The Big Bang: A Larger Baseball Universe Starting From Nothing in 1857 - Page 44

tm1681 · 09-03-2025, 01:01 AM

KIHLSTEDT SPINS 1-HITTER AGAINST NIAGARA
MASS. BAY #2 PITCHER A SINGLE FROM HISTORY IN DOMINANT SHUTOUT WIN

BOSTON (June 28, 1876) - Massachusetts Bay entered the second game of their home series against Niagara looking to go even with their opposition for 2nd place in the Colonial Conference. Mission accomplished:

Four scores in the bottom of the 2nd was enough for Mass. Bay, although they piled on runs late, as #2 P Washington Kihlstedt held Niagara to just a single base hit in a memorable Shutout victory:

• TOTAL: CG SHUTOUT, 1 HA, 1 BB, 6 K, 90 GMSC

If it weren’t for a Single by Niagara C Irving Polk with two out in the top of the 2nd then Kihlstedt would have completed No-Hitter #2 in A.P.B.L. history, with the only one famously completed by Elmer Seabold in last year’s Founders’ Cup.

Several of Kihlstedt teammates decided to join in on the fun:

• MB #1 Charles Foster (CF): 3/6 (all 1B), 1 R, 2 RBI, SB
• MB #3 Gerhardt Berg (1B): 4/6 (all 1B), 2 R, 0 RBI
• MB #4 Harold Durand (LF): 3/5 (3B, 5 TB), 2 R, 2 RBI
• MB #6 Lane Garvin (C): 4/5 (HR, 7 TB), 2 R, 3 RBI

Of the quartet it’s Greenhorn Durand, formerly of Olympic in the N.B.B.O., that’s having the best season, currently batting .344 (.785 OPS) with 13 Extra-Base Hits and 28 Runs Batted In through 48 games of his debut A.P.B.L. season. So far, the expert batting Durand showed starting as a 21-year-old in the N.B.B.O. has translated nicely to his new league.

Mass. Bay & Niagara are 26-24 and tied for 2nd in the Colonial Conference. Both teams are six games behind St. John’s.

tm1681 · 09-03-2025, 01:02 AM

MUTUAL MAULS HARLEM WITH DOZEN IN 4TH
MASSIVE RALLY LEADS TO TWENTY-RUN VICTORY; WOLF & TERRIEN COMBINE FOR 11 HITS

NEW YORK CITY (June 30, 1876) - Harlem B.C.C. is in the midst of what is extremely likely to end up the worst season in team history, and the pain continued with a massive loss to Mutual at Mt. Morris Square on Friday afternoon:

It was a manageable 4-1 game after the end of the 3rd inning, but Mutual came to bat in the top of the 4th and proceeded to score a dozen Runs on eight Hits, with no less than eight Errors by Harlem out in the field providing Mutual no shortage of aid during their lengthy rally. With the game now 16-1 in favor of the visitors, the rest of the proceedings were a simple matter of filling out the scorecard.

In the victory, Mutual leadoff man Hagen Peck was 4/6 – all Singles – with four Runs and a pair of RBI. However, he was outdone by a pair of his teammates, who each had 5+ Hits.

First was Mutual RF Robert Wolf, an 1874 All-Star:

• T1: Fly Out to 1B (2 out)
• T3: Leadoff Double past 3B off E. Henry (R)
• T4: 1-run Infield Single to 2B off E. Henry (R)
• T4: 2-run Single to CF off S. O’Brien (R)
• T6: Reached via Fielder’s Choice at 2B (2 out)
• T7: 2-run Single past 2B off S. O’Brien
• T9: Single past 2B off H. Oliver
• TOTAL: 5/7 (2B, 6 TB), 4 R, 5 RBI, 95 GMSC

However, he was one-upped by Mutual 3B Ellis Terrien, a 2x Team of the Year nominee:

• T1: Reached via Base on Balls by E. Henry
• T3: 1-run Single past SS off E. Henry (R)
• T4: 1-run Single past SS off E. Henry (R)
• T4: 1-run Single past 3B off S. O’Brien (R)
• T6: Single past 2B off S. O’Brien
• T7: 1-run Single past 3B off S. O’Brien
• T9: 1-run Single past SS off H. Oliver
• TOTAL: 6/6 (all 1B), 3 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 109 GMSC

If going by Game Score, Wolf’s performance was one of the ten best by so far this season and Terrien’s was #1. Wolf is batting .329 (.769 OPS) with 29 RBI through 38 games, and he has an outside chance at being named to his second All-Star Game. Terrien is batting .339 (.792 OPS) with 34 RBI, and he’s having his best season since he was an All-Star in 1872.

