Rock Hill Chiefs

Rock Hill Chiefs
Rock Hill Chiefs
1947–1955; (1908, 1947–1955); Rock Hill, South Carolina ;
Minor league affiliations
Class	Class D (1908); Class B(1947–1955)
League	South Carolina League (1908); Tri-State League (1947–1955)
Major league affiliations
Team	Chicago Cubs (1950–1951); Washington Senators (1954)
Minor league titles
League titles (1)	1950;
Team data
Name	Rock Hill Catawabas (1908); Rock Hill Chiefs (1947–1955)
Ballpark	Municipal Stadium (1947–1955)

The Rock Hill Chiefs were a minor league baseball team based in Rock Hill, South Carolina, USA between 1947 and 1955. The Rock Hill "Chiefs" teams played as members of the Class D level Tri-State League, winning the 1950 league championship

The Rock Hill Chiefs played as a minor league affiliate of the Chicago Cubs (1950–1951) and Washington Senators (1954).

History

The Rock Hill Catawabas played as members of the Class D level South Carolina League in 1908. The Rock Hill Chiefs then played as members of the Class B level Tri-State League from 1947 to 1955. The Rock Hill Wrens (1963), Rock Hill Cardinals (1964–1966) and Rock Hill Indians teams (1967–1968) played as members of the Class A level Western Carolinas League.

The Rock Hill Chiefs teams were an affiliate of the Chicago Cubs in 1950 and 1951 and Washington Senators in 1954.^[1]^[2]

The Rock Hill Chiefs won the 1950 Tri-State League Championship, playing as an affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.^[3] After placing fourth in the regular season standings with a 73–69 record, 13.5 games behind the first place Knoxville Smokies, the Chiefs qualified for the playoffs. In the playoffs, Rock Hill swept Knoxville in three games. In the Finals, Rock Hill defeated the Asheville Tourists 4 games to 3 to capture the 1950 championship, playing the season under manager Dick Bouknight.^[4]^[5]^[2]

The Rock Hill Chiefs were succeeded by the Rock Hill Cardinals franchise. The Cardinals had Baseball Hall of Fame members Steve Carlton and Sparky Anderson^[6]^[7]^[8]^[9]^[2]

The Rock Hill teams folded after the 1968 season and minor league baseball has not returned to Rock Hill, South Carolina.^[10]^[7]

The ballpark

Rock Hill Chiefs teams played minor league home games at American Legion Municipal Stadium. American Legion Municipal Stadium had a capacity of 6,800 in 1949, with dimensions of 301–406–330. Municipal Stadium was demolished in 1984. The ballpark was located at the corner of York Avenue & Cherry Road, Rock Hill, South Carolina.^[11]^[12]^[13]^[14]

Timeline

Year(s)	# Yrs.	Team	Level	League	Affiliate	Ballpark
1908	1	Rock Hill Catawabas	Class D	South Carolina League	None	Unknown
1947–1949	3	Rock Hill Chiefs	Class B	Tri-State League	None	Municipal Stadium
1950–1951	2				Chicago Cubs
1952–1953	2				None
1954	1				Washington Senators
1955	1				None

Notable alumni

Jake Early (1954) MLB All-Star
Kirby Higbe (1953) 2x MLB All-Star
William D. Mullins (1954)
Dusty Rhodes (1950–1951)
Rock Hill Chiefs players

References

^ "1908 Rock Hill Catawbas Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
^ ^a ^b ^c Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 978-1932391176.
^ "1950 Rock Hill Chiefs Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
^ "1950 Rock Hill Chiefs Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
^ "1950 Tri-State League". Baseball-Reference.com.
^ "1965 Rock Hill Cardinals Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
^ ^a ^b "1965 Rock Hill Cardinals Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
^ "Cardinals boosted managing career of Sparky Anderson". November 5, 2010.
^ "1965 Western Carolinas League (WCL) minor league baseball Standings on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
^ "Register Team Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2022-07-15.
^ "Municipal Stadium (Rock Hill, SC) - SABR Encyclopedia". encyclopedia.sabr.org.
^ Wilmer, Jerry (March 6, 2011). "At the Ballpark – Winthrop Ballpark, Rock Hill, SC".
^ "Historic Resources Survey" (PDF). City of Rock Hill. Historic Resources Survey Update. Edwards- Edwards-Pitman Environmental, Inc. 2004.
^ "Municipal Stadium in Rock Hill, SC history and teams on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.

[1] "1908 Rock Hill Catawbas Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.

[encyc-2] Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (Third ed.). Baseball America. ISBN 978-1932391176.

[3] "1950 Rock Hill Chiefs Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.

[4] "1950 Rock Hill Chiefs Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.

[5] "1950 Tri-State League". Baseball-Reference.com.

[6] "1965 Rock Hill Cardinals Roster on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.

[auto-7] "1965 Rock Hill Cardinals Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.

[8] "Cardinals boosted managing career of Sparky Anderson". November 5, 2010.

[9] "1965 Western Carolinas League (WCL) minor league baseball Standings on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.

[10] "Register Team Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2022-07-15.

[11] "Municipal Stadium (Rock Hill, SC) - SABR Encyclopedia". encyclopedia.sabr.org.

[12] Wilmer, Jerry (March 6, 2011). "At the Ballpark – Winthrop Ballpark, Rock Hill, SC".

[13] "Historic Resources Survey" (PDF). City of Rock Hill. Historic Resources Survey Update. Edwards- Edwards-Pitman Environmental, Inc. 2004.

[14] "Municipal Stadium in Rock Hill, SC history and teams on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.

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