The Level Playing Field: Alternate MLB History From 1884-Onward

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The 1896 NLCS was the second playoff series in MLB history to have one team win the first three games, then lose the next three. The very first World Series between Chicago squads in 1884 had this. The White Sox ultimately avoided blowing the 3-0 lead by taking game seven against the Cubs. The 1896 ALCS would be historic as well as the first playoff series to feature a game seven that went extra innings.

It was a beautiful sunny 56 degree Thursday afternoon in front of 18399 fans at Indianapolis’s West Washington Street Park. Philadelphia ran into early trouble as starting pitcher Jack Jones suffered an elbow strain to end his day. The Clowns got four runs between innings 4-6 while the Phillies got one. Philadelphia tied it up at 4-4 with a three-run seventh inning. That score held until the tenth inning.

In the bottom half, Indy’s Fred Clarke drew a one-out walk. After stealing second, Philly intentionally walked Bill Lange. Pat Sullivan singled next to load the bases, followed by a fielder’s choice by Dummy Hoy with the force play at home. Pinch hitter Ed Flanagan, who had all of 57 at-bats in the regular season, came through with the RBI single to right field to walk off the game and series with a 5-4 score.



It was the third pennant for Indianapolis (1885, 1888, 1896). Jouett Meekin had a workhouse game seven, pitching all ten innings with only one earned run allowed, eight hits, three walks, and nine strikeouts. CF Bill Lange was series MVP going 12-28 with two homers, five RBI, and nine runs. He was 2-4 with two runs and a walk in the finale.

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The 13th World Series was the second time that Milwaukee and Indianapolis had met in the finale. Back in 1888, the Brewers won 4-3 in their first and lone appearance. The Clowns had won the crown previously in 1885 against the Chicago White Sox, also in seven games. The Brewers had home field advantage having won four more games than Indy.



The series opened with drama as a pitcher’s duel needed 12 innings. In the bottom half, Willie Keeler hit a solo homer to win it at home 3-2 for the Brewers. Keeler had also hit a solo homer back in the fourth inning. Tom Vickery pitched all 11.1 innings in the loss for Indianapolis. Milwaukee had 7.1 innings from Brickyard Kennedy, then 4.2 scoreless innings from Stub Brown in relief.



Indianapolis evened the series on a 5-0 road win with one of the all-time playoff pitching performances by Lady Baldwin. The 37-year old lefty tossed a one-hit shutout, striking out four with one hit batsmen over 88 pitches. RF Biff Sheehan had two solo homers for the Clowns.



In game three, Indianapolis jumped ahead on a four-run third inning with Fred Clarke’s grand slam. Despite getting only three hits for the game, the Clowns survived for the 4-3 home win to take the series lead. Ed Stein pitched seven innings, giving up three runs (two earned) and five this with six strikeouts. Bill Blair pitched the final two innings clean for the save.



Indianapolis claimed a 2-1 pitcher’s duel in game four to go ahead 3-1 for the series. Fred Clarke had the go-ahead sacrifice fly in the eighth inning. Jouett Meekin pitched seven innings, scaterring eight hits with an unearned run and six Ks. Bill Blair gave up one hit with four Ks in the final two innings in relief. Milwaukee’s Herb Goodall had his own quality start in defeat with two runs allowed in seven innings.



Milwaukee forced the World Series back to their home diamond on a 3-0 road win over Indianapolis in game five. Brickyard Kennedy tossed a five-hit shutout, striking out three with three walks over 122 pitches.



After great pitching was a feature for much of the 1896 World Series, Indianapolis ended things with an offensive explosion in game six. The 11-3 final clinched the series on the road for the Clowns to earn their second title. The run of parity continues with nine different champions in as many years. It was notably only the third title for a National League team.

It was a balanced effort by the offense, although Fred Clarke notably homered and doubled with three runs and two RBI. Lady Baldwin didn’t need to be excellent on the mound, but still tossed a complete game with six hits allowed and three Ks. CF Bill Lange was series MVP going 10-23 with a homer and four RBI. He joins Tony Mullane, Fred Roat, and Dick Johnston as players to win both World Series MVP and LCS MVP in the same postseason run.



Milwaukee’s Willie Keeler notably set a postseason record for total bases (43) and home runs (7). Brewers teammate Tom Parrott set the new playoff high mark of eight doubles.

