[Rocketdawg2016]

1884

1884, the year of relocation. Nobody could've envisioned that Worcester would leave the state, but even in a potential move I don't think anybody expected them to move across the country. The Worcester Pirates, plagued by bad baseball and consistent turnover in the front office, made the big decision to relocate to Phoenix, Arizona for the 1884 season. League executives approved the move by a very slim margin, only allowing it to pass in a 8-5 vote. The move was met with sketicism by many fans, pondering why move all the way across the country rather than to a closer Atlantic city and switch conferences, among other things. Regardless, the newly minted Phoenix Barracudas were expected to compete, as new ownership shored the final things up with the move before the 1884 season. Outside of relocation, the 1883 offseason was mirred in more controversy down in Cuba. A civil war broke out in July of 1883, prematurely ending the CPL's season. This civil war is still actively ongoing, and CPL operations are suspended until further notice. With no baseball activity in sight, executives in the NOBB are worried about the league's future, as two years off is expected to be a huge detriment financially.

Despite all the ongoing things across the world, there was still baseball to be played in the United States. The 1884 season brought a flurry of excitement as Hartford was the favorite to defend their title from last season. The Angels proved yet again why they were the best team in baseball, finishing with 95 wins and an easy division title in the Colonial League. Even in the race for the wildcard, it was not competitive down the stretch, as Newport firmly plants their feet in July and never let go of control. That meant the Midshipmen and the Angels would meet in the playoffs again, adding yet another playoff battle to their longstanding rivalry.

The Atlantic League division race was the most intense it had been in years. FOUR teams with 80 or more wins, and between the division winner and 4th place finisher, it was decided by a mere eight games! New York's three headed monster of SS Mike Gomez, 2B Javier Mendoza and CF Jake Watkins, led the way the entire year for the Battalion. Mendoza became the first Cuban-born player in league history to hit .350 with 10+ home runs and 100 RBI's, while Watkins played himself into another possible MVP trophy on his shelf the entire year. Despite this, the talent below them in the conference was also good, and while New York won the division with 88 wins, it was still a battle between Philadelphia, Brooklyn, and Baltimore. Philadelphia got the competitive edge, drawing the conference's worst team which secured them a wildcard berth in a 3-0 series sweep. Brooklyn and Baltimore's best efforts fall short of a playof appeareance, and despite 83 and 80 wins, respectfully, they will head home for the year.



Hartford and Newport's playoff matchup was hyped up to be one of the best playoff series' we had seen in league history, but Newport fell flat on their face to start the series and never recovered. They lost Games 1 and 2 and miraculously walked it off in Game 3 before getting blown out in Game 4 to secure back to back National Championship appearances for the Hartford Angels. New York, in classic Battalion fashion, get swept out of the wildcard round in what was a rout by Philadelphia. Their average margin of victory was 6.2 runs, the highest in league history. This meant that the Angels and Watchmen would meet for the National Championship Series



The 1884 National Championship Series was quite simply a showing for Hartford to flex their elite lineup against an inferior opponent. They went up 2-0 on two great hitting performances, lost a close game in Game 3 and closed it out Game 4 with a resounding 6-3 victory. Hartford becames the first back-to-back champion since the seven straight championships won by the Manchester Eagles, and the Angels have now won three of the last four National Championships. Joel Rinke, historically a role player with the Angels, rose to the forefront and hit a scorching hot .474 with 13 hits and 6 RBI's to capture the National Championship Series MVP. A one year rental in Baltimore, Rinke really came on strong in 1884 and rewards himself with one of the best awards a player can receive.

Bobby Stoezel was back in the news, this time winning the Pitcher of the Year Award in the Colonial League. He finished 1884 32-13, posting a 1.73 ERA in 420 innings pitched. He also finished the year with 261 strikeouts, good enough for second across the conference.

Lorenzo Hernandez goes back-to-back in 1883 and 1884 and wins another Pitcher of the Year Award. Hernandez finished the year 35-13 with a 1.50 ERA that included 415 innings pitched and 246 strikeouts, all numbers that paced the entire conference. His triple crown season comes just one year removed from his PREVIOUS triple crown season in which he set all the same marks. Hernande has identified himself as a big time NOBB star and will look to cash in when his contract comes due.

Raul Robles, the mans name wwe have called a lot in the past two seasons, comes up with another MVP caliber season and wins it in 1884 in the Colonial League. Robles posted .331/.426/.475 with 80 stolen bases. Despite even missing some of the year due to injury, he came back in a huge way to help Hartford win another title. With free agency looming for him after this season, it will be quite the question to see if he stays in Hartford or looks for the money elsewhere.

Jake Watkins, a name that circulated as a possible MVP player to watch, delivers and wins his second Most Valuable Player trophy in the Atlantic League. Watkins finished .371/.423/.625 in a remarkable hitting season that also included two home runs, 10 stolen bases, 124 runs and 9.9 WAR. Watkins, just 23, has put together quite possible a hall of fame career in just a couple of seasons, and it will be exciting to see where things shake out for him down the line.



1884 in the Midwest Baseball Association was a much better season defensively than the couple years prior. Lots of teams really focused on pitching this season and it showed in some deflated offensive statistics across the board. This year was the first that each division had two teams make it. In the North, it was Akron (surprise, surprise) who clinched their 3rd straight division title, while it was Cleveland who clinched their 3rd straight wildcard berth. In the South, Louisville won their first divison title since the inaugural season, and St. Louis gets in for the second straight year, this time as a wildcard team. After three straight seasons of playoff berths, Chicago's wheels really fell off this season, as they slipped to a league worst 39-73 after just winning 63 games the year prior. The playoffs were set, with Louisville and St. Louis matching up in division rivals from the South, while Akron and Cleveland meet for the inter-state rivalry oncemore.



Louisville would go on to defeat St. Louis in 4 games, winning 3-1 and advancing to their first Championship Series since 1881. Akron, despite being favored, is downed by Cleveland in a 3-game sweep, setting up a match between the Indians and Aviators. In the Championship Series, its Cleveland, not Louisville, like many projected, who wins their first title in franchise history.

Do I even need to write out who won Pitcher of the Year in the MBA (technically, yes I do). Craig Winkleman, the Red Stockings ace known across the country, wins his 4th straight, finishing the year 20-17 with a 2.66 ERA and 332 innings pitched. Winkleman paced the MBA in strikeouts and WHIP, finishing another dominant year across the Midwest.

2B Jesse Thomason of the Akron Climbers wins 1884's Most Valuable Player Award. He bat .308/.371/.513 with seven home runs and 46 stolen bases in what many people viewed as highway robbery of the other candidate for MVP. John Kostoff of the Louisville Aviators went .355/.410/.632 with 14 home runs, 136 hits, 55 RBI's and seven stolen bases. Two great seasons, but did Kostoff deserve to win it over Thomason?

Cuban Professional League: Did not play due to ongoing conflict across the country