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PAIR OF P’S BECOME FIRST SINCE 1857 TO WIN 30
FLOUR CITY’S GOODMAN, ALLEGHANY’S HENRY TIE MARK SET IN INAUGURAL SEASON

ROCHESTER, N.Y. & PITTSBURGH (Aug.9, 1869) – Ever since the NBBO’s inaugural season in 1857, pitching has improved but the pitchers have been trying, and failing, to reach a peak set in that first season of play: that of Scranton’s John Anderson, who went 30-8 with a 2.30 ERA in 1857 and became the first pitcher to win an MVP award.

As of the start of this season Anderson remained the only pitcher in NBBO history to win thirty games in a season, and he also remained the only pitcher to win Northeastern League Most Valuable Player – Jim Creighton & Grover Wright have won New York League MVP.

It took until the last week of play in 1869, but John Anderson now has company in the Thirty-Win Club from one pitcher in each league.

First up is James Goodman of Flour City. The “Little Professor” had spent the first dozen years of his career in Albany with Minuteman BBC, first breaking into the senior squad as a precocious eighteen-year-old with a dazzling array of ways to make the ball move but little control over it. It took over half a decade, but eventually Goodman gained mastery of his craft. However, he was stuck with a team that frequently failed to take advantage of his ability to win games.

Ahead of this season, Goodman remained in Upstate New York but moved to Rochester and joined Flour City BBC, which appears to be the smartest move he has ever made. At the end of June Goodman was 22-2 with a 1.79 ERA, and while his performance over the rest of the season was not as astounding, Goodman was still historically great. A 4-1 result at Upstate doormat Eagle in the season’s penultimate game gave Goodman victory #30 on the season, tying Anderson, and he finished 30-6 with a record-setting 2.00 ERA.

Over in Pittsburgh, John Henry is a far more unlikely thirty-game winner. After a 20-11 debut season with Newark in 1864, the “Steel-Driving Man” fell to 16-16 the next year, was told to move to a new club, joined Alleghany ahead of the 1866 season, and became a substitute pitcher. After seasons of 5-4, 13-9, & 3-2, Henry was moved to the #1 role by second-year manager Burton Keith after 2x All-Star Fred Richards left for Sons of the Ocean. The rest, as they say, is history.

Henry’s season did not start well – a 6-6 May with a 4.40 ERA saw Keith question his decision to make Henry his new main pitcher. The rest of John Henry’s season? 24-4 with a 2.99 ERA over June, July, and the first week of August. Goodman started the season on a historic pace, and Henry finished it on one.

That said, Henry had to work hard to earn Win #30. On the final day of the season Henry allowed twelve hits and eight runs (5 ER) while pitching the whole game against Reading, and if not for a couple of late rallies by his teammates the game would have been much closer than the 16-8 final score. Henry’s final record: 30-10 with a 3.35 ERA.

The historic seasons by Goodman & Henry mean there are now three members of the Thirty-Win Club:

• 1857: John Anderson (SCR) – 30-8, 2.30 ERA, 309.0 IP, 28 CG, 3 SHO, 41 BB, 25 K, 1.20 WHIP, 5.0 WAR, 8.9 rWAR
• Anderson named inaugural Northeastern League MVP
• 1869: James Goodman (F.C.) – 30-6, 2.00 ERA, 342.2 IP, 31 CG, 2 SHO, 26 BB, 132 K, 1.05 WHIP, 10.7 WAR, 14.4 rWAR
• 1869: John Henry (ALL) – 30-10, 3.35 ERA, 332.2 IP, 27 CG, 1 SHO, 29 BB, 44 K, 1.32 WHIP, 5.4 WAR, 6.2 rWAR

There half a dozen men who have come up just short. The list includes Knickerbocker #1 Peadar Daly, who has won 28 games in a season three times, going 28-7 (2.31 ERA) in 1865, 28-11 (3.17 ERA) in 1867, and 28-10 (3.57 ERA) this season. Based on Daly’s career pattern, look for him to knock on the club’s door again in 1871.

It is presumed that, with their final victories, Goodman & Henry will be given the first two Pitcher of the Year awards to be handed out by the NBBO in early October. They have definitely earned any honors that come their way.