The Big Bang: A Larger Baseball Universe Starting From Nothing in 1857

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THE LIBERTY BELL CLASSIC MATCHUP IS SET
FRANKFORD RETURNS; MERION TAKES THREE-TEAM PLAYOFF TO WIN WEST PHILADELPHIA

PHILADELPHIA (Aug 18, 1874) – It took an extra two days, but the three-team playoff in the western half of Philadelphia is over and the two teams to play in the second Liberty Bell Classic are in place.

EAST PHILADELPHIA: Frankford Arsenal, in 3rd place and two games behind leaders Port Richmond to begin August, went 10-2 over their remaining schedule while Pt. Richmond was 2-10 and 2nd-place Keystone was 5-7. As a result, red-hot Frankford won the East championship by four games, with a similarly hot Spartan team finishing runner-up.

KEY PLAYER: Joseph Evans (LF) – .336, .857 OPS, 76 R, 109 H, 22 2B, 13 3B, 67 RBI, 18 BB, 157 TB, 4.0 WPA, 3.1 WAR

WEST PHILADELPHIA: The three-way playoff started with Merion at Mercantile. It was a close game for six innings, tied 1-1, but a dozen runs over the 7th & 8th made Merion clear winners and set up a showdown at Schuylkill for the pennant. This time, Merion put their opposition to the sword over the middle innings, scoring ten runs over the 4th, 5th, & 6th to win 12-5 and take the West Philadelphia pennant.

KEY PLAYER: Jonathan Atkins (P) – 20-15, 2.39 ERA, 342.0 IP, 22 CG, 1 SHO, 33 K, 1.7 K/BB, 1.24 WHIP, 6.1 WAR

THE 1874 LIBERTY BELL CLASSIC

SEEDING

• #1: Frankford at 42-28 (+47 RD)
• #2: Merion at 41-31 (+25 RD)

PLAYOFF SERIES FORMAT

• Best of five games
• 2-2-1 format
• Higher seed (FA) has Home Field Advantage

WRITERS POOL PREDICTION

• Frankford Arsenal (10-2 in August, 8-4 in 1-run games) over Merion

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CREIGHTON MAKES IT TO 30 WINS FOR 1ST TIME
LEGENDARY PITCHER GOES 10 INNINGS TO BEAT AMERICAN AND REACH HISTORIC MILESTONE

BROOKLYN (Aug. 22, 1874) - During a legendary career that began in 1860, Jim Creighton has done just about everything. On Saturday he was able to cross off one of the few things he hasn’t done: earn 30 Wins in a single season.

It took ten innings of pitching, but eventually Creighton and his Excelsior teammates beat American 7-6 at their Home of Carroll Park on Saturday afternoon, with a Marcel Bresciani sacrifice sending in the run that made more history for the mighty pitcher at the end of the season's penultimate game.

Not that Creighton didn’t help himself during the contest. He was 3/4 with the bat, scoring twice and driving in two runs. The biggest hit of the day for Excelsior came from leadoff man Charles Hormel, who hit a two-run, inside-the-park Home Run in the bottom of the 4th that put the exclamation point on a four-run Excelsior rally.

After struggling as a 19-year-old greenhorn during his first season with Excelsior, starting almost immediately in year #2 Creighton became one of the sport’s premier talents, culminating in an 1868 season in which he led the New York League in Wins (29), Innings Pitched (362.2), Complete Games (35), Strikeouts (197; NBBO record), K/9 (4.9; NBBO record), K/BB Ratio (5.6), Pitching WAR (10.3; NBBO record), On-Base % (.463), OPS (.977), & Total WAR (13.6; NBBO record) while splitting time as a Pitching & First Baseman for Excelsior in the NBBO.

As far as this year goes, Creighton is almost certain to end the season as the APBL leader in Wins, Earned Run Average, and Strikeouts among all pitchers with more than 200 innings to their name. It would be the second time he’s performed such as feat, as in 1862 his 26 Wins, 2.29 ERA, & 69 Strikeouts led all NYL pitchers.

A simple look at Jim Creighton’s career pitching statistics could make a grown man weep:

In addition, Creighton has done the following as a batter:

• .340/.394/.451, .845 OPS (145 OPS+), 814 H, 152 2B, 52 3B, 3 HR, 392 RBI, 222 BB, 36 K, 22.8 WPA, 26.3 WAR

He has made thirteen All-Star Games between the NBBO & APBL, been named Most Valuable Player of his league five times, won Pitcher of the Year once (introduced in 1869), and he’s been in his league’s Team of the Year half a dozen times.

About the only thing left for Jim Creighton to accomplish is to win a championship. If he can manage that before his retirement sometime in the next 5-10 years, Creighton will leave a resumé that no pitching peer will ever be able to touch.

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FOUNDERS’ CUP IV MATCHUP IS SET
ALLEGHANY SURVIVES ST. JOHN’S ONSLAUGHT, WILL FACE ORANGE FOR APBL TITLE

MANHATTAN & PITTSBURGH (Aug. 24, 1874) – The APBL season is over, and the matchup for the fourth edition for the Founders’ Cup is now in place.

COLONIAL: Alleghany (52-38) survived…barely. After struggling again during the season’s final week, they took the Colonial Conference by two games over St. John’s when the gap between the two had been eight just fifteen games prior. A 4-11 stretch run, the worst in the whole APBL, will have Orange confident in taking their first Founders’ Cup title.

KEY PLAYERS:

• Gerald Strong (SS) – .341, .770 OPS, 92 R, 147 H, 23 XBH, 1 HR, 55 RBI, 29 SB, +21.5 ZR, 5.1 WPA, 4.8 WAR
• Jerald Peterson (1B) – .341, .787 OPS, 79 R, 144 H, 30 XBH, 1 HR, 78 RBI, 10 BB, 13 SB, 3.9 WPA, 2.4 WAR
• Harry Thompson (C) – .340, .769 OPS, 54 R, 100 H, 19 XBH, 2 HR, 54 RBI, 3 SB, 2.88 C-ERA, 2.8 WPA, 2.0 WAR
• Elmer Seabold (P) – 25-19, 2.94 ERA, 358.0 IP, 27 CG, 1 SHO, 78 K, 1.5 K/BB, 1.33 WHIP, 4.9 WAR, 5.1 rWAR

METROPOLITAN: The entire Metropolitan conference ranged from 4-6 to 6-4 over its final ten games, but unlike the Colonial champs Orange (53-37) played .500 baseball in August (8-7). That meant they were able to fend off the challenges from 2x defending champions American (5 GB) and the late-charging Gotham team (3 GB).

KEY PLAYERS:

• Anthony Mascherino (CF) – .317, .703 OPS, 102 R, 140 H, 16 2B, 4 3B, 56 RBI, 36 SB, +18.5 ZR, 6.2 WPA, 4.1 WAR
• Everett Schreiber (C) – .357, .803 OPS, 72 R, 125 H, 23 2B, 1 3B, 75 RBI, 8 BB, 3.26 C-ERA, 5.0 WPA, 3.8 WAR
• Samuel Kessler (1B) – .323, .761 OPS, 93 R, 138 H, 30 XBH, 1 HR, 71 RBI, 14 BB, 21 SB, 4.0 WPA, 2.7 WAR
• Paul Caldwell (P) – 24-11, 3.26 ERA, 312.0 IP, 22 CG, 2 SHO, 20 K, 0.9 K/BB, 1.30 WHIP, 3.2 WAR, 2.4 rWAR

The Founders’ Cup is a best-of-seven series with the following schedule:

• Aug. 25: GAME 1 – Alleghany at Orange
• Aug. 26: GAME 2 – Alleghany at Orange
• Aug. 27: No game
• Aug. 28: GAME 3 – Orange at Alleghany
• Aug. 29: GAME 4 – Orange at Alleghany
• Aug. 30: GAME 5 – Orange at Alleghany (if necessary)
• Aug. 31: No game
• Sep. 1: GAME 6 – Alleghany at Orange (if necessary)
• Sep. 2: GAME 7 – Alleghany at Orange (if necessary)

The Writers Pool sees Orange as the favorites due to Alleghany’s late collapse:

• Orange (29-16 at home) beats Alleghany (4-11 post-ASG)
• The series will go five or six games

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THE SECOND LIBERTY BELL CLASSIC
MERION V FRANKFORD TO DETERMINE THE CHAMPIONS OF PHILADELPHIA

PHILADELPHIA (Aug. 20-23, 1873) – The inaugural Liberty Bell Classic was…well…a classic. The series between Frankford Arsenal & Mercantile B.C. went the full five games, with Mercantile conquering Frankford in the winner-take-all Game Five by the score of 12-10 and 1B Benjamin Warnock taking home Most Valuable Player honors.

Thanks to a scorching-hot finish, Frankford took West Philadelphia by four games and were back in the final series of the PCBL season looking to avenge that tough defeat. On the other hand, Merion did things the hard way: a 3-7 final ten games to lose their West Philadelphia lead before taking the three-way playoff by winning twice away from home.

Frankford, the best offensive team in the PCBL, was led by mostly the same group as last year. They had the now 22-year-old LF Jonathan Evans, the most complete player in the league. CF Francis Brown (65 RBI, 2.0 WAR) held down the middle of the lineup again. Charlie Grenier (19-17, 2.64 ERA) & Walter Denman (17-8, 2.25 ERA) remained a premier pitching duo. The noticeable difference was at the top of the lineup, where greenhorn 2B Jonathan Toppin (.311, 72 RBI, 2.7 WAR) immediately proved himself to be one of the best infielders in the league.

Merion, for all their late-season flaws, still couldn’t be taken lightly. They had star #1 Jonathan Atkins (20-15, 2.39 ERA, 6.1 WAR), impressive CF Wallace Wagner (.322, 59 RBI, 3.0 WAR), reliable RF Clifford Martin (.320, 61 RBI, 3.1 WAR), and a total of five .300 hitters in a lineup that only had one weak spot. That, and as one of the three B.C.C. teams they automatically commanded respect, or perhaps jealousy, given their impressive organization and facilities.

One team was back looking to right the previous year’s wrongs, and the other was somewhere they felt they belonged. Now it was time to see who would be crowned the second champions of baseball in Philadelphia.

GAME ONE (Frankford Park)
MBCC 9-3 FRA – Jonathan Atkins (P, MBCC) CG, 7 HA, 0 ER, 2/5, 1 R

The LBC opener was a surprise: Merion dominating with hosts Frankford offering little resistance. Unanswered runs by the visitors in the 1st, 3rd, 5th, & 6th put them ahead 7-0, and with Jonathan Atkins pitching that was easily a big enough lead to beat Frankford and go up 1-0.

