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1858 NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE REVIEW

NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE SEASON SUMMARY

Season number two of the Northeastern League was not as straightforward as last year’s inaugural edition. Instead of all three championship subdivision favorites making the playoffs, only one of the three made the Tucker-Wheaton Cup playoffs in 1858. That team, of course, was St. John’s Baseball Club. Favorites for the year-end awards fell by the wayside in that became the “Year of the Newcomer”, and in the end a N.E.L. club hoisted the Tucker-Wheaton Cup again.

The race to win the Coastal Championship was even better than it was last year. At the start of June there was a four-way tie at the top – Mass. Bay, Olympic, Quaker St., & Trenton Utd. all at 12-8. By mid-June Mass. Bay had gone two games in front thanks to a 20-10 record. However, Quaker St. reeled off eleven wins in twelve games to take the Coastal lead by the start of July. In Mid-July the Philadelphia club remained a game ahead of Trenton, but with two weeks of play left Trenton had moved a game in front with a 38-22 record. Originally picked to finish fifth by the Preseason Writers’ Poll, Trenton managed to hold off three other teams to win the Coastal Championship, with Shamrock finishing a game back, Mass. Bay & Quaker St. two back, and Port Jersey in fifth place at four games off the pace.

For the second year in a row the Inland Championship was a tale of two teams, and for the second year in a row those two teams were Alleghany B.C. and a team that was the biggest surprise in the N.B.B.O. Last year that team was Scranton, but this year it was Reading Athletic. Reading had a blistering hot start to the season, going 16-4 in May to have a clear lead after the season’s first month. Their form didn’t let up – Reading was 17-5 in July, but their 33-9 record saw them only four games ahead of Alleghany atop the standings. Reading then won eight of their first ten games in July to move their record to 41-11 to go seven games up on Alleghany, and from there they were able to ease on in to the Coastal championship by four games.

The New England Championship went exactly as expected, though it took a bit to get there. After one month of play St. John’s was 14-6, but they were only in second place thanks to Green Mtn’s N.B.B.O.-best 17-3 start. That form didn’t last, St. John’s was in first by the start of July, and the defending cup winners took the pennant by eight games. They didn’t score the expected nine runs per game, but their offense was still the best in the entire N.B.B.O. and their Run Differential of +199 (+2.8 R/G) was far and away the best.

Reading Athletic were the favorites for the N.E.L. Semi-Final series, though their difference in record with Trenton Utd. was a bit deceiving given just how tough the Coastal Championship is. Nonetheless, Reading advanced in four games.

• GAME ONE was a defensive affair – Reading winning 4-2 at home and outhitting Trenton 9-7. Pitcher Jonathan Lissey earned P.o.t.G. honors thanks to a Complete Game win in which he allowed zero Earned Runs. Reading’s runs were scored by Leonard Hutchinson & William Moore, with both scoring twice.

• GAME TWO had more scoring, with most of it coming in the second half of the contest. Trenton was up 2-1 going into the Reading half of the sixth, but the hosts scored four times to take a 5-2 lead. Trenton then scored three times in the eighth to even the score, and a Wild Pitch by William Cook in the top of the ninth allowed Frank Krillenberger to run home and make it 6-5. The score stood, and the series was 1-1.

• Like the N.Y.L. Semi-final, GAME THREE of the N.E.L. Semi-final was the best of the series. Hosts Trenton were up 4-2 after three and 7-4 after six. Another tally in the eighth gave Trenton a seemingly safe four-run lead, but in the top of the ninth Reading sent six men around the bases to take a 10-8 lead before sitting Reading down in 1-2-3 order to win. Leadoff hitter Stanford Topps was Reading’s key player, setting up the rest of the lineup with 3/5 batting, three runs, and a steal.

• GAME FOUR was a great defensive effort by Reading in Trenton – an errorless 4-2 win in which William Cook scattered eight hits while going the distance. Outfielder Leslie Wolf had three of Reading’s eight hits (3/5), scoring a run and driving in three.

