The Big Bang: A Larger Baseball Universe Starting From Nothing in 1857

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THREE-WAY TIE IN INLAND WITH THREE WEEKS LEFT
LAKE ERIE, MERRIMACK MILLS, & READING ATHLETIC HEADING FOR A PHOTO FINISH

ERIE & READING, PENN. & LOWELL, MASS (July 18, 1864) – There are three weeks left to play in the 1864 National Base Ball Organization season, and while no team leads their regional championship by more than five games the Inland Championship has all neutral eyes on it as there are three teams currently tied atop the standings.

Tied for first in Inland as of Monday, July 18th:

• 1A: Lake Erie – 35-20; 456 R, 349 R.A. (+107 R.D.) - 7-8 (.467) vs M.M. & REA
• 1B: Merrimack Mills – 35-20; 408 R, 375 R.A. (+33 R.D.) - 8-7 (.533) vs L.E. & REA
• 1C: Reading Athletic – 35-20; 443 R, 359 R.A. (+107 R.D.) - 10-10 (.500) vs L.E. & M.M.

While the N.B.B.O. uses head-to-head record and run differential tiebreakers to sort teams in most places in the final standings, this does not happen when there is a tie for first place. Instead, any teams tied play extra games to determine the regional champion.

Lake Erie was three games ahead at the halfway point, sporting the N.B.B.O’s best record at 25-10. Since then their form has dipped, with Lake Erie going 10-10 over their last twenty games. This has allowed both Merrimack Mills & Reading to catch up. Susquehanna, which was three games back after seven weeks of play, has fallen to four games out of first.

In the event of a two-way tie for first place at the end of the season, the procedure is simple: one game is played at the venue of the team with the better head-to-head record or, in the case of a 5-5 split, the better full-season run differential. If all three teams remain tied for first after all seventy games are played, things become much more complicated. The team with the best record over the twenty games against the other two teams gets a day off, then the other two teams play each other with the host chosen using the same tiebreaker criteria, and then the winner of that game plays one game at the team who was given the bye to determine the champion.

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1864’S STAR PLAYERS NAMED
KINGS CO. & LAKE ERIE LEAD WITH FIVE PLAYERS EACH

NEW YORK CITY (July 18, 1864) - With two weeks to go until the contest, nominees for the 1864 National Base Ball Organization All-Star Game were announced over lunch today. Kings County, the best team in the New York League by a couple of games, leads the N.Y.L. with five nominees. Not surprisingly, this year’s darlings, Lake Erie, lead the N.E.L. with five nominees of their own, four of whom are making their All-Star Game debuts.

Rosters for the upcoming All-Star Game will be thirty men per side again this season:

• Places 1-6 in each team’s roster will go to the best pitchers in each league.
• The remaining 24 roster sports will consist of three players for every other position.

Once again, the annual contest will be held at the Knickerbocker Club’s home of the Elysian Fields, which is both the oldest and largest base ball venue in existence. While the Gotham club’s venue is older, it is a converted cricket ground and thus the Elysian Fields retains the honor. It also holds double the spectators of Gotham’s Red House.

This year’s version of the A.S.G. will feature 25 first-timers and five N.B.B.O. newcomers, and the headliner of that group will be Port Jersey’s .417-hitting third baseman Walter Dudley, who will start for the Northeastern League.

Both leagues will be featuring starters from eight different clubs, with St. John’s and Syracuse the only two that will be featuring a pair of starters: Walt Driscoll & Carson Law for Syracuse, and Konrad Jensen & Nelson Townsend for St. John’s.

Rosters for the 1864 All-Star Game, with starters highlighted in red, are as follows:


NEW YORK LEAGUE ROSTERS

P: Jim Creighton (EXC/3rd) – 18-11, 2.70 ERA, 79 K, 6.4 WAR
P: Frank Freitag (K.C./2nd) – 18-6, 3.63 ERA, 22 K, 3.2 WAR
P: William McGuire (UNI/1st) – 15-5, 2.87 ERA, 27 K, 3.4 WAR
P: Harold Perry (CON/3rd) – 15-10, 3.71 ERA, 25 K, 2.6 WAR
P: William Titus (GOT/3rd) – 16-9, 3.95 ERA, 31 K, 3.5 WAR
P: Charles White (VIC/New) – 16-11, 2.94 ERA, 10 K, 3.0 WAR

C: Morris Jennings (HILL/1st) – .309, 11 XBH, 32 RBI, 1.5 WAR
C: William McCaskey (EMP/1st) – .305, 14 XBH, 35 RBI, 1.1 WAR
C: Jackson Smith (K.C./3rd) – .363, 11 XBH, 41 RBI, 1.1 WAR

1B: Cormack Alexander (K.C./New) – .406, 20 XBH, 43 RBI, 2.1 WAR
1B: Walter Driscoll (SYR/2nd) – .390, 24 XBH, 57 RBI, 2.8 WAR
1B: William LaValliere (F.C./1st) – .396, 16 XBH, 48 RBI, 1.6 WAR
2B: James Caldwell (BED/1st) – .385, 16 XBH, 37 RBI, 2.4 WAR
2B: Albert Fowler (UNI/1st) – .352, 15 XBH, 47 RBI, 1.4 WAR
2B: Juriaan Kerstens (KNI/2nd) – .340, 23 XBH, 43 RBI, 1.7 WAR
3B: Barney Fisher (NIA/1st) – .370, 15 XBH, 52 RBI, 1.8 WAR
3B: Jerald Peterson (K.C./4th) – .311, 22 XBH, 55 RBI, 1.6 WAR
3B: Charles Schuster (F.C./2nd) – .402, 27 XBH, 54 RBI, 2.6 WAR
SS: Per-Olaf Bakken (K.C./3rd) – .288, 9 XBH, 30 RBI, 1.8 WAR
SS: Henry Fitzgerald (ATL/1st) – .317, 27 XBH, 32 RBI, 2.1 WAR
SS: Edward Huntley (ORA/6th) – .332, 27 XBH, 40 RBI, 2.3 WAR

LF: Luc Billon (GOT/1st) – .304, 22 XBH, 49 RBI, 1.3 WAR
LF: Randolph Mills (CON/1st) – .371, 19 XBH, 35 RBI, 1.7 WAR
LF: Zarek Polakowski (N.C./2nd) – .335, 25 XBH, 35 RBI, 2.1 WAR
CF: Declan Brice (K.C./4th) – .380, 21 XBH, 53 RBI, 2.9 WAR
CF: John Carlton (UNI/3rd) – .335, 20 XBH, 60 RBI, 2.4 WAR
CF: Carson Law (SYR/New) – .356, 29 XBH, 67 RBI, 1.9 WAR
RF: Ilkka Kivivuori (EMP/2nd) – .378, 24 XBH, 50 RBI, 2.2 WAR
RF: Peter Sweet (ECK/2nd) – .339, 19 XBH, 44 RBI, 1.7 WAR
RF: William Sylvester (HILL/1st) – .335, 27 XBH, 41 RBI, 1.5 WAR


NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE ROSTERS

P: Ben Bailey (G.M./2nd) – 16-10, 3.27 ERA, 28 K, 3.4 WAR
P: Edward Bush (SUS/1st) – 17-6, 3.54 ERA, 17 K, 3.5 WAR
P: Perry Hockensmith (L.E./1st) – 18-5, 3.36 ERA, 18 K, 3.4 WAR
P: Walter Johnson (REA/2nd) – 18-8, 3.91 ERA, 40 K, 3.5 WAR
P: William Jones (M.B./1st) – 17-9, 3.89 ERA, 43 K, 5.6 WAR
P: Clemenz Stadisch (GRA/1st) – 15/10, 2.41 ERA, 33 K, 3.9 WAR

C: Joe Feuerstein (PORT/4th) – .312, 15 XBH, 42 RBI, 1.0 WA
C: Wes Milstead (S.o.t.O./2nd) – .333, 10 XBH, 32 RBI, 0.8 WAR
C: Dag Nielsen (REA/3rd) – .333, 12 XBH, 50 RBI, 1.8 WAR

1B: Walter Banks (OCE/2nd) – .294, 24 XBH, 44 RBI, 1.6 WAR
1B: Joseph Bentley (GRA/3rd) – .365, 22 XBH, 34 RBI, 2.0 WAR
1B: Wilbur Graff (L.E./1st) – .396, 19 XBH, 53 RBI, 2.4 WAR
2B: Daragh Adams (SHA, 3rd) – .368, 13 XBH, 41 RBI, 1.7 WAR
2B: Leslie Arnett (M.M./4th) – .309, 12 XBH, 33 RBI, 1.7 WAR
2B: Willard Krone (P.J./2nd) – .310, 12 XBH, 39 RBI, 1.7 WAR
3B: Walter Dudley (P.J./New) – .414, 25 XBH, 49 RBI, 2.7 WAR
3B: Samuel Kessler (S.o.t.O./6th) – .328, 23 XBH, 45 RBI, 1.8 WAR
3B: Harold Miller (SUS/1st) – .358, 13 XBH, 62 RBI, 1.6 WAR
SS: Thomas Diebold (L.E./1st) – .327, 23 XBH, 31 RBI, 2.2 WAR
SS: Albert Gore (GRA/3rd) – .333, 20 XBH, 53 RBI, 1.4 WAR
SS: Anthony Mascherino (G.M./6th) – .289, 20 XBH, 39 RBI, 2.6 WAR

LF: Thomas Maloney (SHA/4th) – .336, 22 XBH, 43 RBI, 1.6 WAR
LF: Iestyn Moore (NEW/New) – .300, 16 XBH, 39 RBI, 1.4 WAR
LF: Nelson Townsend (STJ/2nd) – .384, 17 XBH, 41 RBI, 2.3 WAR
CF: Willie Davis (SUS/6th) – .344, 28 XBH, 61 RBI, 2.5 WAR
CF: Franklin Petty (L.E./1st) – .339, 22 XBH, 56 RBI, 1.8 WAR
CF: Arthur Waltrip (AME/4th) – .369, 21 XBH, 49 RBI, 2.0 WAR
RF: Fredo Eccelino (L.E./2nd) – .341, 15 XBH, 48 RBI, 1.6 WAR
RF: Clifford Goodman (REA/1st) – .387, 26 XBH, 51 RBI, 2.1 WAR
RF: Konrad Jensen (STJ/4th) – .365, 20 XBH, 56 RBI, 3.5 WAR

The following players will be making their first All-Star Game appearances:

NEW YORK LEAGUE ALL-STAR DEBUTS

• P: William McGuire, Charles White
• C: Morris Jennings, William McCaskey
• IF: Cormack Alexander, James Caldwell, Albert Fowler, Barney Fisher, Henry Fitzgerald, William LaValliere,
• OF: Luc Billon, Carson Law, Randolph Mills, William Sylvester
• TOTAL: 14 All-Star debuts

NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE ALL-STAR DEBUTS

• P: Edward Bush, Perry Hockensmith, William Jones, Clemenz Stadisch
• C: None
• IF: Thomas Diebold, Walter Dudley, Wilbur Graff, Harold Miller
• OF: Clifford Goodman, Iestyn Moore, Franklin Petty
• TOTAL: 11 All-Star Debuts

There are five newcomers in this year’s All-Star Game: Cormack Alexander, Walter Dudley, Carson Law, Iestyn Moore, & Charles White. Dudley & Law are the two who will start. They are extremely deserving starters, as Dudley would be the N.B.B.O. Batting Champion if the season ended today and Law remains on a pace to become the first player with 80 R.B.I. in a single season.