GAME TWO (Frankford Park)
MBCC 21-9 FRA – William Norman (1B, MBCC) 6/7, 2B, 3 R, 3 RBI

If Game One was a surprise, then Game Two was a stunner. Merion didn’t care that Frankford scored four times in the bottom of the 1st. All that did was make their margin of victory twelve runs instead of sixteen. Norman had six hits, CF Wallace Wagner was 5/7 (5 R, 2 RBI), 2B Everton Woods was 4/7 (3 R, 3 RBI), & RF Clifford Martin was 3/7 (3 R, 3 RBI).

GAME THREE (Cheswold Lane Cricket Grounds)
FRA 9-10 MBCC in 10 – James Cray (LF, MBCC) 3/5, 2 2B, SAC BUNT, 2 R, 2 RBI, GW HIT

Given how they ended the season nobody expected a Merion sweep, and yet there it was.

Game Three was bizarre. After some early scoring saw Merion ahead 4-3 at the end of the 5th, nobody crossed the plate until a Joe McGee sacrifice in the top of the 9th tied the score 4-4 and forced extra innings. Then, the game really took off.

Frankford scored five times in the top of the 10th on a three-run Double by Burton Hyde and a pair of Singles, and with a 9-4 lead it looked to all in attendance as if it was time to get ready for Game Four. As it turned out, Merion had other plans. After an Error opened B10, a Double, a one-run Single by PH Robert Clark, a Base on Balls, a one-run Single by PH Joseph Wanser, another one-run Single by sub RF Ed Skonieczny, and a Sacrifice Fly by Clifford Martin plated a total of four runs to make the score 9-8. Then, with two men on Cray drove them both in with a Double that won the game and completed a Merion sweep of the second Liberty Bell Classic.

LIBERTY BELL CLASSIC MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
William Norman (1B, MBCC) – .562 (9/16), 1.299 OPS, 6 R, 2 2B, 6 RBI, 2 BB, 1x PotG

Game Two’s PotG took the Liberty Bell Classic MVP honors. The 23-year-old Norman was the most productive hitter on either side, with three more hits than anyone else in the LBC as well as being the only player with 6+ Runs and 6+ RBI.

LIBERTY BELL CLASSIC SUMMARY

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TWC XVIII: A FAMILIAR FIELD WITH TWO CLEAR FAVORITES

NORTHEAST U.S.A. (Aug. 20 to Sep. 3, 1873) – – The eighteenth edition of the Tucker-Wheaton Cup playoffs had a familiar feel to it. Five of the six teams in the field took part the previous year, and the other team was making their third appearance in four seasons.

The headliners were the defending champions: Utica B.B.C., who were returning with five more wins than their title-winning 1873 team earned. Their excellent 2B/3B/SS trio from last year was back, as was their outstanding outfield of Felix Brand, William Buschmann, & James Heilman, although Heilman would spend at least the 1st round bye fending off back spasms.

1872 champions Eckford were back after seeing off a fierce challenge from Atlantic in Brooklyn, and 1871 champions Quaker State were back after overcoming a similarly tough Trenton United team in the Coastal Championship. Portland punished their opponents while winning the New England Championship for the fourth straight year, and Metropolitan took New York City again thanks to a ten-game winning streak to end the season.

The only team participating that wasn’t in the playoffs last year was this year’s overall #1: Susquehanna. They entered the playoffs fresh off a 53-17 season with a +245 Run Differential and a seventeen-game chasm between themselves and 2nd-place Reading in the Inland Championship.

There were two clear favorites from among the six: Susquehanna and Portland, who both finished the season 53-17. Susquehanna had an absurd pitching duo of William Hawk (32-6, 2.00 ERA) & Earl Henry (17-8, 2.86 ERA) and a lineup that had five .300 hitters. Portland had a full half a dozen .300 hitters, the NEL’s best defense, and their own star pitching duo of James Dressman (30-9, 2.38 ERA) & Grover Wright (16-7, 2.42 ERA). The problem: both were NEL sides, so only one could make it to the cup final.

Tucker-Wheaton Cup XVIII was a field full of familiarity. At the same time, two of the Northeastern League teams were a clear cut above the rest. Would it be Portland or Susquehanna who lifted the cup? Would Utica repeat? Could Eckford take the cup for the second time in three years? Could Quaker St. overcome consecutive shocks in the League Championship Series to take their second title? Could Metropolitan take their first? It was time to find out.

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NEW YORK LEAGUE SEMIFINALS

• GAME 1: MET 13-12 ECK – Ezechiele Cornaro (1B, MET) 3/5, 2B, 3B, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB
• GAME 2: MET 7-6 ECK in 11 – William Simons (LF, MET) 3/6, 3B, 2 R, 0 RBI, SB
• GAME 3: ECK 10-5 MET – Louis Murray (LF, ECK), 3/5 (all 1B), 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 SB
• GAME 4: ECK 7-10 MET – Ezechiele Cornaro (1B, MET) 3/5 (all 1B), 1 R, 2 RBI

The opener at Eckford was back-and-forth. Tied 5-5 after the 4th, Eckford went ahead in the 5th only to see Metro go up 9-6 in the 6th. Eckford then tied it in the 7th, but four more Metro runs in the 8th made it 13-9. Eckford tried to tie it again in the 9th but after three runs a ground ball stranded a man on third, and the visitors won Game One.

Game Two was another thriller. Tied 3-3 after five, the teams traded solo runs twice over the next four innings to force extras. After trading single runs again in the 10th PH William Hurt hit a run-scoring Single, and Metro had a 2-0 series lead.

Game Three was an easy Eckford win – nine runs over the first four innings saw them ahead 9-3, and from there it was just a matter of keeping mistakes to a minimum.

Metropolitan took the series in Game Four, but it wasn’t easy. Down 5-0 after five, Eckford put up a seven-run rally in the 6th to take the lead. Metro responded with two runs in the 6th, two more in the 7th, and an insurance run in the 8th to take a three-run lead that wasn’t threatened in Eckford’s last time at bat.

NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE SEMIFINALS

• GAME 1: QS 5-12 PORT – Jonathan Ovaska (CF, PORT) 3/5 (all 1B), 2 R, 1 RBI
• GAME 2: QS 5-6 PORT – Grover Wright (P, PORT) CG, 11 HA, 3 ER, 1 K, 1/3
• GAME 3: PORT 8-7 QS – Carrick Kennedy (2B, PORT) 2/5, 2B, 1 R, 2 RBI

The first game was an easy Portland home win. Even at 1-1 after three, Quaker St. scored in the top of the 4th but Portland responded with six runs to make it a 7-2, and they were up 9-2 before the visitors could muster any response.

Game Two was closer. Quaker St. struck first with two in the 2nd, but Portland took the lead with four in the 6th before adding two more in the 8th. A valiant visiting rally in the 9th came up just short, a Fly Out stranding men on 2nd & 3rd.

And for the third straight year Portland eliminated Quaker St. A 4-3 game to the home team after six, Portland scored twice in T7 to make it 5-4 and then Quaker St. scored three times to make it a 7-5 game. However, in the top of the 8th Portland scored three more times, the key hit an Alfred Williams two-run Double, to take the lead back and complete the sweep.

NEW YORK LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

• GAME 1: MET 3-13 UTI – Frank Darcy (1B, UTI) 2/4, 2B, SAC BUNT, 2 R, 5 RBI
• GAME 2: MET 3-8 UTI – William Cook (C, UTI) 2/4 (both 1B), 2B, 1 R, 2 RBI
• GAME 3: UTI 2-3 MET – Orville Usher (2B, MET) 3/5 (all 1B), 1 R, 1 RBI, 2 DEF DP
• GAME 4: UTI 9-17 MET – Francis Smith (CF, MET) 4/6 (all 1B), 2 R, 5 RBI
• GAME 5: MET 13-9 UTI – George Brown (RF, MET) 4/6, 3B, 3 R, 2 RBI

To open the NYLCS, Utica scored five runs over the first two innings to go ahead 5-0, and that was more than enough as quality pitching by Rudy Fowler and steady defense kept Metro from threatening while Utica ran up the score.

Game Two was more of the game. Utica again scored five times over the first two innings, and although their lead was 5-1 instead of 5-0 more excellent pitching & defense saw the team through to a 2-0 lead over the New York City champs.

Utica again displayed excellent pitching & defense in Game Three, but their offense sputtered and Metro took advantage, forcing extra innings before C Harold Rowsey hit the game-winning Single in the bottom of the 10th.

Metropolitan forced Game Five with a dominant home win. The hosts scored five times over the first two innings and six more over the 4th & 5th to take an 11-5 lead, and in the bottom of the 7th they wrapped up the win with a six-run rally.

Metropolitan finished the comeback from 0-2 down at Utica. Metro was ahead 8-2 after two innings and looking like they already had tickets to the cup final punched, but a seven-run outburst by Utica over the middle innings turned it into a 9-8 game. In the top of the 8th a Single by Brown and a Double by Francis Smith drove in runs to put Metro in the lead 10-9, and from there they added three more runs in the 9th to spoil Utica’s comeback chances and become NYL champions.

NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

• GAME 1: PORT 8-5 SUS – James Dressman (P, PORT) CG, 9 HA, 1 ER, 1 K, 2/4, 2 R
• GAME 2: PORT 8-10 SUS – Walter Braden (RF, SUS) 3/4 (all 1B), 1 R, 4 RBI
• GAME 3: SUS 9-6 PORT – Walter Braden (RF, SUS) 4/6, 2 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI
• GAME 4: SUS 16-3 PORT – John Schultz (CF, SUS) 4/7 (all 1B), 4 R, 3 RBI, 2 SB

Portland took first blood in the battle of the 53-17 teams in Wilkes-Barre. The visitors opened Game One with three tallies in the top of the 1st, and from there Susquehanna was left playing a game of catch-up that they just couldn’t win as Dressman kept them at arm’s length with both ball and bat.

In Game Two it was Susquehanna who scored early – four times in B1 – to take an early lead and force the opposition to play catch up. By the final inning they had a 10-4 lead, and the gap was simply too much for Portland’s valiant four-run rally to erase. The series was tied 1-1.

Game Three in Portland was a game of twos. Susquehanna scored twice in the 1st, 5th, 7th, & 8th, while Portland scored twice in the 3rd, 6th, & 8th. A single run in the top of the 9th meant Susquehanna were deserved 9-6 winners, and Braden took PoG honors for the second time in a row with another stellar performance.

Portland would not get another crack at lifting the Tucker-Wheaton Cup. One run in T1 followed by eight more in T2 put Susquehanna ahead 9-0 early in Game Four, and from there steady pitching by William Hawk made sure there would be no scare for the visitors.

TUCKER-WHEATON CUP XVII FINAL

It was time for the final of Tucker-Wheaton Cup XVIII.

Susquehanna would enter the series as clear favorites, given that they dispatched their fellow 53-17 team, Portland, in just four games in the NEL Championship Series. Still, counting the final two weeks of the season Metropolitan was 16-3 over their previous nineteen games and thus was a serious threat.

