Knoxville Smokies

Last updated
Knoxville Smokies
Knoxville Smokies logo.png Knoxville Smokies cap logo.png
Team logoCap insignia
Minor league affiliations
Class Double-A (1963–present)
Previous classes
League Southern League (1964–present)
DivisionNorth Division
Previous leagues
Major league affiliations
Team Chicago Cubs (2007–present)
Previous teams
Minor league titles
League titles (4)
  • 1974
  • 1978
  • 2004
  • 2023
Division titles (10)
  • 1974
  • 1978
  • 1984
  • 1993
  • 2004
  • 2009
  • 2010
  • 2011
  • 2022
  • 2023
First-half titles (8)
  • 1978
  • 1982
  • 1984
  • 1997
  • 1999
  • 2004
  • 2010
  • 2011
Second-half titles (11)
  • 1978
  • 1985
  • 1986
  • 1991
  • 1993
  • 1998
  • 2009
  • 2010
  • 2013
  • 2023
  • 2024
Team data
NameKnoxville Smokies (2025–present)
Previous names
  • Tennessee Smokies (2000–2024)
  • Knoxville Smokies (1993–1999)
  • Knoxville Blue Jays (1980–1992)
  • Knoxville Sox (1972–1979)
  • Knoxville Smokies (1925–1967)
  • Knoxville Pioneers (1921–1924)
ColorsRoyal blue, light blue, red, gold, white [1]
     
MascotHomer Hound [2]
Ballpark Covenant Health Park (2025–present)
Previous parks
  • Smokies Stadium (2000–2024)
  • Bill Meyer Stadium (1957–1967, 1972–1999)
  • Municipal Stadium (1954, 1956–1957)
  • Chapman Hwy. Park (1953)
  • Smithson Stadium (1931–1943, 1946–1952)
  • Caswell Park (1921–1929)
Owner(s)/
Operator(s)
Boyd Sports [3]
General managerTim Volk [3]
ManagerLance Rymel
Media MiLB.TV and WNML
Website milb.com/knoxville

The Knoxville Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Knoxville, Tennessee. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The team was based in Kodak, Tennessee, a Knoxville suburb, from 2000 to 2024 as the Tennessee Smokies at Smokies Stadium. The team will move into the new Covenant Health Park in Knoxville in 2025. [4] [5] The team's nickname refers to the Great Smoky Mountains which permeate the region; mountains in the chain are often clouded in a hazy mist that may appear as smoke rising from the forest.

Contents

History

Prior professional baseball in Knoxville

Knoxville has hosted Minor League Baseball teams since the late 19th century. The city's professional baseball history dates back to 1896 with the formation of the Knoxville Indians who played two seasons in the Southeastern League. [6] They were followed by the Knoxville Reds (1902–1905). In 1904, the Reds won the city's first professional championship in the Tennessee–Alabama League. [6] The Knoxville Appalachians began play in 1909 as members of the original Class B South Atlantic League. They dropped out of the "Sally League" that season, but continued in the Class D Southeastern League (1910) and Appalachian League (1911–1914). The Appalachians adopted the Reds moniker from the previous Knoxville team in 1912.

The club returned to the South Atlantic loop, now Class B, as the Smokies from 1925 to 1929. On July 22, 1931, the Mobile Bears franchise of the A1 Southern Association moved to Knoxville and played as the Smokies through July 5, 1944, when the club returned to Mobile. The transfer marked the end of Knoxville's membership in the Southern Association.

In 1946, the Smokies joined the Class B Tri-State League and played in it until the loop folded in 1955. But in July 1956, when the Montgomery Rebels of the Class A South Atlantic League needed a new home, they transferred to Knoxville. The Smokies' manager that season was Earl Weaver who was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996.

Double-A

The Smokies were reclassified as Double-A with the rest of the Sally League in 1963, and were charter members of the Sally's successor, the Southern League, in 1964. Apart from a four-year (1968–1971) hiatus, they have continued in the Southern loop ever since.

Knoxville returned in 1972 as the Knoxville White Sox or Knox Sox, the Chicago White Sox's Double-A club. They transferred their affiliation to the Toronto Blue Jays in 1980, a link that lasted until 1999. For the first 13 of those years, the team was officially known as the Knoxville Blue Jays, or locally referred to as simply the K-Jays. The historic Smokies moniker was reintroduced beginning in the 1993 season.

