Baseball in Greenwood,MS
Professional baseball began in Greenwood in 1910 with our team's entry into the Class D Cotton States League. Led by manager Woody Thornton, Greenwood clinched the pennant over Jackson on the final day of the season.
In 1911, Greenwood fell to fifth place in the Cotton States League. Manager Thornton was the leading hitter,batting .316 and tying for the league lead with ten triples.
By 1912, the Cotton States League, was being played in two halves, with the winners of each half to play for the league championship. The Greenwood Scouts were the winner of the second-half. The Vicksburg Hill Billies, first-half winner, was not available for the playoffs. Greenwood did not field a team in 1913, and the whole Cotton States League disbanded until 1921 because of World War I.
Greenwood was included in the new Mississippi State League in 1921. The split season was again employed, with Greenwood winning the first half and Clarksdale winning the second half. In the playoffs, manager Charles Bell’s Greenwood team won the league championship over Clarksdale in five straight games. Kane, Greenwood-Meridian, was the league’s leading batter with a .355 mark. Other leading hitters for Greenwood were Tom Toland, .327, and Hugh Critz, .298.
With the addition of the Vicksburg Hillbillies and Greenville Bucks in 1922 the league grew to six clubs as the Cotton States League named restored. The Greenwood Indians won the right to play in the championship by winning the second-half of the divided season and then beat the Meridian Mets, winners of the first-half, four games in a row.
In 1923, the Laurel Lumberjacks and Hattiesburg Hubmen were added to the Cotton States League and the split season was eliminated. Attendance was bad from the start and the directors of the league voted to end the season on July the 24th. The Greenville Bucks were declared champion with the Laurel Lumberjacks tied with the Greenwood Indians for second place.
Greenwood dropped from the Cotton States League until 1934 when, in the middle of the second-half, the Shreveport team was shifted to Greenwood. By now the league was operating as the Class C, Dixie League and was divided into two leagues, the East Dixie, of which Greenwood was a member, and the West Dixie.
In 1935, the Helena Seaporters and Columbus Bengals were added to the league. Columbus was unable to finish the first-half and was replaced by Cleveland, MS. The Greenwood Chiefs were last in the first-half and next to last in the second-half. Leading batter for Greenwood was HOF member, Walter "Smokey" Alston with a .326 mark.