Thomas James Hughes was a right-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. From 1900 through 1913, Hughes played for the Chicago Orphans (1900–01), Baltimore Orioles (1902), Boston Americans (1902–03), New York Highlanders (1904) and Washington Senators. He debuted on September 7, 1900, and played his final game on October 3, 1913. A native of Chicago, Hughes was nicknamed "Long Tom" for his height, a then-impressive 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m). His younger brother, Ed Hughes, also played for Chicago (NL) and Boston (AL), making them the first set of brothers to play for the Red Sox.

The 1903 World Series was the first modern World Series to be played in Major League Baseball. It matched the American League (AL) champion Boston Americans against the National League (NL) champion Pittsburgh Pirates in a best-of-nine series, with Boston prevailing five games to three, winning the last four. The first three games were played in Boston, the next four in Allegheny, and the eighth (last) game in Boston.