History Never Repeats: An Alternative Baseball History - Page 7

William Foster · 10-23-2009, 12:40 AM

That early Trolleys team is certainly a powerhouse. It'll be interesting to see if they can build that into long-term success or not. Consider me signed up and rooting for the Syracuse Stars the ultimate underdogs.

Kudos to you for including George Stovey the International League record-holder for wins and one of the first great black baseball players as well.

NYY #23 · 10-27-2009, 04:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny Canuck

Just a quick suggestion - would it be possible to have a post each year (either here or in the blog) on the amateur draft, with the first round & any other 'notables' taken? I'm curious if those expansion teams (including my 'Wolverines') are drafting anybody that will help the imbalance in the Western League.

Good suggestion. I got away from that for a couple of years, but each July I will do a recap of round 1, and any other notables that I notice. I'm also going to do a look back every so often of how each team drafted, but I'm not ready for that yet.

I should also say that Wolverine fans should be very pleased with how they are drafting. They've made some good picks.

Here is the draft results for the first round since the beginning:

1892:
1) Boston Americans: LF - Tuck Turner
2) Louisville Colonels: SP -Bill Reidy
3) Cincinnati Cardinals: SP - Jake Weimer
4) New York Giants: RF - Chick Stahl
5) Brooklyn Wonders: C - Ed McFarland
6) Buffalo Bisons: SP - Chick Fraser
7) Cleveland Infants: SP - Ed Doheny
8) Philadelphia Quakers: SP - Jack Sutthoff
9) Philadelphia Athletics: SP - Dan McFarlan
10) St. Louis Browns: RF - Duff Cooley
11) Pittsburgh Burghers: 1B - George Mahoney
12) Rochester Broncos: 1B - Harry Davis
13) Syracuse Stars: LF - John Anderson
14) Chicago Pirates: SP - Red Donahue
15) Columbus Solons: LF - Billy Lush
16) Baltimore Terrapins: 3B - Tom O'Brien

1893:
1) Louisville Colonels: SP - Jack Chesbro
2) Baltimore Terrapins: SP - Jesse Tannehill
3) Philadelphia Quaker: SP - Bill Duggleby
4) Cincinnati Cardinals: SP - Tully Sparks
5) Boston Americans: SP - Pop Williams
6) New York Giants: 2B - Nap Lajoie
7) Washington Capitals: SP - Jack Powell
8) Brooklyn Wonders: SS - Gene Demontreville
9) Syracuse Stars: P - Farmer Bell
10) Rochester Broncos: SS - Honus Wagner
11) Philadelphia Athletics: SP - Doc McJames
12) Cleveland Infants: SP - Ned Garvin
13) Pittsburgh Rebels: SP - Wiley Piatt
14) Buffalo Bisons: P - Ed Buckingham
15) St. Louis Browns: P - Cy Vorhees
16) Chicago Pirates: SP - Jim Gardner

1894:
1) Pittsburgh Rebels: SP - Noodles Hahn
2) Denver Grizzlies: SP - Eddie Plank
3) Newark Bears: SP - Vic Willis
4) Cincinnati Cardinals: SP - Bill Dineen
5) Detroit Grizzlies: SP - Buttons Briggs
6) Indianapolis Indians: SP - Dummy Taylor
7) Baltimore Terrapins: SP - Jerry Nops
8) Milwaukee Broncos: LF - Jimmy Barrett
9) Brooklyn Wonders: SP - Brownie Foreman
10) Philadelphia Quaker: 1B - Walter Thornton
11) Washington Capitals: 1B - Kitty Bransfield
12) St. Louis Browns: RF - Dave Fultz
13) Syracuse Stars: C - Fred Fagin
14) Boston Americans: C - Johnny Kling
15) Kansas City Blues: SP - Chappie McFarland
16) Buffalo Bisons: C - Farmer Steelman
17) New York Gothams: SP - George Gillpatrick
18) Minnesota Millers: SS - Charlie Ziegler
19) Chicago Pirates: C - Billy Sullivan
20) Cleveland Infants: SS - Dan Coogan

1895:
1) Minnesota Millers: SP - Rube Waddell
2) Indianapolis Indians: SP - Mordecai Brown
3) Kansas City Blues: LF - Elmer Flick
4) Detroit Grizzlies: SP - Jim Buchanan
5) Newark Bears: SP - Fred Glade
6) Boston Americans: SP - Ed Killian
7) Baltimore Terrapins: SP - Gus Dorner
8) Pittsburgh Rebels: SP - Roy Patterson
9) New York Gothams: CF - Ginger Beaumont
10) Buffalo Bisons: C - Fred Jacklitsch
11) Cincinnati Cardinals: SP - Jimmy Wiggs
12) Brooklyn Wonders: RF - Emmet Heidrick
13) Syracuse Stars: 3B - Jimmy Williams
14) Philadelphia Quaker: 2B - Danny Murphy
15) Washington Capitals: RF - Danny Green
16) Milwaukee Broncos: RF - Charlie Hemphill
17) Denver Grizzlies: RF - John Titus
18) Chicago Pirates: SP - Bill Donovan
19) St. Louis Browns: 3B - Tommy Leach
20) Cleveland Infants: SP - Nick Altrock

NYY #23 · 10-27-2009, 05:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by William Foster

That early Trolleys team is certainly a powerhouse. It'll be interesting to see if they can build that into long-term success or not. Consider me signed up and rooting for the Syracuse Stars the ultimate underdogs.

Kudos to you for including George Stovey the International League record-holder for wins and one of the first great black baseball players as well.

The Trolleys are definitely a powerhouse, and I'm surprised to have one this early. I don't want to say they were lucky, but they have had a lot go their way. It'll be interesting to see how long that continues.

I'm excited about including guys like Stovey and see how they do. Spritze's database deserves more credit than me, but I wanted integration from the beginning. Interesting to watch who emerges as stars in an integrated league. Stovey has definitely been one of the top 5 or 10 pitchers in the league though, so it is nice to see his success.

NYY #23 · 10-27-2009, 05:11 PM

Cardinals take control out west
June 1, 1896

The Cincinnati Cardinals completed May with a 19-8 record, taking a 3 1/2 game lead over the second place Cleveland Trolleys, who have won three consecutive World Championships.

Over in the Eastern League the Pittsburgh Rebels and the Buffalo Bisons are locked in a tight race for first place, with the Rebels leading the Bisons by one game.

Eastern League Notes
Clark Griffith of the Washington Capitals was named Eastern League Pitcher of the Month after going 6-1 with a 2.71 ERA in 63 innings of work.

Dusty Miller of the Philadelphia Quakers kept a hitting streak going for 26 straight games before his streak ended in the Quakers win against the Wonders.

Miller's wasn't the longest hitting streak of the month, as Chick Stahl of the Gothams put together a 27 game hitting streak before an 0-3 night in an 8-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Rebels.

The Rebels are excited with what they have seen by young starter Noodles Hahn, who last year finished 16-16 in his first year with the team. Hahn was at his best when he held the Gothams to 6 hits in a shutout win to improve his record for the season to 7-2.

Hank O'Day of the New York Gothams pitched a 1 hitter against the Brooklyn Wonders in a 10-0 win on May 5th.

Western League Notes
Frank Meinke of the St. Louis Browns won the Western League Pitcher of the Month after a 7-0 month over 63 innings while posting a 2.43 ERA.