Either way, one team would be lifting the cup for the first time.

GAME ONE (River View Field in Wilkes-Barre, Penn.)
MET 8-12 SUS – Walter Braden (RF, SUS) 3/5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI

It took some work, but Susquehanna did the expected and won the opener.

Behind 4-1 after two, Metro proceeded to score three runs in both the 3rd & 4th to take a 7-4 lead. However, that lead was short-lived as Susquehanna scored once in the 4th and then five times in the 5th to go ahead 10-7. Metro scored in the top of the 7th to make it a two-run contest, but Braden’s two-run homer in B7 put the game away for the hosts.

GAME TWO (River View Field in Wilkes-Barre, Penn.)
MET 3-19 SUS – Joseph Jurski (1B, SUS) 4/6, 3B, 1 R, 3 RBI

Susquehanna put Metropolitan under a steamroller to go up 2-0.

After four innings it looked like Metro might have a chance as the score was 5-2 to the hosts, but Susquehanna then scored twice in the 5th, six times in the 6th, and six more times in the 7th to turn that 5-2 into a 19-2 lead. Aside from Jurski, 2B Will Gillete (3/6, 4 R, 1 RBI) also had a notable performance with the bat for Susquehanna.

GAME THREE (Hamilton Square in New York City)
SUS 8-7 MET in 10 – Ellis Smith (C, SUS) 3/3, 2B, 1 R, 1 RBI

There would be no 0-2 comeback for Metropolitan like in the previous series.

Susquehanna had the early lead: 4-0 by the middle of the 2nd. Metropolitan then chipped away at it, with two runs in the 2nd followed by single runs in the 5th & 6th evening the score. In the top of the 7th Susquehanna took the lead 6-4 on an Error and a Single by Smith. Metro then scored a run in B8 that was cancelled out by the visitors in T9, and the score was 7-5 going into Metro’s final chance to extend the season.

With two out in B9, Metro RF George Brown delivered a two-run Single that tied the game 6-6 and forced extra innings. In the top of the 10th fifteen-year veteran 3B Bertrand Sargent put Susquehanna back in the lead with a one-run Single, and William Hawk, author of a historic season, shut down Metro from there.

The NBBO’s best team in 1874 had swept the Tucker Wheaton Cup final, becoming champions for the first time.

TUCKER-WHEATON CUP MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Ellis Smith (C, SUS) – 7 G, .500 (15/30), 1.133 OPS, 6 R, 4 2B, 6 RBI, 0.6 WPA, 0.4 WAR, 2/6 RTO

Ellis Smith was an unlikely choice for TWC Most Valuable Player. He was 7/12 in the cup final with three RBI, with four Susquehanna batsmen driving in more runs than him. Smith also played in just 49 games during the season, batting .313 (.677 OPS) with 31 RBI.

The Writers Pool felt that his clutch hitting, combined with his defensive work and expert handling of Susquehanna’s star pitchers, was deserving of the trophy over teammate Walter Braden, who took Player of the Game honors in three of the team’s seven outings this postseason but was ineffectual in the other four games.

TUCKER-WHEATON CUP FINAL SUMMARY

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FOUNDERS’ CUP IV: WHO WANTS TO WIN IT?

MANHATTAN & PITTSBURGH. (Aug. 25 to Sep. 1, 1874) – Founders’ Cup #4 would not be a repeat of the previous two editions. 2x defending champions American simply weren’t as great as they were last year, and finished tied for 3rd in the Metropolitan with a 48-42 record. St. John’s mounted the cavalry for a mighty late-season charge, but because they were stuck around .500 for much of the season the Providence men came up two games short in the Colonial.

This was a Founders’ Cup that casual fans weren’t sure what to make of. Alleghany was in it even though they were an APBL-worst 4-11 in August, and Orange was only 8-7 after the All-Star Game. If the Founders’ Cup field was based on late-season record and star power there would have been multiple teams in each conference that would have been more worthy contestants than these two.

Still, Orange was entering the series with the APBL’s #1 record and an impressive mix of legends and younger stars. They had 15x All-Stars Samuel Kessler & Anthony Mascherino, 9x All-Star Taliesin Buckley, 7x All-Star Everett Schreiber, 4x All-Star Will Chaffin, the productive Charles Whitehead, repeat All-Star P Paul Caldwell, and the recently returned William Valentine, who had All-Star-level production but missed six weeks of the season due to a broken hand.

Alleghany, for all their late struggles, still had to be respected. Their pitching duo of Raynard Cordell & Elmer Seabold both finished with 23-25 Wins and ERA’s of around 3.00. Gerald Strong hit .341 while having a Zone Rating of +21 at SS and an APBL-best Batsman War of 4.8. Jerald Peterson, a 9x All-Star in the NBBO, hit .341 in with 78 RBI in his first APBL season at the age of 39. Harry Thompson was the best C in the Colonial Conference all season. Most importantly, their fielders led the APBL in all four factors – Errors, Fielding %, Efficiency, & Zone Rating – and it wasn’t close.

For Orange, this was a chance to reverse their disappointing five-game loss in the inaugural Founders Cup’ and take their first title since 1868, when all the APBL teams were still in the NBBO. For Alleghany, this was their first chance at a title since winning the 1869 Tucker-Wheaton Cup.

In a battle of teams who were mediocre or worse during the stretch run, who would win? Would it simply be a matter of who made the fewest mistakes? Or would one team wake up from its slumber?

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GAME ONE (Upper Manhattan Grounds)
ALL 25-3 ORA – Ashley Hearns (RF, ALL) 4/6, 2 2B, 4 R, 4 RBI, SB

It was Alleghany that woke up from their 4-11 slumber, and how!

The visitors started the game off right with three runs in T1, and they ended up ahead 10-0 before Orange could put any runs on the board. Alleghany raised the lead to 15-1 by the end of the 8th but apparently they felt that wasn’t enough, as they then added ten runs in the 9th to turn what was an amazing performance into an otherworldly one.

1B Jerald Peterson led Alleghany with five base hits (5/7, 2B, 3 R, 1 RBI), while Hearns, CF Solomon Springs, & C Harry Thompson had four each. In addition, 2B Burton Ellerby finished with five RBI.

GAME TWO (Upper Manhattan Grounds)
ALL 7-6 ORA – Gerald Strong (SS, ALL) 3/5 (all 1B), 1 R, 1 RBI, SB, GW HIT

Game Two was much closer than the opener, although it wasn’t a back-and-forth contest.

Alleghany again started off strong, with five runs over the first three innings and a 5-0 lead that stood until the bottom of the 6th. That was when Orange pulled off a six-run rally that was punctuated by the first Grand Slam in Founders’ Cup history, a blast over the Right Field fence by Taliesin Buckley.

That appeared to send Alleghany reeling, but after a scoreless 7th the visitors and plated two runs in the 8th on Singles by Strong & PH Charles Davis to take a 7-6 lead that stood the rest of the way. Alleghany had wiped out the Orange HFA and taken a 2-0 series lead.

GAME THREE (Recreation Park in Pittsburgh)
ORA 9-8 ALL – Charles Whitehead (2B, ORA) 4/4, 3B, 3 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 DEF DP

All of the excitement came early in Game Three.

All seventeen runs in the contest were scored during the first six innings. After a 2-1 opening inning Alleghany scored five times in the 2nd and once in both the 3rd & 4th to take an 8-2 lead. The Orange response began in earnest during the 5th, when they scored four runs on a series of singles & sacrifices to cut the deficit to two. In the top of the 6th, a Whitehead Single and a two-run Double by Everett Schreiber put Orange in the lead 9-8, and from there stellar pitching & defense put Orange in the win column.

GAME FOUR (Recreation Park in Pittsburgh)
ORA 6-3 ALL – Everett Schreiber (C, ORA) 3/4, 3B, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1/3 RTO

It was four away wins in four games at the end of nine innings in Pittsburgh.

Orange scored first with a pair of runs in the 2nd, and they extended the lead to 4-0 with two more tuns in the 5th. Alleghany responded with two runs of their own in the bottom of the 5th and one more in the 6th to make it a 4-3 game, but run-scoring Singles by Charles Whitehead & Samuel Kessler in the top of the 7th gave Orange a 6-3 lead and sealed the win.

GAME FIVE (Recreation Park in Pittsburgh)
ORA 4-1 ALL – George Sturgis (P, ORA) CG, 8 HA, 1 ER, 1 K, 1/4

And it was five away wins in five games…

This game was all pitching & defense. The two teams combined for just five fielding errors (APBL avg: 13.6 total E/G) and neither pitcher allowed a Base on Balls.

The result was decided in the top of the 9th. With the game tied 1-1, Orange came to bat and scored runs on a Single by RF William Valentine, a Sacrifice Fly by Taliesin Buckley, and a Single by Isaac Holm to go ahead 4-1. Sturgis was fine in the bottom of the 9th, and Orange had an unlikely 3-2 series lead.

GAME SIX (Upper Manhattan Grounds)
ALL 1-8 ORA – Taliesin Buckley (CF, ORA) 2/4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI

Orange completed the delayed sweep at home.

The key inning in Game Six was the 5th. Orange came to bat ahead 1-0 and scored six runs, with the first three scoring on Singles by Charles Whitehead, Samuel Kessler, & Will Chaffin before Buckley put an exclamation point at the end of the rally with a three-run, inside-the-park Home Run that put Orange ahead 7-0. George Sturgis’ pitching was excellent once again, and that meant Orange had nothing to worry about over the final four innings.

Orange B.B.C. had taken their first Founders’ Cup title, and their third overall.

FOUNDERS’ CUP MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Charles Whitehead (2B, ORA) – .444 (12/28), 1.020 OPS, 7 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 1 SB

Taliesin Buckley’s two Home Runs and eight Runs Batted In had a pretty good argument for Founders’ Cup MVP, but Whitehead hit 150 points higher than him, and Whitehead was at his best in the Game Three that marked the start of Orange’s reversal of their two home losses to open the series.

It was the end of a fine season for Whitehead. Signed by Orange ahead of 1872 to notable fanfare, during 1874 “Rowdy Chuck” made his first All-Star Game appearance and now had taken MVP honors in the season’s biggest series.