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New York Yankees DH/OF/P Pat Luby won American League Most Valuable Player for 1896 with 20 first place votes. It was a surprise for many who thought Milwaukee RF Willie Keeler was the favorite. Keeler had the other four first place votes and was the leader in hits (235), average (.401), OBP (.448), OPS (1.073), and wRC+ (196) with 9.3 WAR.

It was Luby’s second MVP, having also won in 1891 with Detroit. He signed with the Yankees for 1896 and smacked 49 home runs, notably the only player with 40+ this year. It was his third season of 40+ dingers and he led with a .652 slugging percentage. The 26-year old lefty bat had 149 hits, 101 runs, 117 RBI, .300/.357/.652 slash, 1.009 OPS, 174 wRC+, and 6.2 WAR. A two-way player, Luby also had 2.4 WAR pitching with a 3.09 ERA over 198.1 innings, 16-5 record, 82 strikeouts, 143 ERA+, and 92 FIP-.

New York’s other big free agent signing was George Davies, who won Pitcher of the Year unanimously in his Yankees debut. The 28-year old righty won the ERA title (2.31) and led in quality starts (27) and shutouts (5). Davies had a 21-11 record, 292.1 innings, 206 strikeouts, 191 ERA+, 72 FIP-, and 7.1 WAR. While Luby’s deal only has two more years, Davies is signed through 1902.

The Yankees also had the runner up for Rookie of the Year Nap Lajoie, who got nine first place votes and posted a .892 OPS and 4.9 WAR over 121 games. He lost out to St. Louis SS Jimmy Sheckard, who got 14 first place votes. The #6 pick by the Browns, Sheckard had 3.9 WAR, .922 OPS, 151 wRC+, 148 hits, 29 doubles, 32 home runs, and 103 RBI. He also won a Silver Slugger.

Manager of the Year was a rare win by someone whose team missed the playoffs. Kansas City was second in the AL West at 92-70, but it was a franchise record for the Royals. Cal McVey was the skipper in his fourth year at the helm and has a 337-311 record thus far leading KC.

Minnesota CF Hugh Duffy joined Mike Tiernan as the only ten-time Silver Slugger winners in MLB history. Chicago 1B Duke Farrell won his eighth, Washington 2B Ed Delahanty got his sixth, and Milwaukee RF Willie Keeler earned his fourth. Both Detroit C Tom Daly and Kansas City CF Jim Fogarty became four-time Gold Glove winners. Nationals P Scott Stratton and Tigers 3B Billy Clingman both won their third.

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RF Jimmy Ryan won his second National League Most Valuable Player award (1892) and first since getting traded by Louisville to Buffalo for 1894. Injuries had plagued him his first two years with the Bisons, but Ryan looked like his old self in a healthy 1896. He had 15 first place votes while Indianapolis LF Fred Clarke had the other nine. Clarke was the league leader for hits (213) and total bases (354) with 7.7 WAR.

For the 33-year old Ryan, he led in doubles (51), RBI (128), triple slash (.367/.445/.644), OPS (1.089), wRC+ (192), and WAR (9.5). He added 199 hits, 114 runs, 27 home runs, and 73 stolen bases. Ryan also won his ninth Silver Slugger in RF and is signed through 1898 for Buffalo.

Ryan through 12 seasons has 2009 hits, 1291 runs, 421 doubles, 399 home runs, 1317 RBI, .335/.418/.626 slash, 181 wRC+, and 95.2 WAR. He is second in WAR among position players behind Mike Tiernan’s 99.09. Two-way man Charlie Ferguson is the overall WARlord with 68.7 pitching and 55.2 batting for 123.9 total. George Van Haltren also has 105.7 as a two-way player.

Second-year lefty Jerry Nops of Pittsburgh won Pitcher of the Year with 19 first place votes. Louisville’s Bobby Wallace had three first place votes, while New York’s Joe Corbett and St. Louis’s Mickey Welch had one each. Nops was the leader for ERA (2.51), WAR (8.8), and FIP- (68). He got the nod even with an 11-12 record, the first to win POTY with a losing record. Nops had 280 innings with 203 strikeouts and 151 ERA+.

Boston’s Cy Seymour was the unanimous Rookie of the Year as his 297 strikeouts were the third-most in a single-season by any pitcher. The #5 pick also had the most walks in the NL at 139. Seymour tossed 287.1 innings for a 3.41 ERA, 12-20 record, 121 ERA+, 80 FIP-, and 6.8 WAR.

