The Union City Dodgers were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Class D

Kentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League The Kentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League (or ''KITTY League'') was a Class D level minor league baseball circuit that went through six different periods of play between 1903 and 1955. The League hosted teams in 29 cities from the states of Ill ...

(KITTY League) from 1935 to 1942 and 1946 to 1955. They were located in

Union City, Tennessee Union City is located in Obion County, Tennessee, United States. The 2020 census reported the population of the town as 11,170. It is the principal urban settlement of the surrounding micropolitan area, which includes Obion County and Fulton Count ...

, and played their home games at Turner Memorial Field. Originally known as the Union City Greyhounds, the team had affiliations with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

, Cincinnati Reds, and

Cleveland Indians 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 Fi ...

. They changed their name to the Union City Dodgers upon becoming a Brooklyn Dodgers affiliate in 1953. Over 19 seasons of competition, Union City played in 2,106 regular season games and compiled an all-time win–loss record of 1,002–1,104. They won three KITTY League championships (1936, 1948, and 1954) and had a postseason record of 15–12.

History

First run (1935–1942)

The Union City Greyhounds became members of the

in 1935. Their home games were played at Turner Memorial Field in

. They lost their inaugural Opening Day game on May 22 to the Portageville Pirates, 3–2, on the road. The Greyhounds got their first win two games later on May 24, defeating the Pirates, 4–2. They ended their first season in second place with a 49–43 (.533) record but missed the playoffs having not won either half the league's split season. In 1936, the Greyhounds became an affiliate of the

. They succeeded in winning the second half and posting a full-season record of 73–45 (.619), tied with the Paducah Indians for first place. They then met the first-half champion Indians in the playoffs. After Union City won the first game, 6–2, on September 15, Paducah refused to continue the series, claiming the Greyhounds had two ineligible players on their roster. The championship was subsequently awarded to Union City, and Paducah's

manager 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 ...

and seven players who refused to play were banned from

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 ...

Finishing the 1937 season in first place at 73–46 (.613), Union City again qualified for the playoffs, but they were eliminated in the semifinals, 3–0, by the Mayfield Clothiers. Union City left the St. Louis organization after 1937 and became and affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds in 1938. In contrast to the previous campaign, the 1938 team finished last of eight teams at 45–85 (.346). They returned to the Cardinals organization in 1939, but the team again placed last with a record of 44–82 (.349). Slightly improved teams placed sixth at 60–65 (.480) in 1940 and fifth at 62–64 (.492) in 1941. Having lost some US$3,500 due to low attendance brought on by poor play, Union City announced it would drop out of the KITTY League after their game on June 19, 1942. The

Bowling Green Barons The Bowling Green Barons were a baseball team that represented Bowling Green, Kentucky in the Class D Kentucky-Illinois-Tennessee (Kitty) League from 1939 to 1942. The franchise was purchased from the Lexington (TN) Bees during the off-season. Th ...

were also forced to withdraw, and the remaining clubs voted to discontinue the circuit on June 19. The Greyhounds decided against playing their final game after receiving word from St. Louis that their players would not be compensated for the game. The club was last of six teams with a 9–35 (.205) record in the abandoned season. Over eight seasons of competition, the Greyhounds accumulated a regular season record of 415–495 (.456).

Second run (1946–1955)

The KITTY League was nonoperational from 1943 to 1945 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. It and the Greyhounds were revived in 1946. With no major league affiliation, Union City opened the 1946 season on May 7 with a 7–3 loss to the Fulton Chicks before a home crowd of 1,230 people at Turner Memorial Field. At the end of the season, the team was seventh out of eight teams at 52–72 (.419). The Greyhounds entered into an affiliation with the

in 1947. The team placed seventh at 51–74 (.408). The 1948 team, managed by ex-major leaguer

Tony Rensa George Anthony Rensa (September 29, 1901 – January 4, 1987) was a Major League Baseball player. Rensa played for the New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, Philadelphia Phillies and the Chicago White Sox. He batted and threw right-handed. He was bor ...

finished second with a 79–46 (.632) record, qualifying for one of four playoff spots. They defeated the

Owensboro Oilers The Owensboro Oilers were a minor league baseball club, based in Owensboro, Kentucky, from 1936 until 1955. The team was a member of the class-D level Kentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League (or KITTY League). The team was originally formed in 193 ...