It should be another great All-Star affair, and the 15,000+ who will show up two weeks from now are sure to agree.

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SPECTACULAR PERFORMANCES MARK THE END OF JULY
MOREHOUSE HITS HR & SCORES SIX TIMES; MACGYVER W/ 6 H, 5 R, 4 S.B, 3 R.B.I.

JERSEY CITY, N.J. & BURLINGTON, VER. (July 30, 1864) – Tomorrow is the final day of July, and thanks to a pair of special performances on Saturday the month is going out with quite a bang.

At Hoboken & Oakland Park, Port Jersey (42-21) put on show in their 22-12 victory over Quaker State (21-42), scoring eleven runs over their final two times at bat to make no mistake that the victory was in their hands. They saw a trio of four-hit performances, but the most impressive of the bunch came from first baseman John Morehouse – in the lineup to give Boudewijn Mulder a day off:

MOREHOUSE:

• B1: Reached via Base on Balls by A. Grimble (stole 2B, scored)
• B2: 2-run Home Run to RCF off A. Grimble (inside the park)
• B4: 1-Run Single to RCF off A. Grimble (scored)
• B6: Leadoff Single to RCF off J. Jenkins (scored)
• B7: Reached via Error by 2B J. Forrest (scored)
• B8: Single to LCF off W. Shannon (stole 2B, scored)
• TOTAL: 4/6, HR, 6 R, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 2 SB, 7 TB

Morehouse’s afternoon made him the fifth player in the history of the N.B.B.O. to score six runs in a single game, and it helped give his Port Jersey team a three-game lead in the Coastal Championship with just seven to play.

At Thomas Chittenden field in Vermont, St. John’s (42-21) made light work of Green Mountain (36-27) to all but clinch another New England pennant. The kings of New England won the contest 12-3, but their nine-run victory came thanks to an amazing performance by second baseman Anderson MacGyver:

MACGYER:

• T1: Leadoff Infield Single between C & 1B off R. Hulcy (stole 2B, scored)
• T2: 1-run Single past SS off R. Hulcy (scored)
• T4: Single between SS & 3B off R. Hulcy (stole 2B & 3B, scored)
• T6: Double to CF off R. Hulcy (scored)
• T8: Leadoff Single past SS off A. Smith (stole 2B, scored)
• T9: 2-run Double past 1B off A. Smith
• TOTAL: 6/6, 2 2B, 5 R, 3 RBI, 4 SB, 8 TB

MacGyver’s haul of stolen bases tied 1864’s season high, which has now been done by ten players, eight of them in the Northeastern League. The all-time record for a single game is five in a nine-inning game (five players), and six in an extra-inning game, which was accomplished by Quaker State’s Nicholas Howard on July 16th, 1863. His work at Green Mountain has already been declared as the performance of the season by some in the Writers Pool.

With the All-Star Game coming on Monday and the regular season ending next weekend there is little time left for many of the players of the N.B.B.O. to make a big impression, and some are making sure that their performing voices are heard.

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NEW YORK LEAGUE TAKES ALL-STAR GAME 6-5
N.Y.L. WITHSTANDS LATE FOUR-RUN RALLY BY N.E.L; CARLTON WINS M.V.P.

THE ELYSIAN FIELDS (Aug. 1, 1864) – The sixth National Base Ball Organization All-Star Game took place on Monday, with the New York League winning by the score of 6-5.

There was not much to report about over the early innings of the contest, with both sides combining for zero runs and two hits over the first four innings.

Scoring in the All-Star game was opened by the N.Y.L. via a three-run rally in the fifth inning, the key moment of which was Edward Huntley’s two-out single that drove in James Caldwell & Jackson Smith. The N.E.L. countered with a run in the bottom half of the fifth thanks to an Albert Gore single, but the N.Y.L. scored twice more in the top of the sixth with a William Sylvester single to make the score 5-1 and place the New Yorkers in what looked like complete control.

In the top of the seventh, the N.Y.L. added another two-out run when Union’s John Carlton hit a triple to right-center field that sent Morris Jennings all the way home from first base, making the score 6-1. The N.E.L. would then mount a furious rally in the bottom half, scoring four times – once via error, twice via Clifford Goodman double, and once more via Walter Banks double – to bring them to within a run.

After the big N.E.L. rally the All-Star Game settled back down. There was a single hit and no runs over the final two innings, and the New York League exited the winners on the afternoon.

The Writers Pool, who were all in attendance, voted Union outfielder John Carlton the All-Star Game M.V.P. He was 2/2 with the bat, and his R.B.I. triple in the top of the seventh inning to bring in the N.Y.L’s sixth run ended up being the difference in the outcome.

The weather was not perfect – 77 degrees and cloudy with a stiff breeze blowing in from left field – but attendance was 15,292 and it was another great day for New York City charities.

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MORE RECORDS FALL IN 1864!
NEWCOMERS SET NEW AVERAGE & R.B.I. MARKS; CREIGHTON BREAKS MORE RECORDS

NORTHEASTERN U.S.A. (Aug. 8, 1864) – The end of the National Base Ball Organization season has arrived, and with it a number of new single-season records have been established. While the record setting was not as heavy as it was last season, some major statistical markers fell and important new milestones were reached.

Ahead of the new season, the Writers Pool declared that the most talented Newcomer for 1864 was Kings County first baseman Cormack Alexander, and this was one instance where the W.P. could not possibly have been more correct. In his first N.B.B.O. season Alexander set new records for Batting Average, batting .430, and Hits, collecting 138. He was not the only Newcomer with a historic average, as both .400 hitters in the N.B.B.O. were first-year players: Alexander and Port Jersey third baseman Walter Dudley, who hit .412.

Alexander was not the only Newcomer to break N.B.B.O. records this season. Enter first-year Syracuse center fielder Carson Law, who became the first player ever with 90 R.B.I. in a season by finishing with exactly 90. The previous R.B.I. record was 77, set by Arthur Holton in 1860, which meant that Susquehanna’s Harold Miller’s total of 83 and St. Johns’ Collin Henderson’s total of 80 made the trio of Law, Miller, & Henderson the first players with more than 80 R.B.I. in a season. Holton’s record was also bested by Flour City’s Charles Schuster, who had 78 R.B.I. in 1864.

While he did not reach the 70 Stolen Base mark, like it appeared he would for much of the season, Minuteman second baseman Mathius Wirtz did set a new single-season Stolen Base record with 69. Over his two seasons in the N.B.B.O, Wirtz has stolen 113 bases while being caught just fourteen times, an 88.9% success rate.

Konrad Jensen, whose old Stolen Base record of 66 was broken by Wirtz, took his famously picky plate patience to new levels this season, becoming the first player to earn more than 50 Bases on Balls in a season with 55. Utica’s Fred Fowler was second with 28. Jensen also became just the second player with an O.P.S. over 1.000 in a season, finishing at 1.016.

On the defensive side of the game, Excelsior’s superstar pitcher Jim Creighton broke records for the second season in a row. After breaking six records and becoming the first pitcher to win the Triple Crown last season, Creighton “only” broke two records in 1864. Creighton registered 95 Strikeouts, shattering his previous record of 73 in a season. He also broke his own single-season Pitching W.A.R. record, raising it from last season’s 7.0 to 7.5.

There were also a few single-game records set in 1864. On July 7th Continental scored nine runs in the top of the ninth inning at Nassau County to win 13-8 and establish a new record for largest ninth-inning comeback. Three days later Gotham second baseman Hamish Barclay became the first player ever to record five Extra-Base Hits in a game – four doubles and a triple in a 19-10 victory at Mutual. Syracuse third baseman Theodore Cooke also established an unofficial record, becoming the first player with seven Hits in a game but doing so in a fifteen-inning contest against Flour City on May 22nd. The official record, which only nine-innings games count for, remains six.

There were also single-season team records that fell, but those will be covered in the annual N.B.B.O. Review.

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THE 1864 CUP FIELD IS SET!
THREE NEW N.Y.L. ENTRANTS; ALL THREE N.E.L. CHAMPS REPEAT AFTER MERRIMACK SURGE

NORTHEAST U.S.A (Aug. 8, 1864) – The National Base Ball Organization has come to an end, and it is time for the ten-day-long sprint to the Tucker-Wheaton Cup. There were some notable changes from midseason, and in the end the two largest pennant-winning margins came in the Brooklyn & New York City championships – the first time that has happened.

After seven weeks of play the best record in the N.B.B.O, somehow, belonged to 25-10 Lake Erie, with the other five regional championship leaders sitting at 23-11 or 23-12. Records at the top were similarly close at the end of the season, with the six champions winning between 43 and 48 games – nobody topped 50 wins for the third time in four years.

BROOKLYN – Kings County took the lead at the end of the first week of June (16-9) and Brooklyn was theirs the rest of the way – their retooled offense setting a new N.B.B.O. record for runs in a season. Favorites Excelsior, led by another outstanding season from Jim Creighton, finished in 2nd (6 G.B.) after their offense disappointed. Empire, one game back at the halfway mark, finished 3rd (8 G.B.). K.C. has now sat atop Brooklyn for the sixth time in seven years.

NEW YORK CITY – Gotham was five games up on four teams after Week Seven, and they finished the season seven games ahead of preseason favorites Knickerbocker and surprising Union, winning the N.Y.C. pennant for the second time in three years. It was an odd team – no superstar performers in 1864, but many high-quality players.

UPSTATE N.Y. – Halfway through the season surprising Binghamton was the Upstate leader, but a 23-12 first half turned into a 33-37 record and 5th place (10 G.B.) at the end of the season. Flour City was 24-11 in the second half, allowing them to leapfrog Syracuse and secure the pennant, their first since 1860, with a 15-6 win over Victory on the final day of the season. Once again, Upstate was the tightest regional championship, with just fourteen games separating Flour City from last-place Minuteman (29-41), who started the season as the Writers Pool’s favorites to take the Inland championship.

COASTAL – The Coastal Championship belonged to Port Jersey for the last half of the season. They took over 1st place from Newark just before the end of Week Seven and never gave it up, finishing in 1st by four games over Mass. Bay and eight over Newark. Preseason favorites Shamrock were fourteen games back (34-36). In the end, Port Jersey did precisely the opposite of what the Writers Pool predicted, playing just as well as they did last year instead of wilting away.

