Vols. Rice also gave Nashville's Athletic Park a new name: Sulphur Dell, a reference to the location's prior name of Sulphur Springs Bottom. The newly named Volunteers also became a

farm team In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

Cleveland Naps The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive ...

in 1908. Nashville's John Duggan pitched a no-hitter on September 10, against Little Rock; Nashville won, 1–0. The club, under manager Bill Bernhard, entered the final day of that season with an opportunity to win the league pennant. The championship was to be decided by the last game of the season between the Vols and the New Orleans Pelicans at Sulphur Dell. Both teams had the same number of losses (56), but the Pelicans were in first place with 76 wins to the Vols' second-place 74. A crowd of 11,000 spectators witnessed Vols pitcher Carl Sitton hurl a three-hit, 1–0 shutout, giving Nashville their third Southern Association pennant by .002 percentage points. Rice called it "the greatest game ever played in

Dixie Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas shift over the years), or the extent of the area it cover ...

." One account recalls "By one run, by one point, Nashville has won the Southern League pennant, nosing New Orleans out literally by an eyelash. Saturday's game, which was the deciding one, between Nashville and New Orleans was the greatest exhibition of the national game ever seen in the south and the finish in the league race probably sets a record in baseball history." Before the start of the 1909 season, the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

's Chicago Cubs and American League's

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

held their spring training in Nashville. The Volunteers held an exhibition game against the Cubs in which the visiting Cubs defeated the home team, 3–0. Nashville also participated in games against the Red Sox. They finished the regular 1909 season in second place behind the pennant-winning

Atlanta Crackers The Atlanta Crackers were Minor League Baseball teams based in Atlanta, Georgia, between 1901 and 1965. The Crackers were Atlanta's home team until the Atlanta Braves moved from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1966. History Atlanta played its first ...

. From 1910 through 1915, the Volunteers found themselves usually around the middle of the standings at the end of each season and only had winning records in 1911 and 1914. The 1913 Vols suffered a preseason defeat against the American League's Philadelphia Athletics, 11–8. On July 11, 1916, at Sulphur Dell, Vols pitcher Tom Rogers delivered a

perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...

against the Chattanooga Lookouts. He retired all 27 batters in the 2–0 victory—the first perfect game in the Southern Association and the only perfect game in the Volunteers' history. The game lasted a mere 1 hour and 25 minutes. Rogers led the league that season with 24 victories and 33 complete games. Under the leadership of manager Roy Ellam, the Vols went on to win their fourth league pennant with a nine-game lead over second-place New Orleans. The Volunteers finished the 1910s with a winning (77–73) fifth-place record in 1917, and had sub-.500 seasons in 1918 and 1919 that placed them at or near the bottom of the standings. In 1920, Nashville served as a farm team for the American League's

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

. The 1920s started out poorly for the Vols. The team didn't have a winning record for four seasons from 1920 to 1923. The National League's Pittsburgh Pirates purchased the contract of Vols outfielder

Kiki Cuyler Hazen Shirley Cuyler (; August 30, 1898 – February 11, 1950), nicknamed Kiki, was an American professional baseball right fielder. He played in Major League Baseball for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, and Brooklyn Dodg ...

in 1923. Cuyler, who led the league with 68 stolen bases, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1968. Things turned around as the team's record improved from 1924 to 1929—excluding 1928 when they finished in last place, 40 games out of first. They ended the decade only three games behind the pennant-winning Birmingham Barons in 1929. The Volunteers played their first

night game A night game, also called a nighter, is a sporting event that takes place, completely or partially, after the local sunset. Depending on the sport, this can be done either with floodlights or with the usual low-light conditions. The term "night ...

at Sulphur Dell on May 18, 1931, in front of an estimated 7,000 fans. However, this was not the first night game to be played at Nashville's ballpark. The original Southern League's Nashville Tigers competed in a night game thirty-seven years earlier on July 6, 1894. The Vols accrued over 100 losses in 1931, finishing in last place, 51–102. In preparation for the 1932 season, the Vols defeated the Chicago White Sox, 8–4, in an exhibition game held on April 5. When the regular season began, 14,502 fans were in attendance. The

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In cricket, baseball a ...

had to be lined off with rope to designate additional seating in order to accommodate them at the 8,000-seat Sulphur Dell. The Volunteers finished in fourth place (75–78) that season and third place (77–69) in 1933. Despite this record, they played in the newly created Southern Association championship playoff, in which they lost to the New Orleans Pelicans, 3–1.