From 1954 to 1999, Knoxville baseball teams played in Bill Meyer Stadium, formerly known as Knoxville Municipal Stadium, on Neal Ridley Field. [7] The stadium was named for Knoxville native son and former Pittsburgh Pirates manager Billy Meyer. The field was named in memory of Neal Ridley, a former team owner, in 1984, following his death the previous year. [8] [9]

From 1999 to 2005, the Smokies were the Double-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. However, when the Cardinals purchased the El Paso Diablos, which had been the Arizona Diamondbacks' Double-A affiliate, the Diamondbacks retained the Smokies as their new Double-A affiliate. On September 21, 2006, the Chicago Cubs, who had previously had a Double-A affiliation with division rival West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, reached a two-year player development contract with the Smokies through the 2008 season.

Chicago Cubs (2007–present)

In December 2008, Hall of Famer and former Chicago Cubs All-Star second baseman Ryne Sandberg was named manager for the 2009 season. Sandberg led the Smokies to a second-half Southern League North Division crown and a 3–1 divisional playoff series win over the Huntsville Stars. The Smokies would eventually fall 3-games-to-1 to the Jacksonville Suns for the 2009 Southern League Championship.

In June 2013, the then-Smokies' ownership group, led by Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam, sold the team to Randy Boyd, a local Knoxville businessman. Though a devoted baseball fan, Boyd is not involved in the day-to-day management of the team, delegating those responsibilities to CEO Doug Kirchhofer and General Manager Brian Cox. [10] In 2016, speculation began that Boyd was wanting to move the Smokies back to Knoxville after he had purchased several parcels in downtown Knoxville. Boyd said he had envisioned a baseball stadium on that site, but at that time had no plans to bring the baseball team back to Knoxville until 2025, when the current stadium contract expires. [11] [12]

On July 11, 2014, The Chicago Cubs and Tennessee Smokies announced an extension to their Player Development Contract (PDC) for the maximum possible term of four years. The agreement meant the Smokies were to remain the Cubs' Double-A affiliate through the 2018 season. [13]

On October 22, 2014, the Smokies revealed new logos, colors, and uniforms that reflected their ongoing relationship with the Chicago Cubs organization. [14]

Smokies Stadium experienced its largest baseball attendance ever of 7,958 on May 13, 2017, against the Montgomery Biscuits. The Smokies lost the game 3–1, which was also Star Wars Night. [15] The previous attendance record was the 7,866 on July 24, 2015, against the Chattanooga Lookouts. The Smokies won the game 8–4, which was also Toy Story Night and Daddy-Daughter Date Night. [16]

In conjunction with Major League Baseball's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Smokies were organized into the Double-A South. [17] In 2022, the Double-A South became known as the Southern League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization. [18]

In 2021, Tennessee Smokies owner Randy Boyd announced that the team would be moving back to Knoxville in a new stadium built in the Old City neighborhood, with the plans to play at the new stadium in 2024. [19] It was announced the team would revive its former name of the Knoxville Smokies upon the move. [20] [21]

The 2022 Smokies qualified for the Southern League playoffs by virtue of having the second-best full-season record in the Northern Division behind the Rocket City Trash Pandas, who won both halves of the season. [22] Tennessee defeated Rocket City, 2–1, to win the Northern Division title and advance to the finals against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. [23]

Season-by-season results

SeasonRecordFinishManagerPlayoffs
200071–694th Rocket Wheeler —
200180–602nd Rocket Wheeler —
200269–716th Rocket Wheeler —
200372–674th Mark DeJohn Lost to Carolina Mudcats, 3–1, in semifinals
200469–716th Mark DeJohn Defeated Chattanooga Lookouts, 3–1, in semifinals
Declared co–Southern League champions with Mobile BayBears*
200564–767th Tony Perezchica —
200670–695th Bill Plummer —
200773–652nd Pat Listach Lost to Huntsville Stars, 3–2, in semifinals
200862–775th Buddy Bailey —
200971–692nd Ryne Sandberg Defeated Huntsville Stars, 3–1, in semifinals
Lost to Jacksonville Suns, 3–1, in championship
201086–531st Bill Dancy Defeated West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, 3–1, in semifinals
Lost to Jacksonville Suns, 3–1, in championship
201183–571st Brian Harper Defeated Chattanooga Lookouts, 3–0, in semifinals
Lost to Mobile BayBears, 3–1, in championship
201272–683rd Buddy Bailey —
201376–62T-1st Buddy Bailey Lost to Birmingham Barons, 3–2, in semifinals
201466–732nd Buddy Bailey —
201576–633rd Buddy Bailey —
201658–819th Mark Johnson —
201768–70T-6th Mark Johnson —
201867–71T-5th Mark Johnson —
201958–819thJimmy Gonzalez—
2020Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
202146–637th Mark Johnson —
202271–662nd Michael Ryan Defeated Rocket City Trash Pandas, 2–1, in semifinals
Lost to Pensacola Blue Wahoos, 2–1, in championship
202375–621st Michael RyanM
Kevin Graber		Defeated Chattanooga Lookouts, 2–0, in semifinals
Defeated Pensacola Blue Wahoos, 2–0, in championship
202487–501stLance RymelLost to Birmingham Barons, 2–1, in semifinals
Totals1,690–1,614——2 League titles, 6 Division titles

* Due to Hurricane Ivan, the finals series was cancelled. Tennessee and Mobile were declared co-champions.