World Series winner Jake Goodman won Manager of the Year in his fifth season with Indianapolis. The 43-year old took over a team that was 63-99 in 1891 and stayed in last place his first two years. The Clowns were patient during the rebuild, as they got back above .500 for 1894-95. They were rewarded with the top trophy in 1896.

Buffalo two-way man Adonis Terry won his fifth Silver Slugger as a pitcher while Indianapolis CF Bill Lange also got his fifth and New York 3B Charlie Irwin earned his fourth. Irwin also grabbed his fourth Gold Glove, as did Philadelphia’s Charlie Duffee. Winning their third Gold Gloves was Phillies SS Herman Long, Bisons 1B Skyrocket Smith, and Braves RF Chicken Wolf.

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The big manager firing was the Philadelphia Phillies booting Ross Barnes to the shock of many. In six seasons, he had an impressive 575-397 record, including the historic 115-47 mark in 1894. The Phillies won the NL pennant in 1894-95 and were a playoff team again in 1896. However, their failures in the World Series with lofty expectations led to his dismissal despite an outstanding reputation for Barnes.

Replacing Barnes would be a known commodity in 48-year old Al Pratt, who had been the bench coach for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1884-88 and the Chicago Cubs manager from 1889-94. The Cubs won division titles in 1891-92, but failed to win the NL pennant. Phillies management though seemed convinced that Pratt could get them across the line where Barnes couldn’t.

The big offseason trade saw former Pitcher of the Year Amos Rusie on the move after eight years with Cincinnati. The Reds had signed him to a seven-year, $258,800 extension after the 1895 season. But the relationship soured in 1896, thus he was traded to the Chicago White Sox for five prospects; none of which have a potential rating above 45. Rusie was still strong last year and will only be 26, making it a potential big score for Chicago.

Another notable saw former all-star 2B Heinie Reitz on the move after five seasons with Washington. He was sent to the New York Giants for three prospects. One of which was IF Tom Delahanty, which unites him on the Nationals with his brother Ed. In other news, Phillies ace Silver King inked a six-year, $271,600 extension.

The 1896 amateur draft had 14 rounds worth of players. Detroit had the #1 pick and selected Honus Wagner. He and #2 pick SP Rube Waddell to the Boston Braves both have 80-grade potential ratings along with #6 pick SS Jimmy Williams to New Orleans. Notably refusing to sign was #8 pick OF Danny Green with the Athletics. Below are the top 50 picks from the draft.



Free agency didn’t have many huge names for position players, but did have a number of solid veteran pitchers. The top deal by far went to three-time Silver Slugger SS Bill Dahlen, formerly with the White Sox. Injuries had limited Dahlen, but Brooklyn was convinced he could be a massive star. The Dodgers gave Bad Bill an eight-year, $472,000 deal with a player opt-out after his second year. This is the second-largest deal in baseball behind Mike Tiernan’s $494,000 contract with Pittsburgh.

Three-time Silver Slugger and Gold Glove CF Mike Griffin was also available. He was famously the trade piece from Buffalo to Louisville in the Jimmy Ryan deal. The 32-year old joined the Chicago Cubs at $285,800 over five years. The Cubs also picked up former World Series MVP Fred Roat at 2B to a five-year deal.

The top pitchers saw George Cuppy on a five-year, $183,400 deal to the White Sox and Jim Delvin at $163,600 over five years to the Cardinals. Former two-time Pitcher of the Year Toad Ramsey joined Pittsburgh on a four-year, $44,000 deal. MLB’s all-time strikeout leader missed much of 1896 with a torn elbow ligament from the prior fall. Below are the other top free agent signings.



In other news of the time, the 1896 presidential election was guaranteed a new American leader, as the incumbent Democrat Grover Cleveland didn’t seek re-election. Republican William McKinley, the former governor of Ohio, won the Electoral College 271-176 against the Democrats’ William Jennings Bryan, who was a house representative from Nebraska.

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Above are the top hitters entering the 1897 season.



Above are the top pitchers entering the year.

Below is the all-time leaderboard entering the season and important milestones that may be met.

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Through April 1897, Kansas City had the American League’s best record at 17-11. Defending champ Milwaukee (16-12), and St. Louis (15-12) were close behind in the AL West. In the AL East, Philadelphia and Boston were tied for first at 16-12 and New York was 15-13.

