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KNICKERBOCKER OFF TO A 19-1 START
1865 CUP WINNERS HAVE WON LAST 17; ALREADY LEAD NEW YORK CITY BY 8 GAMES

NEW YORK CITY (May 28, 1867) – In their third game of the season Knickerbocker BBC lost at home in ten innings to Harlem by the score of 7-6. They have not lost since.

During the two days between Week Four & Week Five of the 1867 schedule, people across the NBBO are wondering if Knickerbocker is already in the midst of a repeat of their historic 1865 season, in which they went an all-time best 57-13 and took home the cup. During that season Knickerbocker’s success came from the best pitching & defense the NBBO had ever seen to that point. So far this season, the team’s hold over New York City has come from a different source.

After four weeks of play Knickerbocker has scored 199 runs, one run short of ten runs per game and a full run per game more than any other team in the New York League. To put it simply, they are hitting the cover off the ball, destroying opposing pitching and leading the NYL in numerous offensive categories:

• Runs: 199 (9.9 R/G; Kings Co. 2nd w/ 179)
• Hits: 265 (13.2 H/G; Kings Co. 2nd w/ 243)
• Doubles: 55 (2.7 2B/G; Bedford 2nd w/ 54)
• Triples: 15 (0.7 3B/G; Nassau Co. also w/ 15)
• Bases on Balls: 50 (2.5 BB/G; Minuteman 2nd w/ 32)
• Average: .335 (Kings Co. 2nd w/ .316)
• On-Base: .377 (Kings Co. 2nd w/ .344)
• Slugging: .438 (Kings Co. 2nd w/ .417)
• OPS: .815 (Kings Co. 2nd w/ .761)

Two Knickerbocker batsmen – CF Charlie Greaves & C Kenneth Harver – are batting over .400. Superstar SS Edward Huntley has an OPS over 1.000. Every member of the lineup has at least 15 RBI, which puts all eight on a pace for 50+, something that has never happened for an entire lineup.

Knickerbocker’s four series so far have been at home versus Harlem, at Metropolitan, at Union of Morrisania, and home versus Gotham – no historically easy teams to beat.

Yet, Knickerbocker has scored some crushing wins already this season. They beat Harlem 14-6 in the season’s second game, they had wins of 13-1 and 9-1 against Metropolitan, they had a trio of five-run victories against Union, and they beat Gotham 13-1 on May 25th. Knickerbocker has a +97 Run Differential after just twenty games, a pace to easily beat the NBBO record.

Knickerbocker’s performance so far in 1867 means they are already EIGHT GAMES clear atop the New York City Championship. Already far behind them are Harlem at 11-9, Orange at 11-9, Hilltop at 10-10, and Metropolitan at 10-10. What should frighten New York even more is that the team’s next series is against 5-15 Mutual, which means there is a decent chance Knickerbocker could run their winning streak to an NBBO record 22 games and their overall record to 24-1.

It is already looking like Knickerbocker will take their third consecutive New York City pennant. It might be that the only question left is whether or not the rest of the NBBO can stop them at the Tucker-Wheaton Cup.