1947 Knoxville Smokies

Overview

The Class B Tri-State League of 1947 started and ended with eight teams. This was the second season that the Knoxville team was in the Tri-State League. Dale Alexander was the manager in both 1946 and 1947. The 1947 season opened on April 15 and closed on September 5, 1947. Charlotte was declared the league champion.

Playoffs - Charlotte defeated Spartanburg, four games to one; Anderson defeated Knoxville, four games to two; Charlotte defeated Anderson, four games to three.

News and Notes

• Outfielder Cheno Bernal made a free agent by Knoxville of the Tri-State League, has signed with Charlotte of the same circuit. - The Sporting News - February 12, 1947, page 29

• Jim Poole, Jr., son of Jim Poole, Sr., former first baseman for the Philadelphia A's and manager of numerous minor league clubs, has signed to play with Knoxville in the Tri-State League. Young Poole is a secondbaseman and recently returned from the service. He was with Fort Pierce, Greensboro and Roanoke before joining the armed forces. - The Sporting News - March 26, 1947, page 25

• Atlanta sent ... outfielder Joe Moody to Knoxville. - The Sporting News - April 9, 1947, page 29

• Umpire Ellish Garner and Bill Kovach cleared the Knoxville bench in the Tri-State's first major rhubarb at Charlotte, April 26. After Fred March had been chased for protesting a third strike, the Smokies fired such a tirade at the two arbiters that every man on the bench, except Manager Dale Alexander, was ordered out. - The Sporting News - May 7, 1947, page 31

• Second Baseman Jim Poole of the Knoxville Tri-State League club has quite the game and asked to go on the voluntary retired list in or to re-enter the University of North Carolina. He has another year of university work to gain his degree and also will assist the Tarheel football coaching staff. - The Sporting News - May 14, 1947, page 31

• Knoxville - Bought Pitcher Woody Johnson from Portsmouth; released Pitchers Dick Douthat and Howard Peckman - The Sporting News - May 14, 1947, page 36

• A 19-game winner for Charlotte of the Tri-State League las season, Sonny Dixon made his first start for the Hornets, after his return from Chattanooga of the Southern Association, May 17, and lost to Knoxville, 5 to 2. - The Sporting News - May 28, 1947 - page 32

• Pitching his first shutout of the season, Gaspare Del Monte of the Charlotte Tri-State League club registered his fifth win, May 17, with a 3 to 0 decision over Knoxville, yielding only five hits to the Smokies. - The Sporting News - May 28, 1947 - page 32

• Knoxville - Sent Pitcher Paul Hice to Leaksville, released Outfielder Fred Marsh, Infielder Red Hawkins and Utilityman Bill Justicel acquired Outfielder Bob Churchill and Infielders George Gribble and Lloyd Moore from Greensvillel Signed Outfielder J.V. Oliver. - The Sporting News - June 11, 1947. page 32

• Memphis sold ... Outfielder William Burgo to Knoxville. - The Sporting News - June 18, 1947, page 16

• A home run by Roy Peeler with two on in the ninth ining gave Knoxvile a 7 to 6 Tri-State League victory over Charlotte, June 8, and enabled Lacy James to notch his ninth win of the season. Jame went the routhe, although the Hornets got to him for five runs in the second frame. - The Sporting News - June 18, 1947, page 37

• The city council at Knoxville, Tenn., took a step toward the return of Southern Association ball, instead of being content with the Tri-State variety, by agreeing to spend $75,000 in renovating Smithson Stadium grandstand, when and if a Double-A franchise is obtained. - The Sporting News - July 9, 1947, page 38

• Third Baseman Motto of Reidsville started a triple play against Knoxville in a Tri-State League game, June 26, snaring a line drive, with the relay catching runners off second and first. The play only kept down the score, as Knoxville won, 12 to 4. Leonard Cross made a home run, triple and double. - The Sporting News - July 9, 1947, page 38

• Roy Peeler of Knoxville, who was blasted out of the Tri-State League all-star game by Anderson, two nights before, took the mound against the same team, July 18, and turned in a 7 to 4 victory on a six-hit performance. - The Sporting News - July 30, 1947, page 32

