1935 Columbus Elite Giants

1935 Columbus Elite Giants / Franchise: Elite Giants / BR Team Page

Record: 29-24-2, Finished 3rd in Negro National League (1935 NNL)

Managed by Candy Jim Taylor

Ballpark: Wilson Park, Neil Park, Sulphur Dell

History, Comments, Contributions

The 1935 Nashville Elite Giants/Columbus Elite Giants saw the move of the franchise from Nashville (their 1929-1935 home) to Columbus (only their home for part of 1935) before they went on to Washington, DC in 1936. The team had a solid year despite all the moving, finishing third in the NNL. One caveat for the below stats is that box scores have only been found for 31 of their 55 games.

The team's strength was their moundwork - a 133 ERA+, 2nd in the league. Andy Porter (4-1, 2.34, 226 ERA+), Jim Willis (4-1, 2.89, 183 ERA+), Bob Griffith (3-3, 3.26, 162 ERA+), Henry Wright (1-1, 3.57, 148 ERA+) and Sam Thompson (3-3, 4.66, 114 ERA+) all fared well; their only other pitcher with five or more appearances was Bill Byrd (2-3, 5.66, 94 ERA+).

The offense was not as sharp; a 93 OPS+ was still good for 4th in the NNL, though. RF Zollie Wright (.364/.464/.551, 147 OPS+), CF Wild Bill Wright (.311/.378/.508, 115 OPS+) and 2B Sammy Hughes (.319/.396/.437, 103 OPS+, 31 R in 27 G) were all All-Stars, though SS Leroy Morney (.381/.444/.526, 136 OPS+, 25 R in 23 G) hit even better. LF Roy Parnell (.331/.391/.531, 123 OPS+) also contributed at the plate. Bringing things down on offense were 3B Felton Snow (.250/.284/.352, 54 OPS+), 1B Jim West (.232/.328/.450, 88 OPS+) and the catching duo of Nish Williams (.253/.311/.313, 53 OPS+) and Paul Hardy (.208/.236/.208, 10 OPS+). Hardy was the only backup to see significant time in the games for which boxes have been located.

All stats listed are per the Seamheads database 4/23/2021

Awards and Honors

• All-Stars: Robert Griffith, Sammy Hughes, Felton Snow and Wild Bill Wright