Meanwhile, how bad have things become for Mutual? Their #1 Pitcher is 1872 N.E.L. Greenhorn & Pitcher of the Year Earl Henry, who was 30-11 with a 2.01 ERA and 6.2 WAR for Susquehanna during his historic debut season. After three years with a 69-37 cumulative record and 2.64 ERA for Susquehanna, Henry joined Harlem for the 1875 season. He was only 13-19 last year, but had a 3.14 ERA and respectable secondary numbers. This year? Henry is 4-17 with a 5.67 ERA and an almost unbelievable 26-to-8 BB/K total. It is entirely possible that Henry will go from being the best regular P in the N.B.B.O. to its worst in a span of five seasons, and his historically bad season has coincided with a 12-26 (Win %: .316) start by Harlem, which is easily on pace to beat the worst single-season record of 28-42 (.400) that they’ve experienced three times.

Mutual is in no great shape themselves. Their win was impressive but they are still second-to-last in New York City at 16-22, nine games behind leaders Union of Morrisania.

tm1681 · 09-03-2025, 01:03 AM

ARSENAL SETS ALL-LEAGUES RECORD IN MASSIVE WIN
FRANKFORD SCORES A STAGGERING 34 RUNS AT YORKTOWN; TEN PLAYERS HAVE MULTIPLE HITS

PHILADELPHIA (June 30, 1876) - East Philadelphia leaders Frankford Arsenal are doing their best to keep up with P.B.C.C. for best record in the league, and on Friday they continued to keep pace with a historic win at Yorktown:

The visitors rushed out to a 9-2 lead after two innings, and apparently they were angered by their failure to score in the 3rd because Frankford unleashed a bloodbath on Yorktown after that, scoring 25 more runs over the final six innings to win 34-8 and set an all-leagues record for Runs in a single game.

All nine members of the Frankford lineup, plus a substitute, finished with multiple Hits, and two had 100+ Game Scores:

• FRA #1 Jonathan Toppin (2B): 2/5 (2B, 4 RBI), 2 R, 2 RBI
• FRA #2 Francis Brown (LF): 6/8 (2 2B, HR, 11 TB), 5 R, 4 RBI, 108 GMSC
• FRA #3 James Howard (RF): 2/8 (2B, 3 TB), 4 R, 2 RBI
• FRA #4 Joseph Evans (CF): 3/6 (all 1B), 6 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB
• FRA #5 William Walker (1B): 3/5 (all 1B), 6 R, 6 RBI, 2 BB, HBP, 110 GMSC
• FRA #6 Burton Hyde (SS): 2/8 (2B, 3B), 3 R, 4 RBI
• FRA #7 James Montuoro (3B): 4/7 (all 1B), 2 R, 4 RBI, 1 BB
• FRA #8 Roger Thomas (C): 2/6 (both 1B), 2 R, 3 RBI
• FRA P James Lawson (P): 2/5 (both 1B), 1R, 3 RBI, 2 SAC BUNT, 1 SAC FLY
• FRA SUB Ray Moore (C): 2/2 (3B, 4 TB), 1 R, 2 RBI
• FRA SUB Karl Gulamiryan (2B): 0/1, 2 R, 1 BB, HBP
• FRA TOTAL: 28/61 (.459), 9 XBH (6 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR), 34 R, 32 RBI, 6 BB, 2 HBP

Frankford's 32 Runs Batted In during the game were also an all-leagues record for single-game run production.

The performances by Walker & Brown were #2 & #3 on the P.C.B.L. Game Score charts for the season, behind only Leonard Sanders’ 125 (5/6, Grand Slam, 3 R, 9 RBI) on June 4th for Minerva against Sons of Ben. Brown is batting .346 (.888 OPS) with 42 RBI through 38 games, with Walker batting .394 (944 OPS) in part-time duty (18 G).