• Spartanburg and Knoxville completed a Tri-State League night game at Spartanburg, S.C., July 11, 1947, after all of the fans had left the park. A prankster switched off the lights in the ninth inning when Pete Milne apparently singled a runner home with the winning run for Spartanburg. Manager Dale Alexander of Knoxville protested that the light failure nullified the hit, but Plate Umpire Eddie Hearn held the tally counted and 2,355 cash customers filed out of the park. Later, the official scorer was hastily summoned from his residence to the park, where Umpire Hearn explained that League President C.M. Llewellyn, in a telephone conversation, had ordered play resumed at the point before Milne made his hit, with the bases loaded. Milne then grounded out and Lew Urcho flied out to force the game into an extra inning. Knoxville then tallied six times in the tenth to win, 13 to 7. - 1948 The Sporting News Baseball Guide and Record Book, page 341 - at archive.org

• Overruling President D.M. Llewellyn's disapproval of Spartanburg's protest against a replay of the game with Knoxville, halted when a prankster switched off the lights as the winning run crossed the plate, the Tri-State League's board of directors awarded the contest to the Spartans. The Smokies, originally won, 13 to 7. Erasure of the replay left Jim Kreckley with only three defeats and he celebrated July 31, by notching his fifteenth triumph. - The Sporting News - August 13, 1947, page 32

• A spectator at Spartanburg was arrested during a Tri-State League game with Knoxville, August 29, for throwing a pop bottle that hit Outfielder Joe Moody of the Smokies on the arm. - The Sporting News - September 10, 1947, page 32

League Final Standings

Team	W	L	T	PCT
Spartanburg	88	51	1	.633
Anderson	84	55	1	.604
Knoxville	73	67	0	.521
Charlotte	72	68	0	.514
Rock Hill	68	71	0	.489
Asheville	65	74	0	.468
Fayetteville	61	78	0	.439
Reidsville	45	92	0	.328

Team Names and Managers

Team Names	Manager 1	Manager 2
Spartanburg Peaches	Kerby Ferrell
Anderson Rebels	Bob Richards
Knoxville Smokies	Dale Alexander
Charlotte Hornets	Spencer Abbott	Cal Ermer
Rock Hill Chiefs	Dan Carnavale
Asheville Tourists	William Sayles
Fayetteville Cubs	Clyde McDowell
Reidsville Luckies	Lee Gamble

Statistics

League Batting

Team	R/G	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	SB	BB	SO	RBI	BA	SLG	TB	HB	SH	OR	LOB
Knoxville	5.39	140	4830	755	1380	255	82	58	125	525	527	695	.286	.408	1973	36	95	716	1074
Spartanburg	6.11	140	4822	856	1377	230	68	64	113	641	668	770	.286	.401	1935	38	131	659	1162
Asheville	5.47	139	4809	761	1372	187	71	48	105	585	565	676	.285	.384	1845	40	87	726	1149
Fayetteville	5.36	139	4863	745	1348	255	41	66	122	516	716	659	.277	.387	1883	27	56	798	1110
Anderson	5.64	140	4702	790	1289	221	54	83	142	588	574	591	.274	.397	1867	25	73	687	1023
Rock Hill	5.06	139	4775	703	1305	215	69	52	66	567	668	648	.273	.380	1814	29	51	778	1107
Reidsville	4.82	137	4657	661	1259	226	40	45	44	490	513	574	.270	.365	1700	44	70	920	1052
Charlotte	5.06	140	4744	709	1253	205	65	26	72	551	624	641	.264	.351	1666	59	95	696	1128