Hughie Jennings of the Cleveland Trolleys hit safely in 22 straight games before an 0-4 night against the Kansas City Blues.

Milwaukee's Bill Hassamaer had a 29 game hitting streak end this month. The 31 year old Bronco only got one at-bat in the game, but was happy with the teams 6-5 victory over the Millers.

Pete Conway of the St. Louis Browns signed a 5 year extension that will keep him with the team through the 1901 season. Conway has started the season 5-5 and has won 152 games in six seasons with the Browns.

The Chicago Pirates also locked up second baseman Otis Stocksdale for another three years. Stocksdale is hitting .308 this season for the Pirates.

EMSoccerCoach · 11-23-2009, 07:36 PM

What happened? Coming up on a month with no posts...hope all is ok.

NYY #23 · 12-08-2009, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EMSoccerCoach

What happened? Coming up on a month with no posts...hope all is ok.

Yes, all is ok, thanks for asking.

I've just been extremely busy with travelling and training for work and haven't had much free time at all. I definitely haven't given up on the dynasty, but expect updates will be slow for the next month or so while things settle back to normal. I'll have a post shortly, and try to have more frequent updates.

NYY #23 · 12-08-2009, 07:09 PM

Browns take lead out west
July 1, 1896

The St. Louis Browns complete a 20-8 month to make up a 6 1/2 game deficit to move into first place in the Western League, 2 games in front of the Cleveland Trolleys, and 2 1/2 games up over the Cincinnati Cardinals, who fell out of first place this month.

The Browns have been one of the best teams in baseball the past two years, winning 108 and then 109 games, but all they got was a second place finish behind the World Champion Cleveland Trolleys, who have won three straight World Series. It remains to be seen whether the Browns can hold off the Trolleys this year.

Eastern League Notes
Jocko Halligan of the New York Gothams was named the Batter of the Month for June. Halligan hit .481 for the month with 2 home runs, 30 RBI, 21 runs scored, and 16 walks.

Another Gotham, Elton Chamberlain was named the Pitcher of the Month after going 6-1 for the month. Chamberlain struck out 20 and posted a 2.47 ERA in 62 innings of work.

James Cooney of the Syracuse Stars hit for the cycle in a 7-3 victory over the Baltimore Terrapins. Cooney doubled in the first, homered in the second, singled in the third, and triple in the 7th inning while driving in three runs. Cooney is hitting .314 for the season.

Western League Notes
Hugh Duffy of the Chicago Pirates was named Batter of the Month in the Western League for July. Duffy hit .388 with 45 hits, 3 home runs, 26 RBI, and 23 runs scored.

Helping lead the Browns into first place was Pete Conway, who was named the Pitcher of the Month after going 6-1 with a 2.07 ERA in 7 starts. For the year Conway is now 12-6.

Draft Recap
1 - Indianapolis Indians: SP - Irv Young
2 - Detroit Wolverines: SP - Ed Siever
3 - Kansas City Blues: LF - Jimmy Sheckard
4 - Minnesota Millers: SP - Ham Iburg
5 - Boston Americans: SP - Mike O'Neill
6 - Newark Bears: SP - Gus Thompson
7 - Syracuse Stars: SP - Alex Pearson
8 - Philadelphia Quakers: 1B - Frank Chance
9 - New York Gothams: LF - George Stone
10 - Pittsburgh Rebels: CF - Roger Bresnahan
11 - Cincinnati Cardinals: SP - Alex Hardy
12 - Brooklyn Wonders: LF - Harry Steinfeldt
13 - Denver Grizzlies: SP - Edward Murphy
14 - Buffalo Bisons: SP - Tex Neuer
15 - Baltimore Terrapins: LF - Germany Schaefer
16 - Washington Capitals: C - Peaches Graham
17 - Chicago Pirates: SP - Norwood Gibson
18 - Milwaukee Broncos: C - Bert Blue
19 - St. Louis Browns: C - Tacks Latimer
20 - Cleveland Trolleys: C - Henry Wilson

EMSoccerCoach · 12-08-2009, 11:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYY #23

Yes, all is ok, thanks for asking.

I've just been extremely busy with travelling and training for work and haven't had much free time at all. I definitely haven't given up on the dynasty, but expect updates will be slow for the next month or so while things settle back to normal. I'll have a post shortly, and try to have more frequent updates.

My post was wholly selfish...I have what, three of you, who post regularly in my PBL thread. You vanish and I lose a third of my audience

Just kidding, glad to hear all is well.

NYY #23 · 12-16-2009, 07:02 PM

Trolleys charge back into first place
August 1, 1896

The Cleveland Trolleys have won three straight World Series and proven they can't be counted out as they move into first place after two straight months in second place and have now taken a one game lead over the St. Louis Browns.

In the Eastern League the Pittsburgh Rebels are leading a tightly grouped pack of five teams separated by just 1 1/2 games.

Eastern League Notes
Jesse Burkett of the Buffalo Bisons was named Eastern League Batter of the Month after hitting .433 for the month. Burkett picked up 42 hits in 97 at bats, including 2 home runs, 18 RBI, and 26 runs scored. For the season he is hitting .359 with 60 RBI and 100 runs scored for the fourth place Bisons.

Bill Duggleby of the Philadelphia Quakers was named the Pitcher of the Month. Duggleby finished 5-2 with a 1.45 ERA for the month, and has a 16-8 record for the season.

Cupid Childs of the Syracuse Stars saw a 25 game hitting streak come to an end after an 0-3 night against the Philadelphia Quakers.

Childs didn't have the longest hitting streak of the month though, as that honor went to Monte Cross of the Baltimore Terrapins who hit safely in 27 straight games. Cross was 0-4 to end his streak.

The Stars locked up first baseman John Carney for another three seasons. Carney is hitting .334 this season with 142 hits, 79 RBI, and 80 runs.

Western League Notes
Ned Garvin of the Cleveland Trolleys went 5-2 for the month to earn Pitcher of the Month honors. Garvin posted a 3.23 ERA in 64 innings for the month, and the youngster is 15-10 for the season.

Honus Wagner of the Milwaukee Broncos was named Batter of the Month in the Western League. Wagner hit .378 with 2 home runs, 19 RBI, and 22 runs scored. For the season Wagner is hitting .369. During the month Wagner saw a 24 game hitting streak come to an end after an 0-3 night against the Detroit Wolverines.

Times have been tough in Minnesota since the Millers entered the league, and they remain 25 1/2 games out of first place sitting in ninth place in the league. A sign of how bad things can get for the Millers? Centerfielder Frank Genins is hitting .295 for the year and has driven in 25 runs, but will miss the next week with a concussion, as his son ran into him with a bicycle. Just another example of the Millers bad luck.

When catcher Mike Trost changed teams in the offseason and went from the Cleveland Trolleys to the Denver Grizzlies, it looked like the Trolleys would have trouble replacing Trost's production in the lineup. Trost hit .313 with 122 RBI, and 112 runs scored in his final year with Cleveland. The Trolleys promoted backup catcher Bill Gray to starter, and while he isn't producing at the same level as Trost, his .303 average and 50 RBI helped the Trolleys move back into first place. The Trolleys just announced that they were bringing Gray back for another 3 years.

