Thomas Upton “Tom” Black
U.S. Navy | Left Field | 1956 Melbourne Olympic Baseball Demonstration
Thomas Upton “Tom” Black, nicknamed “Tubby,” was a Mississippi-born left fielder selected for the United States Services Baseball Team that represented American military baseball during the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia.
Black graduated from Mississippi College in 1955, served in the U.S. Navy while stationed in Japan, and became part of the Far East Command baseball team that traveled to Australia for the Olympic baseball demonstration and post-Games tour.
Early Life and Baseball Background
Black was born in McCool, Mississippi, and developed as a baseball player through high school, American Legion competition, and college baseball. A contemporary 1956 Australian tour program described him as a right-handed batter and thrower who had played two years of high school baseball, four years of college baseball at Mississippi College, and American Legion baseball.
His Mississippi College connection is one of the strongest anchors in his story. Research sources identify him as a 1955 graduate, placing his college career just before his Navy service and his selection for the 1956 United States Services Baseball Team.
U.S. Navy Service and the Far East Command Team
After graduating from Mississippi College, Black served in the United States Navy and was stationed in Japan. That assignment placed him within the world of Far East military baseball, where American servicemen from different branches competed at a high level while stationed overseas.
The American team sent to Melbourne was widely described as a Far East Command All-Star team, assembled from talented military players serving in the region. Black’s role on that team was left field.
The 1956 Olympic Baseball Team
Baseball at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games was presented as a demonstration event rather than an official medal sport. On December 1, 1956, the United States defeated Australia 11-5 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in one of the most memorable baseball exhibitions of the era.
Olympic reference records place Tom Black in left field for the United States. No complete box score for the game is known to survive, so individual batting, fielding, or substitution statistics for Black cannot currently be verified.
Australian Tour
Black’s connection to the trip extends beyond the Melbourne game. A souvenir program for the December 19, 1956, United States vs. Western Australia game in Perth lists Thomas Black on the American roster and identifies him as the team’s left fielder.
The same program recorded the broader Australian tour results, including the Olympic win over Australia. This helps confirm that Black remained part of the touring squad after the Olympic demonstration game.
Selected Photographs
The following image documents Black’s place with the United States Services Baseball Team. Each image opens full-size in a new tab.
Life After Baseball
After his military service, Black returned to Mississippi and built a life in the Delta. Research sources identify him as a cotton and grain farmer who also raised cattle on the Holly Grove Plantation.
His later career included civic and business leadership in the Greenwood area. He served on boards connected to the Greenwood Country Club and Pillow Academy, held leadership roles with Farmer’s Supply Cooperative and Yazoo Valley Oil Mill, and was president of Leco Gin Company in Sidon, Mississippi, for 28 years.
Timeline
Research Sources
This page was compiled from Olympic records, contemporary Australian tour program material, and historical research on the 1956 United States Services Baseball Team.