FOUNDERS' CUP SUMMARY

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1874 PHILADELPHIA CITY BASEBALL LEAGUE REVIEW

1874 PCBL STANDINGS





PER-TEAM STATISTICS

1874: 7.9 R/G, .276, .639 OPS, 804 H, 91 2B, 38 3B, 9 HR, 49 SB, 2.83 ERA, 69 BB, 60 K, 8.3 E/G, .815 FLD%
1873: 8.1 R/G, .283, .649 OPS, 825 H, 98 2B, 36 3B, 4 HR, 69 SB, 2.87 ERA, 67 BB, 58 K, 8.4 E/G, .813 FLD%


LIBERTY BELL CLASSIC: Merion B.C.C. v Frankford Arsenal

GAME 1: MBCC 9-3 FRA – Jonathan Atkins (P, MBCC) CG, 7 HA, 0 ER, 2/5, 1 R
GAME 2: MBCC 21-9 FRA – William Norman (1B, MBCC) 6/7, 2B, 3 R, 3 RBI
GAME 3: FRA 9-10 MBCC in 10 – James Cray (LF, MBCC) 3/5, 2 2B, SAC BUNT, 2 R, 2 RBI, GW HIT

Merion B.C.C. wins series 3-0

LIBERTY BELL CLASSIC MVP: William Norman (1B, Merion)

PHILADELPHIA CITY BASEBALL LEAGUE AWARD WINNERS

BATSMAN OF THE YEAR: Joseph Evans (LF/CF, age 22) – Frankford Arsenal; 2nd career BotY

• .336/.372/.485, .857 OPS, 76 R, 109 H, 22 2B, 13 3B, 0 HR, 67 RBI, 18 BB, 8 SB, 157 TB, 4.0 WPA, 3.1 WAR
• Led PCBL in SLG, OPS, 2B, BB, & TB; 2nd consecutive BotY; Turned 22 on July 30
• Herman Stanley (2B, QV) 2nd – .350, .835 OPS, 79 R, 115 H, 25 XBH, 1 HR, 61 RBI, 9 BB, 7 SB, 3.1 WPA, 2.9 WAR
• Franklin Decker (LF, YORK) – PCBL Greenhorn of the Year

NOTE: If Decker hadn’t played for the worst team in the PCBL – Yorktown was 26-44 – he quite likely would have won either BotY or Most Valuable Player. As it was, he had to “settle” for Greenhorn of the Year.


PITCHER OF THE YEAR: Casper Shultis (age 36) - Mercantile B.C.

• 24-17, 2.02 ERA, 355.2 IP, 29 CG, 0 SHO, 35 K, 3.2 K/BB, 0.3 BB/9, 1.22 WHIP, 6.2 WAR, 7.8 rWAR
• Led PCBL in W, IP, CG, K/BB, BB/9, & rWAR; Had sub-2.00 ERA in May, July, & August
• Arthur Lipscomb (PBCC) 2nd – 22-16, 2.44 ERA, 350.2 IP, 27 CG, 3 SV, 29 K, 1.1 K/BB, 1.21 WHIP, 5.0 WAR, 5.9 rWAR
• John Shaw (QV) – 18-20, 1.95 ERA, 328.1 IP, 22 CG, 2 SHO, 41 K, 2.3 K/BB, 1.23 WHIP, 7.1 WAR, 6.2 rWAR


MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Clifford Martin (RF, age 24) – Merion B.C.C.

• .320/.355/.421, .776 OPS, 60 R, 108 H, 11 2B, 10 3B, 1 HR, 61 RBI, 17 BB, 11 SB, 142 TB, 3.2 WPA, 3.2 WAR
• Top five in five offensive categories; Won Golden Glove at RF; Led PCBL champions in WAR
• Jonathan Toppin (2B, FRA) 2nd – .311, .755 OPS, 80 R, 109 H, 29 XBH, 2 HR, 72 RBI, 7 BB, 20 SB, 5.1 WPA, 2.7 WAR
• Frederick Pike (2B, PBCC) 3rd – .311, .756 OPS, 64 R, 105 H, 18 2B, 8 3B, 59 RBI, 10 BB, 27 SB, 3.7 WPA, 3.2 WAR


GREENHORN OF THE YEAR: Franklin Decker (LF, age 27) - Yorktown B.C.

• .330/.347/.448, .795 OPS, 71 R, 107 H, 14 2B, 12 3B, 0 HR, 76 RBI, 7 BB, 9 SB, 140 TB, 5.2 WPA, 3.3 WAR
• #1 in both WPA & WAR; Tied for league lead in RBI; Top five in SLG, OPS, & 3B
• Jonathan Toppin (2B, FRA) – PCBL Most Valuable Player runner-up
• Arthur Hall (RF, SoB) 3rd – .310, .765 OPS, 82 R, 103 H, 14 2B, 12 3B, 73 RBI, 11 BB, 22 SB, 4.2 WPA, 2.1 WAR


PCBL GOLDEN GLOVES

• P: Charlie Greiner (FRA) – 21 PO, 43 AST, 2 DP, 19 E, 1.85 RNG, +2.9 ZR, 1.064 EFF
• C: Charles Kelly (IND) – 42.9 RTO%, 3.27 C-ERA, 3 PB, 14 E, +3.5 ZR, 1.176 EFF
• 1B: William Norman (MBCC) – 665 PO, 58 AST, 27 DP, 44 E, 10.32 RNG, +6.1 ZR, 1.076 EFF
• 2B: J.H. George (MERC) – 281 PO, 237 AST, 15 DP, 97 E, 7.36 RNG, +15.7 ZR, 1.106 EFF
• 3B: Charles Hunt (PBCC/2nd) – 113 PO, 137 AST, 6 DP, 82 E, 3.63 RNG, +12.1 ZR, 1.140 EFF
• SS: Moody Steiger (OVER/2nd) – 193 PO, 225 AST, 17 DP, 99 E, 6.08 RNG, +33.2 ZR, 1.281 EFF
• LF: Jacob Jensen (SPA) – 119 PO, 3 AST, 40 E, 1.82 RNG, +1.1 ARM, +5.5 ZR, 1.089 EFF
• CF: Wild Bill Jackson (SCH/2nd) – 211 PO, 12 AST, 49 E, 3.19 RNG, +3.3 ARM, +11.2 ZR, 1.113 EFF
• RF: Clifford Martin (MBCC) – 135 PO, 5 AST, 38 E, 2.06 RNG, +1.9 ARM, +6.4 ZR, 1.090 EFF


PCBL TEAM OF THE YEAR

P: Casper Shultis (MERC) - 24-17, 2.02 ERA, 355.2 IP, 29 CG, 0 SHO, 35 K, 3.2 K/BB, 1.22 WHIP, 6.2 WAR, 7.8 rWAR
C: Harrison Hearst (PBCC) - .345, .799 OPS, 64 R, 97 H, 12 2B, 3 3B, 0 HR, 54 RBI, 12 BB, 2.42 C-ERA, 3.5 WPA, 2.8 WAR
1B: Jonathan Bagwell (GER) - .303, .716 OPS, 58 R, 96 H, 11 2B, 5 3B, 1 HR, 65 RBI, 12 BB, 120 TB, 2.4 WPA, 1.8 WAR
2B: Herman Stanley (QV) - .350, .835 OPS, 79 R, 115 H, 14 2B, 10 3B, 1 HR, 61 RBI, 7 SB, +13.8 ZR, 3.1 WPA, 2.9 WAR
3B: Ben Roberts (MBCC) - .289, .707 OPS, 54 R, 90 H, 15 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 49 RBI, 12 BB, 116 TB, 4.6 WPA, 2.2 WAR
SS: Edward Grady (MIN) - .314, .705 OPS, 67 R, 87 H, 11 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 61 RBI, 9 BB, 1 SB, 4.0 WPA, 1.5 WAR
OF: Joseph Evans (FRA/2nd) - .336, .857 OPS, 76 R, 109 H, 22 2B, 13 3B, 0 H, 67 RBI, 18 BB, 157 TB, 4.0 WPA, 3.1 WAR
OF: Clifford Martin (MBCC) - .320, .776 OPS, 60 R, 108 H, 11 2B, 10 3B, 1 HR, 61 RBI, 17 BB, 11 SB, 3.2 WPA, 3.2 WAR
OF: Franklin Decker (YORK) - .330, .795 OPS, 71 R, 107 H, 14 2B, 12 3B, 0 HR, 76 RBI, 7 BB, 145 TB, 5.2 WPA, 3.3 WAR

MISCELLANEOUS

PCBL STATISTICAL LEADERS

• Average: .350 by Herman Stanley (2B, Queen Village)
• On-Base: .390 by Harrison Hearst (C, P.B.C.C.)
• Slugging: .485 by Joseph Evans (LF, Frankford)
• OPS: .857 by Joseph Evans
• Hits: 115 by Herman Stanley
• Extra-Base Hits: 35 by Joseph Evans
• Doubles: 22 by Joseph Evans
• Triples: 15 by Francis Brown (CF, Frankford)
• Home Runs: 4 by Isaac James (CF, Keystone)
• Runs Batted In: 76 by Franklin Decker (LF, Yorktown) & Joseph Sizemore (RF, Spartan)
• Runs: 92 by Arlington Guest (2B, Yorktown)
• Stolen Bases: 42 by Joseph King (RF, Independent)
• Total Bases: 157 by Joseph Evans
• Bases on Balls: 18 by three different batsmen
• Zone Rating: +33.2 by Moody Steiger (SS, Overbrook)
• Win Prob. Added: 5.17 by Franklin Decker
• Batsman WAR: 3.3 by Franklin Decker

• Wins: 24 by Acie Collins (Pt. Richmond) & Casper Shultis (Mercantile)
• Losses: 27 by Jameson Jenkins (Penn)
• ERA (175+ IP): 1.95 by John Shaw (Queen Village)
• Innings: 355.2 by Casper Shultis
• Complete Games: 29 by Casper Shultis
• Shutouts: 2 by Walter Denman (Frankford) & John Shaw
• BB/9 (175+ IP): 0.3 by Casper Shultis
• Strikeouts: 42 by Charlie Greiner (Frankford)
• K/9 (175+ IP): 1.2 by Charlie Greiner
• K/BB (175+ IP): 3.2 by Casper Shultis
• WHIP (175+ IP): 1.14 by Albert Cave (Merion)
• Pitcher WAR: 7.1 by John Shaw
• Pitcher rWAR: 7.8 by Casper Shultis

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1874 NATIONAL BASE BALL ORGANIZATION REVIEW

1874 NBBO STANDINGS








PER-TEAM STATISTICS

1874 NYL: 7.9 R/G, .288, .664 OPS, 817 H, 98 2B, 38 3B, 7 HR, 75 SB, 3.22 ERA, 61 BB, 49 K, 7.6 E/G, .829 FLD%
1874 NEL: 7.7 R/G, .293, .670 OPS, 827 H, 98 2B, 37 3B, 5 HR, 76 SB, 3.23 ERA, 62 BB, 54 K, 7.4 E/G, .833 FLD%

1873 NYL: 8.0 R/G, .287, .661 OPS, 813 H, 95 2B, 37 3B, 6 HR, 101 SB, 3.24 ERA, 66 BB, 49 K, 7.7 E/G, .828 FLD%
1873 NEL: 8.0 R/G, .294, .673 OPS, 834 H, 98 2B, 37 3B, 5 HR, 109 SB, 3.44 ERA, 62 BB, 53 K, 7.5 E/G, .829 FLD%