NYY #23 · 02-07-2010, 04:07 PM

It has certainly been a hectic few months for me, and things are starting to get back to normal, so as Spring Training is rapidly approaching, and we are buried under snow what better time to get back to the Players League. I apologize for the long delay...
------------------------------
Bakely wins 200th game of career
September 1, 1896

Jersey Bakely of the Washington Capitals picked up career win number 200 in a 2-1 win against the Brooklyn Wonders. Bakely pitched a complete game, striking out 4 and walking 2 while giving up 7 hits. For his career Bakely is 200-109 with a 2.78 ERA. Bakely is in his first season with the Washington Capitals after pitching the previous six seasons for Cleveland. The Capitals are one game behind the Buffalo Bisons for the Eastern League lead.

Eastern League Notes
Two time Batter of the Year, Tuck Turner of the Boston Americans added another award this month, as he won Batter of the Month for the fourth time in his career. The 23 year old Turner is on pace for his third straight .400 season and posted a .441 batting average in August. Turner added 27 RBI and 20 runs scored. Turner raised his average to .409 for the season and has 95 RBI and 93 runs scored. Unfortunately for Turner, the Americans continue to struggle with a 55-78 record. Boston hasn't had a winning record since 1893, Turner's first full season in Boston. Turner will be a free agent following the 1897 season, so it will bear watching whether Turner jumps ship for greener pastures.

Bill Duggleby of the Quakers was named Pitcher of the Month after going 6-1 with a 2.43 ERA. Duggleby is 22-9 for the season.

The Buffalo Bisons locked up 'Wee Willie' Keeler to a 3 year extension. Keeler is hitting .404 with 74 RBI so far this year and has turned into one of the best young players in the league. The Bisons also announced they will be bringing back catcher Mike Flynn for another 3 years. Flynn is hitting .291 for the season.

Socks Seybold of the Brooklyn Wonders collected 6 hits in 7 at bats in a recent 13-10 win against the Boston Americans, all singles.

It was a big month for 24 game hitting streaks, as Billy Hamilton of the Boston Americans, Jack Doyle of the New York Gothams, and Patsy Tebeau of the Milwaukee Broncos all had 24 game hitting streaks end during the month.

Frank Foreman has had a rough year so far, getting released by the Indianapolis Indians, and failing to impress the St. Louis Browns, Cincinnati Cardinals, Cleveland Trolleys, and the Chicago Pirates during tryouts, but the New York Gothams liked what they saw and signed him to a one year contract. Foreman has won 17 games so far this year for the Gothams and they rewarded him for his performance with a 4 year extension. Foreman has won 144 games in his career, against 117 losses.

Western League Notes
John McGraw of the Chicago Pirates was named Batter of the Month in the Western League. McGraw hit .441 for the month with 19 RBI and 22 runs scored. McGraw is hitting .376 for the season. McGraw was 6-6 earlier this month in the Pirates 12-5 win over the Cincinnati Cardinals.

Kid Nichols of the St. Louis Browns was 5-2 with a 1.96 ERA to pick up Pitcher of the Month honors.

Many feel that the Pitcher of the Month award should have gone to Cy Young of the Trolleys this month. Young finished the month with a 5-1 record, including two shutouts. A five hit shutout against the Minnesota Millers, and a three hit shutout against the Indianapolis Indians. Cy Young appears to have turned a corner with the Trolleys, picking up his 20th win of the season, and posting a 2.82 ERA so far this season.

Otis Stocksdale of the Chicago Pirates hit for the cycle in a game against the Indianapolis Indians. For the night Stocksdale was 4-4 with 2 RBI.

NYY #23 · 02-07-2010, 04:12 PM

Trolleys-Bisons World Series set

October 3, 1896

The Cleveland Trolleys have done one thing in their short history, dominate the Players League. Winners of three straight World Series, the Trolleys hold half of the World Series Championships. While most teams would be very happy with 109 wins, it was a down year for the Trolleys, as they only won their division by 12 games after a slow start. While the Trolleys had the second best offense this year behind the Milwaukee Broncos, the Trolleys did have the best pitching staff, allowing almost 100 less runs than the next best team.

With Cy Young (29-9, 2.40 ERA), Ned Garvin (24-14, 3.10), and Ed Doheny (23-9, 2.78) in their rotation, only the 22 year old Garvin is back in the rotation from last year. The Trolleys will be taking on the Buffalo Bisons, the 1892 World Series Champions, back on top again after finishing 98-64 to win the division by 3 games over the Washington Capitals.

Eastern League Notes
Chick Stahl of the New York Gothams was named Batter of the Month. Stahl hit .433 with 1 home run, 16 RBI, and 23 runs scored for the month, and is hitting .351 for the season.

Pitcher of the Month honors went to Chick Frasier of the Buffalo Bisons. Frasier was 6-1 with a 1.67 ERA in 59 1/3 innings. For the season Frasier is 24-14 and will prepare to take on the Trolleys in the World Series.

Tuck Turner of the Boston Americans won his third straight batting title after hitting .408. It was the third straight year Turner has hit higher than .400.

The Philadelphia Quakers have given 19 year old first baseman Frank Chance an opportunity to start. Chance has started to heat up in September, hitting .396 with 18 RBI in his last 27 games.

Western League Notes
Cy Young of the Cleveland Trolleys won the final Pitcher of the Month Award of the season after going 6-1 with a 1.45 ERA. After finishing 16-15 with a 4.57 ERA Young has improved to 29-9 with a 2.40 ERA.

The Kansas City Blues gave a chance to young left fielder Jimmy Sheckard and he rewarded them with a .456 average while hitting 2 home runs, 15 RBI, and 22 runs scored. For his efforts Sheckard took home Batter of the Month honors in the Western League.

John McGraw of the Chicago Pirates led the Western League with a .380 batting average. McGraw hit 4 home runs, and drove in 97 runs while scoring another 141.

Candy Lachance of the Chicago Pirates finished the season with a 25 game hitting streak.

Charlie Hemphill of the Milwaukee Broncos had 6 hits in a 14-1 victory over the Denver Grizzlies.

EMSoccerCoach · 02-07-2010, 04:57 PM

Thought you got lost somewhere on Internet Superhighway

Good to see you back!

Johnny Canuck · 02-07-2010, 07:40 PM

It's great to see the return of this favourite!

NYY #23 · 02-08-2010, 10:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EMSoccerCoach

Thought you got lost somewhere on Internet Superhighway

Good to see you back!

Yeah, it took me a while, but I've found my way back!

Now it's time to catch up on some threads, while trying to get back up to speed on my league!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny Canuck

It's great to see the return of this favourite!

Thank you! I won't go away for as long next time.

NYY #23 · 02-08-2010, 10:31 PM

Cleveland wins fourth straight championship
October 10, 1896

The Bisons hoped to be the team to finally knock off the Cleveland Trolleys in the World Series, and things looked good after an extra inning opening game win by the Bisons, but the Trolleys were too much for the Bisons. Cy Young and Ned Garvin each turned in stellar outings to pick up the win in games two and three, and the Trolley bats delivered the win in games 4 and 5 as the Trolleys captured their fourth straight World Series title, once again defeating the Eastern League champion in five games.

