For the month of June, #MarkerMonday will be exploring sports and recreational history in Georgia. Prepare for a summer of fun and leisure as we delve into the history behind sporting venues and events and famous Georgian athletes.
This week’s #MarkerMonday highlights professional baseball player, Sherrod Malone “Sherry” Smith. Born in Monticello, Georgia, in February 1891, Smith grew up playing baseball in Mansfield, Madison, Elberton, and Newborn, Georgia. At the age of 19, Smith, a southpaw or left-handed pitcher, turned pro. Starting in 1911, Smith pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates before going to play for the Brooklyn Robins (later the Brooklyn Dodgers) from 1915-1922. While playing for the Robins, he pitched fourteen innings against Babe Ruth and the Boston Red Sox in the second game of the 1916 World Series, one of the longest World Series games to date.
![](https://www.georgiahistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/June-26-Sherrod-Malone-Smith-ggbain-23014-LOC-209x300.jpg)
Bain News Service, Publisher. [Sherry Smith & Otto Miller, Brooklyn NL baseball]., 1916. Image Credit: the Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-DIG-ggbain-23014.
Top Image taken from larger image of Sherrod Malone Smith's World War I Draft Card. "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YT6-S7TP?cc=1968530&wc=9FWT-C68%3A928311501%2C928850601 : 14 May 2014), Georgia > image 3272 of 3591; citing NARA microfilm publication M1509 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
Explore the links below to learn more about Sherrod Malone “Sherry” Smith and his baseball career.
Baseball Reference: Sherry Smith Stats
World War I Draft Card for Sherrod Malone Smith
Further Reading
McNeil, William F. The Dodgers Encyclopedia. Champaign, IL: Sports Pub., 2001.
Osinski, Bill. “Ex-Mansfield mayor goes to bat for local sports star.” The Atlanta Journal, March 24, 1993. Local News (sec.)
Sexton, Betty. "Mansfield's Famous Southpaw." The Covington News, February 14, 1993. p. 6-7.