, 3–2, in the semifinals before sweeping the Madisonville Miners in four games to win their second KITTY League championship. The 1949 club just missed the postseason with a 65–60 (.520) record, placing fifth. Union City severed its ties with Cleveland after the 1949 season and had no affiliation in 1950. They placed seventh at 43–72 (.374) in 1950 and sixth at 43–72 (.374) in 1951. The 1952 Greyhounds qualified for the playoffs with a fourth-place 63–56 (.529) record. They won the semifinals over the Fulton Lookouts, 3–2, but fell in the championship finals to Madisonville, 3–0. In 1953, the team became an affiliate of the Brooklyn Dodgers and changed their name to the Union City Dodgers. After placing last (51–69; .425) in their first season with Brooklyn, the 1954 Dodgers won the first half title and paced the league with a 76–40 (.655) record. Under manager Earl Naylor, they defeated Madisonville, 4–2, to win a third KITTY League championship. The Dodgers played their final game on August 29, 1955, losing to the Mayfield Clothiers, 6–3, in a game that was called after seven innings due to rain. They posted a season record of 50–57 (.467), placing fourth out of six teams. The KITTY League did not reform for the 1956 season, and Union City did not field another professional team afterwards. Over their second stretch of 10 years, the Greyhounds/Dodgers accumulated a 587–609 (.491) record. Over all 19 seasons, Union City's all-time record was 1,002–1–104 (.476).

Season-by-season results

Notable players

Eighteen Union City players also played in at least one game in

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), ...

during their careers. These players and their seasons with Union City were: * John Antonelli (1937) *

Dave Bartosch David Robert Bartosch (March 24, 1917 – April 30, 2006) was an American corner outfielder in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Cardinals in their 1945 season. Listed at 6' 1", 190 lb., Bartosch batted and threw right-handed. ...

(1937) *

Glenn Crawford Glenn Martin Crawford (December 2, 1913 – January 2, 1972) was a Major League Baseball player. He played in and one game in in the majors for the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies. Crawford played at least seven games at four diffe ...

(1939) *

Johnny Gill Johnny Gill Jr. (born May 22, 1966) is an American singer and actor. He is the sixth and final member of the R&B/pop group New Edition and was also a member of the supergroup called LSG, with Gerald Levert and Keith Sweat. Gill has released e ...

(1946), *

Cal Howe Calvin Earl Howe (November 27, 1924 – May 5, 2008) was an American professional baseball player who appeared in one game in Major League Baseball as a relief pitcher for the Chicago Cubs during the season. Listed at and , Howe batted and thre ...

(1942) * Al Lakeman (1938) * Red Lutz (1938) * Fred Martin (1936) * Heinie Mueller (1936) * Ed Murphy (1937) * Earl Naylor (1953–54) *

Jackie Price John Thomas Reid Price (November 13, 1912 – October 2, 1967) was a Major League Baseball shortstop who played in seven games for the Cleveland Indians during the 1946 Cleveland Indians season. He was known for delighting fans with his skills ...

(1935) *

(1948–49) *

Red Schoendienst Albert Fred "Red" Schoendienst (; February 2, 1923 – June 6, 2018) was an American professional baseball second baseman, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB), and is largely known for his coaching, managing, and playing years wi ...

(1942) *

Chuck Templeton Chuck Templeton is an American Internet entrepreneur, best known as the founder and former CEO of OpenTable, which went public in May 2009 and was acquired by The Priceline Group in June 2014. He is currently a Managing Director of S2G Ven ...

(1954) *

Elam Vangilder Elam Russell Vangilder (April 23, 1896 – April 30, 1977) was an American professional baseball pitcher in the Major Leagues from -. He played for the St. Louis Browns and Detroit Tigers. An effective pitcher despite his high walk rate, Vangil ...

(1936) *

Rudy York Preston Rudolph York (August 17, 1913 – February 5, 1970) was an American professional baseball player, coach, scout, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher and a first baseman between and , most notably as a member of the ...

(1949) *

Russ Young Russell Charles Young (September 15, 1902 – May 13, 1984) was a professional baseball catcher. He played part of one season in Major League Baseball for the St. Louis Browns in 1931. He was a switch hitter and threw right-handed. He was 6 ...

(1935)

References

{{reflist

External links

Statistics from ''Baseball Reference''

Statistics from ''Stats Crew''
1935 establishments in Tennessee 1955 disestablishments in Tennessee Baseball teams established in 1935 Baseball teams disestablished in 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers minor league affiliates Cincinnati Reds minor league affiliates Cleveland Guardians minor league affiliates Defunct baseball teams in Tennessee Defunct minor league baseball teams Kentucky-Illinois-Tennessee League teams Obion County, Tennessee Professional baseball teams in Tennessee St. Louis Cardinals minor league affiliates