Game 1:
Bisons 8, Trolleys 7
W: Al Atkinson (1-0)
L : Ned Garvin (0-1)
HR - BUF: Frank Grant (1)

Game 2:
Trolleys 5, Bisons 2
W: Cy Young (1-0)
L : Chick Fraser (0-1)

Game 3:
Trolleys 6, Bisons 2
W: Ned Garvin (1-1)
L : Al Atkinson (1-1)

Game 4:
Trolleys 11, Bisons 5
W: Cy Young (2-0)
L : Chick Fraser (0-2)
HR - BUF: Sy Sutcliffe (1)

Game 5:
Trolleys 16, Bisons 8
W: Ed Doheny (1-0)
L : Sadie McMahon (0-1)

Players League - World Series Winners
1896 - Cleveland Trolleys (109-53) defeated the Buffalo Bisons (98-64) 4 games to 1
1895 - Cleveland Trolleys (124-38) defeated the Washington Capitals (99-63) 4 games to 1
1894 - Cleveland Trolleys (123-39) defeated the Washington Capitals (96-67) 4 games to 1
1893 - Cleveland Infants (94-56) defeated the New York Giants (82-68) 4 games to 1
1892 - Buffalo Bisons (86-64) defeated the Chicago Pirates (92-58) 4 games to 1
1891 - Baltimore Terrapins (91-59) defeated the Columbus Solons (90-61) 4 games to 3
1890 - Pittsburgh Burghers (82-58) defeated the Brooklyn Ward Wonders (90-50) 2 games to 0

NYY #23 · 02-09-2010, 07:39 PM

Turner captures third straight Batter of the Year award
November 1, 1896

Tuck Turner of the Boston Americans captured his third straight Eastern League Batter of the Year honor. Turner hit .408 with 22 doubles, 16 triples, and 4 home runs, along with 122 RBI and 118 runs scored. Tuck Turner set a record with 228 singles in a year.

John McGraw of the Chicago Pirates took home the Western League Batter of the Year award. McGraw hit .380, picking up 232 hits, 31 doubles, 13 triples, 4 home runs, 97 RBI, and scoring 141 runs. It was the second Batter of the Year award for the 23 year old.

The Cleveland Trolleys gave Cy Young another chance, and Young was good enough to win Western League Pitcher of the Year. Young finished the season 29-9 with a 2.40 ERA in 348 2/3 innings.

Another Cleveland hurler was honored, as Ed Doheny was named Rookie of the Year in the Western League after going 23-9 in 40 starts. Doheny allowed 303 hits in 308 innings, while striking out 63.

Bill Duggleby of the Philadelphia Quakers took home Pitcher of the Year honors in the Eastern League. Duggleby was 24-13 with a 2.64 ERA in 350 2/3 innings.

Myron Grimshaw of the Newark Bears was rewarded for his .357 batting average, 74 RBI, and 94 runs scored with Rookie of the Year honors.

Billy Hamilton of the Boston Americans set a record when he scored 165 runs this season, most ever in a single season.

The gold glove winners were also handed out to the following players:
Eastern League:
Pitcher: Pink Hawley (Washington Capitals)
Catcher: Ed McFarland (Brooklyn Wonders)
First Baseman: Ira Davis (Brooklyn Wonders)
Second Baseman: Frank Sexton (Baltimore Terrapins)
Third Baseman: Ben Ellis (New York Gothams)
Shortstop: Gene Demontreville (Brooklyn Wonders)
Left Fielder: Jesse Burkett (Buffalo Bisons)
Center Fielder: Frank Quinn (Buffalo Bisons)
Right Fielder: Bill Keister (Newark Bears)

Western League:
Pitcher: Kaiser Wilhelm (Denver Grizzlies)
Catcher: Dick Butler (Milwaukee Broncos)
First Baseman: Scott Hardesty (Detroit Wolverines)
Second Baseman: Otis Stocksdale (Chicago Pirates)
Third Baseman: Jim Donnelly (Cleveland Trolleys)
Shortstop: Tom Murray (Detroit Wolverines)
Left Fielder: Ed Delahanty (Cleveland Trolleys)
Center Fielder: Pat Hannifan (Kansas City Blues)
Right Fielder: Cy Seymour (Cleveland Trolleys)

----------------------------
Editor's note - Tuck Turner has been a fascinating story. Turner is 23 years old in his fifth year with Boston and has gone from a .257 hitter his first year to a perennial batting champ and Batter of the Year candidate. He is now hitting .390 for his career, with 1002 hits. In real life Turner played in parts of 6 seasons and hit .320, with 478 hits in 1496 at bats. He's already passed his career totals at this point, but it will be interesting to see how long Turner can keep playing at this level, and whether he continues to hit like a Hall of Famer.

NYY #23 · 02-11-2010, 07:03 PM

Offseason Report
April 1, 1897

It was a quiet offseason for the Players League once again, although an announcement was made that the league hopes to boost postseason excitement. While the changes will not take place until following the 1897 season the league announced that beginning with the 1898 season each league will be split into two separate divisions. The winner of each division will face off in a League Championship Series, where the first to reach four wins will advance to the World Series in an effort to boost playoff popularity.

Many teams around the league are referring to this as the 'Trolley rule' because teams in the Western League had trouble filling seats with the pennant race wrapped up early the past few years by the Cleveland Trolleys. The league is still finalizing plans, but the divisions will be split with five teams each.

One other announcement was made by the league for the 1898 season. For the first time teams in the Players League will have an affiliated minor league team where their young players can play and the team will be able to control when to promote them to the majors. After adding four teams to the League in 1894 they are being cautious and taking the time to make sure the moves don't effect competitive balance, which is one of the reasons for the early announcement.

24 year old Deacon Phillippe became a free agent for the first time in his career and jumped from the Denver Grizzlies to the Kansas City Blues. Phillippe has won 84 games in his career and will be playing in Kansas City for the next three years.

The Rebels announced that second baseman Joseph Sullivan will be playing for the team for the next four seasons. Sullivan has hit .300 for his career. The Rebels also welcomed aboard first baseman Perry Werden from the Washington Capitals.

The Philadelphia Quakers welcomed third baseman Bill Everitt to the City of Brotherly Love. Everitt has a career batting average of .329 with 313 runs and 216 RBI. The deal is expected to be for the next two years. Looking to shore up holes, the Quakers also welcomed Fred Clarke as well, signing him to a 3 year deal. The 25 year old has hit .320 in his career being used primarily as a reserve.

A look at the top 10 prospects in baseball:
1) SP - Irv Young - Indianapolis Indians
2) SP - Jack Chesbro - Denver Grizzlies
3) SP - Doc McJames - Newark Bears
4) SP - Ed Siever - Detroit Wolverines
5) SP - Eddie Plank - Denver Grizzlies
6) SP - Bill Reidy - Denver Grizzlies
7) SP - Fred Glade - Newark Bears
8) SP - Ham Iburg - Minnesota Millers
9) SP - Mike O'Neill - Boston Americans
10) SP - John Taylor - Washington Capitals

NYY #23 · 02-12-2010, 06:05 PM

McGraw starts hot; wins Batter of the Month
May 1, 1897

John McGraw of the Chicago Pirates started the season fast, winning the Batter of the Month award in the Western League. McGraw hit .469 with 1 home run, 18 RBI, and 14 runs.

(Note - I went to May 15th by mistake, so I didn't take a copy of the standings. It is a tight race in both divisions so far with four teams alive in each division - Washington, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Brooklyn in the East and Cincinnati, Detroit, Milwaukee, and St. Louis in the West. Yes, no Cleveland, at least yet…)

Eastern League Notes
Toad Ramsey of the Pittsburgh Rebels was named Eastern League Pitcher of the Month. Ramsey had a perfect 6-0 record in April with a 0.50 ERA. Ramsey needs just 18 more wins to win 200 for his career.