TUCKER-WHEATON CUP XVIII

NYL SEMIFINALS: Metropolitan (#3) beats Eckford (#2) 3-1
NEL SEMIFINALS: Portland (#2) beats Quaker State (#3) 3-0

NYL CHAMPIONSHIP: Metropolitan (#3) beats Utica (#1) 3-2
NEL CHAMPIONSHIP: Susquehanna (#1) beats Portland (#2) 3-1

TWC FINAL GAME 1: MET 8-12 SUS – Walter Braden (RF, SUS) 3/5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI
TWC FINAL GAME 2: MET 3-19 SUS – Joseph Jurski (1B, SUS) 4/6, 3B, 1 R, 3 RBI
TWC FINAL GAME 3: SUS 8-7 MET in 10 – Ellis Smith (C, SUS) 3/3, 2B, 1 R, 1 RBI

Susquehanna (1st title) wins series 3-0

TWC FINAL MVP: Ellis Smith (C, Susquehanna)

NEW YORK LEAGUE AWARD WINNERS

BATSMAN OF THE YEAR: James Heilman (RF, age 44) – Utica B.B.C.; 1st career BotY

• .357/.421/.463, .884 OPS, 71 R, 105 H, 14 2B, 7 3B, 1 HR, 79 RBI, 39 BB, 18 SB, 136 TB, 4.1 WPA, 3.1 WAR
• Led NYL in OBP, OPS, & BB; 2nd in RBI; Led league in BB for 5th straight season
• Chester Alexander (2B, SYR) 2nd – .377, .860 OPS, 82 R, 125 H, 22 XBH, 2 HR, 63 RBI, 10 BB, 3 SB, 5.9 WPA, 2.1 WAR
• Henry Nabors (SS, VIC) 3rd – .358, .820 OPS, 67 R, 119 H, 21 XBH, 2 HR, 76 RBI, 9 BB, 6 SB, 3.1 WPA, 3.1 WAR


PITCHER OF THE YEAR: Olaf Sorensen (age 33) – Atlantic B.B.C.; 1st career PotY

• 26-15, 2.47 ERA, 350.0 IP, 30 CG, 0 SHO, 28 K, 0.7 K/9, 1.4 K/BB, 1.15 WHIP, 5.1 WAR, 8.8 rWAR
• Led NYL in CG & rWAR; Top five in W, ERA, IP, SHO, WHIP, HA/9, & QS
• Edward Koch (UNI) 2nd – 26-15, 2.61 ERA, 347.2 IP, 25 CG, 1 SHO, 26 K, 1.0 K/BB, 1.25 WHIP, 5.3 WAR, 6.9 rWAR
• Augustus Cook (ECK) 3rd – 29-12, 2-54 ERA, 350.1 IP, 24 CG, 1 SHO, 23 K, 0.6 K/BB, 1.17 WHIP, 3.5 WAR, 4.8 rWAR


MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Huibrecht van der Laan (2B, age 35) – Eckford of Greenpoint; 1st career MVP

• .339/.367/.471, .839 OPS, 68 R, 95 H, 15 2B, 8 3B, 2 HR, 57 RBI, 18 SB, 132 TB, +19.1 ZR, 3.8 WPA, 4.0 WAR
• Led NYL in Batsman WAR; 2nd in Zone Rating; Career highs in AVG, OBP, SLG, OPS, R, & ZR
• Francis Smith (CF, MET) 2nd – .328, .774 OPS, 75 R, 116 H, 21 2B, 8 3B, 71 RBI, 8 BB, 11 SB, 3.0 WPA, 3.0 WAR
• Will Buschmann (CF, UTI) 3rd – .326, .778 OPS, 99 R, 112 H, 23 XBH, 1 HR, 55 RBI, 16 BB, 28 SB, 4.4 WPA, 2.7 WAR


GREENHORN OF THE YEAR: Remi Scrovegni (3B, age 28) – Frontier B.B.C.

• .315/.335/.389, .724 OPS, 75 R, 106 H, 14 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 61 RBI, 11 BB, 8 SB, 131 TB, 3.4 WPA, 1.6 WAR
• Had 49-game Hitting Streak that ended Aug. 5 (2nd-longest in NBBO history)
• Edward Pelham (P, FRO) 2nd – 18-15, 3.38 ERA, 300.2 IP, 15 CG, 1 SHO, 21 K, 1.9 K/BB, 1.41 WHIP, 5.5 WAR, 2.8 rWAR
• Fritz Schuster (P, VIC) 3rd – 17-20, 2.66 ERA, 328.2 IP, 22 CG, 0 SHO, 22 K, 1.8 K/BB, 1.17 WHIP, 4.8 WAR, 4.3 rWAR


NYL GOLDEN GLOVES

• P: Richard Majors (MET/1st) – 28 PO, 39 AST, 0 DP, 15 E, 1.83 RNG, +7.2 ZR, 1.224 EFF
• C: Joseph Kryszak (MER/2nd) – 44.7 RTO%, 3.01 C-ERA, 1 PB, 10 E, +3.6 ZR, .877 EFF
• 1B: Thomas Cox (BING/1st) – 405 PO, 53 AST, 12 DP, 11 E, 10.98 RNG, +11.1 ZR, 1.204 EFF
• 2B: Huibrecht v. d. Laan (ECK/2nd) – 270 PO, 177 AST, 17 DP, 46 E, 7.39 RNG, +19.1 ZR, 1.170 EFF
• 3B: Hoyt Woodford (HAR/1st) – 112 PO, 152 AST, 2 DP, 65 E, 3.87 RNG, +15.2 ZR, 1.189 EFF
• SS: William Holcomb (BED/1st) – 186 PO, 250 AST, 13 DP, 95 E, 6.29 RNG, +21.0 ZR, 1.176 EFF
• LF: William Simons (MET/1st) – 129 PO, 0 AST, 18 E, 1.90 RNG, +6.1 ARM, +5.2 ZR, 1.093 EFF
• CF: Lage Barlund (CTL/1st) – 195 PO, 11 AST, 52 E, 3.01 RNG, +1.2 ARM, +10.3 ZR, 1.120 EFF
• RF: George Gregory (ATL/1st) – 132 PO, 11 AST, 30 E, 2.08 RNG, +2.0 ARM, +6.5 ZR, 1.095 EFF


NYL TEAM OF THE YEAR

P: Augustus Cook (ECK/1st) - 29-12, 2.54 ERA, 350.1 IP, 24 CG, 1 SHO, 23 K, 0.6 K/BB, 1.17 WHIP, 3.5 WAR, 4.8 rWAR
C: Harold Rowsey (MET/1st) - .352, .774 OPS, 60 R, 95 H, 10 2B, 2 3B, 0 HR, 60 RBI, 8 BB, 37.9 RTO%, 2.2 WPA, 2.5 WAR
1B: Samuel Gillespie (NC/1st) - .365, .835 OPS, 62 R, 109 H, 18 2B, 5 3B, 0 HR, 58 RBI, 20 SB, 137 TB, 3.2 WPA, 2.5 WAR
2B: Huibrecht v. d. Laan (ECK/1st) - .339, .839 OPS, 68 R, 95 H, 15 2B, 8 3B, 2 HR, 57 RBI, 18 SB, +19.1 ZR, 3.8 WPA, 4.0 WAR
3B: Ellis Terrien (MUT/2nd) - .331, .750 OPS, 70 R, 108 H, 9 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 78 RBI, 14 BB, 1 SB, 3.7 WPA, 1.5 WAR
SS: Henry Nabors (VIC/5th) - .358, .820 OPS, 67 R, 119 H, 15 2B, 4 3B, 2 HR, 76 RBI, 9 BB, 6 SB, 3.1 WPA, 3.1 WAR
OF: James Heilman (UTI/2nd) - .357, .884 OPS, 71 R, 105 H, 14 2B, 7 3B, 1 HR, 79 RBI, 39 BB, 18 SB, 4.1 WPA, 3.1 WAR
OF: Herb Verrett (ATL/2nd) - .336, .828 OPS, 76 R, 118 H, 12 2B, 17 3B, 1 HR, 64 RBI, 7 SB, 167 TB, 2.7 WPA, 3.1 WAR
OF: William Vickers (CTL/1st) - .311, .779 OPS, 76 R, 98 H, 16 2B, 9 3B, 2 HR, 70 RBI, 11 BB, 31 SB, 5.0 WPA, 2.8 WAR

NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE AWARD WINNERS

BATSMAN OF THE YEAR: Ned Morganti (CF, age 30) – Quaker State B.C.; 1st career BotY

• .389/.414/.503, .917 OPS, 75 R, 129 H, 19 2B, 8 3B, 1 HR, 79 RBI, 11 BB, 22 SB, 167 TB, 3.1 WPA, 3.9 WAR
• Led NEL in SLG, OPS, RBI, TB, & Batsman WAR; Top three in AVG, OBP, & Hits
• Gerhardt Berg (1B, QS) 2nd – .396, .416 OBP, .902 OPS, 92 R, 133 H, 15 2B, 6 3B, 1 HR, 73 RBI, 163 TB, 4.5 WPA, 3.3 WAR
• Robert Basalyga (LF, LB) 3rd – .366, .846 OPS, 68 R, 122 H, 20 2B, 8 3B, 73 RBI, 4 BB, 3 SB, 158 TB, 5.4 WPA, 2.5 WAR


PITCHER OF THE YEAR: William Hawk (age 24) – Susquehanna B.C.; 1st career PotY

• 32-6, 2.00 ERA, 355.0 IP, 31 CG, 0 SHO, 39 K, 0.4 BB/9, 2.8 K/BB, 1.11 WHIP, 5.4 WAR, 11.3 rWAR
• Led NEL in W, Win%, ERA, IP, CG, BB/9, K/BB, WHIP, & rWAR; 2nd-most Wins in NBBO history
• James Dressman (PORT) 2nd – 30-9, 2.38 ERA, 351.0 IP, 31 CG, 2 SV, 29 K, 1.1 K/BB, 1.19 WHIP, 4.7 WAR, 9.4 rWAR
• Ross Gill (QS) 3rd – 27-13, 2.97 ERA, 339.1 IP, 26 CG, 1 SHO, 29 K, 1.2 K/BB, 1.21 WHIP, 5.2 WAR, 8.5 rWAR


MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: John Schultz (CF, age 27) – Susquehanna B.C.; 1st career MVP

• .352/.373/.449, .821 OPS, 105 R, 124 H, 6 2B, 11 3B, 2 HR, 52 RBI, 8 BB, 34 SB, 158 TB, 4.7 WPA, 3.6 WAR
• Led NEL in Runs; Top five in Hits, 3B, HR, XBH, SB, & WAR; Hit .350 (14/40) w/ 15 Runs in playoffs
• Manuel Romeiras (CF, TU) 2nd – .303, .751 OPS, 87 R, 107 H, 30 XBH, 1 HR, 74 RBI, 13 BB, 58 SB, 4.9 WPA, 3.2 WAR
• Gerhardt Berg (1B, QS) – NEL Batsman of the Year runner-up


GREENHORN OF THE YEAR: Alfred Williams (3B, age 27) – Portland B.C.

