1892 FINAL
The tight races that the first half of the season portended in both the Empire League and the Dominion Association did not develop in the second half, as the front runners all-but lapped the field in the final months. At the halfway point, Westminster held a slim lead over Birmingham in the EL. The Peers enjoyed the best-hitting lineup in the majors, thanks in large part to Paul Rushworth (.335, 0 HR, 90 RBI), who finished second in the League batting race. In the box, William Isaacs (37-14, 2.44) recorded the most victories of any pitcher since Riley "Whiskey" Barrowcliff's 37 wins in 1886. Birmingham's offense was led by Dave Brumley (.307, 9 HR, 82 RBI), while the duo of Allan "Gummy" Durrans (24-16, 2.32 ERA) and Kilian Spong (23-16, 2.77 ERA) anchored the pitching staff. The Peers, however, suffered through a horrible 20-30 slump that started immediately after the all-star break and lasted all the way through the end of August, while Birmingham could play not much better than .500 ball during the same period. Surpassing both of them on the ladder were Liverpool. The Argonauts started the second half at a full gallop and didn't slacken their pace until they reached the finish line. Behind the formidable pitching trio of Ernie Pease (34-11, 2.25 ERA), Ben MacDonald (24-14, 2.83 ERA), and Breslin Sullivan (20-13, 3.04 ERA), the Liverpudlians went 59-19 in the second half, leaving all competitors in their wake. London briefly bobbed up to as high as second place before a spate of injuries and inconsistent hitting relegated them back into fourth place. Newcastle, behind infielders Godfrey Corderey (.313, 1 HR, 46 RBI) and Stephen Geoghegan (.263, 12 HR, 83 RBI), saw a twenty-three game improvement over their 1891 finish, but they were never a serious threat to the Argos. In September, Westminster staged a furious comeback, winning twenty-three of their final twenty-eight games, but by then Liverpool had already wrapped up their third League pennant.
Glasgow found themselves fending off a pesky challenge from Islington as the second half dawned in the Association. Possessing the best team average in the loop, the Gaelics' lineup, featuring Chris Merkley (.305, 7 HR, 98 RBI) and Calum Meikle (.300, 5 HR, 73 RBI), boasted five regulars batting over .290, while catcher Christopher Mytton (.281, 10 HR, 100 RBI), the third member of the "CM Crew," led the club in homers and RBI. The pitching chores were handled by Mackenzie Burry (34-15, 2.36 ERA) and Stephen Ogburn (28-10, 1.67 ERA). Islington's offense, helmed by Robbie Clinton (.305, 7 HR, 60 RBI), was no match for Glasgow's, but the pitching staff, with two thirty-game winners in Samuel Moncreiffe (33-16, 1.63 ERA) and Andrew "Midget" Gunton (30-19, 2.02 ERA), was far superior. The Gaelics started the second half with a 14-7 streak, while Islington could only manage a 14-10 mark. It got worse from the Owls from that point on, as the Glaswegians picked up steam in August, compiling a 21-8 record, while Islington were left spinning their wheels, playing .500 through the last two months of the season. Last year's Cup winners, Leeds, enjoyed a fine performance by William Barnsley (30-18, 2.13 ERA), but were hobbled by a series of injuries to key players Dan Grimoldby (.331, 1 HR, 67 RBI) and Flannan Shortridge (.303, 0 HR, 50 RBI), and so could not take advantage of Islington's predicament. Whatever dreams the Ironsides had of repeating as DA pennant winners ended on 6 August when Ben George (20-13, 2.10 ERA), obtained from Newcastle in the off-season, injured his back and spent the rest of the season in hospital. Stoke got another good season out of Hakon Schep (.309, 8 HR, 77 RBI), despite two trips to the DL, and the Potters again were the cream of the expansion crop. Kensington's John Solley (25-18, 2.46 ERA) looked like he was all set to establish himself as one of the BA's finest pitchers when, on 20 September, he tore a ligament in his arm that doctors say will keep him out of action through most of next season. Neither Stoke nor Kensington, however, could keep up with the blistering pace set by Glasgow, who clinched the pennant in mid-September.