George Davis of the Washington Capitals was named Eastern League Batter of the Month after hitting .425 with 1 home run, 22 RBI, and 25 runs scored. Davis pounded out 6 hits in a game against the Newark Bears last week, collecting five singles and a triple.

Bill Everitt of the Philadelphia Quakers had his 30 game hitting streak snapped after an 0-1 night against the Pittsburgh Rebels. Another Quaker, Dusty Miller had a 27 game hitting streak snapped the same game.

Catcher Jack Clements of the Pittsburgh Rebels did something that never has been done before in the history of the Players League by hitting three home runs in the same game.

Western League Notes
Buttons Briggs of the Detroit Wolverines is finally giving Wolverine fans a reason to cheer. After four straight losing seasons the Wolverines are over .500 early in the season and 22 year old Briggs is one of the main reasons why. Briggs is 6-0 for the season and has a 2.04 ERA during April and was named Pitcher of the Month in the Western League. Briggs was the Wolverines first number one pick during the first inaugural draft that they participated in, and was immediately thrown into the Wolverines rotation, going 0-1, 9-29, and 18-22 his first three seasons. It looks like Briggs has begun to turn the corner.

Candy Lachance of the Chicago Pirates hit safely in 31 straight games before his hitting streak came to an end against the Milwaukee Broncos.

NYY #23 · 02-13-2010, 06:05 PM

Cardinals, Wolverines, and Browns locked in tight race in West
June 1, 1897

The Cincinnati Cardinals hold a slim one game lead over both the Detroit Wolverines and the St. Louis Browns in a tight Western League race. The Cardinals have won seven straight games to end the month as several teams are looking to end the Cleveland Trolleys run of Western League titles.

Over in the Eastern League the Washington Capitals are up by two and a half games over the Philadelphia Quakers and the Pittsburgh Rebels.

Eastern League Notes
Bill Dahlen of the Buffalo Bisons was named Batter of the Month after hitting .395 with 3 home runs, 30 RBI, and 28 runs scored. Dahlen is hitting .357 for the season.

24 year old Archie Stimmel of the Philadelphia Quakers went 5-1 with a 1.33 ERA for Pitcher of the Month honors. For the season Stimmel is 8-4.

The Quakers got some unexpected production out of rookie second baseman Danny Murphy. Murphy has hit .380 over the past month and hit safely in 26 straight games before an 0-4 night against the Baltimore Terrapins.

The New York Giants announced they will be bringing back 38 year old catcher Buck Ewing for another two seasons. While Ewing is currently hitting .361 for the season many question the wisdom of signing a 38 year old to a two year extension.

Western League Notes
Pete Conway was a perfect 6-0 for the month and earned Pitcher of the Month honors for the St. Louis Browns.

Jimmy Barrett of the Milwaukee Broncos was named Batter of the Month. Barrett hit .424 with 14 RBI and 23 runs scored.

Biff Sheehan of the Kansas City Blues hit safely in 28 straight games before running into the Indianapolis Indians.

The Milwaukee Broncos locked up third baseman Jesse Hoffmeister for another 3 years. Hoffmeister is hitting .355 for the season with 19 RBI and 18 runs scored.

EMSoccerCoach · 02-13-2010, 09:08 PM

3 homers but 30 RBIs...the Tommy Herr school of run production

10-23-2009, 12:40 AM	#121
William Foster Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 120	That early Trolleys team is certainly a powerhouse. It'll be interesting to see if they can build that into long-term success or not. Consider me signed up and rooting for the Syracuse Stars the ultimate underdogs. Kudos to you for including George Stovey the International League record-holder for wins and one of the first great black baseball players as well. __________________ Past Dynasties: The Bright Side of the Bay (Abandoned) Last edited by William Foster; 10-23-2009 at 12:41 AM.

11-23-2009, 07:36 PM	#125
EMSoccerCoach Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 2,464	What happened? Coming up on a month with no posts...hope all is ok. __________________ The Pastime Baseball League The Pastime Baseball League - 10-Year Recap The Pastime Boxing Association

02-07-2010, 04:57 PM	#132
EMSoccerCoach Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 2,464	Thought you got lost somewhere on Internet Superhighway Good to see you back! __________________ The Pastime Baseball League The Pastime Baseball League - 10-Year Recap The Pastime Boxing Association

02-13-2010, 09:08 PM	#140
EMSoccerCoach Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 2,464	3 homers but 30 RBIs...the Tommy Herr school of run production __________________ The Pastime Baseball League The Pastime Baseball League - 10-Year Recap The Pastime Boxing Association

10-27-2009, 05:11 PM	#124
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	Cardinals take control out west June 1, 1896 The Cincinnati Cardinals completed May with a 19-8 record, taking a 3 1/2 game lead over the second place Cleveland Trolleys, who have won three consecutive World Championships. Over in the Eastern League the Pittsburgh Rebels and the Buffalo Bisons are locked in a tight race for first place, with the Rebels leading the Bisons by one game. Eastern League Notes Clark Griffith of the Washington Capitals was named Eastern League Pitcher of the Month after going 6-1 with a 2.71 ERA in 63 innings of work. Dusty Miller of the Philadelphia Quakers kept a hitting streak going for 26 straight games before his streak ended in the Quakers win against the Wonders. Miller's wasn't the longest hitting streak of the month, as Chick Stahl of the Gothams put together a 27 game hitting streak before an 0-3 night in an 8-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Rebels. The Rebels are excited with what they have seen by young starter Noodles Hahn, who last year finished 16-16 in his first year with the team. Hahn was at his best when he held the Gothams to 6 hits in a shutout win to improve his record for the season to 7-2. Hank O'Day of the New York Gothams pitched a 1 hitter against the Brooklyn Wonders in a 10-0 win on May 5th. Western League Notes Frank Meinke of the St. Louis Browns won the Western League Pitcher of the Month after a 7-0 month over 63 innings while posting a 2.43 ERA. Hughie Jennings of the Cleveland Trolleys hit safely in 22 straight games before an 0-4 night against the Kansas City Blues. Milwaukee's Bill Hassamaer had a 29 game hitting streak end this month. The 31 year old Bronco only got one at-bat in the game, but was happy with the teams 6-5 victory over the Millers. Pete Conway of the St. Louis Browns signed a 5 year extension that will keep him with the team through the 1901 season. Conway has started the season 5-5 and has won 152 games in six seasons with the Browns. The Chicago Pirates also locked up second baseman Otis Stocksdale for another three years. Stocksdale is hitting .308 this season for the Pirates.