Knoxville Individual Batting

Last Name	First Name	Team 1	Team 2	Bats	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	SLG	TB	HB	SH	Notes
Kollar	Harold	Knoxville		L	140	548	106	181	35	12	11	108	13	83	37	.330	.498	273	7	6
Moody	Joseph	Knoxville		R	133	496	97	159	43	11	5	87	9	68	50	.321	.482	239	2	10
Moore	Lloyd	Knoxville		R	71	266	55	85	23	1	2	38	11	43	10	.320	.436	116	0	6
Peeler	Roy	Knoxville		L	85	198	28	63	16	6	6	37	1	24	35	.318	.551	109	0	3	32 G at Char, 106 at Knox
Mincy	Russell	Charlotte	Knoxville	L	138	522	85	164	35	11	2	90	3	74	20	.314	.435	227	5	11
Poole	James Jr.	Knoxville		R	15	55	7	17	3	0	0	2	0	2	12	.309	.364	20	0	4
Davis	Lewis	Knoxville		R	138	558	104	170	21	20	6	79	49	65	52	.305	.446	249	1	7
Gribble	George	Knoxville		L	96	370	72	109	9	1	0	33	13	48	23	.295	.324	120	4	12
Rocek	James	Knoxville		R	115	396	48	108	15	2	3	37	5	17	28	.273	.343	136	0	4
Cross	Leonard	Knoxville		R	114	438	69	119	26	11	21	78	7	29	84	.272	.525	230	4	3
Marsh	Frederick	Knoxville		R	41	169	16	44	8	2	1	24	9	5	11	.260	.349	59	2	4
Jackson	Rufus	Knoxville		L	55	135	11	35	5	1	0	22	0	11	15	.259	.311	42	1	0
Frye	Dean	Knoxville		R	27	95	18	24	7	2	0	10	3	4	5	.253	.368	35	5	4
Oliver	Jefferson	Knoxville		R	58	176	20	44	7	0	0	17	2	16	22	.250	.290	51	3	2
Justice	William	Knoxville		R	13	44	3	10	2	0	0	2	0	1	6	.227	.273	12	0	0
James	Lacy	Knoxville		L	13	108	12	24	0	2	1	17	0	5	21	.222	.287	31	0	1
O’Shields	Garland	Knoxville		R	12	23	3	5	1	0	1	7	0	1	8	.217	.391	9	0	2
Pate	Ralph	Knoxville		R	41	78	5	16	2	0	0	11	0	3	10	.205	.231	18	0	5
Hawkins	Fred	Knoxville		L	13	44	2	9	2	0	0	4	0	9	6	.205	.250	11	1	1
Ennis	Robert	Knoxville		L	35	74	9	12	3	1	0	4	0	4	18	.162	.230	17	2	3
Rossi	Alfred	Knoxville		R	45	64	9	9	0	1	0	2	0	8	18	.141	.172	11	0	1
Bankston	Thomas	Knoxville		R	20	16	2	2	0	0	0	1	0	7	4	.125	.125	2	0	1
Calfee	Howard F.	Knoxville		R	23	49	2	6	0	0	0	2	0	5	28	.122	.122	6	0	3

League Fielding

Team	G	Ch	DP	TP	PB	PO	A	E	Fld %
Charlotte	140	5264	132	0	11	3629	1430	205	.961
Asheville	139	5350	117	0	15	3615	1521	214	.960
Knoxville	140	5451	103	1	15	3652	1577	222	.959
Anderson	140	5264	114	3	16	3604	1421	239	.955
Rock Hill	139	5431	102	0	23	3604	1577	250	.954
Fayetteville	139	5312	98	1	18	3573	1490	249	.953
Spartanburg	140	5403	134	0	15	3659	1481	263	.951
Reidsville	137	5343	117	2	30	3459	1614	270	.949