1892 CUP FINALS SERIES: LIVERPOOL v. GLASGOW
In a rematch of the 1890 finals, Liverpool came back from a 2-0 deficit in the fourth inning of game one by scoring four runs, then watched as the visiting Gaelics tallied single runs in the sixth and eighth to tie the score. In the bottom of the ninth, Edmund Tomkinson (.197, 2 HR, 17 RBI) dropped a base hit in front of right fielder Justin Peart (.283, 0 HR, 15 RBI), who, in his eagerness, overran the ball, allowing Brelan Goudman (.270, 3 HR, 40 RBI) to score from second with the winning run. Game two saw the Argos score in each of the first four innings against Gaelic starter Ogburn and take a 6-1 lead into the sixth. A three-run rally by the Gaelics in the top half of that inning fell short, and the home team added two more runs to finish with an 8-4 victory. Dan Harvey (.177, 1 HR, 8 RBI) was the unlikely batting hero with two hits and two RBI for the Argonauts, and Breslin Sullivan (20-13, 3.04 ERA) picked up the win. In game three at Holyrood Field in Glasgow, Liverpool came from behind in the sixth, down 3-2, to score three runs, with the key hit a bases-loaded, two-run single off the bat of Sheridan Fysh (.252, 9 HR, 67 RBI) against Gaelic starter Burry. Glasgow made it close with a run in the bottom of the eighth, but Liverpool added two runs in the ninth to win it 7-4 for "the Human Eyeball" MacDonald. Glasgow had only one four-game losing streak all year, but they were looking at elimination in game four as they sent Ogburn to the box to face a fully rested Pease. Liverpool center fielder Gabriel Vesey (.219, 0 HR, 68 RBI) led off the game with a rare home run, and the Argos took a 2-0 lead into the third when Glasgow tied it up with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Liverpool took back the lead with a single tally in the fifth, but Glasgow responded with a run in the eighth, and the score stood tied at three after nine innings. In the top of the tenth, Vesey led off with a single and advanced to third on a Patrick Rascal (.292, 4 HR, 70 RBI) base hit. The next batter, Paul Nott (.277, 4 HR, 69 RBI), hit a 2-2 pitch into left that was just deep enough to score the swift Vesey for the inning's only run. In the bottom of the tenth, Shaun MacKillop (.291, 7 HR, 78 RBI) managed to reach first on a two-out error, but lefty reliever Thomas Knox (9-7, 1.63 ERA) came and induced Merkley to loft an easy fly ball to center for the final out as Liverpool completed only the second sweep in Cup Finals history by a score of 4-3. Pease, with a 2-0 record and a sparkling 0.96 ERA, was named the MVP.
THE MINORS
The Dudley Tigers won their second Northern Conference pennant in three years, and the Manchester minor leaguers defeated Dublin's affiliate, the West Bromwich Oaks, in a four-game series to capture the Second Tier championship.
The Birkenhead Whales of the Lambeth system won their second Britannia Conference title and first Third Tier crown when they swept the Cheltenham Flyers, Islington's AA franchise.
ALLIANCE LEADERS
Empire League
Hitting
BA: .340 Callough Rashleigh, Nottingham
HR: 12 Stephen Geoghegan, Newcastle
RBI: 90 Paul Rushworth, Westminster
R: 126 Paul Nott, Liverpool
SB: 59 Gabriel Vesey, Liverpool
Pitching
W: 37 William Isaacs, Westminster
L: 31 John Bothwick, Bradford
K: 183 Cawthra Ellwood, Dublin
ERA: 1.58 Connell Roughton, Westminster
SV: 14 Thomas Knox, Liverpool
Rashleigh, in his third year in the majors, finished in the top three in each of the triple crown categories. Vesey discovered the secret to stealing 59 bases despite a .219 batting average: he had 116 hits (including 12 triples) and 64 walks and made 99 stolen base attempts, meaning that he attempted to steal second about every other time he reached first base.
Dominion Association
Hitting
BA: .312 Michael Joicey, Leicester
HR: 11 Henry Clews, Leeds
RBI: 100 Christopher Mytton, Glasgow
R: 111 Robin Stanford, Glasgow
SB: 59 Joe Lynam, Belfast; Jay Wacher, Stoke
Pitching
W: 34 Mackenzie Burry, Glasgow
L: 34 Al Henry, Leicester
K: 203 Earl Corbett, Belfast
ERA: 1.63 Samuel "Pebbly" Moncreiffe, Islington
SV: 8 John "Silk Stockings" Langille; Callough Micklethwaite, Bristol
Joicey, at twenty-three, is one of the youngest players to win the batting crown. He spent six weeks on the sidelines with injuries and finished with 489 plate appearances, only eleven more than the minimum needed to qualify for the title. Mytton led the Association in RBI for the third time.