12-08-2009, 07:09 PM	#127
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	Browns take lead out west July 1, 1896 The St. Louis Browns complete a 20-8 month to make up a 6 1/2 game deficit to move into first place in the Western League, 2 games in front of the Cleveland Trolleys, and 2 1/2 games up over the Cincinnati Cardinals, who fell out of first place this month. The Browns have been one of the best teams in baseball the past two years, winning 108 and then 109 games, but all they got was a second place finish behind the World Champion Cleveland Trolleys, who have won three straight World Series. It remains to be seen whether the Browns can hold off the Trolleys this year. Eastern League Notes Jocko Halligan of the New York Gothams was named the Batter of the Month for June. Halligan hit .481 for the month with 2 home runs, 30 RBI, 21 runs scored, and 16 walks. Another Gotham, Elton Chamberlain was named the Pitcher of the Month after going 6-1 for the month. Chamberlain struck out 20 and posted a 2.47 ERA in 62 innings of work. James Cooney of the Syracuse Stars hit for the cycle in a 7-3 victory over the Baltimore Terrapins. Cooney doubled in the first, homered in the second, singled in the third, and triple in the 7th inning while driving in three runs. Cooney is hitting .314 for the season. Western League Notes Hugh Duffy of the Chicago Pirates was named Batter of the Month in the Western League for July. Duffy hit .388 with 45 hits, 3 home runs, 26 RBI, and 23 runs scored. Helping lead the Browns into first place was Pete Conway, who was named the Pitcher of the Month after going 6-1 with a 2.07 ERA in 7 starts. For the year Conway is now 12-6. Draft Recap 1 - Indianapolis Indians: SP - Irv Young 2 - Detroit Wolverines: SP - Ed Siever 3 - Kansas City Blues: LF - Jimmy Sheckard 4 - Minnesota Millers: SP - Ham Iburg 5 - Boston Americans: SP - Mike O'Neill 6 - Newark Bears: SP - Gus Thompson 7 - Syracuse Stars: SP - Alex Pearson 8 - Philadelphia Quakers: 1B - Frank Chance 9 - New York Gothams: LF - George Stone 10 - Pittsburgh Rebels: CF - Roger Bresnahan 11 - Cincinnati Cardinals: SP - Alex Hardy 12 - Brooklyn Wonders: LF - Harry Steinfeldt 13 - Denver Grizzlies: SP - Edward Murphy 14 - Buffalo Bisons: SP - Tex Neuer 15 - Baltimore Terrapins: LF - Germany Schaefer 16 - Washington Capitals: C - Peaches Graham 17 - Chicago Pirates: SP - Norwood Gibson 18 - Milwaukee Broncos: C - Bert Blue 19 - St. Louis Browns: C - Tacks Latimer 20 - Cleveland Trolleys: C - Henry Wilson

12-16-2009, 07:02 PM	#129
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	Trolleys charge back into first place August 1, 1896 The Cleveland Trolleys have won three straight World Series and proven they can't be counted out as they move into first place after two straight months in second place and have now taken a one game lead over the St. Louis Browns. In the Eastern League the Pittsburgh Rebels are leading a tightly grouped pack of five teams separated by just 1 1/2 games. Eastern League Notes Jesse Burkett of the Buffalo Bisons was named Eastern League Batter of the Month after hitting .433 for the month. Burkett picked up 42 hits in 97 at bats, including 2 home runs, 18 RBI, and 26 runs scored. For the season he is hitting .359 with 60 RBI and 100 runs scored for the fourth place Bisons. Bill Duggleby of the Philadelphia Quakers was named the Pitcher of the Month. Duggleby finished 5-2 with a 1.45 ERA for the month, and has a 16-8 record for the season. Cupid Childs of the Syracuse Stars saw a 25 game hitting streak come to an end after an 0-3 night against the Philadelphia Quakers. Childs didn't have the longest hitting streak of the month though, as that honor went to Monte Cross of the Baltimore Terrapins who hit safely in 27 straight games. Cross was 0-4 to end his streak. The Stars locked up first baseman John Carney for another three seasons. Carney is hitting .334 this season with 142 hits, 79 RBI, and 80 runs. Western League Notes Ned Garvin of the Cleveland Trolleys went 5-2 for the month to earn Pitcher of the Month honors. Garvin posted a 3.23 ERA in 64 innings for the month, and the youngster is 15-10 for the season. Honus Wagner of the Milwaukee Broncos was named Batter of the Month in the Western League. Wagner hit .378 with 2 home runs, 19 RBI, and 22 runs scored. For the season Wagner is hitting .369. During the month Wagner saw a 24 game hitting streak come to an end after an 0-3 night against the Detroit Wolverines. Times have been tough in Minnesota since the Millers entered the league, and they remain 25 1/2 games out of first place sitting in ninth place in the league. A sign of how bad things can get for the Millers? Centerfielder Frank Genins is hitting .295 for the year and has driven in 25 runs, but will miss the next week with a concussion, as his son ran into him with a bicycle. Just another example of the Millers bad luck. When catcher Mike Trost changed teams in the offseason and went from the Cleveland Trolleys to the Denver Grizzlies, it looked like the Trolleys would have trouble replacing Trost's production in the lineup. Trost hit .313 with 122 RBI, and 112 runs scored in his final year with Cleveland. The Trolleys promoted backup catcher Bill Gray to starter, and while he isn't producing at the same level as Trost, his .303 average and 50 RBI helped the Trolleys move back into first place. The Trolleys just announced that they were bringing Gray back for another 3 years.

02-07-2010, 04:07 PM	#130
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	It has certainly been a hectic few months for me, and things are starting to get back to normal, so as Spring Training is rapidly approaching, and we are buried under snow what better time to get back to the Players League. I apologize for the long delay... ------------------------------ Bakely wins 200th game of career September 1, 1896 Jersey Bakely of the Washington Capitals picked up career win number 200 in a 2-1 win against the Brooklyn Wonders. Bakely pitched a complete game, striking out 4 and walking 2 while giving up 7 hits. For his career Bakely is 200-109 with a 2.78 ERA. Bakely is in his first season with the Washington Capitals after pitching the previous six seasons for Cleveland. The Capitals are one game behind the Buffalo Bisons for the Eastern League lead. Eastern League Notes Two time Batter of the Year, Tuck Turner of the Boston Americans added another award this month, as he won Batter of the Month for the fourth time in his career. The 23 year old Turner is on pace for his third straight .400 season and posted a .441 batting average in August. Turner added 27 RBI and 20 runs scored. Turner raised his average to .409 for the season and has 95 RBI and 93 runs scored. Unfortunately for Turner, the Americans continue to struggle with a 55-78 record. Boston hasn't had a winning record since 1893, Turner's first full season in Boston. Turner will be a free agent following the 1897 season, so it will bear watching whether Turner jumps ship for greener pastures. Bill Duggleby of the Quakers was named Pitcher of the Month after going 6-1 with a 2.43 ERA. Duggleby is 22-9 for the season. The Buffalo Bisons locked up 'Wee Willie' Keeler to a 3 year extension. Keeler is hitting .404 with 74 RBI so far this year and has turned into one of the best young players in the league. The Bisons also announced they will be bringing back catcher Mike Flynn for another 3 years. Flynn is hitting .291 for the season. Socks Seybold of the Brooklyn Wonders collected 6 hits in 7 at bats in a recent 13-10 win against the Boston Americans, all singles. It was a big month for 24 game hitting streaks, as Billy Hamilton of the Boston Americans, Jack Doyle of the New York Gothams, and Patsy Tebeau of the Milwaukee Broncos all had 24 game hitting streaks end during the month. Frank Foreman has had a rough year so far, getting released by the Indianapolis Indians, and failing to impress the St. Louis Browns, Cincinnati Cardinals, Cleveland Trolleys, and the Chicago Pirates during tryouts, but the New York Gothams liked what they saw and signed him to a one year contract. Foreman has won 17 games so far this year for the Gothams and they rewarded him for his performance with a 4 year extension. Foreman has won 144 games in his career, against 117 losses. Western League Notes John McGraw of the Chicago Pirates was named Batter of the Month in the Western League. McGraw hit .441 for the month with 19 RBI and 22 runs scored. McGraw is hitting .376 for the season. McGraw was 6-6 earlier this month in the Pirates 12-5 win over the Cincinnati Cardinals. Kid Nichols of the St. Louis Browns was 5-2 with a 1.96 ERA to pick up Pitcher of the Month honors. Many feel that the Pitcher of the Month award should have gone to Cy Young of the Trolleys this month. Young finished the month with a 5-1 record, including two shutouts. A five hit shutout against the Minnesota Millers, and a three hit shutout against the Indianapolis Indians. Cy Young appears to have turned a corner with the Trolleys, picking up his 20th win of the season, and posting a 2.82 ERA so far this season. Otis Stocksdale of the Chicago Pirates hit for the cycle in a game against the Indianapolis Indians. For the night Stocksdale was 4-4 with 2 RBI.

