It wasn't until spring training until Jim Creighton finally reappeared in the public eye. "This will be my last season," he said, "if we win another Cup!"
Even at the age of 43, Big Jim proved he was still the best as a batter (.383 AVG)
and as a pitcher (1.12 ERA)...what more can he do?
In the pennant race, it was Red Stockings on top, with Forest City coming in third. The real surprise was the expansion Jersey City Skeeters, who came in fourth and made the Cup playoffs in their first season:
In the American, Resolute won their fifth straight pennant. Meanwhile, no fewer than four teams tied for fifth place and the final playoff spot, including both of the first-year teams in Toledo and Columbus. After a series of playoff game, the Syracuse Chiefs qualified for the American Cup playoffs:
In the brand-new Union Association (or, as some snarky writers called it, "The Onion"), the St. Louis Cardinals lapped the field -- probably because St. Louis owner (and UA founder) Henry Lucas nabbed a number of star players who had somehow slipped to the reserve rosters of established teams. Henry Stovey, Paul Hines, Cal McVey and Guy Hecker (among others) switched to the Cardinals and grabbed the first Union pennant.
