[FuzzyRussianHat]

The one competitive division remains the National League East entering September. Brooklyn holds the lead at 74-60, three games ahead of New York and five ahead of Philadelphia. Boston, who was five back entering the month, has dropped out of the hunt as they’re now 11 back. Indianapolis remains the NL’s best team at 80-54 and has a 10-game lead on St. Louis in the West.

Yet again, Giants 1B Dan Brouthers was NL Batter of the Month, this time with a .378 average, 37 hits, 6 home runs, 34 RBI, and 29 runs in August. Chicago’s Tim Keefe was the Pitcher of the Month with a 5-0 record, 1.99 ERA, and 36 strikeouts over 54.1 innings. The top rookie was Louisville RF Jimmy Ryan with a .333 average, 10 homers, and 18 RBI.

In bad news for the Dodgers, star 1B/SP Bob Caruthers is expected to miss most of September to a rotator cuff strain. Meanwhile, Giants SP Jocko Flynn, their first round rookie pick, suffered a torn UCL. Doctors say his best case scenario is a return in the fall of 1886.

Boston remains the top team in all of MLB at 87-47 and leads the American League East by 13 games over Philadelphia. Defending World Series champ Chicago leads the AL West by nine games over Minnesota and is the only team in the division with a winning record.

The AL’s top batter and top rookie in August was Baltimore 1B Tommy Rucker with a .374 average, 8 homers, 31 RBI, and 18 runs. Red Sox ace Charlie Ferguson was the top pitcher with a 6-0 record, 53.2 innings, 1.17 ERA, and 49 Ks.

Elsewhere in the world: On August 29, Gottlieb Daimler was granted a German patent for the Daimler Reitwagen. This is considered to be the first motorcycle.