McNair grew up in Meridian, Mississippi, and he grew up playing sandlot baseball on field in the backyard of Johnson Moss, a man who had become well-known in Meridian for his success in the cotton business. Moss also controlled organized local youth and adult teams in Meridian, and McNair played well enough that Moss got him on a youth team and then onto the local adult team, the Moss Specials. McNair then played for the Meridian team in the Cotton States League.\n', '

McNair spent much of 1929 with minor-league teams in Memphis and Knoxville. Late in the year, he was called up to the Philadelphia Athletics. The team went to the World Series that year, but McNair had been called up too late to be included in the World Series roster. Connie Mack and John Shibe arranged for McNair to serve as an usher so that he could watch his team play. McNair said that he had great difficulty directing fans to their seats, so he ultimately took off his badge and sat in an aisle to watch the games. The Athletics won that series four games to one.\n', '

In 1932, his first season as a major league regular, McNair led the American League in doubles with 47. He struggled in the infield during the early part of that season, often committing two errors in the same game. Manager Jimmy Dykes helped him to relax and to forget about errors after they happened, which led to better overall fielding. \n', '

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