Hall of Champions
The 1912 Reading Reds
In a fantastic conclusion to the inaugural United League season, the Reading Reds ended out on top and won the 1912 Presidents Cup.
With five games to go, four teams were within two games of each other. But Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and New York could not overtake the Reds as they swept Richmond to clinch the championship.
On defense, the team was anchored by pitcher Owen Chaney who went 18-10 with a 2.77 ERA. He also led the league with 212 strikeouts.
The offense was led by Wash Teal, who won the batting title with a .356 batting average and also led the league with a .475 on base percentage and 94 runs scored.
The 1913 Pittsburgh Keystones
Finishing the season with a 74-52 record, Pittsburgh dominated the United League in 1913. They were in first for practically the entire season and really got hot at the end of the year.
One of the great stories of the 1913 season was Denis Pendleton. Pendleton was a 38-year-old pitcher who was traded from Chicago in 1912. He made little impact in that season, but came back and used his experience to dominate United League hitting.
In 26 starts, Pendleton went 20-4, becoming the first 20-game-winner of the United League. His 2.28 ERA was bested only by his teammate Carlos Burrell.
On offense, the team was led by right fielder Ferdinand Witherspoon. He topped the league with 66 RBIs, hit for a .301 average, and hit 6 home runs.
The 1914 Reading Reds
The first Presidents Cup Series took place in 1914, a match-up between the United League Pennant winners, Reading, and the Columbia League Pennant winners, the Chicago Whales. The Whales, in their first season, put together the best record in the history of the league at the time, going 81-45.
However, the Reds, who went 71-55, played extremely well in the series. After losing game one, the team went on to win the next five games. In the sixth and deciding game, Reading came back from a one run deficit in the 8th inning by scoring five runs and went on to win 9-4.
On the mound, Owen Chaney was the anchor of the rotation. Going 21-10, he had a 1.90 ERA and struck out 252 men, the most in the UBA's three year history.
On offense, it was center fielder Wash Teal. The 35-year-old hit just .252, but hit 22 doubles, 8 triples, and 7 home runs.
The 1915 Chicago Whales
The Chicago Whales were looking for revenge in 1915. In the previous season, they won more games than any other team had in the leagues short history, but played very poorly in the series and lost to the Reading Reds.
This year, the team once again won the Columbia League pennant, but took advantage of their opponent, the Washington Grays, and won in eight contests, five games to three.
The team had a great pitching staff, but was truly led by Mississippi native Whitey Upchurch, a 29-year-old who posted his second straight 20+ win season in his second season in the league. His 22-11 record and 227 K's were the best in the Columbia League.
The only Columbia League offensive leader the Whales had was Connie Hayward, the team's third baseman. He led his league with 76 RBIs. But one of the team's best producers was second baseman Duck Bucher, who hit .277 but had a whopping 34 doubles, which was good for second best in the entire Association.