Any attention the Columbia Association wanted was stolen by the one of the best multiple team races in Empire League history. With the Chicago Southsiders holding an substantial lead until the very last weeks, there was little drama to be had. But the Empire had solid 3 to 4 team race all summer.
Boston, Chicago and Brooklyn all hovered within 3 games of each other for the first month. Boston had not been a factor in the race since 1875, while the Browns and Atlantics were big spenders becoming perennial contenders. While Eastern writers were quick to declare yet another Brooklyn title, they soon would learn it was the effort of superstars, not the team factoring in the Atlantic’s domination. In his fifth start of the year, Marquis Nicolet, the pitching star of the championships, suffered a severe arm injury and missed the rest of the year. Without Nicolet’s superior skills, the Atlantics started to slip. The season was over when Rodney Stollings missed a slate of games with a bad hip. Although Stollings would return and have a dominating season, although not at the level he was accustomed, the Brooklyns sunk out of contention and into a 7th place finish.
With Brooklyn falling out, Detroit climbed into the fray. While the pitching of the Detroits was never very good all season, they did field one of the most consistent offenses of any Empire club. By mid-July they had surged into trading first with Boston, with the Browns hovering a couple games back.
At the same time, Horacio Pfahlert in Buffalo was single handedly leading the Eries into the race. In 1877 and 1878, Pfahlert had thrown 196 innings with 12 wins to show for his effort. In 1879, the Charmer won 19 and pitched 224 innings. At 35, one of the best-known players of the early years of the League had put together his best season. But the Eries could not find the complementary piece to go with such a dominant hurler and faded to 4th, and a respectable 6 games behind.
While Detroit’s pitching finally gave way, it was left to Boston and Chicago to battle for the title. It was amazing that the Browns could hang so close to the Unions. Boston scored runs at will, especially at home where they compiled a .700 winning percentage. The everyday line up sported seven .300 hitters, and one .290 hitter. It was the philosophy of the old days—single after single after single. But the defensive effort was one of the worst in either league and undermined the hurling and hitting.
Chicago was moving in a new direction: speed. Aubrey Fairie, finally a starter, and Steve Alves sparked one of the least powerful line-ups in the Empire, taking every extra base offered to them. The two ended with a combined 64 steals. With Weisenburger on his way to another batting title, the Browns would push home just enough runs to win. But try as they might, the Browns could never take the lead. They tied the Unions several times, but just could not win that extra game to put them in the lead. Like two years before, the season came down to the last game of the season.
Boston held a one game lead, and needed to beat Indianapolis, a great pitching club with even worse defense than the Unions. Alfred Moulton, the only pitcher to rival Pfahlert as an individual took to the box. The Indys played their usually sloppy game and committed three errors. Moulton would win his 19th game, and render the Browns victory over Detroit meaningless. Boston had secured their 5th title, while Chicago was developing a reputation as a club that could “contend but not win.”
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Empire League Standings
Team W L PCT GB Home Away XInn 1Run
Boston 61 39 .610 - 35-15 26-24 2-5 11-20
Chicago 60 40 .600 1.0 27-23 33-17 3-3 14- 9
Detroit 56 44 .560 5.0 28-22 28-22 4-5 18-11
Buffalo 55 45 .550 6.0 33-17 22-28 4-1 20-12
Indianapolis 53 47 .530 8.0 27-23 26-24 3-2 10-17
Philadelphia 51 49 .510 10.0 28-22 23-27 3-7 14-17
Brooklyn 49 51 .490 12.0 27-23 22-28 2-3 11-17
Cincinnati 47 53 .470 14.0 28-22 19-31 8-3 16-17
Columbus 35 65 .350 26.0 23-27 12-38 6-2 21-13
New York 33 67 .330 28.0 19-31 14-36 1-5 13-15
Columbia Association Standings
Team W L PCT GB Home Away XInn 1Run
Chicago 60 40 .600 - 23-27 37-13 3- 2 9-10
Buffalo 58 42 .580 2.0 31-19 27-23 6- 3 18-10
Cincinnati 51 49 .510 9.0 22-28 29-21 6- 4 12-15
Louisville 50 50 .500 10.0 24-26 26-24 6- 7 16-18
Providence 50 50 .500 10.0 23-27 27-23 7- 7 19-18
New York 47 53 .470 13.0 20-30 27-23 7- 4 12- 9
Baltimore 46 54 .460 14.0 23-27 23-27 3-11 20-20
Saint Louis 38 62 .380 22.0 16-34 22-28 5- 5 12-18