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1874 AMERICAN PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL LEAGUE REVIEW

WRITERS POOL OBSERVATIONS

ALLEGHANY: A sad end to what had been a fantastic season. If the APBL ran 70 games instead of 90 perhaps they would have taken the Founders’ Cup in a sweep. Their NBBO imports – Hearns, Peterson, & Springs – all had a positive impact, their APBL signees – Ellerby & Thompson – were All-Stars, & Gerald Strong had the best season of his career.

AMERICAN: They took a step back this year, the rest of the Metro took a step forward, and American finished over .500 but missed the playoffs. The team’s best batsmen are all due back next season but both regular pitchers are free to leave, and if both Johns – Brown & Henry – do leave it could put American in a bind.

EXCELSIOR: Finally, a .500 season. Jim Creighton had his most dominant APBL campaign, NBBO imports Elijah Hill & Troy Oberst were All-Stars, and rescuing Charles Hormel from a back-up role with Shamrock proved to be an inspired decision. They now have to look at upgrading SS & RF, and if they do then Excelsior could finally go above .500.

FLOUR CITY: A tough season. Projected to finish atop the Colonial for the 1st time, F.C. lost James Goodman for three weeks and their offense slipped to the bottom quarter of the league in terms of production. The team needs upgrades at 1B, RF, and possibly SS over the winter if they are to improve in 1874.

GOTHAM: A fourteen-win improvement over 1873. Babe Johnson had a 100-RBI season, Clive Strachan was fantastic, William Theriault hit over .350, Royal Altman’s bat was back in form, and NBBO import Jonathan Quarles had a fine debut season. An upgrade at CF and this could be a 1st-place team next year.

KINGS CO: Burn it all down and start over. Nobody should win less than 30% of their games in a twelve-team league.

KNICKERBOCKER: Knick played well for large stretches of the season, but ultimately an offense that ranked 11th in Runs did them in. NBBO import McLean was a huge surprise that made the ASG. Their outfield is fantastic defensively but has light bats, so they’re going to need much better production from 2B, 3B, & SS in order to be Colonial contenders next year.

MASS. BAY: Another last-place finish is dulled somewhat by the fact that they were 23-17 over their final 40 games. Their first-year P’s, Butler & Kihlstedt, improved during the season and Greenhorn Garvin was an All-Star, but their lineup has holes. Their big need is SS, as even though Trowbridge hit .354 his -37.4 ZR more than undid any good work with the bat.

NIAGARA: An offense that ranked 11th in AVG, On-Base, & OPS meant that even though Greenhorn #1 Tomoharu Mukai pitched well he took 25 losses. SS Arthur Bliss doesn’t have an APBL-level bat and 2B Ernest Lewis is looking his age (36). However, 22-year-old Charles Barrett had a good debut season in the Niagara outfield.

ORANGE: The champions don’t have much to worry about. Every regular is due back except Samuel Kessler, but he’s 38 and 1B is the easiest position to fill. If there was one complaint about the Orange lineup it’s that NBBO import Isaac Holm was just above replacement level at LF, so they might need an upgrade there.

SHAMROCK: Their luck went the opposite way from the implication of their name, finishing 42-48 with a positive Run Differential that suggested 3rd place. The team needs an upgrade at CF and possibly RF & P with Henry Gaul & Henry Tallman free to leave. What Shamrock does with respect to those positions will determine how they’re projected to finish next season.

ST. JOHN’S: They went sleepwalking for much of the season and woke up too late. Falco van der Vaart hit just .230 in his 2nd year as the team’s C and may be replaced by the younger Frederick Drake. 2B Theo Kohlberg saw his average drop 80 points as he began to look his age (37) and an upgrade there is likely. On the bright side, Eamonn Todd was a nice surprise at 3B.