Knoxville Individual Fielding

Last Name	First Name	Throwing Hand	Team 1	Team 2	Position	G	Ch	PO	A	E	DP	PB	TP	PCT	RF/G
Jackson	Rufus	R	Knoxville		C	43	208	192	15	1	0	3	0	.995	4.814
Rocek	James	R	Knoxville		C	112	754	671	73	10	7	12	1	.987	6.643
Kollar	Harold	L	Knoxville		1B	140	1304	1214	68	22	93		1	.983	9.157
Rossi	Alfred	R	Knoxville		P	39	55	12	42	1	1		0	.982	1.385
Peeler	Roy	L	Knoxville		P	35	51	4	46	1	2		0	.980	1.429
Ennis	Robert	R	Knoxville		P	35	43	8	34	1	0		0	.977	1.200
Moore	Lloyd	R	Knoxville		2B	71	390	180	200	10	36		0	.974	5.352
Davis	Lewis	R	Knoxville		OF	108	291	269	13	9	4		0	.969	2.611
Oliver	Jefferson	R	Knoxville		2B	19	84	33	48	3	7		0	.964	4.263
Davis	Lewis	R	Knoxville		2B	26	134	61	67	6	9		0	.955	4.923
Moody	Joseph	R	Knoxville		OF	132	221	196	13	12	1		0	.946	1.583
Poole	James Jr.	R	Knoxville		2B	15	89	43	41	5	11		0	.944	5.600
Oliver	Jefferson	R	Knoxville		3B	31	88	34	49	5	4		0	.943	2.677
Gribble	George	R	Knoxville		SS	96	482	148	306	28	38		0	.942	4.729
Frye	Dean	R	Knoxville		SS	22	112	37	68	7	16		0	.938	4.773
Mincy	Russell	L	Charlotte	Knoxville	OF	138	258	226	16	16	1		0	.938	1.754
James	Lacy	L	Knoxville		P	31	32	6	24	2	0		0	.938	0.968
Pate	Ralph	R	Knoxville		P	31	30	8	20	2	2		0	.933	0.903
Hawkins	Fred	R	Knoxville		SS	13	68	29	33	6	4		1	.912	4.769
Marsh	Frederick	R	Knoxville		OF	38	96	86	1	9	0		0	.906	2.289
Cross	Leonard	R	Knoxville		3B	114	371	124	211	36	18		0	.903	2.939
Bankston	Thomas	R	Knoxville		P	18	19	1	16	2	1		0	.895	0.944
Peeler	Roy	L	Knoxville		OF	38	64	57	0	7	0		0	.891	1.500
Calfee	Howard F.	R	Knoxville		P	23	25	1	18	6	0		0	.760	0.826

Knoxville Individual Pitching

Last Name	First Name	Throwing Hand	Team	W	L	Pct.	ERA	G	CG	SHO	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HBP	BK	WP	WHIP	H9	BB9	SO9	SO/W	AB	SH
Peeler	Roy	L	Knoxville	10	6	.625	3.99	35	10	0	185	188	97	82	82	167	4	1	6	1.459	9.1	4.0	8.1	2.0	716	18
Calfee	Howard F.	R	Knoxville	9	11	.450	4.19	23	8	0	144	158	88	67	64	89	9	1	3	1.542	9.9	4.0	5.6	1.4	582	8
Ennis	Robert	R	Knoxville	16	9	.640	4.20	35	14	0	197	205	105	92	79	138	7	0	4	1.442	9.4	3.6	6.3	1.7	775	9
Bankston	Thomas	R	Knoxville	2	2	.500	4.24	18	1	0	51	55	26	24	21	24	2	0	1	1.490	9.7	3.7	4.2	1.1	195	4
Rossi	Alfred	R	Knoxville	10	13	.435	4.25	39	6	0	182	179	108	86	69	83	6	0	6	1.363	8.9	3.4	4.1	1.2	716	10
James	Lacy	L	Knoxville	13	11	.542	4.39	31	17	1	203	225	110	99	83	136	19	0	3	1.517	10.0	3.7	6.0	1.6	809	8
Pate	Ralph	R	Knoxville	8	12	.400	5.60	31	10	0	167	207	119	104	76	78	16	0	5	1.695	11.2	4.1	4.2	1.0	699	7

References / Resources

• 1948 The Sporting News Baseball Guide and Record Book, pages 335-341 - at archive.org
• The Sporting News at Paper of Record
• various newspapers at GenealogyBank.com
• Allen, Ronald R. Same Old Smokies: A brief history of baseball in Knoxville, Tennessee, 1865-1954, self published, 2008
• Johnson, Lloyd, and Miles Wolff. Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, Baseball America, 2007, pp. 410
• 1947 Knoxville Smokies page at bbref.com

Credit

This page was assembled and presented by Mark D. Aubrey.

Please see Copyright info.