Pre-2000 playoff results

Television and radio

All Smokies games are shown live on MiLB.TV. Some games are televised on Marquee Sports Network, which is not available in Tennessee. All games are also broadcast on 99.1 The Sports Animal and AM 990 (WNML) in Knoxville. The current voice of the Smokies is Mick Gillispie. The secondary broadcaster is Andy Brock. The pre and postgame shows are hosted by Jackson Williams and Joseph Bonanno. Bear Trax is a weekly television show hosted by Mick Gillispie and Charlie Walter about the Smokies and airs at 11pm ET on WTNZ Fox43.

Roster

Knoxville Smokies roster
PlayersCoaches/Other

Pitchers

Catchers

  •  1 Pablo Aliendo
  • 15 Casey Opitz

Infielders

Outfielders


Manager

  • 28 Lance Rymel

Coaches

  •  3 Derron Davis (bench)
  • 18 Rachel Folden (hitting)
  •    Henry Haack (assistant pitching)
  • 40 Marco Romero (assistant)
  •    Jamie Vermilyea (pitching)

60-day injured list

  • 00 Burl Carraway (full season)
  • 36 Manuel Espinoza (full season)
  • 44 Richard Gallardo
  • 29 Brody McCullough
  • 22 Aaron Perry

Injury icon 2.svg 7-day injured list
* On Chicago Cubs 40-man roster
~ Development list
# Rehab assignment
∞ Reserve list
‡ Restricted list
§ Suspended list
† Temporarily inactive list
Roster updated September 17, 2024
 Transactions
→ More rosters: MiLB  •  Southern League
→ Chicago Cubs minor league players

Notable alumni

Sam Fuld with the Smokies in 2008 Sam Fuld Tenn.jpg
Sam Fuld with the Smokies in 2008

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References

  1. ↑ "Knoxville Smokies Announce Rebrand with New Logos and Jerseys". Tennessee Smokies. Minor League baseball. November 7, 2024. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Community". Tennessee Smokies. Minor League baseball. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  3. 1 2 "Front Office". Tennessee Smokies. Minor League baseball. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  4. ↑ "Smokies baseball team delays move to Knoxville until 2025". 4 April 2022.
  5. ↑ "With a year till opening day 2025, will Knoxville's Smokies baseball stadium be ready?". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved 2024-04-19.
  6. 1 2 "Knoxville Baseball Year-By-Year History" (PDF). 2019 Tennessee Smokies Media Guide. Minor League Baseball. 2019. p. 66. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Bill Meyer Stadium through the years".
  8. ↑ Ridley/Helton Ballfield, cdnsm5-hosted.civiclive.com, Retrieved 2024-01-24
  9. ↑ "Knoxville Blue Jays". 26 September 2015.
  10. ↑ Knoxville News-Sentinel archives – June 28, 2013
  11. ↑ "Randy Boyd pays $6M for Knox Rail Salvage property". WBIR.com. 2016-09-06. Retrieved 2017-07-07.
  12. ↑ "Boyd: Smokies baseball to stay in Kodak until at least 2025". WBIR.com. 2016-10-14. Retrieved 2017-07-07.
  13. ↑ Tennessee Smokies Press Release – June 11, 2014
  14. ↑ Tennessee Smokies Press Release – October 15, 2014
  15. ↑ "The Largest Crowd in Smokies Stadium History Shows Up for Star Wars Night". Minor League Baseball. May 13, 2017. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
  16. ↑ Tennessee Smokies Press Release – July 24, 2015
  17. ↑ Mayo, Jonathan (February 12, 2021). "MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues". Major League Baseball. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Historical League Names to Return in 2022". Minor League Baseball. March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  19. ↑ Reichard, Kevin (2021-11-17). "New Knoxville ballpark receives final city approval". Ballpark Digest. Retrieved 2021-11-18.
  20. ↑ Becker, John; North, John (February 16, 2021). "'The People's Park': Randy Boyd shares vision of proposed $65M stadium project". WBIR-TV . Retrieved February 22, 2021.
  21. ↑ Wilusz, Ryan. "Why 'Knoxville' will be part of the team name when Smokies baseball moves downtown". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
  22. ↑ "Standings". Archived from the original on September 25, 2022. Retrieved September 25, 2022.
  23. ↑ Cheris, Aaron. "Trash Pandas Eliminated With 3-1 Loss". Archived from the original on September 25, 2022. Retrieved September 23, 2022.
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