[FuzzyRussianHat]

Philadelphia and Buffalo were still tied atop the National League East Division at 89-59 in mid-September. The Bisons had a brutal 1-10 run mid-month that tanked their odds despite winning three out of four over the Phillies in the season finale. Philadelphia won a third straight division title at 97-65 while Buffalo was second at 95-67.

It was the sixth straight winning season for the Phillies and the seventh for the Bisons. Philly allowed the fewest runs in MLB at 651. Philadelphia notably had the best record in baseball after the all-star break at 45-24. Buffalo meanwhile was 33-36 after the break to blow a double-digit lead. The rest of the division was below .500 with Brooklyn a distant third at 80-82.

Indianapolis ended up as the top seed at 99-63, winning their third NL West title (1885, 88, 96). The Clowns had the best run differential at +133, one better than the Phillies. Indy led with 877 runs scored and set a new NL team record with 592 stolen bases. They also set the MLB attendance record at 916,032; an impressive accomplishment especially as Indianapolis is one of the smallest markets in the game. St. Louis faded down the stretch but still took second at 86-76, an impressive rebound from their last place 60-102 from 1895. Last year’s division winner Cincinnati was third at 84-78.



New York 3B Charlie Irwin was the NL Batter of the Month for September with a .387 average, 4 home runs, 23 RBI, and 16 runs. Boston’s Jim Devlin was Pitcher of the Month on a 4-0 record, 2.29 ERA, and 45 strikeouts in 51 innings. The last place Braves also had Rookie of the Month Cy Seymour with a 3-2 record, 3.31 ERA, and 53 Ks in 49 innings.

Seymour finished the season with 297 Ks, the third-best single-season in MLB history. Him and ERA champ Jerry Nops of Pittsburgh (2.51) are both in the Pitcher of the Year mix, but losing records for both probably sinks them. Nops was also the WARlord at 8.8. St. Louis’s Mickey Welch led in wins at 22-9. Louisville’s Bobby Wallace, Cincinnati’s Amos Rusie, and New York’s Joe Corbett are all in a competitive mix.

Buffalo’s Jimmy Ryan is the favorite for MVP after leading in triple slash (.367/.445/.644), OPS (1.089), and WAR (9.5). Indianapolis CF Bill Lange was second with 9.3 WAR and led in runs with 118. Philadelphia’s Charlie Duffee was the homer leader for the third time in his career, although his 32 dingers were the fewest-ever by a league leader.

In NL milestones, Cardinals 3B Denny Lyons and Jimmy Ryan both joined the 2000 hit club. Buffalo’s Charlie Sweeney and Brooklyn’s Mark Baldwin earned their 2000 strikeout on the mound. Charlie Duffee reached 1000 RBI. Brooklyn’s Sam Thompson got to 300 home runs. Chicago’s Perry Werden and Indianapolis’ Bobby Wheelock got to 600 stolen bases.