Nashville Seraphs | |
---|---|
Minor league affiliations | |
Class | Class B |
League | Southern League |
Minor league titles | |
Pennants (1) | 1895 |
Team data | |
Name | Nashville Seraphs |
Colors | Navy, white |
Ballpark | Athletic Park |
President | R. L. C. White |
Manager | George Stallings |
The Nashville Seraphs, often known as the Nashvilles, were a minor league baseball team that played in the Class B Southern League in 1895. They were located in Nashville, Tennessee, and played their home games at Athletic Park, later known as Sulphur Dell. The club won the Southern League pennant in their only season, becoming the city's first minor league baseball team to win a league championship.
The Nashvilles spent the majority of the season at or near the top of the league standings and held an above-.500 winning percentage on all but Opening Day. From August 15 to the season finale on September 3, the Seraphs won 20 consecutive games, which propelled them from seven games out of first place to a tie with the Atlanta Crackers atop the standings. Both teams possessed .670 records and asserted to be the rightful pennant winners. At the league's annual winter meeting that December, nearly four months later, Nashville was declared the Southern League champion for 1895.
The team was managed by George Stallings and included other former and future major league players Frank Butler, Art Herman, Lefty Marr, Tom McCreery, Sam Moran, Bert Myers, Jim Ritz, and Mike Trost. Butler and Moran were sold to the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Pirates, respectively, during the season. Stallings and Moran, as well as George Cleve, played for the Nashville Tigers, the city's previous club, in 1894. Marr also played for the Nashville Americans, the city's first team, in 1885 and 1886.