Reading’s four-game Semi-Final win meant the teams with the two best records in the N.E.L. would battle in the Northeastern League Championship Series Reading was hoping to play spoiler, but St. John’s waltzed their way through to the Tucker-Wheaton Cup series in a sweep.

• GAME ONE was a team effort – just one fielding error while allowing four hits during a 6-0 shutout win in Providence’s Olneyville Field. John McGowan only needed 108 pitches to complete the task, and he was P.o.t.G.

• GAME TWO was quite the opposite. Reading jumped out to an early 5-2 lead thanks to a pair of two-run singles in the third inning. St. John’s then score five times in the middle innings to take a 7-5 leading before effectively ending the contest with four more runs in the seventh inning of their 11-8 win. Anderson MacGyver was P.o.t.G. by going 3/5 with three runs and three RBI, but Clive Wise was 4/5 with an RBI and a stolen base.

• GAME THREE was where the series ended. Hosts Reading scored twice in their half of the fourth to take a 2-1 lead, but St. John’s quickly reversed that with five in the top of the fifth to make it 6-2, and that was all they needed in an 8-3 win. McGowan again went the distance, allowing seven hits, Anderson MacGyver was 3/5 with three runs and an RBI, and Collin Henderson was 4/5 with the bat.

St. John’s played one of the sport’s original outfits, Knickerbocker Base Ball Club, for the Tucker-Wheaton Cup. The series went the full five games, but even though Game Five was at the venerable Elysian Fields St. John’s put up two back-breaking rallies early and won 10-2. They have now won the first two Tucker-Wheaton Cup finals.

The 1858 Northeastern League awards had been expected to go to star returnees from last year, but many in the voting were newcomers brought in during the spring. In fact, all three men who placed for Batsman of the Year were newcomers, with Joseph Forrest of Quinnipiac taking the trophy thanks to his .417 average that was supplemented by a league-leading On-Base %, Slugging %, OPS, and Offensive WAR. The Most Valuable Player was Massachusetts Bay outfielder Fred Fowler, but St. John’s newcomer Anderson MacGyver finished third. There was one newcomer to win a Golden Glove – St. John’s first baseman Collin Henderson – and no less than five of nine members of the Team of the Year were newcomers.

When it came time to hand out the actual Newcomer of the Year award there likely could have been a dozen finalists, but MacGyver was the standout after leading the league in Hits & Total Bases while playing for the Tucker-Wheaton Cup winners. His teammate Henderson finished second.

The staggering amount of new talent that appeared in the Northeastern League in 1858 puts that half of the National Base Ball Organization in good hands going forward, but an important question remains: Will anyone be able to beat St. John’s?

NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE STANDINGS





NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE PLAYOFFS

SEMI-FINALS: #2 Reading Athletic Club beats #3 Trenton United 3-1

• Game One: Trenton 2-4 Reading – P.o.t.G: John Lissey (P, REA)
• Game Two: Trenton 6-5 Reading – P.o.t.G: Charles McCartney (CF, TU)
• Game Three: Reading 10-8 Trenton – P.o.t.G: Stanford Topps (3B, REA)
• Game Four: Reading 4-2 Trenton – P.o.t.G: William Cook (P, REA)
• M.V.P.: Leslie Wolf (OF, REA) – 7/17 (.412), 1 2B, 2 3B, 2 R, 5 RBI, 2 SB

LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP: #1 St. John's B.C. beats #2 Reading Athletic Club 3-0

• Game One: Reading 0-6 St. John’s – P.o.t.G: John McGowan (P, StJ)
• Game Two: Reading 8-11 St. John’s – P.o.t.G: Anderson MacGyver (2B, StJ)
• Game Three: St. John’s 8-3 Reading – P.o.t.G: John McGowan (P, StJ)
• M.V.P.: Anderson MacGyver (2B, StJ) – 7/14 (.500), 2 2B, 1 3B, 8 R, 4 RBI, 1 SB