Second half (1934–1963)

The Vols began a consistent period of affiliation with major league clubs in 1934. For that season and the next, they were a farm team for the New York Giants. They finished both campaigns with over-.500 records and played in the championship playoffs, but did not win titles. The Vols saw similar results in 1936 and 1937 as affiliates of the Cincinnati Reds: two winning seasons, a trip to the playoffs in 1936, but no championship. From 1938 to 1940, the Vols were affiliated with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Under manager

Chuck Dressen Charles Walter Dressen (September 20, 1894Dressen's birthdate has been revised from 1898, as was commonly reported in ''The Sporting News' Baseball Register'' and ''Macmillan's Baseball Encyclopedia'', to 1894 by both Baseball Reference and Retro ...

, the 1938 club finished in second place, five-and-a-half games behind the first-place

. Making to the Southern Association playoff finals, Nashville was defeated by the Crackers, 4–1–1. Manager

Larry Gilbert Lawrence Allen Gilbert, Sr. (November 19, 1942 – January 21, 1998) was an American professional golfer best known for winning the 1997 Senior Players Championship, one of the major championships on the Senior PGA Tour. Gilbert was born in For ...

, who would become the Vol's longest tenured and winningest manager in team history, came on to manage starting in 1939. The team finished in third place but went on to win the playoff championship against Atlanta. They lost in the

, 4–3, to the

Fort Worth Cats The Fort Worth Cats was a professional baseball team based in Fort Worth, Texas, in the United States. The Cats were a member of the South Division of the now disbanded United League Baseball, which was not affiliated with Major League Basebal ...

of 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 ...

. In a 2001 ranking, the 1940 Vols were ranked as the 47th greatest minor league team of all time. That team won the pennant with a franchise-high 101–47 (.682) record, having stayed in first place since day one of the season. After defeating Atlanta in the playoffs, Nashville won its first Dixie Series championship against the

Houston Buffaloes The Houston Buffaloes, Houston Buffalos, or Buffs were an American minor league baseball team, and were the first minor league team to be affiliated with a Major League Baseball, Major League franchise, which was the St. Louis Cardinals. The clu ...

, 4–1. Catcher

Greek George Charles Peter "Greek" George (December 25, 1912 in Waycross, Georgia – August 15, 1999 in Metairie, Louisiana) was a catcher in Major League Baseball. He played from 1935 to 1945. He attended college at Oglethorpe University Oglethorpe ...

was selected as the Southern Association Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award, an honor he shared with Atlanta's

Emil Mailho Emil Pierre Mailho (December 16, 1908 – March 7, 2007) was a professional baseball player. He played part of one season in Major League Baseball in 1936 for the Philadelphia Athletics. He was born in Berkeley, California, and died in Castro Va ...

. The Nashville club experience similar success in 1941 and 1942 as unaffiliated teams. Though finishing in second place, the Vols won the playoff championship and Dixie Series in both campaigns. As Chicago Cubs affiliates, they won the pennant in 1943, and again won back-to-back playoffs in 1943 and 1944. In 1943,

Ed Sauer Edward Sauer (January 3, 1919 – July 1, 1988) was an American professional baseball player. An outfielder, he appeared in 189 Major League games in 1943–1945 and in 1949 for the Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Braves. He sto ...

was voted as the league MVP. The next two seasons were in stark contrast to the Vols' recent performances. The campaigns of 1945 and 1946 saw the team finish in seventh and sixth places, respectively. The next five seasons of affiliation with the Cubs resulted in winning seasons. The 1947 Vols lost in the playoff finals, as did the 1948 team that also won the pennant. Larry Gilbert did not return to the team in 1949. He left having guided the team to three Southern Association pennants, six playoff championships, and three-straight Dixie Series crowns.