INLAND – Sadly, the Lake Erie miracle was not to be. The perennial doormats were 15-20 over the second half of the season, making for a 40-30 record and a 3rd-place finish (6 G.B.). Still, it was their best W-L record by ten games and an eighteen-win improvement from last season. The two teams even with Lake Erie for first with a few weeks to play, Merrimack Mills & Reading, remained close until the end. Merrimack repeated as Inland champs thanks to a fifteen-game winning streak from July 10th to the 30th, finishing two games ahead of preseason favorites Reading.

NEW ENGLAND – This was supposed to be the year St. John’s finally fell from the top of their New England perch, but even though their pitching struggled for the entire season – 17th in the N.E.L. in Runs Allowed – they were able to turn their one-game advantage at the midway point into a five-game gap at the end of the season, with Green Mountain in 2nd place for the sixth time. St. Johns’ brilliant outfield carried them through, and they are playing for the cup once again.

So, the Tucker-Wheaton Cup is here, with all three New York League entrants different than last year’s while all three Northeastern League entrants are in for the second year in a row. That surely makes St. John’s the favorites, given what they did to the competition in the 1863 edition, but Kings County and their fearsome offense have won the cup twice.

THE 1864 TUCKER-WHEATON CUP

FORMAT: Each team plays every other team twice, once home and once away, for a total of ten games. The team with the best record wins the cup. Extra games will be played if there is a tie for 1st. Head-to-Head record and Run Differential will be used as tiebreakers to determine other positions in the case of identical record.

TEAMS: The six entrants to the Tucker-Wheaton Cup, sorted by record & run differential.

• Port Jersey (Coastal) – 48-22, +116 R.D.
• Kings County (Brooklyn) – 46-24, +159 R.D.
• St. John’s (New England) – 46-24, +97 R.D.
• Merrimack Mills (Inland) – 46-24, +84 R.D.
• Gotham (New York City) – 44-26, +81 R.D.
• Flour City (Upstate N.Y.) – 43-27, +113 R.D.

SCHEDULE: The tournament is ten days in length

• Aug. 9: Merrimack at Gotham, Kings Co. at Port Jersey, Flour City at St. John’s
• Aug. 10: Port Jersey at Gotham, Merrimack at Flour City, Kings Co. at St. John’s
• Aug. 11: Kings Co. at Flour City, Gotham at St. John’s, Merrimack at Port Jersey
• Aug. 12: Flour City at Gotham, Port Jersey at St. John’s, Kings Co. at Merrimack
• Aug. 13: St. John’s at Kings Co, Flour City at Merrimack, Gotham at Port Jersey

• Aug. 14: Kings Co. at Gotham, Flour City at Port Jersey, St. John’s at Merrimack
• Aug. 15: Gotham at Flour City, Merrimack at Kings Co, St. John’s at Port Jersey
• Aug. 16: Port Jersey at Flour City, Gotham at Kings Co, Merrimack at St. John’s
• Aug. 17: Port Jersey at Kings Co, St. John’s at Flour City, Gotham at Merrimack
• Aug. 18: Flour City at Kings Co, St. John’s at Gotham, Port Jersey at Merrimack

The Writers Pool has been asked their collective opinion of what they expect of this year’s cup competition, and they have the teams in the following order:

• #1: St. John’s (46-24, 24-11 2nd half, 5-5 Last 10, defending champion)
• #2: Port Jersey (48-22, 25-10 2nd half, 8-2 Last 10, won final six games)
• #3: Kings County (46-24, 24-11 2nd half, 8-2 Last 10)
• #4: Merrimack Mills (46-24, 25-10 2nd half, 6-4 Last 10)
• #5: Flour City (43-27, 24-11 2nd half, 7-3 Last 10)
• #6: Gotham (44-26, 21-14 2nd half, 5-5 Last 10)

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Pour one out for Lake Erie. They just couldn't make it to the end.

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1864 T.W.C: TOO CLOSE TO CALL
THE REVAMPED T.W.C. GOES TO A PLAYOFF FOR THE FIRST TIME

NORTHEAST U.S.A. (Aug. 9-19, 1864) – The 1864 Tucker-Wheaton Cup was the third to use the Round Robin format. The 1862 edition saw Shamrock enter Gameday Ten with a one-game lead over St. John’s and clinch the cup with a dramatic home win over Alleghany. The 1863 edition saw St. John’s roll over the competition and clinch the cup on Gameday Eight. The 1864 edition saw St. John’s looking to repeat as cup champions against five teams with playoff experience – the first time there were no playoff debutants vying for the cup.

The three New York League entrants were all different from last year, though all three had postseason experience. Kings County won the Brooklyn championship for the sixth time in seven years and were two-time cup winners, New York City champions Gotham were playing extra baseball for the second time in three years, and Flour City made the playoffs in 1860 while clinching their spot in this year’s cup tournament on the final day of the season.

The three Northeastern League entrants all played for the cup last year. Port Jersey defied predictions and had the best record in the N.B.B.O. for the second consecutive season, Merrimack Mills rattled off a fifteen-game winning streak to break a three-way deadlock in the Inland Championship and run away with the pennant, and St. John’s remained the only team ever to finish atop the New England Championship, winning it by five games.

St. John’s were considered the favorites because they won the cup by three games last year and base ball experts have long since learned to never pick against them. However, Kings County had set a new record for runs in a season, Port Jersey was the best team in the N.B.B.O. by two games, Gotham won the regional championship with the most money and oldest clubs by seven games, Merrimack finished the season white-hot, and Flour City had a team built to bludgeon opponents to death.

The competition was more experienced than last year’s collection of St. John’s and five playoff newcomers. Would that make a difference, or would St. John’s raise the cup once again?


1864 TUCKER WHEATON CUP STANDINGS

TEAM				W	L	GB	 R	 RA	 RD
ST. JOHN’S (1)		        8	3	---	113	 75	+38
KINGS CO.			7	4	 1	108	 88	+20
GOTHAM				6	4	1.5	 77	 80	-3
PORT JERSEY			4	6	3.5	 71	 77	-6
MERRIMACK (2)		        3	7	4.5	 77	 98	-21
FLOUR CITY			3	7	4.5	 76	104	-28

1: STJ won the cup in a one-game playoff vs K.C.
2: M.M. & F.C. split; M.M. had superior Run Differential

Nelson Townsend (LF, STJ) – .491 AVG (26/53), 1.195 OPS, 7 2B, 1 3B, 18 R, 17 RBI, 11 SB
4x P.o.t.G, 231 OPS+, 215 WRC+, 1.42 WPA, 1.1 W.A.R. in 11 Games

St. John’s won it all again, but unlike last year’s stroll it took the men from Providence an extra game to repeat as champs.

This year’s cup was easily the most exciting one for neutral observers. While the top and bottom were quickly separated, the trio of Gotham, Kings County, & St. John’s were within a game of each other at the end of Gameday Eight and then all three were tied at 6-3 at the end of Gameday Nine. Kings Co’s defeat of Flour City combined with St. Johns’ win at Gotham on the final day meant the cup was back to a playoff, even if it was just a single game. Naturally, St. John’s used the historic game as yet another opportunity to make history of their own, lifting the cup for the fourth time in its eight years of existence.

For the second year in a row Port Jersey started in miserable fashion, again going 1-4 over the first five games. This time around, they righted a ship a bit over the second half to improve on last year’s 2-8 finish.

Merrimack City could never find their way, looking decent in going 2-3 over the first five games before sputtering out with some big losses on their way to a 3-7 finish.

Flour City started the cup 1-4 with a -26 Run Differential through five games, and that was basically the end of them. F.C. did better over the last five games, but it was still a very forgettable cup run for the team from Rochester.

The Most Valuable Player of the Tucker-Wheaton Cup was clearly Nelson Townsend, who put in the best performance of anyone in the three seasons of T.W.C. Round Robin play. He was far and away the cup leader in average and O.P.S while adding a cup-leading eighteen runs and four Player of the Game nominations. He also stole eleven bases in eleven games.

Townsend was not the only St. John’s M.V.P. candidate. Collin Henderson did not have a huge average (.321) but drove in 21 runs while scoring sixteen times. Konrad Jensen drew nine walks and scored fifteen runs while driving in fourteen and stealing a ridiculous fourteen bases. William Johnson hit .447 (21/47) with a 1.150 O.P.S. and thirteen R.B.I.

Among the losing teams, the best performer was Kings County outfielder Jesse Johnson. He earned two Player of the Game nominations while batting .370 with seventeen R.B.I. and thirteen runs over the eleven games he played in.

[tm1681]

GAMEDAY ONE (August 9th)

M.M. 5-9 GOT – P.o.t.G: Alexander Arnold (SS, GOT) – 3/4, 3B, 3 R, 1 RBI
K.C. 6-4 P.J. – P.o.t.G: James Blanchard (PH, K.C.) – 2-run H.R. in top of 9th to put K.C. ahead
F.C. 7-12 STJ – P.o.t.G: Nelson Townsend (LF, STJ) – 3/5, 1 R, 4 RBI

The Tucker-Wheaton Cup started with Merrimack Mills playing in New York City at Gotham. The hosts scored four times in the bottom of the 2nd to go ahead 4-1 and led the rest of the way, with the closest M.M. could come being 6-5 in the 7th inning before Gotham scored three more times to guarantee the victory.

Kings County at Port Jersey was an exciting affair. Kings Co. scored twice in the top of the 2nd to go ahead 4-1, with hosts Port Jersey clawing back runs until it was 4-4 at the end of the 7th. In the top of the 9th, backup 3B James Blanchard entered as a Pinch Hitter for James Heilman with a runner on and hit a two-run homer to give Kings Co. a 6-4 lead, which held thanks to a 1-2-3 bottom of the 9th by Rainer van der Hout.

Defending champs St. John’s wasted little time getting their cup defense off on the right foot, scoring eleven times over the first five innings against Flour City, with the lead growing as large as 12-3 before the visitors scored late consolation runs.

GAMEDAY TWO (August 10th)

P.J. 2-8 GOT – P.o.t.G: Luc Billon (LF, GOT) – 2/4, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI
K.C. 8-6 STJ – P.o.t.G: P.O. Bakken (SS, K.C.) – 3/5, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 SB
M.M. 10-12 F.C. – P.o.t.G: Obelix Tsiaris (CF, F.C.) – 4/5, 2B, 3B, 3 R, 2 RBI, SB

Port Jersey was determined to make up for last year’s 2-8 showing in the T.W.C, but a poor performance at Gotham quickly put them at two losses in this edition. Gotham scored five times in the second inning, the key hit being a two-run Hamish Barclay double, and the hosts were never in any trouble.