NEW YORK LEAGUE AWARD WINNERS

BATSMAN OF THE YEAR: JOSEPH FORREST – 30 y/o Corner Outfielder, Quinnipiac Baseball Club

• .417/.460/.517, .977 OPS, 68 R, 120 H, 18 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 64 RBI, 2 SB, 3.2 oWAR, 2.4 WAR
• Led Northeastern League in On-Base %, Slugging %, and OPS
• Frank Krillenberger (TU: .420, 1 HR, 59 RBI) 2nd, Anderson MacGyver (StJ: .382, 126 H, 2 HR, 56 RBI) 3rd

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: FRED FOWLER – 29 y/o Corner Outfielder, Massachusetts Bay B.B.C.

• .391/.443/.464, .906 OPS, 85 R, 118 H, 20 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 51 RBI, 16 SB, 4.5 WPA, 2.8 WAR
• Top Five in Hits, Runs, Bases on Balls, Average, On-Base, & OPS
• Anthony Mascherino (GM: .382, +31.2 ZR, 4.5 WAR) 2nd, Anderson MacGyver (StJ: .382, 56 RBI, 4.3 WPA) 3rd

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: ANDERSON MacGYVER – 28 y/o Pitcher, 24 y/o Second Baseman, St. John’s B.C.

• .382/.405/.494, .899 OPS, 89 R, 126 H, 25 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 56 RBI, 33 SB, 163 TB, 4.3 WPA, 3.2 WAR
• Finished third voting for Batsman of the Year & Most Valuable Player
• Collin Henderson (StJ: .374, 30 XBH, 60 RBI) 2nd, Aldous Nelson (QS: 20-13, 3.54 ERA, 5.2 WAR) 3rd

GOLDEN GLOVES

P: Joe Cerra (REA), C: Jimmy Reardon (TU), 1B: Collin Henderson (StJ), 2B: Carlson Tullar (QUI), 3B: Fred Whatley (GM), SS: Anthony Mascherino (GM), OF: William Johnson (StJ), CF: Charles McCartney (TU), OF: Charles Owens (QS)

TEAM OF THE YEAR

P: John Lissey (REA) – 23-9, 3.12 ERA, 22 CG, 1 SHO, 285.2 IP, 51 BB, 22 K, 1.28 WHIP, 4.0 WAR/6.4 R9WAR
C: Roy Jacobson (SCR) – .324/.351/.405, 45 R, 97 H, 17 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR, 56 RBI, 0 SB, 2.9 WPA, 1.5 WAR
1B: Frank Krillenberger (TU) – .420/.436/.490, 62 R, 121 H, 15 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 59 RBI, 2 SB, 2.5 WPA, 2.6 WAR
2B: Anderson MacGyver (StJ) – .382/.405/.494, 89 R, 126 H, 25 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 56 RBI, 33 SB, 163 TB, 4.3 WPA, 3.2 WAR
3B: Sam Kessler (SotO) – .331/.389/.415, 63 R, 95 H, 12 2B, 6 3B, 0 HR, 43 RBI, 29 SB, 2.2 WPA, 2.9 WAR
SS: Joe Blake (ALL) – .339/.362/.441, 55 R, 100 H, 23 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR, 49 RBI, 14 SB, 2.9 WPA, 2.0 WAR
OF: Joseph Forrest (QUI) – .417/.460/.517, .977 OPS, 68 R, 120 H, 18 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 64 RBI, 2 SB, 3.5 WPA, 2.4 WAR
CF: Richard Kenton (StJ) – .361/.387/.483, 72 R, 106 H, 21 2B, 6 3B, 1 HR, 56 RBI, 34 SB, 2.6 WPA, 3.1 WAR
OF: Clive Wise (StJ) – .357/.375/.441, 77 R, 115 H, 19 2B, 4 3B, 0 HR, 72 RBI, 34 SB, 3.5 WPA, 2.1 WAR
MGR: John Block (TU) – 43-27; Trenton Utd. 1st in Coastal Championship, were predicted to finish 5th