Rollie Hemsley Ralston Burdett Hemsley (June 24, 1907 – July 31, 1972) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for 19 seasons from to . Born in Syracuse, Ohio, he was nicknamed "Rollicking Rollie". Hemsley ...

managed the 1949 squad to a first-place pennant-winning season, an association championship, and a Dixie Series title. Chuck Workman was the league MVP in 1948, and teammate

Carl Sawatski Carl Ernest Sawatski (November 4, 1927 – November 24, 1991) was an American professional baseball player and executive. In the Major Leagues, he was a catcher for the Chicago Cubs (1948, 1950 and 1953), Chicago White Sox (1954), Milwaukee Brave ...

followed suit in 1949. Nashville closed out its time with the Cubs in 1950 and 1951, winning the playoffs in 1950 but losing the Dixie series and finishing in fifth place in 1951. Bob Lennon 1955

The Vols returned to the New York Giants organization from 1952 to 1954. They won the playoff championship in 1953, but lost in the Dixie Series, and finished the other two seasons with sub-.500 records in sixth place. During the 1954 season, outfielder Bob Lennon hit 64 home runs, a league record never broken. Forty of the home runs were hit at Sulphur Dell. Lennon led the Southern Association in a total of five categories that year (

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

, hits, runs, RBI, and

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s) and was awarded the Southern Association MVP Award. Nashville's six years as a Cincinnati Redlegs/Reds affiliate from 1955 to 1960 featured little of the success they had experienced during the previous 20 years. Aside from winning the 1957 championship semi-finals versus the Memphis Chicks, 4–2, but losing to Atlanta in the finals, the Vols finished no higher than third place with records hovering around .500. The refusal of the Southern Association to integrate its teams resulted in poor attendance in Nashville and across the league from 1946, when organized baseball was integrated. Plagued by poor attendance and financial woes, in January 1959 the franchise was sold to a group of local businessmen, which included

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

musician

Eddy Arnold Richard Edward Arnold (May 15, 1918 – May 8, 2008) was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a Nashville sound (country/popular music) innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the ''Billboard'' cou ...

and politician and Tennessee Secretary of State Joe C. Carr. Known as Vols, Inc., the group was headed by president Herschel Lynn Greer. The corporation sold $5 shares to 4,876 investors to keep the team in operation. In 1961, with the Minnesota Twins, the Vols went 69–83 (.454) with a sixth-place finish. The Southern Association ceased operations after the 1961 season due to low fan interest, financial losses, and the difficulty of fielding enough teams. After Sulphur Dell sat empty in 1962 when no professional baseball was played in the city, Nashville fielded a team in the Double-A

in 1963. As an affiliate of the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

, the Vols finished in last place out of eight teams with a 53–86 (.381) record. The Nashville Vols played their final games, in a doubleheader, on September 8, 1963, against the

Lynchburg White Sox Lynchburg is a toponym that may refer to: *Lynchburg, California *Lynchburg, Mississippi *Lynchburg, Missouri *Lynchburg, North Dakota *Lynchburg, Ohio (in Clinton and Highland counties) *Lynchburg, Columbiana County, Ohio *Lynchburg, South Carolina ...

. Nashville won both games, 6–3 and 2–1. Poor attendance and financial problems, including a nearly $22,000 debt incurred over the season, forced team owners to surrender the franchise to the league just one week after the season's end. Music City was without a professional baseball team for 14 years until 1978 when

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

baseball coach

Larry Schmittou Larry Schmittou (born July 19, 1940) is an American entrepreneur and former baseball executive and coach. He owns S&S Family Entertainment LLC, which operates a chain of bowling centers in Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana. From 1968 to 1978 ...

led a group of local investors to found the Nashville Sounds, an expansion franchise of the Double-A Southern League, which grew out of the South Atlantic League.

