As the official mascot of Mississippi’s newest baseball team, the Meridian Blues, Mojo has quickly become one of the most recognizable faces at Scaggs Field. Whether he’s greeting fans at the front gate, dancing on the dugout between innings, or posing for photos with young baseball fans, Mojo brings the energy every time the Blues take the field.
But around Meridian, folks will tell you he wasn’t created in an office somewhere.
He was born right here.
Legend has it that long before the first pitch was ever thrown at Scaggs Field, a curious little fox was born beside the historic train yards in downtown Meridian. As freight trains rolled through one of the busiest railroad hubs in the South, their whistles echoed across the Queen City day and night. The rumble of steel wheels on the tracks became the very first sounds Mojo ever heard.
The old railroad workers say they would often spot the young fox darting between the railcars, watching every locomotive that rolled into town. Brakemen and conductors began leaving him little snacks, and before long everyone around the railyard knew the friendly fox with the big personality.
Some folks say Mojo followed the railroad tracks into Meridian from somewhere deep in the Mississippi woods.
Others believe he was born right there beside the rails and has never called anywhere else home.
However the story goes, one thing has never been questioned.
Meridian has always been Mojo’s home.
Raised by the Railroad
Growing up around the tracks, Mojo admired the hardworking railroad crews that helped make Meridian one of the South’s greatest railroad crossroads.
The brakemen waved from passing railcars.
Engineers sounded the whistle as they rolled through downtown.
Conductors tipped their hats whenever they spotted the young fox sitting near the tracks.
Those railroad workers became Mojo’s earliest heroes, which is why the history of the old Meridian Brakemen baseball club has always held a special place in his heart. But there was something Mojo loved even more than trains.
Baseball.
Growing up in Meridian, he fell in love with the city’s rich baseball tradition. He can spend hours reminiscing about the old Meridian Millers, sharing stories of the players who once called the Queen City home and explaining why baseball has meant so much to generations of Meridian families.
Mention Buckwalter Stadium, and you’ll have his full attention.
He’ll tell you about summer nights under the lights, legendary games, unforgettable players, and the memories that made Buckwalter one of Mississippi’s most beloved baseball venues. Around Scaggs Field, fans joke that Mojo is a walking encyclopedia of Meridian baseball history. From the Millers to the Brakemen to today’s Meridian Blues, there’s hardly a story he doesn’t know.
There is, however, one baseball memory he’d rather forget.
If you really want to get on Mojo’s bad side, pull up Game 3 of the 1986 World Series. He still can’t believe Meridian native Oil Can Boyd surrendered four runs in the first inning for the Boston Red Sox. Even after all these years, Mojo insists the series could have turned out differently if that night had gone another way.
Thankfully, all it takes to put a smile back on his face is talking baseball, listening to a passing train whistle, or watching another summer night unfold at Scaggs Field as the Meridian Blues continue writing the next chapter in the city’s baseball history.
The Soundtrack of Meridian
When Mojo isn’t cheering on the Meridian Blues, you’ll often find him sitting down by the old Meridian train depot with an old blues guitar resting across his lap.
He’s no famous musician.
He just loves playing the blues.
As the sun sets over Meridian, Mojo enjoys picking out old Delta blues melodies while tapping his tail to the beat. Sometimes neighborhood kids gather around to listen, while passing trains provide the perfect rhythm in the background.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone.
Meridian is one of Mississippi’s great music cities and the hometown of legendary entertainer Jimmie Rodgers, the “Father of Country Music.” Between the city’s railroad heritage and rich musical tradition, Mojo grew up believing there was no better place to learn a few blues riffs.
To him, the whistle of a passing locomotive and the sound of a guitar have always gone hand in hand.
More Than a Mascot
Today, Mojo proudly carries Meridian’s history everywhere he goes.
He’s a fox born by the downtown train yards.
A lover of blues music and Baseball.
A fan of railroad history.
And now, the biggest cheerleader for Meridian Blues baseball.
With just eight games remaining in the regular season, Mojo will be doing everything he can to help lead the Blues toward the Mid-America League playoffs. Whether he’s dancing on the dugout, taking photos with fans, or strumming a few imaginary blues notes between innings, one thing is certain:
No one represents the spirit of Meridian quite like its favorite railroad fox.
Mojo.
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