Kings County took the battle of the offensive titans against St. John’s in Providence, in a back-and-forth contest. K.C. scored three times in the top of the 2nd, with St. John’s taking the lead via four runs in the bottom of the 3rd. Run trading over the middle innings left the score 7-6 to K.C. after six, and after two quiet innings K.C. scored in the 9th to seal the victory.

While K.C. at St. John’s was expected to be the offensive battle of the day, Flour City’s 12-10 win over Merrimack Mills was where the most runs were. After Merrimack went up 4-0 in the top of the 4th F.C. scored eleven runs over their next three times to bat, and that was enough to secure the result with help from an outstanding performance by Obelix Tsiaris

GAMEDAY THREE (August 11th)

GOT 13-9 STJ – P.o.t.G: Joseph Dalton (3B, GOT) – 3/4, 3B, 1 R, 3 RBI
K.C. 18-10 F.C. – P.o.t.G: Jesse Johnson (LF, K.C.) – 4/5, 3 R, 5 RBI
M.M. 13-10 P.J. – P.o.t.G: Leonard Popa (CF, M.M.) – 4/6, 2B, 3B, 1 R, 6 RBI

Gotham won big to open Gameday Three, scoring a dozen times from the 4th through the 7th against struggling St. John’s pitching to take the victory in Providence. The home side was dangerous on the basepaths, but they undid any good work performed by allowing five stolen bases and committing an extremely uncharacteristic nine fielding errors.

Kings Co. at Flour City was a wild one – the score 11-10 to K.C. after the teams combined to score thirteen runs in the fourth inning. Unfortunately for the hosts they could not muster any runs after K.C. relief man Jack Davis entered, and a five-run 7th inning by K.C. featuring five run-scoring singles put the game to bed. While Jesse Johnson earned P.o.t.G. honors thanks to five R.B.I, Cormack Alexander was 5/6 with two runs and a pair of R.B.I. as well.

It looked for most of the proceedings at Hoboken & Oakland Park like Port Jersey would achieve its first win of the T.W.C, as they had an 8-6 lead after the end of the 7th inning. However, a late collapse led to seven Merrimack Mills runs over the final two innings, with Leonard Popa’s triple in the top of the 8th being the key hit in Merrimack’s first win of the tourney.

GAMEDAY FOUR (August 12th)

P.J. 7-9 STJ – P.o.t.G: Nelson Townsend (LF, STJ) – 2/5, 2 R, 2 RBI
K.C. 12-7 M.M. – P.o.t.G: Jerald Peterson (3B, K.C.) – 3/4, 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI
F.C. 7-11 GOT – P.o.t.G: Taliesin Buckley (CF, GOT) – 3/4, HR, 3 R, 3 RBI, 1 BB

It was not pretty, but St. John’s moved back into the win column against hapless Port Jersey. After the visitors scored four in the top of the 1st, St. John’s evened the score by the end of the third and a five-run rally in the bottom of the 6th gave them the runs they needed to secure the result. St. John’s was greatly aided by eight Port Jersey fielding errors.

Kings Co. moved to 4-0 with a five-run win at Merrimack Mills in which most of the action came late. With the score 4-3 to K.C. heading into the 7th inning, K.C. scored eight runs over the next two innings, with Jerald Peterson’s two-run home run in the 8th placing the game out of reach for Merrimack.

Gotham went up early against Flour City with a three-run 1st, but F.C. took the lead with a four-run 4th. Gotham took the lead back in the 5th thanks to a Taliesin Buckley home run, but the visitors tied the game in the 7th with a pair of run-scoring singles. Then, Gotham scored five times in the 7th and that was that. Like Kings County, Gotham was 4-0.

GAMEDAY FIVE (August 13th)

STJ 9-7 K.C. – P.o.t.G: Konrad Jensen (2B, STJ) – 2/5, 2 RBI, 2 SB, GW HIT IN 9TH
F.C. 5-15 M.M. – P.o.t.G: Leslie Arnett (2B, M.M.) – 4/5, 2B, 3 R, 1 RBI, 2 SB
GOT 4-9 P.J. – P.o.t.G: Seth Guzik (CF, P.J.) – 2/4, HR, 2 R, 4 RBI

In the second battle of offensive giants, St. John’s reversed the result from Gameday Two and handed Kings County their first loss of the cup. The hosts scored single runs in four of the first five innings and took a 4-0 lead into the 7th, but St. John’s tied the game in short order with four runs over just eight batsmen in the top of the 7th. Kings Co. took the lead back with three runs in the bottom half of the 7th before St. John’s scored twice in the 8th to make it 7-6 and set up a nervy finish. The visitors tied the score again in the 9th before Konrad Jensen’s two-run single gave them the lead and the victory.

It took Merrimack Mills a while, but they eventually broke down and battered Flour City. The score was 3-0 after five innings before five Merrimack runs in the 6th and seven more in the 8th gave the hosts a ten-run victory.

Port Jersey finally took their first win of the cup in the game against Gotham, and it did not take long at all to secure the result. P.J. scored seven times in the bottom of the 1st, the key hit being Seth Guzik’s three-run home run, twice more in the third to take a 9-0 lead, and they sat back from there to take an easy five-run victory.

The standings after Gameday Five of the Tucker-Wheaton Cup were as follows:

TEAM				W	L	GB	  R	 RA	 RD
KINGS CO.			4	1	--	 51	 36	+15
GOTHAM				4	1	--	 45	 32	+13
ST. JOHN’S			3	2	 1	 45	 42	 +3
MERRIMACK			2	3	 2	 50	 48	 +2
PORT JERSEY			1	4	 3	 32	 40	 -8
FLOUR CITY			1	4	 3	 41	 66	-25

Kings Co. & Gotham both won their first four games before dropping their fifth, and halfway through the cup the two New York metropolitan area teams looked like the class of the competition. St. Johns’ attack looked about as good as it had during last year’s 9-1 cup run, but their lack of pitching during the season was coming back to bite them. Merrimack was in the exact spot they were in last year: 2-3 and alone in 4th place after five games, albeit with a much better run differential (+5 vs -8). Port Jersey was once again 1-4 after five games in spite of having the best record in the N.B.B.O, but they were in 5th instead of 6th because Flour City was allowing a whopping 13.2 runs per game over the first half of the competition.

Over the first five days of the Tucker-Wheaton Cup, the six teams were scoring an average of 8.8 runs per game, a massive increase over the regular season average of 7.2 and a full forty percent higher than the 6.3 runs per game teams scored in last year’s Tucker-Wheaton Cup. This year’s cup entrants combined had a total of two All-Star pitchers, and without the superstars like Jim Creighton, John McGowan, & Grover Wright that last year’s cup had the batsmen were stealing the show.

[tm1681]

GAMEDAY SIX (August 14th)

F.C. 7-8 P.J. (10 Inn.) – P.o.t.G: Boudewijn Mulder (1B, P.J.) – 3/4, HR, 3 R, 1 RBI, 1 SB
STJ 14-3 M.M. – P.o.t.G: Nelson Townsend (LF, STJ) – 4/6, 2 2B, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 SB
K.C. 21-7 GOT – Per-Olaf Bakken (SS, K.C.) – 5/6, 3B, HR, 4 R, 5 RBI, 2 SB

Port Jersey took the battle of the two 1-4 teams in extra innings. Flour City was ahead 5-4 going into the bottom of the 7th, but a wild pitch and a 2-run double by Ed Donovan made it 7-5 to the hosts. Flour City was able to level the score with single runs in the 8th & 9th, with an error by 2B Willard Krone allowing in the tying run. After an Alvin Williams single moved runners to 2nd & 3rd with one out in the bottom of the 10th, a passed ball let in the winning Port Jersey run.

St. John’s hammered Merrimack in the second game of the day. They decided a 6-1 lead after five innings was not enough, so they scored four times in the 6th and three more times in the 7th to humiliate their hosts.

Gameday Five ended with the battle of the 4-1 teams, which Kings Co. won in astonishing fashion by scoring a T.W.C. record 21 runs. It was a close contest after the opening innings – 5-4 to K.C. after three – but the visitors scored eleven runs over the middle innings and then tore Gotham apart late, with Per-Olaf Bakken putting in the performance of the tournament.

GAMEDAY SEVEN (August 15th)

GOT 6-8 F.C. – P.o.t.G: Charles Schuster (3B, F.C.) – 3/4, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI
STJ 11-9 P.J. – P.o.t.G: Collin Henderson (1B, STJ) – 3/5, 2 3B, 3 R, 2 RBI
M.M. 8-13 K.C. – P.o.t.G: Jerald Peterson (3B, K.C.) – 3/5, 2B, 3B, 2 R, 3 RBI

The previous day’s 21-7 loss apparently left Gotham reeling, because they started Gameday Seven by conceding a stunning defeat at 1-5 Flour City. Gotham was in decent shape late, ahead 6-5 going into the bottom of the 8th. However, singles by Thomas Branagh & Henry Fowler followed by a passed ball let in three runs, and Gotham put up a meek 1-2-3 top of the 9th to give the hosts the most surprising win of the competition so far.

Port Jersey looked like they might play the day’s second spoiler, enjoying a 9-7 lead against visiting St. John’s going into the 8th inning. However, a four-run St. John’s rally keyed by two Konrad Jensen steals and Collin Henderson’s second triple of the game turned a 9-7 Port Jersey lead into an 11-9 St. John’s win.

Kings Co. ended the day with a hard-fought home victory. The hosts were up 6-1 after three innings, but Merrimack was able to fight back with two runs each in the 4th, 6th, & 8th plus one in the 7th to make the score 8-8 after the hosts scored a couple of runs over the timeframe. K.C. then scored five runs in the bottom of the 8th, with pitcher Jack Davis’ two-run double sparking the rally, to take the win and go alone at the top with a 6-1 record.

By the end of Gameday Seven three teams were eliminated from cup competition: Flour City, Merrimack, & Port Jersey, who were all 2-5.

GAMEDAY EIGHT (August 16th)

P.J. 7-4 F.C. – P.o.t.G: Edward Donovan (LF, P.J.) – 3/5, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, GW HIT
GOT 6-3 K.C. – P.o.t.G: William Titus (P, GOT) – CG, 9 HA, 3 R, 1 ER – 2/3, 2B, 2 R, 1 RBI
M.M. 1-10 STJ – P.o.t.G: Nelson Townsend (LF, STJ) – 2/4, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, SB

Visiting Port Jersey won the contest between two eliminated teams, coming up in the top of the 9th with the score 4-4 and plating three runs, with P.o.t.G. Edward Donovan’s double brought in the winning run for Port Jersey.

Gotham entered the game at leaders Kings Co. having to win to stay in cup contention, and they received a brilliant performance from pitcher William Titus in their 6-3 victory. Titus went the distance, with him and the Gotham defense becoming the first cup opponent to hold K.C. under ten hits. He also had a double and was the only Gotham batsman to score more than one run.

