Ricky Davis 1/2/26 Ricky Davis 1/2/26

Chattanooga Lookouts and At&T Field - Minor League Stadium on Film

Chattanooga Lookouts and AT&T Field - Kodak Tri X Film Photography by Ricky Davis of TRD Photography

I grew up in Chattanooga going to Lookouts games at Historic Engel Stadium but in 2000, the Lookouts moved to AT&T Field. I don’t have as many “nostalgic” moments at AT&T Field, simply because I wasn’t a kid anymore going to games with my dad. However I did get to take my kids to games at AT&T Field over the years. Next year, the Lookouts will be moving to a new field here in Chattanooga, so I decided to stop by and take some photos from outside AT&T Field to capture the stadium as it is today.

One of the cool experiences my kids got to have at AT&T Field was being honored on school night where lots of local schools had their kids in a parade before the game. One of my favorite experiences though was my youngest daughter and I were at an early special game on a Wednesday. I unfortunately was holding my camera taking photos of the game (photographer, go figure) when I foul ball was lined towards us. It was headed for my youngest daughter but I reached out to shield her with my left hand. Unfortunately it bounced off my hand (but luckily it didn’t hit my kiddo). Someone else grabbed the ball and she was pretty disappointed. An usher came up to her and gave her a ball which made her day. It’s moments like that that make memories, especially for kids. Baseball is one of those sports that just offer those one of a kind moments.

One of the special things about baseball is the history, and how new chapters continue to be added. The Lookouts have legends, and more are made as the years go by. Some of the Lookouts legends from my childhood may have never made it big in the majors, but they are still legends to me. One of my favorites was Scott Pose. Then you had Brian Koelling, Calvin (Pokey) Reese, and Steve Gibralter. Pokey had the longest major league career of those guys.

At AT&T field though, there have been three different Major League Teams the Lookouts have represented. The Dodgers, the Twins, and then back to the Reds. In my time at the AT&T Field, I’ve gotten to see Corey Seager, Byron Buxton, Jose Berrios, and others wear the Lookouts uniform. I haven’t gotten to see them but a couple of times since they went back to the Reds due to schedule, but the Reds prospects have been stacked.

So for several years after Covid, I just couldn’t seem to work time in to go see a game. It was strange going back and seeing how things have changed with the digital age. When I used to go, I always got my tickets at the ticket booth, but now so much has gone cashless and digital. It’s weird seeing our national past time grow and change with the times. It’s easy to look at the changes and wish for the past. But there’s still so much beauty in baseball.

There’s just something about the sound of bat hitting the ball just right. The dust from a catchers mitt after a fastball strikes out the other teams cleanup hitter. The air even smells different when it’s spring and baseball season is upon us again. I have a lot of great memories from AT&T Field, and I can’t wait to make some new ones at the new stadium. I’d love to hear some of your favorite memories from the park if you got to watch a game there.

Here’s a few more photos that I got to take that day. All were shot on Kodak Tri X Film.

Ricky Davis 11/20/25 Ricky Davis 11/20/25

Save Historic Engel Stadium in Chattanooga, TN

Historic Engel Stadium in Chattanooga, TN - Photography by Ricky Davis of TRD Photography

Historic Engel Stadium - Chattanooga, TN

As a kid one of my favorite places to go was to a Chattanooga Lookouts game at Engel Stadium. I remember my first game when I was probably around six years old. I’d just started playing little league baseball and I was on the Reds, so my parents took me to a Lookouts game, who were the Double A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. I don’t remember anything about the game other than the banging of the wooden seats to the rhythm of the organ, the sound of the beer man calling out “ice cold beer, get your ice cold beer here!”, the first time hearing Take Me Out to the Ball Game, and grabbing ice cream at Dairy Queen down the street in a mini baseball helmet.

Over the years, and many trips back, I made so many other memories. I met Chipper Jones without realizing it when he signed a baseball for me before a Southern League Championship game when he was with the Greenville Braves. I got Jason Varitek to sign a Mariners helmet for me that I still have to do this day. For those that didn’t know Jason was actually drafted by Seattle before becoming a star for the Red Sox and helping break the Curse of the Bambino. I saw Ozzie Canseco hit an inside the park home run, before leaving the stadium the back way to try to avoid signing autographs for the fans. I have so many more memories of players many may not remember as well. I remember Pokey Reese of the Reds, back when he was Calvin and have multiple autographs with his real name. Some of my favorite players were Scott Pose who got drafted by the Marlins in the Expansion Draft, Brian Koelling who once signed a card for me with a broken finger, and Steve Gibralter.

I have so many memories of visits to Engel with friends. One of my best friends as a kid and I went to see the Memphis Chicks play when prospect Phil Hiatt was with the team and he hit a homer into the street. One of the craziest experiences was when Michael Jordan played for the Birmingham Barons and I got to see him play twice that season. I’d never seen that many people at a Lookouts game before or since.

Engel Stadium is one of the oldest parks still standing in America. It was built in 1930 by Joe Engel, who was a scout for the Washington Senators and had been hired to go and buy a team to become the Senators first minor league affiliate. Engel Stadium opened it’s gates for the first time in 1930 for games and was an active stadium until 1999 when the Lookouts moved to their new stadium in Chattanooga, AT&T Park.

A lot of major league baseball teams, and touring teams made up of major league players and all-stars used to do barnstorming tours in the early half of the 20th century. During a trip that the New York Yankees made to Engel Stadium in 1931, a young female pitcher named Jackie Mitchell struck out both Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig during one of these exhibitions.

In both the 1920’s and 1940’s, Engel Stadium was also a part of the Negro Baseball Leagues. The great Satchel Paige actually played here at Andrews Field, which was the Lookouts field before Engel was built, and which was on the same site as Engel Stadium. It was noted that he threw his first professional pitch at Andrews Field before he left and joined the Birmingham Black Barons. In 1940 - 1946, the Chattanooga Choo-Choo’s played their home games at Engel Stadium. The Great Willie Mays played for the Choo-Choo’s while he was still in high school in 1945 and 1946.

Among some of the other baseball greats that have played or coached at Engel Stadium have been Henry Aaron, Harmon Killibrew, Rogers Hornsby, Ferguson Jenkins, and Kiki Cuyler. Many, many more modern stars came up having played at Engel, as well as other Negro League Players visiting the Choo-Choo’s. I remember reading a story in Cool Papa Bell’s biography with a story about an incident after visiting the Choo-Choo’s but haven’t been able to find it online.

Sadly the Stadium was given to the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga and they have proposed to demolish the stadium to build other athletic facilities on the property, even though the stadium has been designated as a historic site. I have reached out to the university to try to get access to take some photographs of the inside of the stadium, such as the scoreboard, the historic Coke sign, stadium seats, but I have yet to hear back from them in any capacity. I just want to document the stadium as thoroughly as possible.

I truly believe that landmarks such as these should be preserved. The stadium is currently in desperate need of repairs and I hope that eventually Chattanooga could turn this into a place for baseball and baseball history. Maybe a place for traveling teams to play and as well as a baseball museum of the history of America’s National Past Time in the Scenic City. It certainly has had it’s fair share of memories throughout the years.

Chattanooga Lookouts and At&T Field - Minor League Stadium on Film

Save Historic Engel Stadium in Chattanooga, TN

Historic Engel Stadium - Chattanooga, TN

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