Tupelo Wolves

The Tupelo Wolves were a minor league baseball team, based in Tupelo, Mississippi. In 1925 and 1926, the Wolves played exclusively as members of the six–team, Class D level Tri-State League, winning the league pennant in 1925.

Tupelo Wolves
Minor league affiliations
ClassClass D (1925–1926)
LeagueTri-State League (1925–1926)
Major league affiliations
TeamNone
Minor league titles
League titles (0)None
Conference titles (1)1925
Team data
NameTupelo Wolves (1925–1926)
BallparkUnknown (1925–1926)

History

Minor league baseball began in Tupelo, Mississippi with the 1925 Tupelo "Wolves." Playing as members of the newly formed Class D level Tri-State League, the Wolves won the league pennant in 1925.[1][2]

In their first season of play Tupelo ended the six–team Tri-State League regular season with a 60–39 record to place first in the regular season standings. Playing the season under manager Howard "Red" Reese, the Wolves finished 4.0 games ahead of the second place Jonesboro Buffaloes (63–43). They were followed by the Dyersburg Deers (59–46), Corinth Corinthians (57–49), Jackson Giants (40–63) and Blytheville Tigers (31–77) in the standings. In the 1925 playoffs, the Tupelo Wolves lost in the Finals to the Jonesboro Buffaloes 4 games to 2.[1][3][4][5][6][2]

The 1925 Wolves were led by Tupelo native Andy Reese, who led the Tri-State League with 102 runs scored and 144 total hits. As a multi–sport athlete at Vanderbilt University, Reese allegedly began play for the Wolves under the pseudonym Tidbit Bynum in order to protect his collegiate eligibility. However, Vanderbilt became aware of his professional play, ending his college athletic career and he continued in his professional baseball career.[7]

The Tri-State League folded before the conclusion of the 1926 season with Tupelo in last place. The Tupelo Wolves had a 22–36 record and were in sixth place, 13.0 games behind the Jonesboro Buffalos and Corinth Corinthians, when the league folded on July 6, 1926.[1] Tupelo was managed in 1926 by Omar Pressley and had an average roster age of 21.0, as Jonesboro was at 23.9.[5][8][9][10]

Tupelo was without minor league baseball until 1997. The Tupelo Tornado played in 1997 season as members of the Independent level Big South League, winning the four–team league championship with a 40–19 record.[11][12]

The ballpark

The name of the Tupelo Wolves' home ballpark in 1925 and 1926 is not directly referenced. Ballard Park was noted to have been in use in the era.[13][14][15]

Timeline
Year(s)# Yrs.TeamLevelLeague
1925–19262Tupelo WolvesClass DTri-State League

Year–by–year records
YearRecordFinishManagerPlayoffs
192560–391stRed ReeseLost in Finals
192622–366thOmar PressleyLeague folded July 6

Notable alumni

See also

Tupelo Wolves players

References
  1. Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 978-1932391176.
  2. "1925 Tupelo Wolves Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  3. "1925 Tupelo Wolves Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  4. "1925 Tri-State League (TSL) Standings on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  5. "1926 Tri-State League (TSL) Standings on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  6. "1925 Tri-State League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  7. "Andy Reese – Society for American Baseball Research".
  8. "1926 Tupelo Wolves Statistics on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  9. "1926 Tupelo Wolves Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  10. "1926 Tri-State League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  11. "Tupelo, Mississippi Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com.
  12. Elkins, Ashley. "HED:Big South foes set". Daily Journal.
  13. "Unknown in Tupelo, MS history and teams on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  14. "Ballard Park".
  15. "Umbraco 4.5.2 - no pages found".
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