• .294/.327/.422, .749 OPS, 75 R, 94 H, 13 2B, 14 3B, 58 RBI, 13 BB, 19 SB, 135 TB, +9.5 ZR, 3.2 WPA, 2.5 WAR
• Started for NEL in All-Star Game; Led NEL in Triples; Beat 2x All-Star Dallas Campanelli for PORT 3B role
• James Kilgore (P, OCE) 2nd – 18-7, 2.66 ERA, 223.2 IP, 18 CG, 1 SHO, 20 K, 1.4 K/BB, 1.14 WHIP, 3.1 WAR, 4.2 rWAR
• Tom Fetterman (RF, NEW) 3rd – .329, .804 OPS, 62 R, 100 H, 16 2B, 13 3B, 42 RBI, 6 BB, 5 SB, 2.3 WPA, 1.9 WAR


NEL GOLDEN GLOVES

• P: Grover Wright (PORT/2nd) – 17 PO, 42 AST, 2 DP, 10 E, 2.38 RNG, +5.6 ZR, 1.393 EFF
• C: Charles Singer (TU/1st) – 39.6 RTO%, 3.33 C-ERA, 0 PB, 8 E, +4.4 ZR, 1.005 EFF
• 1B: Samuel Blalock (SCR/1st) – 578 PO, 64 AST, 18 DP, 36 E, 10.45 RNG, +6.6 ZR, 1.092 EFF
• 2B: Lacy LeGendre (SotO/2nd) – 275 PO, 211 AST, 19 DP, 50 E, 7.12 RNG, +17.2 ZR, 1.133 EFF
• 3B: Herbert Ray (TIG/4th) – 95 PO, 153 AST, 5 DP, 63 E, 3.76 RNG, +15.6 ZR, 1.192 EFF
• SS: Peter Jones (Soto/4th) – 215 PO, 241 AST, 18 DP, 65 E, 6.99 RNG, +35.5 ZR, 1.282 EFF
• LF: Charles Boyd (LE/1st) – 132 PO, 5 AST, 17 E, 2.16 RNG, -1.2 ARM, +7.4 ZR, 1.100 EFF
• CF: Ned Morganti (QS/1st) – 187 PO, 6 AST, 60 E, 2.86 RNG, 0.0 ARM, +9.9 ZR, 1.131 EFF
• RF: George Scott (MM/2nd) – 136 PO, 8 AST, 51 E, 2.13 RNG, -0.4 ARM, +7.7 ZR, 1.111 EFF


NEL TEAM OF THE YEAR

P: William Hawk (SUS/1st) - 32-6, 2.00 ERA, 355.0 IP, 31 CG, 39 K, 0.4 BB/9, 2.8 K/BB, 1.11 WHIP, 5.4 WAR, 11.3 rWAR
C: Hal Brinks (SotO/1st) - .364, .803 OPS, 54 R, 114 H, 17 2B, 3 3B, 0 HR, 77 RBI, 3 BB, 2.64 C-ERA, 2.9 WPA, 2.6 WAR
1B: Gerhardt Berg (QS/1st) - .396, .416 OBP, .902 OPS, 92 R, 133 H, 15 2B, 6 3B, 1 HR, 73 RBI, 11 BB, 4.5 WPA, 3.0 WAR
2B: Carrick Kennedy (PORT/1st) - .305, .767 OPS, 61 R, 92 H, 13 2B, 8 3B, 2 HR, 66 RBI, 12 BB, +13.2 ZR, 2.7 WPA, 2.7 WAR
3B: Bertrand Sargent (SUS/1st) - .330, .787 OPS, 59 R, 102 H, 12 2B, 9 3B, 0 HR, 75 RBI, 14 BB, 2 SB, 3.8 WPA, 2.1 WAR
SS: Jonathan Richards (QS/2nd) - .338, .820 OPS, 88 R, 118 H, 24 2B, 8 3B, 1 HR, 57 RBI, 19 SB, +16.4 ZR, 2.6 WPA, 3.5 WAR
OF: Ned Morganti (QS/4th) - .389, .503 SLG, .917 OPS, 75 R, 129 H, 28 XBH, 1 HR, 79 RBI, 22 SB, 167 TB, 3.1 WPA, 3.9 WAR
OF: John Schultz (SUS/1st) - .352, .821 OPS, 105 R, 124 H, 6 2B, 11 3B, 2 HR, 52 RBI, 8 BB, 34 SB, 4.7 WPA, 3.6 WAR
OF: Robert Basalyga (LB/1st) - .366, .846 OPS, 68 R, 122 H, 20 2B, 8 3B, 0 HR, 73 RBI, 4 BB, 7 SB, 5.4 WPA, 2.5 WAR

MISCELLANEOUS

RECORDS

• William Hawk (Susquehanna) tied James Goodman’s record for ERA (200+ IP) with 2.00.
• Charles Haynes (Mutual) tied the record for Runs in a game with seven on July 12.
• Arjen Zuiderwijk (Marathon) set a new record for RBI in a game with nine on Aug. 12.
• Elton Pugh (N.Y.A.C.) set a new record for Triples in a game with four on Aug. 14.


NEW YORK LEAGUE LEADERS

• Average: .377 by Chester Alexander (2B, Syracuse)
• On-Base: .421 by James Heilman (RF, Utica)
• Slugging: .482 by Farris Crowe (RF, Baltic)
• OPS: .884 by James Heilman
• Hits: 125 by Chester Alexander
• Extra-Base Hits: 31 by Farris Crowe
• Doubles: 23 by Robert Wolfe (RF, Mutual)
• Triples: 17 by Herb Verrett (CF, Atlantic)
• Home Runs: 4 by three different batsmen
• Runs Batted In: 84 by William Winters (3B, Empire)
• Runs: 99 by William Buschmann (CF, Utica)
• Stolen Bases: 54 by Louis Murray (LF, Eckford)
• Total Bases: 167 by Herb Verrett
• Bases on Balls: 39 by James Heilman (RF, Utica)
• Zone Rating: +21.0 by William Holcomb (SS, Bedford)
• Win Prob. Added: 5.9 by Chester Alexander
• Batsman WAR: 4.0 by Huibrecht van der Laan (2B, Eckford)

• Wins: 29 by Augustus Cook (Eckford)
• Losses: 27 by Willie Gray (Marathon)
• ERA (175+ IP): 2.34 by Jesse McDermott (Utica)
• Innings: 351.0 by Augustus Cook
• Complete Games: 30 by Olaf Sorensen (Atlantic)
• Shutouts: 2 by Gus Woods (Union)
• BB/9 (175+ IP): 0.3 by three different pitchers
• Strikeouts: 36 by Richard Frazee (Syracuse)
• K/9 (175+ IP): 1.5 by Robert Fertel (Marathon)
• K/BB (175+ IP): 2.5 by Charles Rhodes (N.Y.A.C.)
• WHIP (175+ IP): 1.09 by Rudolph Fowler
• Pitcher WAR: 6.0 by Charles Rhodes
• Pitcher rWAR: 8.8 by Olaf Sorensen


NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE LEADERS

• Average: .396 by Gerhardt Berg (1B, Quaker St.)
• On-Base: .416 by Gerhardt Berg
• Slugging: .503 by Ned Morganti (CF, Quaker St.)
• OPS: .917 by Ned Morganti
• Hits: 133 by Gerhardt Berg
• Extra-Base Hits: 33 by Jonathan Richards (SS, Quaker St.) & Julius Scott (LF, Maryland)
• Doubles: 24 by Lennon Haley (2B, Lancastra) & Jonathan Richards
• Triples: 14 by Alfred Williams (3B, Portland)
• Home Runs: 4 by William Strausbaugh (2B, Pt. Jersey)
• Runs Batted In: 79 by Ned Morganti
• Runs: 105 by John Schultz (CF, Susquehanna)
• Stolen Bases: 58 by Manuel Romeiras (CF, Trenton Utd.)
• Total Bases: 167 by Ned Morganti
• Bases on Balls: 19 by Joe Mitchell (2B, Lake Erie)
• Zone Rating: +35.5 by Peter Jones (SS, S.o.t.O.)
• Win Prob. Added: 5.4 by Robert Basalyga (LF, Lancastra)
• Batsman WAR: 3.9 by Ned Morganti

• Wins: 32 by William Hawk (Susquehanna)
• Losses: 29 by Daniel Flynn (National)
• ERA (175+ IP): 2.00 by William Hawk
• Innings: 355.0 by William Hawk
• Complete Games: 31 by James Dressman (Portland) & William Hawk
• Shutouts: 3 by George Burroughs (Pt. Jersey)
• BB/9 (175+ IP): 0.4 by four different pitchers
• Strikeouts: 45 by Earl Quinn (Maryland)
• K/9 (175+ IP): 1.2 by Earl Quinn
• K/BB (175+ IP): 2.8 by William Hawk
• WHIP (175+ IP): 1.11 by William Hawk
• Pitcher WAR: 5.8 by Robert Dressen (Salem)
• Pitcher rWAR: 11.3 by William Hawk


ACHIEVEMENTS & NOTABLE EVENTS

• May 13: George Scott (Merrimack) bats 6/6 (2 2B) with 5 RBI vs Pioneer.
• May 16: Hiram Britton (Portland) hits for the Cycle (4/6) with 4 RBI vs Green Mtn.
• May 20: William Strausbaugh (Pt. Jersey) bats 5/7 (2B, 3B) with 6 RBI at Quaker St.
• June 3: Louis Brasch (Star) bats 6/7 (2B, 2 3B) with 7 RBI at Marathon.
• June 17: The Hitting Streak of Ned Morganti (Quaker St.) ends after 41 games.
• June 17: George Gregory (Atlantic) bats 6/7 (2B, 3B) at Empire.
• June 27: Metropolitan has two players finish with five Hits in a 17-3 win at Hilltop.
• July 3: Charles Ross (Pioneer) bats 5/5 with five XBH (2 2B, 2 3B, HR), 4 Runs, & 14 TB vs Merrimack.
• July 5: Union scores a record 17 Runs in the fifth inning of their 23-3 win at Baltic.
• July 12: Elton Lewis (Granite) bats 6/7 (2 2B) with 4 RBI vs Salem.
• July 12: Charles Haynes (Mutual) bats 5/6 (2 3B) with 7 Runs & 3 RBI at Union.
• July 27: The NEL wins the 16th All-Star Game 14-8. MVP: William Sudduth (Merrimack). HOST: National.
• July 29: John Sumpter (Pioneer) bats 3/5 with 2 HR & 8 RBI at Sportsman’s.
• July 29: Rainer van der Hout (Cantabrigians) becomes the 1st P with 300 Wins in the NBBO.
• Aug. 5: The Hitting Streak of Remi Scrovegni (Frontier) ends after 49 games.
• Aug. 12: Arjen Zuiderwijk (Marathon) bats 4/5 with a Grand Slam & 9 RBI (all-levels record) vs Empire.
• Aug. 13: Carl Bancroft (Frontier) becomes the 2nd P with 300 Wins in the NBBO.
• Aug. 14: Elton Pugh (N.Y.A.C.) bats 4/6 with 4 Triples (new record) & 8 RBI at Baltic.
• Aug. 16: Charles Rhodes (N.Y.A.C.) pitches the NBBO’s 7th No-Hitter at Baltic on the season’s final day.
• Aug. 17: Charles Rhodes (N.Y.A.C.) finishes #1 in NYL in Pitcher WAR for the fourth consecutive season.
• Aug. 17: William Hawk (Susquehanna) finishes #1 in the NEL in nine pitching categories.

