Players come and go and some are beloved by their fans for their game play and charisma while others are so highly respected by their peers for the expertise of the way they go about their play. On rare occasions however there comes a player that catches the attention of all and is widely considered the best player in the game by everyone because his feats and talent are so obvious. Dan Brouthers of the Brooklyn Grays is exactly that kind of player.
Brouthers has spent all of his ten seasons in the big market of Brooklyn and was a star from the start batting .309 in his rookie season. In 1880 in his third season Brouthers took home his first of four MVP trophies after batting .321. The most memorable year may have been 1882 when again Brouthers won the MVP with a .318 average, 89 runs, and 58 stolen bases. Even more so of course that season Brouthers led his team to their first world championship. All great players need to be winners as well.
Brouthers followed things up with another monster season and MVP award in 1883. Big Dan hit .355 and stole 68 bases while setting a record in triples for a season with 24. After missing most of 1884 with an injury Brouthers came back in 1885 and won his fourth MVP award.
It is this year however that Brouthers has really outdid himself as he reaches his prime at 29 years of age. Brouthers flirted with the .400 mark all season and came up just short at .396, still however making it the higest average ever in a regulation season. Brouthers is also setting all time records in slugging percentage (.632) and doubles (48), all while driving in 95 runs and scoring another 121.
Few players in history have to combination of obvious hitting skill with first class speed. Brouthers who is a native of Michigan has now gained larger then life fame as the game has exploded in popularity nationwide. When asked however about his acomplishments, Brouthers wastes no time with his response:
"Its all about winning the championships." Brouthers has won three of them in Brooklyn.
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CHICAGO AND BOSTON WIN PENNANTS
In a rare season where neither league came down to the wire with a pennant race. The Chicago White Stockings and Boston Americans won their divisions and lead their races almost from wire to wire. Now both teams will display their skills against eachother in the World Series.
The Americans are the defending Amercian Association champions and are keen to use their experiance of last season where they lost to Brooklin to take it all this time around. Chicago is looking for their 3rd championship as a franchise and is bringing with them an offense that scored 974 runs. George Wood is the single season record holder with 125 RBI and Otto Scho,burg became the first player in baseball history to score over 100 runs while driving in over 100.
The most anticipated part of this series is the ability of star Boston pitcher Bob Black, who is regarded by many as the best in the game, to stop the Chicago offense. Black went 31-10 this season with 419 strike outs.
Two big markets are ready to face off as most of the country stalls a little bit to keep their eye on the 18th fall classic. The Amercian Association has lost the last 5 World Series in a row.
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