St. John’s ended Gameday Eight needing a win to go even with Kings Co. at 6-2, and they made no mistakes in a nine-run victory over Merrimack. St. John’s scored all ten of their runs over the first five innings, and the rest was a breeze.

There were three teams left in cup competition after Gameday Eight:

TEAM				W	L	GB	  R	 RA	  RD
KINGS CO.			6	2	--	 88	 57	 +31
ST. JOHN’S			6	2	--	 80	 55	 +25
GOTHAM				5	3	 1	 64	 64	  0

All three teams would be playing eliminated opponents on Gameday Nine, so depending on how those games played out the St. John’s at Gotham contest scheduled for Gameday Ten could be the one to decide the who lifts the cup.

GAMEDAY NINE (August 17th)

P.J. 9-6 K.C. – P.o.t.G: Willard Krone (2B, P.J.) – 2/4, 2 R, 2 RBI
STJ 8-9 F.C. – P.o.t.G: William McQuaid (SS, F.C.) – 2/4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 1 BB
GOT 7-6 M.M. – P.o.t.G: Hamish Barclay (2B, GOT) – 2/4, 1 R, 2 RBI, GW HIT

Port Jersey had a chance to play spoiler to start Gameday Nine, and did they ever play the role brilliantly with a 9-6 victory AT Kings Co. The score was 3-1 to P.J. going into the 6th inning when the visitors scored four times on a mix of errors and hits to go up 7-1. Even though K.C. responded with three tallies in the bottom half of the 6th, P.J. led the rest of the way thanks to single runs in each of the next two innings.

Next up: Flour City’s chance to play spoiler, which they also did in their 9-8 home win over St. John’s. The two teams traded runs back and forth over the first eight innings, resulting in an 8-8 deadlock. After St. John’s failed to advance a runner past first base in the top of the 9th, pinch hitter Austin Dreyer drove in Will McQuaid with a walk-off single in the bottom half.

The third game of the day saw Merrimack Mills have their chance to play spoiler, but they could not do what Port Jersey & Flour City were able to and lost to visiting Gotham by a single run. The result hinged on the 8th inning. Gotham came up to bat down 6-5, but pinch hitter Babe Johnson and P.o.t.G. Hamish Barcley singled in runs to give Gotham the lead and relief man Thomas Watkins held Merrimack hitless over the final two innings to preserve the win.

There was now a three-way tie atop the Tucker-Wheaton Cup with just one game to play.

TEAM				W	L	GB	  R	 RA	  RD
KINGS CO.			6	3	--	 94	 66	 +28
ST. JOHN’S			6	3	--	 88	 64	 +24
GOTHAM				6	3	--	 71	 70	  +1

The cup would be decided on Gameday Ten.

GAMEDAY TEN (August 18th)

P.J. 6-9 M.M. – P.o.t.G: Enda Reed (3B, M.M.) – 3/5, 2B, 2 R, 3 RBI
F.C. 7-9 K.C. – P.o.t.G: Jesse Johnson (LF, K.C.) – 2/4, 2B, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB
STJ 10-6 GOT – P.o.t.G: Konrad Jensen (RF, STJ) – 1/1, 2 R, 1 RBI, 3 BB, 4 SB, 1 OF AST

Two eliminated teams, Port Jersey & Merrimack Mills, opened Gameday Ten. Merrimack scored three times in the 1st inning and four times in the 2nd, which proved to be enough for the win. They added lone runs in the 4th & 5th.

The second game was Flour City at Kings Co, with the hosts heavy favorites. K.C. played like heavy favorites, using a five-run rally in the middle innings – Jesse Johnson’s two-run double the key hit – to go up 9-5 before easing in to a 9-7 victory.

Kings Co’s win meant that two teams would be tied for 1st place after ten games, and thus a one-game playoff for the Tucker-Wheaton Cup would be necessary.

The finale of Gameday Ten would determine who had the right to face Kings County for the cup. St. John’s had the experience and the history, but Gotham had the home field advantage. Who would win? Of course, it was St. John’s and they made it look easy. The visitors put up three-run rallies in the 5th, 7th, & 8th innings to take a 10-1 lead before Gotham added a bushel of consolation runs to cement their 3rd-place finish.

The Tucker-Wheaton Cup was going to a one-game playoff for the first time, and the playoff game would be between the two N.B.B.O. teams who have lifted the cup multiple times.

TUCKER-WHEATON CUP PLAYOFF (August 19th)

STJ 15-5 K.C. at the Elysian Fields – P.o.t.G: William Johnson (CF, STJ) – 5/6, 3 2B, 3B, 3 R, 3 RBI, SB

After the end of Gameday Ten both St. John’s and Kings Co. headed for Manhattan, where they would play one game for the Tucker-Wheaton Cup in the Elysian Fields at 1:20 P.M. the following day. Kings Co. was given the advantage of being the home team because, while they split the two games against St. John’s, they had a better run differential (+30 to +28).

On gameday, the weather was perfect – 76 degrees with clear skies and a slight breeze blowing in from center field. It all appeared an ideal backdrop for the two teams who have combined to dominate possession of cup to have what figured to be an epic battle to see who would lift it again.

That was not to be. St. John’s clobbered Kings County. Five runs in the 1st, a pair in the 3rd, and three more in the 4th meant that at the midway point the defending champions were ahead 10-4 and they did not stop there. St. John’s tallied five more runs to add another chapter to their book of extraordinary victories, this one a ten-run demolition of a two-time champion to guarantee that the cup would reside in Providence once again.

The key player for Providence? Naturally, it was veteran William Johnson, an every-game outfielder for the team since the foundation of the N.B.B.O. in 1857. In the most important game of the year, he set a playoff record with four extra-base hits – three doubles and a triple – as part of a 5/6 afternoon with three runs & R.B.I. each. It was only fitting that he would be the player to lead St. John’s to more cup glory.

[jasg224]

I think I'm falling in love with the Round Robin postseason format, it's like the 1950 World Cup haha

[tm1681]

Originally Posted by jasg224

I think I'm falling in love with the Round Robin postseason format, it's like the 1950 World Cup haha

It definitely seems like a more even playing field and one where the elite of the elite are more likely to come out on top. It was interesting going from St. John's steamrolling the batch of playoff first-timers to having to fight for their lives against a group of teams that all had playoff experience.

The only thing I didn't know is that if you set a Round Robin playoff to just end after the set number of games the engine doesn't schedule an extra game in the case teams tying for 1st. It picks a winner based on some tiebreaker and I'm not sure what it is. So, I had to manually go in and schedule the extra playoff game.

[tm1681]

1864 NATIONAL BASE BALL ORGANIZATION REVIEW

NEW YORK LEAGUE STANDINGS

BROOKLYN		 W	 L	 PCT	GB	 R	 RA	  RD
Kings Co.		46	24	.657	--	645	486	+159
Excelsior		40	30	.571	 6	512	444	 +68
Empire			38	32	.543	 8	543	522	 +21
Atlantic		36	34	.514	10	567	573	  -6
Eckford			32	38	.457	14	495	559	 -64
Continental		30	40	.429	16	457	522	 -65
Bedford			30	40	.429	16	460	523	 -63
Nassau Co.		28	42	.400	18	486	536	 -50

 
N. Y. C.		 W	 L	 PCT	GB	 R	 RA	  RD
Gotham			44	26	.629	--	562	481	 +81
Knickerbocker	        37	33	.529	 7	511	446	 +65
Union			37	33	.529	 7	545	492	 +53
Hilltop			35	35	.500	 9	397	428	 -31
Orange			35	35	.500	 9	484	501	 -17
Harlem			34	36	.486	10	433	477	 -44
Mutual			30	40	.429	14	464	531	 -67
Metropolitan	        28	42	.400	16	369	409	 -40

UPSTATE			 W	 L	 PCT	GB	 R	 RA	  RD
Flour City		43	27	.614	--	635	522	+113
Syracuse		42	28	.600	 1	617	513	+104
Niagara			36	34	.514	 7	539	514	 +25
Utica			35	35	.500	 8	522	578	 -56
Binghamton		33	37	.471	10	503	539	 -36
Eagle			32	38	.414	11	505	539	 -34
Victory			30	40	.429	13	426	500	 -74
Minuteman		29	41	.414	14	468	510	 -42

Continental was 6-4 vs Bedford
Knickerbocker was 8-2 vs Union
Hilltop was 6-4 vs Orange

NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE STANDINGS

COASTAL			 W	 L	 PCT	GB	 R	 RA	  RD
Port Jersey		48	22	.686	--	594	478	+116
Mass. Bay		44	26	.657	 4	580	482	 +98
Newark			40	30	.571	 8	480	430	 +50
Trenton Utd.	        38	32	.543	10	451	463	 -12
Shamrock		34	36	.486	14	411	443	 -32
American		31	39	.443	17	490	548	 -58
Quaker St.		24	46	.343	24	471	539	 -68
Olympic			21	49	.300	27	457	551	 -94
 
INLAND			 W	 L	 PCT	GB	 R	 RA	  RD
Merrimack M.	        46	24	.657	--	545	461	 +84
Reading			44	26	.629	 2	562	474	 +88
Lake Erie		40	30	.571	 6	551	466	 +85
Susquehanna		39	31	.557	 7	543	455	 +88
Scranton		33	37	.471	13	433	474	 -41
Sportsman’s		29	41	.414	17	441	522	-111
Pioneer			25	45	.357	21	399	535	-136
Alleghany		24	46	.343	22	488	575	 -87

N. ENGLAND		 W	 L	 PCT	GB	 R	 RA	  RD
St. John’s		46	24	.657	--	635	538	 +97
Green Mtn.		41	29	.586	 5	525	463	 +62
S. o. t. O.		37	33	.529	 9	508	440	 +68
Granite			34	36	.486	12	486	469	 +17
Portland		32	38	.457	14	498	547	 -49
Cantabrigians	        31	39	.443	15	543	618	 -75
Quinnipiac		31	39	.443	15	500	535	 -35
Oceanic			28	42	.400	18	473	558	 -85

Cantabrigians was 7-3 vs Quinnipiac

TUCKER-WHEATON CUP

TEAM                    W	L	 R	 RA	 RD
ST. JOHN’S		8	3	113	 75	+38
KINGS CO.		7	4	108	 88	+20
GOTHAM			6	4	 77	 80	 -3
PORT JERSEY		4	6	 71	 77	 -6
MERRIMACK		3	7	 77	 98	-21
FLOUR CITY		3	7	 76	104	-28

St. John's won the cup in a one-game playoff vs Kings Co.
M.M. & F.C. split; M.M. had superior Run Differential

MOST VAULABLE PLAYER: Nelson Townsend (23 y/o LF, St. John’s)
11 G, .491 AVG (26/53), 1.195 OPS, 7 2B, 1 3B, 18 R, 17 RBI, 11 SB, 35 TB, 4x P.o.t.G, 1.42 WPA, 1.1 W.A.R.