The 3/6 outing by Joseph Evans raised his Batting Average to a league-leading .414 with a league-leading .466 On-Base, .569 Slugging %, 1.035 OPS, 54 Runs (70 G: 99 R), 17 Bases on Balls (70 G: 31 BB), and 3.2 WAR (70 G: 6.0 WAR), making him extremely likely to remain the only Batsman of the Year winner in P.C.B.L. history.

As a team, Frankford Arsenal is now 31-7 with a +148 Run Differential, both marks close to Philadelphia B.C.C.’s 32-6 record and +158 Run Differential. Frankford has built an eleven-game lead in East Philadelphia, and from here on out their main directive will be to prepare for a Liberty Bell Classic rematch.

tm1681 · 09-03-2025, 09:29 PM

AMERICAN BASEBALL JUNE RECAP

NORTHEAST U.S.A. (July 1) – The end of June means that baseball’s three competitions have recently crossed the midway point of the season. Here are how matters stand in each of the three leagues.

APBL STANDINGS (52 of 90 games played)

COLONIAL – St. John’s played .500 in June but remains alone in first place thanks to Alleghany’s hard fall. Fine months from Massachusetts Bay & Niagara have seen them move up to 2nd & 3rd respectively, while Alleghany’s 10-16 June saw them fall from 2nd to 4th with the team needing to turn its fortunes around quickly if they are to make their third straight Founders’ Cup. Flour City remains mired in mediocrity, while Shamrock is stuck in last place in spite of improved play.

METROPOLITAN – American remains clearly on top thanks to their second straight 16-10 month, but Knickerbocker & Orange are now the #2-3 combo after the pair matched American’s 16-10 record during June. Excelsior fell one spot to 4th after another 13-13 month, as their pitching remains spectacular and their offense remains anemic. Kings County reverted back to type during June and fell to 5th. Gotham just went through the worst month in team history, and it has left them with the worst record in the A.P.B.L. with no relief in sight as Babe Johnson will be out for two more weeks.

APBL MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMAN OF THE MONTH
James Burke (CF, AME) – .407, .957 OPS, 35 R, 48 H, 9 XBH, 1 HR, 21 RBI, 7 BB, 28 SB, 2.0 WPA, 1.7 WAR

PITCHER OF THE MONTH
William Avery (KNI) – 11-2, 3.15 ERA, 15 K, 111.1 IP, 9 CG, 1.7 K/BB, 1.25 WHIP, 1.3 WAR, 1.4 rWAR

GREENHORN OF THE MONTH
William Avery (P, KNI) – A.P.B.L. Pitcher of the Month

Kings Co. LF Fred Bartholomew had a higher Average (.414), Slugging Percentage (.560), & OPS (.990), but the current favorite to repeat as Batsman of the Year earned his B.o.t.M. award by stealing more than a base per game (26 G, 28 SB) and scoring more than once per game (35 R) while batting over .400 for the Metropolitan Conference leaders.

Avery won two more games than any other pitcher during June, so even though Jim Creighton had another absurd month of production (8-5, 2.03 ERA, 49 K, 2.9 WAR) it was Knickerbocker’s new #2 who took the honor with outstanding work during his first month in the team’s pitching rotation.

Naturally, Avery took home G.o.t.M. as well. No other Greenhorn came remotely close to Avery in terms of pitching, while Mass. Bay LF Harold Durand was the only Greenhorn batsman to put together a fine June (.363, .829 OPS, 12 RBI). Still, Durand’s .350 hitting didn’t compare to Avery’s 11-2 month pitching for Knickerbocker.

