Thomasville fielded its first professional team, the Chair Makers, in 1937, a direct nod to the city's furniture-manufacturing economy. After stints as the Tommies and the Thomasville Dodgers, the franchise was renamed in 1948 at the suggestion of longtime player-manager Jimmy Grudzis, who worked with High Point Enterprise sports editor Bill Curry to come up with a name that would represent both High Point and Thomasville. The result, Hi-Toms, stuck.
A year later, in 1949, a seventeen-year-old third baseman named Eddie Mathews arrived at Finch Field and hit .363 with 17 home runs in just 63 games, helping the Hi-Toms win the North Carolina State League championship. Mathews went on to hit 512 career home runs and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1978.
The Hi-Toms joined the Carolina League in 1954 as a Cincinnati Reds affiliate. In 1955 they posted the best regular-season record in franchise history, only to lose the league championship to the Danville Leafs in a six-game series, Danville's third Carolina League title. The Hi-Toms switched to a Philadelphia Phillies affiliation in 1957 and 1958 before the franchise folded after that season.
Finch Field itself was built in 1935 by Thomasville Furniture Industries as a recreation ground for its employees, and team scorecards from the Hi-Toms' mid-1950s heyday featured a sly, top-hatted cartoon tomcat swinging a bat over the ballpark, an image this design borrows directly from.
Retro Baseball Revival celebrates historic baseball teams with unique apparel, honoring their legacy and bringing history to one-of-a-kind clothing with our old school retro baseball tees from defunct Minor League Baseball teams. All of our high quality apparel is designed, printed, and shipped within the USA. This collection features 100% original designs based on the history and nicknames of historic minor league teams.
Our premium lightweight shirts are the hugely popular Bella+Canvas brand 3001 tees. They are much lighter and thinner feeling than a traditional heavyweight tee. They also are more form fitting and feel more snug. These are generally 90% to 100% cotton, although please note that heather colors in this item are 52% cotton.
Size Guide: Fit is true to size or a little snug. Considering ordering one size up if you are normally between sizes.
Brand: Bella Canvas | Product ID: 3001
- Made with 100% Airlume combed and ring-spun cotton, a lightweight fabric (4.2 oz/yd² (142 g/m²)) that is easy to layer, breathable. Perfect for active and leisure wear.
- The retail fit that is perfect for casual and semi-formal settings. The crew neckline adds a classic, neat style that's perfect for accessorizing.
- Bella+Canvas manufactures all its products in the US and internationally in humane, no-sweat-shop, sustainable way and is part of the Fair Labor Association as well as Platinum WRAP certified.
- The tear-away label minimizes skin irritations.
- Fabric blends: Ash and Heather Prism colors - 99% cotton, 1% polyester; Heather and Solid Blend colors - 52% cotton, 48% polyester; Athletic Heather and Black Heather - 90% cotton, 10% polyester.