• No batsman hit .400 for the second consecutive season.
• There were nine six-hit games, one off last season’s record amount.
• The longest Hitting Streak this season was 49 games by Remi Scrovegni (Frontier).
• For the third consecutive season, no players hit 5+ Home Runs.
• One batsman scored 100+ Runs.
• Seven batsmen had 75+ RBI in 1874, five fewer than last season.
• No batsman stole 70+ bases. Five stole 70+ in 1873.
• Two P’s finished with 30+ Wins, and in total eight finished the season with 25+ Wins.

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1874 AMERICAN PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL LEAGUE REVIEW

WRITERS POOL OBSERVATIONS

ALLEGHANY: A sad end to what had been a fantastic season. If the APBL ran 70 games instead of 90 perhaps they would have taken the Founders’ Cup in a sweep. Their NBBO imports – Hearns, Peterson, & Springs – all had a positive impact, their APBL signees – Ellerby & Thompson – were All-Stars, & Gerald Strong had the best season of his career.

AMERICAN: They took a step back this year, the rest of the Metro took a step forward, and American finished over .500 but missed the playoffs. The team’s best batsmen are all due back next season but both regular pitchers are free to leave, and if both Johns – Brown & Henry – do leave it could put American in a bind.

EXCELSIOR: Finally, a .500 season. Jim Creighton had his most dominant APBL campaign, NBBO imports Elijah Hill & Troy Oberst were All-Stars, and rescuing Charles Hormel from a back-up role with Shamrock proved to be an inspired decision. They now have to look at upgrading SS & RF, and if they do then Excelsior could finally go above .500.

FLOUR CITY: A tough season. Projected to finish atop the Colonial for the 1st time, F.C. lost James Goodman for three weeks and their offense slipped to the bottom quarter of the league in terms of production. The team needs upgrades at 1B, RF, and possibly SS over the winter if they are to improve in 1874.

GOTHAM: A fourteen-win improvement over 1873. Babe Johnson had a 100-RBI season, Clive Strachan was fantastic, William Theriault hit over .350, Royal Altman’s bat was back in form, and NBBO import Jonathan Quarles had a fine debut season. An upgrade at CF and this could be a 1st-place team next year.

KINGS CO: Burn it all down and start over. Nobody should win less than 30% of their games in a twelve-team league.

KNICKERBOCKER: Knick played well for large stretches of the season, but ultimately an offense that ranked 11th in Runs did them in. NBBO import McLean was a huge surprise that made the ASG. Their outfield is fantastic defensively but has light bats, so they’re going to need much better production from 2B, 3B, & SS in order to be Colonial contenders next year.

MASS. BAY: Another last-place finish is dulled somewhat by the fact that they were 23-17 over their final 40 games. Their first-year P’s, Butler & Kihlstedt, improved during the season and Greenhorn Garvin was an All-Star, but their lineup has holes. Their big need is SS, as even though Trowbridge hit .354 his -37.4 ZR more than undid any good work with the bat.

NIAGARA: An offense that ranked 11th in AVG, On-Base, & OPS meant that even though Greenhorn #1 Tomoharu Mukai pitched well he took 25 losses. SS Arthur Bliss doesn’t have an APBL-level bat and 2B Ernest Lewis is looking his age (36). However, 22-year-old Charles Barrett had a good debut season in the Niagara outfield.

ORANGE: The champions don’t have much to worry about. Every regular is due back except Samuel Kessler, but he’s 38 and 1B is the easiest position to fill. If there was one complaint about the Orange lineup it’s that NBBO import Isaac Holm was just above replacement level at LF, so they might need an upgrade there.

SHAMROCK: Their luck went the opposite way from the implication of their name, finishing 42-48 with a positive Run Differential that suggested 3rd place. The team needs an upgrade at CF and possibly RF & P with Henry Gaul & Henry Tallman free to leave. What Shamrock does with respect to those positions will determine how they’re projected to finish next season.

ST. JOHN’S: They went sleepwalking for much of the season and woke up too late. Falco van der Vaart hit just .230 in his 2nd year as the team’s C and may be replaced by the younger Frederick Drake. 2B Theo Kohlberg saw his average drop 80 points as he began to look his age (37) and an upgrade there is likely. On the bright side, Eamonn Todd was a nice surprise at 3B.

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1874 APBL STANDINGS





PER-TEAM STATISTICS

1874: 7.4 R/G, .293, .672 OPS, 1,050 H, 123 2B, 44 3B, 10 HR, 156 SB, 3.38 ERA, 79 BB, 72 K, 6.8 E/G, .846 FLD%
1873: 7.9 R/G, .297, .680 OPS, 1,079 H, 125 2B, 48 3B, 9 HR, 184 SB, 3.72 ERA, 78 BB, 66 K, 7.2 E/G, .837 FLD%


FOUNDERS' CUP IV: Alleghany v Orange

GAME 1: ALL 25-3 ORA – Ashley Hearns (RF, ALL) 4/6, 2 2B, 4 R, 4 RBI, SB
GAME 2: ALL 7-6 ORA – Gerald Strong (SS, ALL) 3/5 (all 1B), 1 R, 1 RBI, SB, GW HIT
GAME 3: ORA 9-8 ALL – Charles Whitehead (2B, ORA) 4/4, 3B, 3 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 DEF DP
GAME 4: ORA 6-3 ALL – Everett Schreiber (C, ORA) 3/4, 3B, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1/3 RTO
GAME 5: ORA 4-1 ALL – George Sturgis (P, ORA) CG, 8 HA, 1 ER, 1 K, 1/4
GAME 6: ALL 1-8 ORA – Taliesin Buckley (CF, ORA) 2/4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI

Orange (1st APBL title; 3rd overall) wins series 4-2

FOUNDERS’ CUP MVP: Charles Whitehead (2B, Orange)

AMERICAN PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL LEAGUE AWARD WINNERS
Career award totals are carried over from the NBBO

BATSMAN OF THE YEAR: Konrad Jensen (LF, age 35) – St. John’s B.C.; 4th career BotY

• .368/.413/.486, .899 OPS, 96 R, 144 H, 13 2B, 12 3B, 3 HR, 79 RBI, 33 BB, 56 SB, 190 TB, 6.4 WPA, 4.0 WAR
• Led APBL in OBP, SLG, OPS, HR, BB, & TB; Top three in AVG & Batsman WAR; 2nd BotY in three years
• William Busby (1B, AME) 2nd – .361, .817 OPS, 83 R, 139 H, 18 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 97 RBI, 16 BB, 4.1 WPA, 2.6 WAR
• Babe Johnson (2B, GOT) 3rd – .336, .797 OPS, 88 R, 138 H, 20 2B, 7 3B, 102 RBI, 30 BB, 44 SB, 6.7 WPA, 2.3 WAR

It was the final week, in which he hit three Home Runs while trying to lead St. John’s to the pinnacle of divisional comebacks, that put Jensen over the top. Having led the APBL in Bases on Balls, On-Base %, & OPS in each of the past three seasons, Jensen remains the sport’s most cerebrally and technically gifted batsman at the age of 35. To wit, he is the only long-time regular to switch leagues during the split that actually has a higher average in the APBL (.376 to .374).


PITCHER OF THE YEAR: Jim Creighton (age 33) – Excelsior B.B.C.; 2nd career PotY

• 30-21, 2.56 ERA, 396.2 IP, 28 CG, 1 SHO, 136 K, 3.1 K/9, 4.1 K/BB, 1.20 WHIP, 10.1 HA/9, 7.8 WAR
• Tied APBL Wins record; Also led APBL in ERA, IP, G, CG, QS, K, K/9, K/BB, WHIP, HA/9, RA/9, & WAR
• Elmer Seabold (ALL) 2nd – 25-19, 2.94 ERA, 358.0 IP, 27 CG, 1 SHO, 78 K, 1.5 K/BB, 1.33 WHIP, 4.9 WAR, 5.1 rWAR
• Thomas Smith (StJ) 3rd – 24-19, 2.64 ERA, 358.0 IP, 27 CG, 0 SHO, 20 K, 0.6 K/BB, 1.29 WHIP, 4.6 WAR, 6.1 rWAR

This was perhaps Creighton’s finest season, when you consider the level of competition. He led the APBL in thirteen pitching categories while reaching the 30-Win milestone for the first time, and he did so while pitching in an absurd 64 games, eight more than any other pitcher has done in a season during the APBL’s brief history. Seabold & Smith are basically there because writers had to vote for 2nd & 3rd place.


MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Gerald Strong (SS, age 29) – Alleghany B.C.; 1st career MVP

• .341/.359/.411, .770 OPS, 92 R, 147 H, 17 2B, 5 3B, 1 HR, 55 RBI, 29 SB, 177 TB, +21.5 ZR, 5.1 WPA, 4.8 WAR
• Led APBL in AVG, OBP, OPS, & BB; Top three in Slugging, Hits, Stolen Bases, & WAR
• A. Mascherino (SS, ORA) 2nd – .317, .703 OPS, 102 R, 140 H, 16 2B, 4 3B, 56 RBI, 36 SB, +18.5 ZR, 6.2 WPA, 4.1 WAR
• Konrad Jensen (LF, StJ) 3rd – APBL Batsman of the Year

After five consecutive All-Star Game appearances going back to the NBBO, this was a most deserved MVP for Strong. No other batsman had his combination of offensive consistency and defensive excellence, as the only player with a higher Zone Rating than him, George Pugatch, hit .258 with a .585 OPS. Mascherino was close, but his offense just wasn’t as good.


GREENHORN OF THE YEAR: Lane Garvin (C, age 28) – Massachusetts Bay B.C.