APBL STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .386 by James Burke (CF, American)
OPS: .922 by James Burke
Runs: 64 by Gerald Strong (SS, Alleghany) & Nelson Townsend (RF, St. John’s)
Home Runs: 3 by Royal Altman (1B, Gotham) & Garfield Koonce (1B, Kings Co.)
Runs Batted In: 53 by Eamonn Todd (3B, St. John’s)
Stolen Bases: 45 by James Burke
Batsman WPA: 3.8 by Franklin Petty (RF, American)
Batsman WAR: 3.5 by Anthony Mascherino (2B, Knick)

ERA (100+ IP): 2.06 by Jim Creighton (Excelsior)
Wins: 17 by Simeon DiStefano (American)
Strikeouts: 100 by Elmer Seabold (Excelsior)
Complete Games: 23 by Jim Creighton
WHIP (100+ IP): Jim Creighton
Pitcher WAR: 5.4 by Jim Creighton
Pitcher rWAR: 7.3 by Simeon DiStefano

NBBO REGIONAL LEADERS (38 of 70 games played)

BROOKLYN: Continental at 24-14 (Atlantic 1 GB, Eckford 2 GB, Star 4 GB)
NEW YORK CITY: Union at 25-13 (Metro & Mercury 4 GB, Baltic 5 GB)
UPSTATE N.Y.: Minuteman at 29-9 (Frontier 4 GB, Utica 6 GB, Victory 9 GB)
COASTAL: Trenton United at 26-12 (Quaker St. 1 GB, Pt. Jersey 2 GB, Newark 7 GB)
INLAND: Susquehanna at 28-10 (Lancastra 3 GB, Merrimack 5 GB, Pioneer 7 GB)
NEW ENGLAND: Sons of the Ocean at 24-14 (Portland 2 GB, Oceanic 4 GB, Cantabrigians 5 GB)

BROOKLYN – Continental’s 14-8 June saw them pull ahead of Atlantic & Eckford as their young pitching duo seemingly improves week by week. Still, the duo that has combined to take the last six Brooklyn pennants will be ever-present dangers during July. Star is hanging around, and Bedford’s 6-16 June saw the early performers fall from the top four to eight games back of the leaders.

NEW YORK CITY – Union’s 15-7 month saw them cleanly exit the three-way tie atop the standings, but they remain a most curious team as they’re winning nearly 2/3 of their games with a cumulative Run Differential of -2. That means none of the other teams in the top four, as well as other teams within ten games – N.Y.A.C., Hilltop, & Mutual – can be counted out.

UPSTATE N.Y. – If a team is 20-2 over the course of a month it will shoot up the standings, and indeed Minuteman did just that after ending May tied for 3rd. The team has won its last twelve games and looks close to unstoppable, which is a shame for Frontier & Utica as both are playing good baseball. Victory remains competitive thanks to perennial All-Star Henry Nabors, but they don't have much else.

COASTAL – The top four is the same as it was to end May but in slightly different order, as Trenton Utd.’s 16-6 June moved them past Quaker St. while Pt. Jersey & Newark remain in 3rd & 4th. National played significantly better in June – 13-9 vs 3-13 in May – but it’s too late for them to matter much in the pennant race unless they can play even better in July.

INLAND – Susquehanna followed its 12-4 may with a 16-6 June, and thus they remain atop Inland even though Lancastra is winning about 2/3 of its games and Merrimack is well over .500. The team’s offense, pitching, and defense all rank in the top five in the N.E.L., so it’s hard to see anything causing the 1874 cup winners to slip up.

NEW ENGLAND – Seven straight wins to end the month left S.o.t.O. the New England leaders, but Portland’s 16-6 month after a 6-10 start means they are a significant threat to take the pennant. Oceanic is a decent 3rd-place team, while Cantabrigians had a 9-13 month that caused them to fall from 1st to 4th.

NBBO MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMEN OF THE MONTH
NYL: Louis Murray (LF, ECK) – .385, .938 OPS, 39 R, 42 H, 5 2B, 6 3B, 14 RBI, 2 BB, 21 SB, 1.3 WPA, 1.7 WAR
NEL: Walter Braden (LF, SUS) – .382, .953 OPS, 27 R, 39 H, 12 XBH, 1 HR, 35 RBI, 2 BB, 12 SB, 0.9 WPA, 1.1 WAR

PITCHERS OF THE MONTH
NYL: William Tighe (MIN) – 10-2, 2.20 ERA, 35 K, 114.1 IP, 11 CG, 1 SHO, 2 SV, 1.16 WHIP, 2.4 WAR, 4.9 rWAR
NEL: James Dressman (PORT) – 8-3, 2.51 ERA, 21 K, 107.2 IP, 8 CG, 1 SV, 1.3 K/BB, 1.22 WHIP, 1.9 WAR, 2.3 rWAR

