Nashville Centennials

Nashville Centennials 1897 Nashville, Tennessee
Team Logo Cap Insignia
Class-level
Class C (1897)
Minor league affiliations
Central League (1897)
Major league affiliations
Unaffiliated (1897)
Name
Nashville Centennials (1897)
Ballpark
Athletic Park (1897)
Minor league titles
League titles	none

The Nashville Centennials were a minor league baseball team of the Class C Central League in 1897. They were located in Nashville, Tennessee and played home games at Athletic Park, which was opened in 1885. Preceded by the Nashville Seraphs, the Centennials were Nashville's fifth professional baseball team. The Centennials were named for the Tennessee Centennial Exposition held that year in Nashville in celebration of Tennessee's centennial as a US state (which had actually occurred a year earlier, in 1896).

Team history

The Nashville Centennials joined the Class C Central League in 1897.^[1] The new Nashville entry replaced the Nashville Seraphs, which folded after the 1895 season, as the city's representative in professional baseball. The six-team Central League also included the Cairo Egyptians, Evansville Brewers, Paducah Little Colonels, Terre Haute Hottentots, and Washington Browns. The Centennials played their home games at Athletic Park, which would later come to be known as Sulphur Dell. William Works, a former outfielder for the 1894 Nashville Tigers, was selected as the team's player-manager.

By June 2, the Centennials were in first place with a 19–12 record.^[1] Due to insufficient financial backing, the team played its final game on June 4—a 15–2 loss to Terre Haute.^[1] The entire league collapsed by mid-July.

The Centennails did not return to play in 1898. The city of Nashville was left without a professional baseball team until the Nashville Vols franchise was formed as a charter member of the Southern Association in 1901.^[2]

Season-by-season results

Nashville Centennials
Year	Record	Win %	Finish
1897*	19–13	.594	1st
Totals	19–13	.594	—

* The team suspended operations on June 4, 1897.^[1]

All-time roster

Twenty-three men are known to have played for the Centennials.^[3]

• Frank Belt
• Fred Blakely
• Edward Boland
• Fred Brott
• Callahan
• George Cleve
• Theodore Conover
• Pat Dillard
• Ford
• Will Geralds
• Percy Griffin
• Kyle
• Patrick Lynch
• Jack McCoy
• Louis Ogden
• Charlie Petty
• Stewart
• Veatch
• Charles Watkins
• Wiecke
• Williams
• Willis
• William Works

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Traughber, Bill. "Looking Back: The 1897 Nashville Centennials." May 3, 2010. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
2. ^ Traughber, Bill. "1895 Seraphs win city's first pro championship." The City Paper. Retrieved on October 7, 2008.
3. ^ "1897 Nashville Centennials Statistics." Baseball-Reference. Retrieved on May 18, 2010.