ST. JOHN’S: 12-7 vs Flour City, 6-8 vs Kings Co, 9-13 vs Gotham, 9-7 vs Port Jersey, 9-7 at Kings County, 14-3 at Merrimack, 11-9 at Port Jersey, 10-1 vs Merrimack, 8-9 at Flour City, 10-6 at Gotham, 15-5 vs Kings Co. (Elysian Fields)

Best Player: LF Nelson Townsend – Tucker-Wheaton Cup M.V.P.

KINGS COUNTY: 6-4 at Port Jersey, 8-6 at St. John’s, 18-10 at Flour City, 12-7 at Merrimack, 7-9 vs St. John’s, 21-7 at Gotham, 13-8 vs Merrimack, 3-6 vs Gotham, 6-9 vs Port Jersey, 9-7 vs Flour City, 5-15 vs St. John’s (Elysian Fields)

Best Player: LF Jesse Johnson – .370 (17/46), .869 OPS, 3 2B, 13 R, 17 RBI, 4 BB, 20 TB, 0.7 WPA, 0.4 WAR

GOTHAM: 9-5 vs Merrimack, 8-2 vs Port Jersey, 13-9 at St. John’s, 11-7 vs Flour City, 4-9 at Port Jersey, 7-21 vs Kings Co, 6-8 at Flour City, 6-3 at Kings Co, 7-6 at Merrimack, 6-10 vs St. John’s

Best Player: SS Alexander Arnold – .429 (18/42), .957 OPS, 1 2B, 2 3B, 12 R, 10 RBI, 3 SB, 23 TB, 0.4 WPA, 0.4 WAR

PORT JERSEY: 4-6 vs Kings Co, 2-8 at Gotham, 10-13 vs Merrimack, 7-9 at St. John’s, 9-4 vs Gotham, 8-7 vs Flour City (10 Inn.), 9-11 vs St. John’s, 7-4 at Flour City, 9-6 at Kings Co, 6-9 at Merrimack

Best Player: 1B Boudewijn Mulder – .395 (17/43), .900 OPS, 1 HR, 12 R, 6 RBI, 5 SB, 20 TB, 0.7 WPA, 0.4 WAR

MERRIMACK: 5-9 at Gotham, 10-12 at Flour City, 13-10 at Port Jersey, 7-12 vs Kings Co, 15-5 vs Flour City, 3-14 vs St. John’s, 8-13 at Kings Co, 1-10 at St. John’s, 6-7 vs Gotham, 9-6 vs Port Jersey

Best Player: RF Alexander Hedrick – .415 (17/41), .946 OPS, 1 2B, 1 3B, 10 R, 5 RBI, 5 BB, 3 SB, 0.6 WPA, 0.5 WAR

FLOUR CITY: 7-12 at St. John’s, 12-10 vs Merrimack, 10-18 vs Kings Co, 7-11 at Gotham, 5-15 at Merrimack, 7-8 at Port Jersey (10 Inn.), 8-6 vs Gotham, 4-7 vs Port Jersey, 9-8 vs St. John’s, 7-9 at Kings Co.

Best Player: CF Obelix Tsiaris – .404 (19/47), 1.057 OPS, 4 2B, 3 3B, 13 R, 5 RBI, 2 BB, 5 SB, 0.7 WPA, 0.7 WAR

[tm1681]

NEW YORK LEAGUE AWARD WINNERS

BATSMAN OF THE YEAR: Cormack Alexander – 26 y/o 1B, Kings County B.B.C.

• .430/.453/.526, .976 OPS, 92 R, 138 H, 27 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 62 RBI, 16 BB, 6 SB, 168 TB, 3.8 WPA, 3.2 WAR
• Set N.B.B.O. records Batting Average & Hits in a season
• Charles Schuster (3B, F.C.) 2nd – .385/.412/.535, 68 R, 125 H, 26 2B, 7 3B, 3 HR, 78 RBI, 174 TB, 3.4 WPA, 3.2 WAR
• Walter Driscoll (1B, SYR) 3rd – New York League Most Valuable Player

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Walter Driscoll – 32 y/o 1B, Syracuse B.B.C.

• .380/.431/.509, .940 OPS, 94 R, 120 H, 18 2B, 4 3B, 5 HR, 73 RBI, 27 BB, 35 SB, 161 TB, 4.8 WPA, 3.3 WAR
• Led N.Y.L. in Runs & Home Runs, 3rd in WPA & WAR
• Declan Brice (CF, K.C.) 2nd – .370/.388/.490, 74 R, 114 H, 24 2B, 5 3B, 1 HR, 72 RBI, 31 SB, +10.5 ZR, 3.6 WPA, 3.7 WAR
• Jim Creighton (P, EXC) 3rd – 22-14, 2.85 ERA, 312.1 IP, 29 CG, 24 BB, 95 K, 2.7 K/9, 4.0 K/BB, 7.5 WAR, 9.5 R9-WAR

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: Cormack Alexander – 26 y/o 1B, Kings County B.B.C.

• Led N.Y.L. newcomers in AVG, OBP, SLG, OPS, H, 2B, & BB
• Obelix Tsiaris (CF, F.C.) 2nd – .384/.410/.491, 94 R, 133 H, 19 2B, 9 3B, 0 HR, 52 RBI, 12 BB, 37 SB, 4.8 WPA, 3.5 WAR
• Carson Law (CF, SYR) 3rd – .361/.383/.499, 80 R, 121 H, 24 2B, 8 3B, 2 HR, 90 RBI, 15 BB, 39 SB, 4.3 WPA, 2.7 WAR

GOLDEN GLOVES

P: James Goodman (MIN, 1st) – 63 TC, 1 DP, 4 E, 1.9 RNG, +6.7 ZR, 1.17 EFF
C: Fiorello Pirelli (MET, 1st) – 54 PB, 43.9 CS%, 3.15 C-ERA, +15.6, 1.02
1B: Garrett Turner (ECK, 1st) – 692 TC, 52 AST, 24 DP, 15 E, +5.7 ZR, 1.11 EFF
2B: Ashley Boyce (MET, 1st) – 367 TC, 164 PO, 171 AST, 19 DP, 32 E, 5.8 RNG, +8.6 ZR, 1.13 EFF
3B: Carlo Fischetti (HILL, 1st) – 279 TC, 62 PO, 180 AST, 7 DP, 37 E, 3.5 RNG, +8.9 ZR, 1.10 EFF
SS: Per-Olaf Bakken (K.C, 1st) – 418 TC, 145 PO, 214 AST, 14 DP, 59 E, 5.3 RNG, +17.0 ZR, 1.14 EFF
OF: Albert Jones (KNI, 1st) – 160 TC, 150 PO, 5 AST, 0 DP, 10 E, 2.2 RNG, +5.3 ZR, 1.10 EFF
CF: Declan Brice (K.C, 3rd) – 318 TC, 272 PO, 7 AST, 2 DP, 39 E, 4.1 RNG, +10.5 ZR, 1.07 EFF
OF: Thomas Hall (NIA, 1st) – 236 TC, 173 PO, 6 AST, 1 DP, 57 E, 2.6 RNG, +4.4 ZR, 1.07 EFF

TEAM OF THE YEAR

P: Jim Creighton (EXC, 2st) - 22-14, 2.85 ERA, 312.1 IP, 29 CG, 0 SHO, 24 BB, 95 K, 2.7 K/9, 4.0 K/BB, 7.5 WAR, 9.5 R9-WAR
C: Morris Jennings (HILL, 1st) - .297/.309/.373, 37 R, 82 H, 11 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 44 RBI, 7 BB, 0 SB, 1.9 WPA, 1.6 WAR
1B: Cormack Alexander (K.C, 1st) - .430/.453/.526, .976 OPS, 92 R, 138 H, 27 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 62 RBI, 16 BB, 6 SB, 3.8 WPA, 3.2 WAR
2B: Juriaan Kerstens (KNI, 2nd) - .336/.362/.436, 64 R, 103 H, 25 2B, 3 3B, 0 HR, 53 RBI, 12 BB, 0 SB, 3.2 WPA, 1.9 WAR
3B: Charles Schuster (F.C, 1st) - .385/.412/.535, 68 R, 125 H, 26 2B, 7 3B, 3 HR, 78 RBI, 14 BB, 5 SB, 174 TB, 3.4 WPA, 3.2 WAR
SS: Edward Huntley (ORA, 5th) - .331/.366/.481, 62 R, 102 H, 31 2B, 6 3B, 1 HR, 51 RBI, 18 BB, 21 SB, +11.6 ZR, 2.7 WPA, 3.0 WAR
OF: Zarek Polakowski (N.C, 1st) - .328/.364/.448, 68 R, 101 H, 20 2B, 7 3B, 1 HR, 45 RBI, 17 BB, 31 SB, 2.2 WPA, 2.2 WAR
CF: Carson Law (SYR, 1st) - .361/.383/.499, 80 R, 121 H, 24 2B, 8 3B, 2 HR, 90 RBI, 15 BB, 39 SB, 4.3 WPA, 2.7 WAR
OF: Ilkka Kivivuori (EMP, 1st) - .371/.394/.469, 81 R, 118 H, 26 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 62 RBI, 15 BB, 8 SB, 3.5 WPA, 2.5 WAR
MGR: Ryan Medley (K.C.) - 46-24; Kings Co. won Brooklyn by six games & finished 2nd in Tucker-Wheaton Cup

NORTHEASTERN LEAGUE

BATSMAN OF THE YEAR: Walter Dudley – 23 y/o 3B, Port Jersey B.B.C.

• .412/.434/.523, 957 OPS, 80 R, 134 H, 26 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 60 RBI, 12 BB, 0 SB, 170 TB, 6.1 WPA, 2.9 WAR
• Led N.E.L. in Batting Average from Week Two through rest of season
• Konrad Jensen (RF, STJ) 2nd – Northeastern League Most Valuable Player
• Nelson Townsend (LF, STJ) 3rd – .398/.428/.516, 100 R, 128 H, 18 2B, 10 3B, 61 RBI, 18 BB, 45 SB, 4.2 WPA, 3.3 WAR

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Anthony Mascherino – Konrad Jensen – 25 y/o RF, St. John’s B.C.

• .377/.482/.534, 1.016 OPS, 101 R, 101 H, 15 2B, 6 3B, 5 HR, 70 RBI, 55 BB, 56 SB, 5.5 WPA, 4.3 WAR
• Set N.E.L. records for OBP & OPS, N.B.B.O. record for Bases on Balls
• Willie Davis (CF, SUS) 2nd – .349/.374/.494, 76 R, 113 H, 23 2B, 12 3B, 0 HR, 70 RBI, 42 SB, +8.5 ZR, 4.3 WPA, 3.0 WAR
• Walter Dudley (3B, P.J.) 3rd – .412/.434/.523, 80 R, 134 H, 26 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 60 RBI, 12 BB, 170 TB, 6.1 WPA, 2.9 WAR

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: Walter Dudley – 23 y/o 3B, Port Jersey B.B.C.