• .324/.335/.375, .710 OPS, 65 R, 110 H, 14 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 50 RBI, 3 BB, 2 SB, 127 TB, 3.0 WPA, 1.5 WAR
• Only Greenhorn to make All-Star Game; Led Greenhorns in Batting Average
• Eamonn Todd (3B, StJ) 2nd – .318, .708 OPS, 67 R, 127 H, 13 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 83 RBI, 8 BB, 1 SB, 5.5 WPA, 1.8 WAR
• Tomoharu Mukai (P, NIA) 3rd – 16-25, 3.38 ERA, 341.1 IP, 16 CG, 0 SHO, 14 K, 0.6 K/BB, 1.48 WHIP, 5.7 WAR, 1.1 rWAR

Todd had a better overall season, but the fact that Garvin was the only Greenhorn to make the All-Star Game while having a comparable Average & OPS made him the GotY. Mukai had some good moments and a fine August but was frequently let down by the Niagara offense. I.A. Butler (P, MB) turned his talent into production too late to make the top three


APBL GOLDEN GLOVES

• P: James Goodman (FC/5th) – 12 PO, 43 AST, 2 DP, 16 E, 1.75 RNG, +5.7 ZR, 1.151 EFF
• C: James Simon (SHA/1st) – 34.7 RTO%, 2.93 C-ERA, 3 PB, 18 E, +3.8 ZR, 1.057 EFF
• 1B: Cormack Alexander (KNI/4th) – 853 PO, 81 AST, 31 DP, 46 E, 10.50 RNG, +9.2 ZR, 1.071 EFF
• 2B: Clyde Hudspeth (EXC/2nd) – 278 PO, 306 AST, 18 DP, 70 E, 7.12 RNG, +18.0 ZR, 1.086 EFF
• 3B: Frank Doherty (ALL/2nd) – 148 PO, 185 AST, 3 DP, 71 E, 3.89 RNG, +11.9 ZR, 1.128 EFF
• SS: George Pugatch (GOT/1st) – 266 PO, 271 AST, 16 DP, 98 G, 6.52 RNG, +27.0 ZR, 1.152 EFF
• LF: Robert Golden (ALL/1st) – 158 PO, 4 AST, 39 E, 1.91 RNG, +1.7 ARM, +5.3 ZR, 1.063 EFF
• CF: Louis Dyke (KNI/2nd) – 259 PO, 8 AST, 62 E, 3.00 RNG, -2.3 ARM, +10.5 ZR, 1.082 EFF
• RF: Ashley Hearns (ALL/1st) – 159 PO, 6 AST, 44 E, 1.90 RNG, +3.0 ARM, +3.1 ZR, 1.050 EFF


APBL TEAM OF THE YEAR

P: Jim Creighton (EXC/6th) - 30-21, 2.56 ERA, 396.2 IP, 28 CG, 136 K, 3.1 K/9, 4.1 K/BB, 10.1 HA/9, 1.20 WHIP, 7.8 WAR
C: Everett Schreiber (ORA/5th) - .357, .803 OPS, 72 R, 125 H, 23 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 75 RBI, 8 BB, 3.26 C-ERA, 5.0 WPA, 3.8 WAR
1B: William Busby (AME/5th) - .361, .817 OPS, 83 R, 139 H, 18 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 97 RBI, 16 BB, 1 SB, 4.1 WPA, 2.6 WAR
2B: Babe Johnson (GOT/4th) - .336, .797 OPS, 88 R, 138 H, 20 2B, 7 3B, 0 HR, 102 RBI, 30 BB, 44 SB, 6.7 WPA, 2.3 WAR
3B: William Dickerson (SHA/4th) - .329, .778 OPS, 83 R, 136 H, 23 2B, 10 3B, 0 HR, 85 RBI, 10 BB, 42 SB, 4.1 WPA, 3.1 WAR
SS: Gerald Strong (ALL/1st) - .341, .770 OPS, 92 R, 147 H, 17 2B, 5 3B, 1 HR, 55 RBI, 29 SB, +21.5 ZR, 5.1 WPA, 4.8 WAR
OF: Konrad Jensen (StJ/14th) - .368, .899 OPS, 96 R, 144 H, 28 XBH, 3 HR, 79 RBI, 32 BB, 56 SB, 190 TB, 6.4 WPA, 4.0 WAR
OF: Clive Strachan (GOT/1st) - .348, .791 OPS, 113 R, 150 H, 12 2B, 8 3B, 2 HR, 51 RBI, 8 BB, 70 SB, 5.6 WPA, 3.8 WAR
OF: James Burke (AME/5th) - .337, .783 OPS, 105 R, 143 H, 14 2B, 6 3B, 2 HR, 79 RBI, 20 BB, 86 SB, 5.4 WPA, 3.8 WAR

MISCELLANEOUS

RECORDS

• Mario Fusilli (St. John’s) set a new record for Singles in a season with 132.
• Jim Creighton (Excelsior) tied the record for Wins in a season with 30.
• Jim Creighton (Excelsior) set a new record for Games Pitched in a season with 64.
• Jim Creighton (Excelsior) set a new record for Innings Pitched in a season with 396.0
• Raynard Cordell (Alleghany) set a new record for Home Runs Allowed in a season with 11 (0.26 HR/9).
• Fred Richards (Kings Co.) set a new record for Hits Allowed in a season with 528 (14.8 HA/9).


APBL STATISTICAL LEADERS

• Average: .374 by Mario Fusilli (1B, St. John’s)
• On-Base: .413 by Konrad Jensen (LF, St. John’s)
• Slugging: .486 by Konrad Jensen
• OPS: .899 by Konrad Jensen
• Hits: 158 by Mario Fusilli
• Extra-Base Hits: 36 by Hugh Harris (3B, Flour City)
• Doubles: 27 by Troy Oberst (LF, Excelsior)
• Triples: 14 by Taliesin Buckley (CF, Orange) & Rudolph Decker (CF, St. John’s)
• Home Runs: 3 by eight different batsman
• Runs Batted In: 102 by Babe Johnson (2B, Gotham)
• Runs: 115 by Nelson Townsend
• Stolen Bases: 86 by James Burke (CF, American)
• Total Bases: 190 by Mario Fusilli & Konrad Jensen
• Bases on Balls: 32 by Konrad Jensen
• Zone Rating: +27.0 by George Pugatch (SS, Gotham)
• Batsman WPA: 6.7 by Babe Johnson
• Batsman WAR: 4.8 by Gerald Strong (SS, Alleghany)

• Wins: 30 by Jim Creighton (Excelsior)
• Losses: 28 by Fred Richards (Kings Co.)
• ERA (200+ IP): 2.56 by Jim Creighton
• Strikeouts: 136 by Jim Creighton
• Innings: 396.2 by Jim Creighton
• Complete Games: 28 by Raynard Cordell (Alleghany) & Jim Creighton
• Shutouts: 2 by three different pitchers
• BB/9 (200+ IP): 0.4 by Howard Burns (St. John’s)
• K/9 (200+ IP): 3.1 by Jim Creighton
• K/BB (200+ IP): 4.1 by Jim Creighton
• WHIP (200+ IP): 1.20 by Jim Creighton
• Pitcher WAR: 7.8 by Jim Creighton
• Pitcher rWAR: 8.6 by Raynard Cordell


ACHIEVEMENTS & NOTABLE EVENTS

• May 8: James Simon (Shamrock) bats 5/5 with a HR & 6 RBI at St. John’s.
• May 21: Flour City erases eight-run deficit (13-5) at the start of the 8th to win at St. John’s.
• May 21: Hugh Harris (Flour City) bats 5/6 with 4 R & 3 RBI at St. John’s.
• May 26: Alfred Calvert (Excelsior) bats 5/5 with a Triple & Home Run vs Orange.
• May 31: American wins 28-1 vs Kings Co. to set a new APBL record for margin of victory (27 runs).
• June 2: Three different players finish games with five Hits, an APBL first.
• June 7: Wilbur Graff (Niagara) bats 5/6 with 4 RBI vs Alleghany.
• July 15: James Burke (American) bats 5/5 with 2 SB vs Gotham.
• July 16: Samuel Kessler (Orange) bats 6/6 with 4 R & 4 RBI at Knickerbocker.
• July 30: Four Gotham batsmen finish with 4+ Hits in a 27-5 win at Knickerbocker.
• July 30: William Theriault (Gotham) bats 5/7 with 5 R & 7 RBI at Knickerbocker.
• Aug. 3: The Metropolitan wins the All-Star Game 7-6. MVP: Mario Fusilli (St. John’s). HOST: American.
• Aug. 22: Jim Creighton (Excelsior) records 30 Wins in a season for the 1st time in his career.
• Aug. 24: Konrad Jensen (St. John’s) finishes #1 in the APBL in six batting categories.
• Aug. 24: Jim Creighton (Excelsior) finishes #1 in the APBL in thirteen pitching categories.

• For the second season in a row no batsman hit .400.
• No batsman reached 5.0 WAR.
• Three players had 90+ RBI in 1873, and one had 100+.
• Eight players scored 100+ Runs in 1873.
• Two players finished 1873 with 70+ Stolen Bases.
• There was one six-hit game in 1874.
• The longest Hitting Streak of the season was 31 games by Troy Oberst (Excelsior).
• Two pitchers earned 25+ Wins, down from four in 1873.


PERFORMANCES OF THE SEASON

• #1: William Theriault (Gotham) 5/7, 2B, 5 R, 7 RBI, 6 TB on July 30 at KNI (116 GMSC)
• #2: Samuel Kessler (Orange) 6/6, 2B, 4 R, 4 RBI, SB, 7 TB on July 16 at KNI (104 GMSC)
• #3: James Simon (Shamrock) 5/5, 2B, HR, 2 R, 6 RBI, 9 TB on May 8 at StJ (101 GMSC)
• #4: Norman Kennemore (Kings Co.) 5/5, 2B, 3 R, 5 RBI, BB, 4/10 RTO on June 12 at GOT (101 GMSC)
• #5: William Theriault (Gotham) 4/5, HR, 5 R, 4 RBI, 7 TB on Aug. 13 at KC (96 GMSC)
• #6: William Busby (American) 4/4 (all 1B), 3 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB on May 31 vs KC (93 GMSC)
• #7: Willie Davis (American) 4/6, 2B, 5 R, 4 RBI, 1 BB, 5 TB on June 26 at GOT (92 GMSC)
• #8: Taliesin Buckley (Orange) 4/5, 3 2B, 4 R, 5 RBI, 7 TB on May 22 vs KNI (91 GMSC)
• #9: Ashley Hearns (Alleghany) 4/5, 2B, 3B, 4 R, 5 RBI, 7 TB on June 25 at StJ (91 GMSC)
• #10: Jack Doherty (Kings Co.) 13.0 IP, 7 HA, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K on May 5 at EXC (89 GMSC)