AL Batter of the Month was Brewers RF Willie Keeler with a .407 average, 4 home runs, 18 RBI, and 22 runs. KC’s Walter Thornton was Pitcher of the Month with a 2.43 ERA, 6-1 record, and 45 strikeouts over 55.2 innings. Yankees RF Danny Green was Rookie of the Month with a .313 average, 5 homers, 19 RBI, and 16 runs. Green was the #8 pick by the Athletics in the draft, but didn’t sign and was granted free agency, getting picked up by New York. In AL injury news, Washington 2B Ed Delahanty is out six weeks with a fractured hand and Browns 2B Ed McKean is out 7-8 weeks with back spasms.

Cincinnati led the majors at 18-10 atop the National League West Division through the first month of the 1897 season. Louisville (15-13) and St. Louis (14-14) were next in the West while reigning World Series champ Indianapolis was off to a weak 11-17 start. Boston led the NL East at 17-11 while Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Brooklyn were each 15-13 and Buffalo was 14-14.

NL Batter of the Month for April was Reds RF Kip Selbach with a .393 average, 4 home runs, 22 RBI, and 20 runs. Toad Ramsey was Pitcher of the Month in his debut with Pittsburgh, posting a 2.36 ERA over 49.2 innings, 6-0 record, and 25 Ks. Rookie of the Month was Cincinnati’s #17 pick Cowboy Jones, tossing 49.2 innings with a 2.72 ERA, 42 Ks, and 5-1 record.



The first no-hitter of the season came from Louisville’s Elmer Smith against Indianapolis on April 3. He struck out 12 and walked three over 128 pitches. On April 27, New Orleans’ Ted Breitenstein threw the second no-no against Chicago, striking out seven with five walks over 122 pitches. Breitenstein joined Toad Ramsey and Mark Baldwin as the pitchers with multiple no-hitters for their career. Milwaukee had two players with 21-game hit streaks carrying over from last season; General Stafford and Willie Keeler.

In milestones, Buffalo’s Jimmy Ryan became the third member of the 400 home run club. Cleveland’s Henry Moore and Baltimore’s Pete Browning became the third and fourth to 2500 hits. Pittsburgh’s Mike Tiernan became the first to 1500 RBI. Athletics CF Jim McTamany became the third to 800 stolen bases.

Milwaukee’s Lee Viau reached 2000 strikeouts and Kansas City’s Bid McPhee got to 2000 hits. Washington’s Ed Delahanty reached 600 stolen bases. The Cubs’ Mike Griffin and Athletics’ Jack Rowe both got to 1000 RBI. KC’s Podge Weihe reached 300 home runs. In other sporting news, April 19 marked the first-ever Boston Marathon.

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Milwaukee has the American League’s top record after May at 34-22, going 8-2 to end the month. Kansas City is a close second in the AL West at 32-24, followed by Minnesota (29-27) and St. Louis (28-27). Philadelphia leads the AL East at 33-25 with Boston (31-25), Baltimore (28-28), and New York (27-29) next. Washington is surprisingly in last at 21-35.

Brewers RF Willie Keeler repeated as AL Batter of the Month after a .420 average, 5 homers, 27 RBI, and 20 runs in May. Minnesota lefty Fritz Clausen was Pitcher of the Month with a 5-0 record, 1.12 ERA, and 32 strikeouts over 48.1 innings. New York RF Danny Green was Rookie of the Month again with a .337 average, 34 hits, 9 home runs, and 24 RBI. Green also had a 21-game hitting streak that ended on May 4.

Cincinnati holds the top spot in the National League at 34-22. Louisville at 31-25 is three behind in the NL West. After a terrible April, defending World Series champ Indianapolis went 18-10 in May to improve to 29-27. Boston sits atop the NL East at 32-24. Philadelphia is 29-27, then Pittsburgh, New York, and Buffalo are 28-28 and Brooklyn is 27-29.

Pirates LF Mike Tiernan won NL Batter of the Month on a .404 average, 40 hits, 7 homers, 18 RBI, and 19 runs. Tiernan also became the first position player with 100+ career WAR. Clowns righty Sadie McMahon was Pitcher of the Month on a 2.36 ERA, 5-0 record, and 24 Ks in 42 innings. Braves #2 pick Rube Waddell was Rookie of the Month on a 2.06 ERA, 4-1 record, and 48 Ks in 52.1 innings. In bad news for the Cubs, CF Mike Griffin is out three months from torn ankle ligaments.

