High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms
Thomasville, North Carolina was home to several minor league baseball teams from 1937–1969.
High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms | |
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Minor league affiliations | |
Previous classes |
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League | Carolina League (1968–1969) |
Previous leagues |
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Major league affiliations | |
Previous teams |
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Minor league titles | |
League titles | 5 (1938, 1942, 1949, 1951, 1968) |
Team data | |
Previous names |
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Previous parks | Finch Field |
The Thomasville Chair Makers joined the North Carolina State League in 1937 and became the Thomasville Tommies in 1939. They were an affiliate of the Cleveland Indians from 1940–1942. No team was fielded during World War II.
The Thomasville Dodgers (an affiliate of the Brooklyn Dodgers) took the field in 1945.
In 1948, the team name was changed to reflect both Thomasville and High Point, North Carolina. The new name, the High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms operated continuously through 1958, switching to the Tar Heel League in 1953 and then the Carolina League in 1954.[1]
No team existed until 1965 when the team reformed as the Thomasville Hi-Toms for two seasons in the Western Carolinas League. After one more season, they returned as a Kansas City Royals affiliate for 1968 and 1969 in the Carolina League.
Since 1999, a new version of the team has played in the Coastal Plain League as a collegiate summer baseball team.
Notable alumni
Baseball Hall of Fame alumni
- Eddie Mathews (1948) Inducted, 1978
Notable alumni
- Curt Flood (1956) 3 x MLB All-Star
- Dallas Green (1957) Manager: 1980 World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies
- Jack McKeon (1968, MGR) Manager: 2003 World Series Champion Florida Marlins
- Jim Rooker (1969)
- Al Rosen (1942) 4 x MLB All-Star; 1953 AL Most Valuable Player
- Gene Stephens (1951)
- Sammy Taylor (1950)
References
- Holaday, Chris (2016). Professional Baseball in North Carolina: An Illustrated City-by-city History, 1901-1996. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland. ISBN 978-0786425532.