Memphis Chicks
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Memphis Chicks | |
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Minor league affiliations | |
Previous classes |
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League | Southern League (1978–1997) |
Previous leagues | Southern Association (1912–1960) |
Major league affiliations | |
Previous teams |
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Minor league titles | |
Dixie Series titles (1) | 1952 |
League titles (1) | 1952 |
Pennants (8) |
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Team data | |
Previous names | Memphis Egyptians (1901–1908) Memphis Turtles (1909–1911) Memphis Chickasaws (1912–1960) |
Previous parks |
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The Memphis Chicks (originally short for Chickasaws) were an American Minor League Baseball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Chicks were charter members of the Southern Association (Class B, 1901; Class A, 1902–35; Class A1, 1936–45; Class AA, 1946–61) from 1901 until November 18, 1960, when the club folded and was transferred to Macon, Georgia, for 1961. The 1921 and 1924 Chicks were recognized as being among the 100 greatest minor league teams of all time.[1]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/1921_Memphis_Chicks.jpg/220px-1921_Memphis_Chicks.jpg)
The Chicks suffered a major blow in the spring of 1960 when their venerable ballpark, Russwood Park, was destroyed by fire after a Chicago White Sox–Cleveland Indians exhibition game on Easter Sunday, April 17. The team had opened the season in Nashville and was scheduled to play their home opener in two days. The team played in temporary facilities, including a high school football stadium, for the rest of the season but drew only 48,000 fans for the entire season.
After the 1961 season, the entire Southern Association shut down. Memphis was without baseball until 1968, when a AA Texas League team, the Memphis Blues, came to town as a farm team of the New York Mets. The new team played in a converted American Legion stadium that was renamed Blues Stadium.
After six seasons, the Blues moved up to the AAA International League from 1974–76, but were inactive in 1977. In 1978, two AA Eastern League franchises were transferred to the AA Southern League and placed in Memphis and Nashville. The Memphis franchise was renamed the Chicks, Nashville's team was named the Sounds. Blues Stadium was renamed Tim McCarver Stadium in honor of native son, Memphis Chick and major league ballplayer and later broadcaster Tim McCarver.[2]
The reborn Chicks were highly successful affiliates of the Montreal Expos, Kansas City Royals, San Diego Padres, and Seattle Mariners for the next 20 years. With the arrival of a AAA Pacific Coast League expansion team in 1998, the Memphis Redbirds, the Chicks franchise moved to Jackson, Tenn., and became the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, AA affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.
Notable alumni
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- Luis Aparicio
- Jeff Conine
- David Cone
- Terry Francona
- Tom Gordon
- Pete Gray
- Bo Jackson (this was his first pro baseball team after he initially rejected the NFL)
- Wallace Johnson
- Barry Latman
- Charlie Lea
- Derrek Lee
- Brent Mayne
- Tim McCarver two-time All-Star, second in MVP voting 1967
- Brian McRae
- Tim Raines
- Scott Sanderson
- Mike Shannon broadcaster
- Razor Shines
- Bryn Smith
- Tim Wallach
- Felipe Alou (managed 1978)
- Luke Appling (managed 1951, 1952, 1959)
See also
References
- ^ "Top 100 Teams". MiLB.com. 2001. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
- ^ "Stadium Named For McCarver". Gettysburg Times. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Associated Press. October 21, 1977. p. 14. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Defunct Southern League (baseball) teams
- Boston Red Sox minor league affiliates
- Sports teams in Memphis, Tennessee
- Professional baseball teams in Tennessee
- Brooklyn Dodgers minor league affiliates
- Chicago White Sox minor league affiliates
- Chicago Cubs minor league affiliates
- St. Louis Cardinals minor league affiliates
- Montreal Expos minor league affiliates
- Kansas City Royals minor league affiliates
- San Diego Padres minor league affiliates
- Seattle Mariners minor league affiliates
- Defunct Southern Association teams
- 1901 establishments in Tennessee
- Sports clubs established in 1901
- 1960 disestablishments in Tennessee
- Sports clubs disestablished in 1960