02-07-2010, 04:12 PM	#131
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	Trolleys-Bisons World Series set October 3, 1896 The Cleveland Trolleys have done one thing in their short history, dominate the Players League. Winners of three straight World Series, the Trolleys hold half of the World Series Championships. While most teams would be very happy with 109 wins, it was a down year for the Trolleys, as they only won their division by 12 games after a slow start. While the Trolleys had the second best offense this year behind the Milwaukee Broncos, the Trolleys did have the best pitching staff, allowing almost 100 less runs than the next best team. With Cy Young (29-9, 2.40 ERA), Ned Garvin (24-14, 3.10), and Ed Doheny (23-9, 2.78) in their rotation, only the 22 year old Garvin is back in the rotation from last year. The Trolleys will be taking on the Buffalo Bisons, the 1892 World Series Champions, back on top again after finishing 98-64 to win the division by 3 games over the Washington Capitals. Eastern League Notes Chick Stahl of the New York Gothams was named Batter of the Month. Stahl hit .433 with 1 home run, 16 RBI, and 23 runs scored for the month, and is hitting .351 for the season. Pitcher of the Month honors went to Chick Frasier of the Buffalo Bisons. Frasier was 6-1 with a 1.67 ERA in 59 1/3 innings. For the season Frasier is 24-14 and will prepare to take on the Trolleys in the World Series. Tuck Turner of the Boston Americans won his third straight batting title after hitting .408. It was the third straight year Turner has hit higher than .400. The Philadelphia Quakers have given 19 year old first baseman Frank Chance an opportunity to start. Chance has started to heat up in September, hitting .396 with 18 RBI in his last 27 games. Western League Notes Cy Young of the Cleveland Trolleys won the final Pitcher of the Month Award of the season after going 6-1 with a 1.45 ERA. After finishing 16-15 with a 4.57 ERA Young has improved to 29-9 with a 2.40 ERA. The Kansas City Blues gave a chance to young left fielder Jimmy Sheckard and he rewarded them with a .456 average while hitting 2 home runs, 15 RBI, and 22 runs scored. For his efforts Sheckard took home Batter of the Month honors in the Western League. John McGraw of the Chicago Pirates led the Western League with a .380 batting average. McGraw hit 4 home runs, and drove in 97 runs while scoring another 141. Candy Lachance of the Chicago Pirates finished the season with a 25 game hitting streak. Charlie Hemphill of the Milwaukee Broncos had 6 hits in a 14-1 victory over the Denver Grizzlies.

02-07-2010, 07:40 PM	#133
Johnny Canuck Minors (Single A) Join Date: May 2006 Location: Brampton, Ontario Posts: 93	It's great to see the return of this favourite!

02-08-2010, 10:31 PM	#135
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	Cleveland wins fourth straight championship October 10, 1896 The Bisons hoped to be the team to finally knock off the Cleveland Trolleys in the World Series, and things looked good after an extra inning opening game win by the Bisons, but the Trolleys were too much for the Bisons. Cy Young and Ned Garvin each turned in stellar outings to pick up the win in games two and three, and the Trolley bats delivered the win in games 4 and 5 as the Trolleys captured their fourth straight World Series title, once again defeating the Eastern League champion in five games. Game 1: Bisons 8, Trolleys 7 W: Al Atkinson (1-0) L : Ned Garvin (0-1) HR - BUF: Frank Grant (1) Game 2: Trolleys 5, Bisons 2 W: Cy Young (1-0) L : Chick Fraser (0-1) Game 3: Trolleys 6, Bisons 2 W: Ned Garvin (1-1) L : Al Atkinson (1-1) Game 4: Trolleys 11, Bisons 5 W: Cy Young (2-0) L : Chick Fraser (0-2) HR - BUF: Sy Sutcliffe (1) Game 5: Trolleys 16, Bisons 8 W: Ed Doheny (1-0) L : Sadie McMahon (0-1) Players League - World Series Winners 1896 - Cleveland Trolleys (109-53) defeated the Buffalo Bisons (98-64) 4 games to 1 1895 - Cleveland Trolleys (124-38) defeated the Washington Capitals (99-63) 4 games to 1 1894 - Cleveland Trolleys (123-39) defeated the Washington Capitals (96-67) 4 games to 1 1893 - Cleveland Infants (94-56) defeated the New York Giants (82-68) 4 games to 1 1892 - Buffalo Bisons (86-64) defeated the Chicago Pirates (92-58) 4 games to 1 1891 - Baltimore Terrapins (91-59) defeated the Columbus Solons (90-61) 4 games to 3 1890 - Pittsburgh Burghers (82-58) defeated the Brooklyn Ward Wonders (90-50) 2 games to 0

02-09-2010, 07:39 PM	#136
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	Turner captures third straight Batter of the Year award November 1, 1896 Tuck Turner of the Boston Americans captured his third straight Eastern League Batter of the Year honor. Turner hit .408 with 22 doubles, 16 triples, and 4 home runs, along with 122 RBI and 118 runs scored. Tuck Turner set a record with 228 singles in a year. John McGraw of the Chicago Pirates took home the Western League Batter of the Year award. McGraw hit .380, picking up 232 hits, 31 doubles, 13 triples, 4 home runs, 97 RBI, and scoring 141 runs. It was the second Batter of the Year award for the 23 year old. The Cleveland Trolleys gave Cy Young another chance, and Young was good enough to win Western League Pitcher of the Year. Young finished the season 29-9 with a 2.40 ERA in 348 2/3 innings. Another Cleveland hurler was honored, as Ed Doheny was named Rookie of the Year in the Western League after going 23-9 in 40 starts. Doheny allowed 303 hits in 308 innings, while striking out 63. Bill Duggleby of the Philadelphia Quakers took home Pitcher of the Year honors in the Eastern League. Duggleby was 24-13 with a 2.64 ERA in 350 2/3 innings. Myron Grimshaw of the Newark Bears was rewarded for his .357 batting average, 74 RBI, and 94 runs scored with Rookie of the Year honors. Billy Hamilton of the Boston Americans set a record when he scored 165 runs this season, most ever in a single season. The gold glove winners were also handed out to the following players: Eastern League: Pitcher: Pink Hawley (Washington Capitals) Catcher: Ed McFarland (Brooklyn Wonders) First Baseman: Ira Davis (Brooklyn Wonders) Second Baseman: Frank Sexton (Baltimore Terrapins) Third Baseman: Ben Ellis (New York Gothams) Shortstop: Gene Demontreville (Brooklyn Wonders) Left Fielder: Jesse Burkett (Buffalo Bisons) Center Fielder: Frank Quinn (Buffalo Bisons) Right Fielder: Bill Keister (Newark Bears) Western League: Pitcher: Kaiser Wilhelm (Denver Grizzlies) Catcher: Dick Butler (Milwaukee Broncos) First Baseman: Scott Hardesty (Detroit Wolverines) Second Baseman: Otis Stocksdale (Chicago Pirates) Third Baseman: Jim Donnelly (Cleveland Trolleys) Shortstop: Tom Murray (Detroit Wolverines) Left Fielder: Ed Delahanty (Cleveland Trolleys) Center Fielder: Pat Hannifan (Kansas City Blues) Right Fielder: Cy Seymour (Cleveland Trolleys) ---------------------------- Editor's note - Tuck Turner has been a fascinating story. Turner is 23 years old in his fifth year with Boston and has gone from a .257 hitter his first year to a perennial batting champ and Batter of the Year candidate. He is now hitting .390 for his career, with 1002 hits. In real life Turner played in parts of 6 seasons and hit .320, with 478 hits in 1496 at bats. He's already passed his career totals at this point, but it will be interesting to see how long Turner can keep playing at this level, and whether he continues to hit like a Hall of Famer.