Kansas City’s Jim Fogarty went 6-6 against Baltimore on May 23, which was the first six-hit game since September 1895. Minnesota’s Brownie Foreman tied the single-game strikeout record with 16 against Milwaukee on May 3. Five pitchers have had 16 K games, although Foreman was the second to do it without extra innings. Boston’s Sport McAllister and Louisville’s John Tener both hit for the cycle in May.

In milestones, Baltimore’s Dan Brouthers became the first to 1500 runs scored. Browns SP Bob Black became the second with 2500 career strikeouts. Joining the 2000 hit club was Cubs CF Curt Welch, Braves 2B Jack Glasscock, Twins CF Hugh Duffy, and Nationals 1B George Tebeau. Buffalo’s Adonis Terry and Pittsburgh’s Toad Ramsey were the 10th and 11th to 200 wins on the mound. Terry also reached 600 stolen bases along with Cardinals 2B Barney McLauhglin. Phillies CF Charlie Duffee and Giants CF Billy Sunday both breached 1000 runs scored.

Elsewhere in the world, May 14 had the first performance of The Stars and Stripes Forever by composer John Philip Sousa. This march would eventually be named as the National March of the United States of America.

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Defending American League champ Milwaukee remained the AL’s top squad entering the 1897 all-star break at 50-31. Minnesota moved up to second place in the AL West at 46-35 after a 17-8 run in June. Kansas City struggled in June, falling to eight games back at 42-39. Boston jumped into the AL East lead at 47-34 after a 16-9 June. Philadelphia went 12-13 and lost the lead, two back now at 45-36. The rest of the division is below .500.

For the third consecutive month, Brewers RF Willie Keeler was AL Batter of the Month. He had a .489 average, 5 home runs, 18 RBI, and 26 runs in June. At the break, Keeler leads the majors in batting average (.436), OPS (1.132), WAR (6.2), hits (134), and runs (68). Milwaukee also had Pitcher of the Month Herb Goodall with a 1.04 ERA, 5-0 record, and 21 strikeouts over 52 innings. Detroit had the Rookie of the Month George Stultz, a third round pick from 1893. Stultz posted a 3.04 ERA in 50.1 innings, 23 Ks, and 5-1 record.

Cincinnati has MLB’s best record atop the National League West Division at 51-30, going 8-2 in their final ten games. Indianapolis is a distant second, nine back at 42-39. The NL East is still completely up for grabs with all six teams separated by only four games. Boston leads at 44-37, but Brooklyn (43-38), Philadelphia (42-39), Buffalo (41-40), Pittsburgh (41-40), and New York (40-41) are all right there.

Giants 2B Heinie Reitz was NL Batter of the Month with a .386 average, 4 homers, 21 RBI, and 16 runs. Cincinnati’s Cowboy Jones was Pitcher and Rookie of the Month in June with a 2.32 ERA, 4-2 record, and 47 Ks over 50.1 innings. In bad news for the Cubs, 2B Fred Roat is out of the season with a concussion.



Athletics SP Jack Stivetts hit for the cycle on June 19 against Baltimore. He became the fourth player to hit for the cycle twice in a career. Orioles 1B Dan Brouthers became the second to 1500 career RBI. Phillies SP Jack Jones earned his 200th win.

Reaching 1000 RBI was White Sox 1B Harry Stovey, Cleveland’s George Van Haltren, and Cardinals 3B Denny Lyons. Lyons and Brooklyn’s Buster Hoover both crossed 800 stolen bases. Boston’s Charlie Ferguson and Pittsburgh’s Parson Nicholson both earned their 600th swipe. Louisville C Joe Flynn and teammate Germany Smith reached 2000 hits. Detroit’s Ed Swartwood reached 1000 runs scored and Minnesota’s Dick Johnston reached 300 home runs.

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The 1897 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was held at Buffalo’s Olympic Park. Above are the rosters for the event. The Home Run Challenge was won by Washington 3B Jud Smith, who edged Detroit rookie Honus Wagner 7-6 in the final round.

The National League won 9-3 over the American League. The NL has won back-to-back, but still trail 10-4 in the overall series. Phillies OF Joe Kelley was named MVP, scoring twice with a two-run home run and a walk.