Season-by-season results

Over 9,015 regular season games in their 62-year history, the Vols compiled a win–loss record of 4,569–4,446 (.507). They qualified for

postseason The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

playoffs on 16 occasions and had a postseason record of 108–74 (.593). Nashville won eight Southern Association (SA) pennants, nine SA playoff championships, and four

titles. Combining all 9,197 regular season and postseason games, the Vols had an all-time record of 4,677–4,520 (.509). The team's best season record occurred in 1940 when they finished 101–47 (.682). Their lowest season record was 45–92 (.328) in 1906. Of the eight major league affiliations in Nashville's history, the team recorded its best record from 1938 to 1940 as a Brooklyn Dodgers affiliate. The team had a regular season record of 270–181 (.599) during that time. They reached the postseason in all three seasons, winning two playoff championships and one Dixie Series title. Their postseason record was 25–16 (.610). Conversely, the team's lowest record was as a Los Angeles Angels affiliate in 1963. The Vols compiled a 53–86 (.381) record and failed to reach the postseason in their lone year with the Angles and their final year of competition. Nashville's top five seasons by

winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of match ...

are presented below.

Players

After 62 seasons, over 1,200 players had competed in at least one game for the Vols. From these, '' Nashville Banner'' sportswriters

Fred Russell Fred Russell (August 27, 1906 – January 26, 2003) was an American sportswriter from Tennessee who served as sports editor for the ''Nashville Banner'' for 68 years (1930–1998). Beginning in the 1960s he served for nearly three decades as ...

and George Leonard created all-time rosters of the top Nashville players from 1901 to 1919 and from 1920 to 1963.

1901–1919

1920–1963

Achievements

Awards

Eight Vols were selected for the Southern Association Most Valuable Player Award, more than any other team in the league, in recognition for their performance while with the Vols. These players were

(1940),

(1943), Chuck Workman (1948),

(1949), Bob Schultz (1950),

Jack Harshman John Elvin Harshman (July 12, 1927 – August 17, 2013) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the New York Giants, Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, and Cleveland Indians between 1948 and 1960. He batted and threw ...

(1953), Bob Lennon (1954), and Stan Palys (1957).

Hall of Famers

Two members of the Vols have been elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

, who was selected by the Veterans Committee in 1968, played for the Vols in 1923. In 149 games, Cuyler led the team with a .340 batting average, 195 hits, 39 doubles, and 17 triples.

Waite Hoyt Waite Charles Hoyt (September 9, 1899 – August 25, 1984) was an American right-handed professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for seven different teams during 1918–1938. He was one of the dominant pitchers of the 19 ...

, who pitched for the team in 1918, was selected by the Veterans Committee in 1969.

Managers

Over the course of 62 seasons, the Nashville Vols were led by 26

managers Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

. Playing in an era when it was common to have

s, 17 men served as managers concurrent with their on-field playing. The team's eight regular season pennants, nine playoff championships, and four

titles were won behind seven different managers.

Newt Fisher Isaac Newton "Ike" "Newt" Fisher (June 28, 1871 – February 28, 1947) was an American Major League Baseball catcher. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies of the National League in . Fisher helped organize the Southern Association, a higher- ...

(1901 and 1902), Bill Bernhard (1908), Roy Ellam (1916), and

(1940, 1943, 1948, and 1949) managed the Vols to win the Southern Association pennant. Gilbert (1939, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1943, and 1944),

(1949), Don Osborn (1950), and Hugh Poland (1953) led the team to win SA playoff championships. Gilbert (1940, 1941, and 1942) and Hemsley (1949) managed Nashville to win the Dixie Series, a best-of-seven playoff series against the champions of the

References

;Specific ;General * * * *

External links