• Led N.E.L. newcomers in AVG, OPS, SLG, OPS, H, R, WAR, & WPA
• John Henry (P, N.E.) 2nd – 20-11, 3.90 ERA, 274.2 IP, 18 CG, 1 SHO, 45 BB, 32 K, 1.40 WHIP, 3.4 WAR, 6.1 R9-WAR
• Ralph Weber (3B, M.B.) 3rd – .333/.387/.419, 62 R, 97 H, 17 2B, 4 3B, 0 HR, 56 RBI, 18 BB, 2.6 WPA, 1.6 WAR

GOLDEN GLOVES

P: Walter Johnson (REA, 1st) – 60 TC, 1 DP, 11 E, 1.6 RNG, +7.6 ZR, 1.02 EFF
C: Robert Hoyland (T.U, 1st) – 69 PB, 40.5 CS%, 3.46 C-ERA, +8.5 ZR, 1.02 EFF
1B: Wilbur Graff (L.E, 1st) – 794 TC, 54 AST, 20 DP, 17 E, +7.1 ZR, 1.09 EFF
2B: Willard Krone (P.J, 3rd) – 501 TC, 198 PO, 260 AST, 23 DP, 43 E, 6.7 RNG, +16.1 ZR, 1.13 EFF
3B: Jari van der Sanden (L.E, 1st) – 268 TC, 65 PO, 165 AST, 3 DP, 38 E, 3.6 RNG, +5.7 ZR, 1.07 EFF
SS: Anthony Mascherino (G.M, 8th) – 421 TC, 133 PO, 238 AST, 16 DP, 50 E, 5.7 RNG, +24.2 ZR, 1.24 EFF
OF: Alfred Span (REA, 1st) – 153 TC, 135 PO, 2 AST, 1 DP, 16 E, 2.2 RNG, +4.5 ZR, 1.05 EFF
CF: Walter Williams (SHA, 2nd) – 287 TC, 240 PO, 7 AST, 0 DP, 45 E, 3.7 RNG, +12.1 ZR, 1.10 EFF
OF: Konrad Jensen (STJ, 1st) – 236 TC, 205 PO, 8 AST, 3 DP, 23 E, 3.1 RNG, +6.9 ZR, 1.07 EFF

TEAM OF THE YEAR

P: William Jones (M.B, 1st) - 21-10, 11, 3.77 ERA, 291.0 IP, 24 CG, 0 SHO, 38 BB, 46 K, 1.37 WHIP, 6.5 WAR, 6.6 R9-WAR
C: Dag Nielsen (REA, 1st) - .314/.352/.388, 58 R, 94 H, 9 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 59 RBI, 16 BB, 2 SB, 42.2 RTO%, 3.0 WPA, 2.0 WAR
1B: Wilbur Graff (L.E, 1st) - .321/.368/.390, 56 R, 92 H, 14 2B, 3 3B, 0 HR, 47 RBI, 20 BB, 8 SB, +14.7 ZR, 3.0 WPA, 2.3 WAR
2B: Leslie Arnett (M.M, 1st) - .336/.364/.427, 73 R, 103 H, 8 2B, 4 3B, 4 HR, 48 RBI, 14 BB, 0 SB, +10.7 ZR, 1.7 WPA, 2.3 WAR
3B: Walter Dudley (P.J, 1st) - .412/.434/.523, 80 R, 134 H, 26 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 60 RBI, 12 BB, 0 SB, 170 TB, 6.1 WPA, 2.9 WAR
SS: Albert Gore (GRA, 1st) - .351/.460/.451, 69 R, 108 H, 23 2B, 4 3B, 0 HR, 69 RBI, 4 BB, 37 SB, 4.9 WPA, 2.3 WAR
OF: Nelson Townsend (STJ, 1st) - .398/.428/.516, 100 R, 128 H, 18 2B, 10 3B, 0 HR, 61 RBI, 18 BB, 45 SB, 4.2 WPA, 3.3 WAR
CF: Willie Davis (SUS, 4th) - .349/.374/.494, 76 R, 113 H, 23 2B, 12 3B, 0 HR, 70 RBI, 13 BB, 42 SB, 3.4 WPA, 3.0 WAR
OF: Konrad Jensen (STJ, 5th) - .377/.482/.534, 1.016 OPS, 101 R, 101 H, 15 2B, 6 3B, 5 HR, 70 RBI, 55 BB, 56 SB, 5.5 WPA, 4.3 WAR
MGR: Walter Banis (L.E.) - 40-30; Led Lake Erie to 18-win improvement & first over-500 record in 1st season as L.E. manager

[tm1681]

MISCELLANEOUS

RECORDS

• Cormack Alexander (Kings Co.) set new records for Batting Average (.430) and Hits (138) in a season.
• Carson Law (Syracuse) set a new record for R.B.I. in a season with 90. Three others broke the previous record of 77:

• Harold Miller (Susquehanna) with 82
• Colin Henerson (St. John’s) with 80
• Charles Schuster (Flour City) with 78

• Mathius Wirtz (Minuteman) set a new record for Stolen Bases in a season with 69.
• Konrad Jensen (St. John’s) set a new record for Bases on Balls in a season with 55.

• Fred Fowler (Utica) was second in the N.B.B.O. in B.B. with 28

• Jim Creighton (Excelsior) set a new record for Strikeouts (95) and Pitching W.A.R. (7.5) in a season.
• Kings County set a new record for Runs in a season with 645 (9.21 R/G).
• Syracuse batsmen set a new record for Bases on Balls taken in a season with 172 (2.46 BB/G).
• Alleghany & Trenton Utd. batsmen set a new record for fewest Bases on Balls taken with 69 (0.98 BB/G).
• Scranton batsmen set a new record for Strikeouts in a season with 138 (1.97 K/G).
• Cantabrigians pitchers set a new record for Hits Allowed in a season with 924 (13.20 H/G).
• Excelsior pitchers set a new record for Strikeouts in a season with 121 (1.73 K/G).
• Scranton pitchers set a new record for fewest Strikeouts in a season with 24 (0.34 K/G).
• Theodore Cooke (Syracuse) set an unofficial record with 7 Hits in a 16-innings game (May 22nd at Flour City).
• Continental set a new record by scoring 9 runs in the 9th inning in a comeback win (July 7th at Nassau Co.).
• Hamish Barclay (Gotham) set a new record for Extra-Base Hits in a game with five (July 10th at Mutual).

ACHIEVEMENTS & NOTABLE EVENTS

• The Tucker-Wheaton Cup went to a playoff for the first time since it went to a Round Robin format in 1862.
• 15 of 18 Golden Glove winners won the award for the first time.
• 13 of 18 Team of the Year members were nominated for the first time.
• Seven players had 6+ hits in a game this season. No previous season has had more than four such players.
• As noted, four players had 75+ R.B.I. There had never been more than one such player in a season.
• Three players hit 5+ Home Runs:

• Walter Banks (Oceanic) hit 6 Home Runs in 313 Plate Appearances
• Walter Driscoll (Syracuse) hit 5 Home Runs in 353 Plate Appearances
• Konrad Jensen (St. John’s) hit 5 Home Runs in 334 Plate Appearances

• Three players had Hitting Streaks of 30+ games:

• Edward Huntley (Orange) had a 34-game streak end on May 11th
• Nelson Townsend (St. John’s) had a 33-game streak end on July 27th
• Willie Davis (Susquehanna) had a 32-game streak end on June 15th

• Dennis Pruitt (Alleghany) hit for The Cycle on May 22nd (4/6, 4 R, 4 RBI at Pioneer).
• Anthony Mascherino (Green Mtn.) remains the only batsman with over 30.0 career W.A.R. (34.9).
• John McGowan (Knickerbocker) remains the only pitcher with over 150 career Wins (167).
• Arthur Waltrip (American) is the only player with over 900 career Hits (911).
• Walter Williams (Shamrock) is the only player with over 350 career Stolen Bases (385).

[a_bit_of_a_misnomer]

It sucks to have seen Merrimack go down without a fight. I've been rooting for the boys from the Mill City since the league formed!

[tm1681]

Originally Posted by a_bit_of_a_misnomer

It sucks to have seen Merrimack go down without a fight. I've been rooting for the boys from the Mill City since the league formed!

Hey thanks for the feedback! I always wonder how many people are actually reading this...

Yeah...the Inland teams have never had much luck in this fictional universe I've set up. Their champion has been one of the last two teams standing once out of the eight years I've played through.

Meanwhile, Providence is apparently Ye Olde Home of Base Ball in this one. The funny thing is that before I ran into the second set of issues that forced me to quit the previous iteration of this 1800s baseball universe, St. John's, which had turned into the Providence Saints, won the championship in the biggest pro league in existence eight times in ten years. So, in that game they were the kings of professional baseball.

Apparently no matter the game version, the engine has a subconscious thing for teams from Rhode Island. Who knew?

[tm1681]

SIX-TIME ALL-STARS CHANGE TEAMS!
DAVIS, HUNTLEY, & KESSLER JOIN NEW CLUBS; ALLEGHANY OVERHAULS ROSTER

NORTHEASTERN U.S.A. (Nov. 19, 1864) – The calendar has not turned over to 1865 yet, but already there has been major changes in the National Base Ball Organization since the end of the 1864 season. Most notably, three of the four players who have been named to all six All-Star Games – Willie Davis, Edward Huntley, & Samuel Kessler – have joined new clubs.

The first train to leave the station was one containing 3B Samuel Kessler, who – after eight years, one Batsman of the Year award, and one M.V.P. award playing for the Sons of the Ocean in Massachusetts – left for Pittsburgh on October 9th, where he will be the new centerpiece of the Alleghany B.C. roster. Kessler had a “down” season in 1864, with his .337 average being his lowest since 1858 and his 2.5 W.A.R. his lowest since 1860. He was still easily an All-Star, and it took a historic season by Port Jersey newcomer Walter Dudley to keep Kessler from his seventh Team of the Year nod.

Superstar SS Edward Huntley was the second player to switch allegiances, although he did not have to move far. Huntley, the two-time New York League M.V.P and six-time N.Y.L. leader in Batsman W.A.R, stayed within the New York City Championship, leaving Orange B.B.C. and joining the Knickerbocker club, a move that should make them an irresistible force on paper in 1865. Knickerbocker has also added one-time N.E.L. leader in Wins Herman Easley to be their second pitcher. Assuming they add a defensively competent CF to replace the disappointing Gregersen Rohrmann, it is hard to see how the Knickerbocker club fails to get back to the top of N.Y.C. next year. Orange was able to soften the blow of losing Huntley by bringing in three-time All-Star Per-Olaf Bakken from Kings County.