02-11-2010, 07:03 PM	#137
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	Offseason Report April 1, 1897 It was a quiet offseason for the Players League once again, although an announcement was made that the league hopes to boost postseason excitement. While the changes will not take place until following the 1897 season the league announced that beginning with the 1898 season each league will be split into two separate divisions. The winner of each division will face off in a League Championship Series, where the first to reach four wins will advance to the World Series in an effort to boost playoff popularity. Many teams around the league are referring to this as the 'Trolley rule' because teams in the Western League had trouble filling seats with the pennant race wrapped up early the past few years by the Cleveland Trolleys. The league is still finalizing plans, but the divisions will be split with five teams each. One other announcement was made by the league for the 1898 season. For the first time teams in the Players League will have an affiliated minor league team where their young players can play and the team will be able to control when to promote them to the majors. After adding four teams to the League in 1894 they are being cautious and taking the time to make sure the moves don't effect competitive balance, which is one of the reasons for the early announcement. 24 year old Deacon Phillippe became a free agent for the first time in his career and jumped from the Denver Grizzlies to the Kansas City Blues. Phillippe has won 84 games in his career and will be playing in Kansas City for the next three years. The Rebels announced that second baseman Joseph Sullivan will be playing for the team for the next four seasons. Sullivan has hit .300 for his career. The Rebels also welcomed aboard first baseman Perry Werden from the Washington Capitals. The Philadelphia Quakers welcomed third baseman Bill Everitt to the City of Brotherly Love. Everitt has a career batting average of .329 with 313 runs and 216 RBI. The deal is expected to be for the next two years. Looking to shore up holes, the Quakers also welcomed Fred Clarke as well, signing him to a 3 year deal. The 25 year old has hit .320 in his career being used primarily as a reserve. A look at the top 10 prospects in baseball: 1) SP - Irv Young - Indianapolis Indians 2) SP - Jack Chesbro - Denver Grizzlies 3) SP - Doc McJames - Newark Bears 4) SP - Ed Siever - Detroit Wolverines 5) SP - Eddie Plank - Denver Grizzlies 6) SP - Bill Reidy - Denver Grizzlies 7) SP - Fred Glade - Newark Bears 8) SP - Ham Iburg - Minnesota Millers 9) SP - Mike O'Neill - Boston Americans 10) SP - John Taylor - Washington Capitals

02-12-2010, 06:05 PM	#138
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	McGraw starts hot; wins Batter of the Month May 1, 1897 John McGraw of the Chicago Pirates started the season fast, winning the Batter of the Month award in the Western League. McGraw hit .469 with 1 home run, 18 RBI, and 14 runs. (Note - I went to May 15th by mistake, so I didn't take a copy of the standings. It is a tight race in both divisions so far with four teams alive in each division - Washington, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Brooklyn in the East and Cincinnati, Detroit, Milwaukee, and St. Louis in the West. Yes, no Cleveland, at least yet…) Eastern League Notes Toad Ramsey of the Pittsburgh Rebels was named Eastern League Pitcher of the Month. Ramsey had a perfect 6-0 record in April with a 0.50 ERA. Ramsey needs just 18 more wins to win 200 for his career. George Davis of the Washington Capitals was named Eastern League Batter of the Month after hitting .425 with 1 home run, 22 RBI, and 25 runs scored. Davis pounded out 6 hits in a game against the Newark Bears last week, collecting five singles and a triple. Bill Everitt of the Philadelphia Quakers had his 30 game hitting streak snapped after an 0-1 night against the Pittsburgh Rebels. Another Quaker, Dusty Miller had a 27 game hitting streak snapped the same game. Catcher Jack Clements of the Pittsburgh Rebels did something that never has been done before in the history of the Players League by hitting three home runs in the same game. Western League Notes Buttons Briggs of the Detroit Wolverines is finally giving Wolverine fans a reason to cheer. After four straight losing seasons the Wolverines are over .500 early in the season and 22 year old Briggs is one of the main reasons why. Briggs is 6-0 for the season and has a 2.04 ERA during April and was named Pitcher of the Month in the Western League. Briggs was the Wolverines first number one pick during the first inaugural draft that they participated in, and was immediately thrown into the Wolverines rotation, going 0-1, 9-29, and 18-22 his first three seasons. It looks like Briggs has begun to turn the corner. Candy Lachance of the Chicago Pirates hit safely in 31 straight games before his hitting streak came to an end against the Milwaukee Broncos.

02-13-2010, 06:05 PM	#139
NYY #23 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 13,112	Cardinals, Wolverines, and Browns locked in tight race in West June 1, 1897 The Cincinnati Cardinals hold a slim one game lead over both the Detroit Wolverines and the St. Louis Browns in a tight Western League race. The Cardinals have won seven straight games to end the month as several teams are looking to end the Cleveland Trolleys run of Western League titles. Over in the Eastern League the Washington Capitals are up by two and a half games over the Philadelphia Quakers and the Pittsburgh Rebels. Eastern League Notes Bill Dahlen of the Buffalo Bisons was named Batter of the Month after hitting .395 with 3 home runs, 30 RBI, and 28 runs scored. Dahlen is hitting .357 for the season. 24 year old Archie Stimmel of the Philadelphia Quakers went 5-1 with a 1.33 ERA for Pitcher of the Month honors. For the season Stimmel is 8-4. The Quakers got some unexpected production out of rookie second baseman Danny Murphy. Murphy has hit .380 over the past month and hit safely in 26 straight games before an 0-4 night against the Baltimore Terrapins. The New York Giants announced they will be bringing back 38 year old catcher Buck Ewing for another two seasons. While Ewing is currently hitting .361 for the season many question the wisdom of signing a 38 year old to a two year extension. Western League Notes Pete Conway was a perfect 6-0 for the month and earned Pitcher of the Month honors for the St. Louis Browns. Jimmy Barrett of the Milwaukee Broncos was named Batter of the Month. Barrett hit .424 with 14 RBI and 23 runs scored. Biff Sheehan of the Kansas City Blues hit safely in 28 straight games before running into the Indianapolis Indians. The Milwaukee Broncos locked up third baseman Jesse Hoffmeister for another 3 years. Hoffmeister is hitting .355 for the season with 19 RBI and 18 runs scored.