The third six-time All-Star to change clubs, in a move that happened just this morning, was Willie Davis returning home to Philadelphia and joining American B.C. after seven extraordinary years with Susquehanna that included two Batsman of the Year awards, one M.V.P, and four Team of the Year selections.

A spot in the outfield opened up after four-time All-Star Arthur Waltrip told the club he would not return next year – a move that will be discussed further down – and American G.M. Ernest Lockwood moved quickly to bring the sport’s premier center fielder back to his home city. It was not the only major change made by Lockwood, as he recruited 21-year-old, 4.5* 2B Peter Boyce and decent outfielder William Kohl from independent ball, and #2 pitcher Edward Lindsey from Minuteman to go with them while telling promising 22-year-old 1B William Busby that he will be the team’s regular 1B next year. There are not even any games for six months, and already American is much improved on paper.

However, there is one team that already looks like it will be more improved than any other next year, and for that we have to go back to Samuel Kessler’s move to Alleghany as that was not the only move pulled off by second-year G.M. Mark Davis. In addition to his recruitment of Kessler, Davis brought in the aforementioned Waltrip to be the new CF after a disappointing season from Clive Stock. He also recruited the two highest-rated players from independent ball, 5* star outfielder Royal Altman, who will be their new LF, and 5* pitcher Fred Richards, who will be their new #1 pitcher.

Alleghany still has holes at 1B, 2B, & SS, but Davis has six months to find players for those positions and he may end up going with quality 21-year-old prospect Edgar Drury at 1B anyway. If those three positions are shored up, Alleghany could go from last to first in the Inland Championship.

There is still one major veteran whose status is unknown, and that is 1859 N.E.L. Batsman of the Year and three-time All-Star Anderson MacGyver. He has told the St. John’s front office that he is unsure if he wants to return to the club next year, and that could mean another piece of the Providence-based dynasty is taken away.

[tm1681]

PROVIDENCE: CITY OF CHAMPIONS
ST. JOHN’S HAS WON 4 OF 8 TUCKER-WHEATON CUPS; RUNNER-UP TWICE

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Jan. 1, 1865) – When the National Base Ball Organization was formed in 1857, it was widely assumed that the best teams would be those from the clubs in Brooklyn & New York City. After all, the New York City metropolitan area was where the rules of the sport of base ball itself were formed, it had the oldest clubs, and it had the largest talent pool.

However, it did not take long for assumptions about the state of base ball in the Northeastern United States to be proven false. First, it was a team from upstate, Victory B.B.C of Troy, that was the first New York team to play for the Tucker-Wheaton Cup. Next, enter St. John’s Baseball Club from Providence, Rhode Island. St. John’s swept Victory to win to become the first team to lift the Tucker-Wheaton Cup, and they were just getting started:

St. John’s would win the 2nd edition of the Tucker-Wheaton Cup before falling to Shamrock in the N.E.L. playoffs in 1859, but they were back playing for the cup in 1860, where they lost to Kings County of Brooklyn.

After losing to Alleghany in the 1861 playoffs, St. John’s has come to dominate the T.W.C. since it moved to a Round Robin format, finishing 2nd in 1862 (7-3) before going an incredible 9-1 in 1863 and hoisting the cup last year after a one-game playoff against familiar foes Kings County, finishing 8-3.

Over eight years of the N.B.B.O, St. John’s has been the only team to win the New England Championship, their .686 Winning Percentage is easily the best of any team, and they have taken the cup four times while being runner-up twice.

How has St. John’s been able to reel off such long-lasting success? While it is true that they are the only “big” club in New England, Alleghany is in a similar situation in the Inland Championship and they finished in last place in 1864. St. John’s has also been consistently great against the best & biggest clubs the N.B.B.O. has to offer in postseason play.

The only way to examine how St. John’s has been so great is to look at the setup of their organization, from the top down.

Team president Borland Craig has overseen operations since the formation of the N.B.B.O. The 54-year-old Massachusetts native takes a hands-on approach in club affairs, but many club presidents do. He is notably patient and is willing to put every penny St. John’s brings in back into the club instead of squirreling it away for a rainy day, a combination that guards against rash decision making while ensuring the quality of the product over the long term.

Craig’s right-hand man is General Manager J. Bennett White, who has been involved in player recruitment & development since the beginning of the N.B.B.O. He is said to be very loyal to St. John’s players, treating them well while valuing the opinions of others in the organization. His strategy of acquiring batsmen who reach base by any means possible while ensuring that the defense is always strong has led to St. John’s perennially being among the N.B.B.O. leaders in Run Differential, with their best mark being a record +245 R.D. (+3.5 R/G) in 1859 that should stand for quite some time.

The team’s scout, Raymond Bauer, is regarded as an excellent judge of amateur and independent talent. This was never more evident than in 1858, when after recommending the trio of Colin Henderson, Anderson MacGyver, and Jerrick Stoner to the G.M. & President the three players combined for nearly 8.0 W.A.R. and St. John’s won their second straight N.B.B.O. title.

Perhaps the most important factor in the team’s success has been the in-game strategy of Manager Todd Rogers. Rogers, the only man to manage St. John’s, has taken the dominant strategy of the 1850s and early 60s – aggressive batting and conservative baserunning – and flipped it on its head. Instead of wanting his batsman to swing at the first decent-looking ball they see, he prefers they wait for an ideal pitch to hit and then hit that as hard as they can. Once on the bases, instead of running station-to-station Rogers wants any player with notable mobility to steal and take extra bases whenever possible.

How this has manifested itself is simple to see. St. John’s is the only team to plate 600+ runs in a season three times, and they have led the Northeastern League in runs six times in eight N.B.B.O. seasons. While the average N.B.B.O. outfit has stolen 101 bases per season St. John’s has averaged 209, with their record-shattering high of 248 (3.5 SB/G) coming in 1860. In contrast, the single-season record for a N.Y.L. team is 172. St. John’s batsmen have also perennially been among the N.E.L. leaders in Bases on Balls, with the team accounting for three of the five highest single-season totals in N.E.L. history and the N.B.B.O. record of 169 (2.4 BB/G) in 1861.

Continuity has also been a major positive for St. John’s. Aside from having one president, general manager, and manager over their eight seasons, they have also only employed one bench coach, hitting coach, first base coach, and third base coach. The only turnover in the entire organization over eight years has been when they changed pitching coaches in 1860, hiring Brian Donovan after Joshua Claycomb retired.

What this philosophy has led to is an ability for St. John’s to lose key players, plug in new ones, and keep the winning train running. When Jackson Buss, who would later be an All-Star, left for Kings County, they brought in Colin Henderson. When All-Star Clive Wise left for Sons of the Ocean, the brilliant Konrad Jensen took his place in the outfield. When All-Star center fielder Richard Kenton left the club, young star Nelson Townsend moved into the lineup. When Golden Glove third baseman Jerrick Stoner left for Continental, they had Leopold Pfeiffer waiting and ready. When John McGowan left for Knickerbocker, they went to more of a committee approach to their #2 Pitcher role and found success there. The club lost Anderson MacGyver to Mutual in New York City in December, and there is little doubt that they will find a player who will do well at second base in his considerable absence.

When base ball became an organized sport, the men who freely offer up their opinions on the game crowed that all roads lead to New York. Instead, it has transpired that there is but one road, leading not to New York or Brooklyn or any other large New York town, but to the largest city in Rhode Island. It is there that champions, and history, are made.

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ADAMS GETS HIS WAY! BOUND RULE IS NO MORE!
STARTING IN 1865, ALL FIELDERS MUST CATCH THE BALL ON THE FLY TO RECORD AN OUT

NEW YORK CITY (Mar. 13, 1865) – At the Rules & Regulations meeting of the N.B.B.O. Executive Committee last March, Knickerbocker B.B.C. president Doc Adams forced a vote on an issue that he had been obsessed with since the creation of the National Base Ball Organization: the elimination of the Bound Rule, which allowed fielders, especially outfielders, to record an out by catching a fly ball after one bounce. Adams lost the vote but was able to convince the presidents of nineteen other N.B.B.O. clubs to agree with him. Adams, undeterred by the result, vowed to use his power as the president of the N.B.B.O’s second-oldest club to continue to press for the elimination of the Bound Rule until he was victorious.

After a successful 1864 year both on and off the field it was time for another set of N.B.B.O.E.C. Rules & Regulations meetings, and Doc Adams followed through on his threat to take the contentious Bound Rule issue and slam it back on the table. However, Adams did not merely wait a full calendar year to reintroduce the issue, instead spending the past year talking to players, coaches, and executives, many of whom were either former cricket players or extremely familiar the sport, about the implied virtue in catching the ball the same way that cricket players do. Adams, whose role and club make him very influential, gained sympathetic ears and converted many to his side of his pet cause ahead of the meetings at the St. Nicholas Hotel in New York City.

At last year’s R&R meetings, Doc Adams stood almost alone amongst his New York League colleagues in advocating for forcing players to catch the ball on the fly. The traditionalists in the N.Y.L. saw no need to change what they felt worked perfectly fine, and also argued that if they wanted the game to be like cricket then they would simply go and run cricket clubs. The larger N.E.L. clubs agreed with their New York brethren, and Adams was forced to face defeat.

At this year’s R&R meetings, Adams was far from alone in vociferously arguing for the Bound Rule to be made a part of base ball’s past. Alongside him were the presidents of American & Quaker State, the two Philadelphian clubs that exist in a city where cricket was very popular. Joining them was the president of Gotham, whose facilities were at the St. George Cricket Grounds, and the president of St. John’s, the most dominant club in the sport.

This time around, the argument was convincing: if organized base ball wanted to be seen as at least equal to cricket, its players needed to display the same skill as cricket players. That included being able to catch a fly ball regardless of how uncomfortable it might feel against the hands, just as was done in cricket.

Whereas the vote in last year’s meetings was 20 for & 28 against removal of the Bound Rule, in this round the vote was 37 for & 11 against – easily more than the vetoproof two-thirds needed to vote in favor of eliminating the rule and mandating fly balls to be caught to retire batsmen. The Bound Rule was officially out.

What would this mean for the product on the field? Some members of the Writers Pool speculated that eliminating the Bound Rule would lead to a large increase in hits to the outfield. Instead, it is more likely that in upcoming seasons fielding errors made by outfielders will take flight as they try to adapt to the rule change. The Bound Rule let outfielders ease up on batted balls they would have otherwise reached in order to snag them on a single bounce and record an out. Now, they will be forced to run under the ball in time and safely catch it before it hits the ground. Without the speed of the ball being greatly decreased by a bounce off the grass, fielding miscues are sure to increase.

With the players now having to catch the ball on the fly while they are in the field, runs per game are sure to increase in 1865. Will further adjustments be made to assist fielders? Time will tell.