GREENHORNS OF THE MONTH
NYL: Jonathan Anfuso (P, BING) – 9-3, 1.98 ERA, 19 K, 113.2 IP, 10 CG, 1.3 K/BB, 1.13 WHIP, 2.0 WAR, 4.2 rWAR
NEL: Fred Cowan (P, PIO) – 10-3, 3.48 ERA, 16 K, 111.1 IP, 10 CG, 1.6 K/BB, 1.37 WHIP, 1.6 WAR, 1.3 rWAR

NBBO STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .395 by Jesse Craig (1B, S.o.t.O.)
OPS: .936 by Franklin Grigsby (1B, Lancastra)
Runs: 57 by John Kinder (CF, Minuteman) & Louis Murray (LF, Eckford)
Home Runs: 3 by Bernard Lambert (LF, Bedford)
Runs Batted In: 51 by Walter Braden (LF, Susquehanna)
Stolen Bases: 45 by Jack Anastasio (RF, N.Y.A.C.)
Batsman WPA: 4.5 by Alfred Suber (RF, Merrimack)
Batsman WAR: 2.7 by Stephen Barley (SS, Susquehanna)

ERA (100+ IP): 174 by Frank Dixon (Baltic)
Wins: 17 by Ross Gill (P, Quaker St.)
Strikeouts: 86 by George Burroughs (Pt. Jersey)
Complete Games: 18 by William Tighe (Minuteman)
WHIP (100+ IP): 1.07 by Charles Rhodes (N.Y.A.C.)
Pitcher WAR: 5.9 by George Burroughs (Pt. Jersey)
Pitcher rWAR: 7.4 by William Tighe (Minuteman)

PCBL LEADERS (38 of 70 games played)

EAST: Frankford Arsenal at 31-7 (no teams within 10 GB)
WEST: Philadelphia B.C.C. at 32-6 (Merion 10 GB, no other teams within 10 GB)

EAST – Arsenal was 19-3 during June, and as a result their lead ballooned from two games to eleven, with Pt. Richmond in 2nd place at 20-18. Their offense, of course led by Joseph Evans, leads the league in Runs, Average, On-Base, Slugging, OPS, Hits, Doubles, Triples, & WAR. That their batsmen are doing this while playing their home games in the league’s most extreme pitcher’s park (AVG Factor: .869) is incredible.

WEST – P.B.C.C., now winners of eighteen consecutive games, did Arsenal one better by going 20-2 and went from tied with Merion atop the standings to end May to a ten-game lead to end June. As dominant as Arsenal has been in attack, P.B.C.C. has been similarly dominant in both pitching & fielding. So masterful has P.B.C.C. been that Merion has been relegated to an afterthought even though they currently have two of the league's three .400 hitters: 1B William Norman (.406) & LF James Cray (.401).

PCBL MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMAN OF THE MONTH
Joseph Evans* (CF, FRA) – .426, 1.087 OPS, 32 R, 43 H, 9 2B, 5 3B, 24 RBI, 10 BB, 3 SB, 2.4 WPA, 1.7 WAR

PITCHER OF THE MONTH
Robert Benson (PBCC) – 12-1, 1.51 ERA, 31 K, 113.0 IP, 10 CG, 1 SHO, 3.4 K/BB, 1.10 WHIP, 2.0 WAR, 3.5 rWAR

GREENHORN OF THE MONTH
Robert Benson (PBCC) – P.C.B.L. Pitcher of the Month

*Evans won B.o.t.M. for the fifth time in his three and a half seasons in the P.C.B.L.

PCBL STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .414 by Joseph Evans (CF, Frankford)
OPS: 1.035 by Joseph Evans
Runs: 54 by Joseph Evans & Wallace Wagner (CF, MER)
Home Runs: 2 by six different batsmen
Runs Batted In: 47 by Frederick Pike (2B, P.B.C.C.)
Stolen Bases: 30 by Harrison Comstock (LF, Schuylkill)
Batsman WPA: 3.7 by Joseph Evans
Batsman WAR: 3.2 by Joseph Evans

ERA (100+ IP): 1.52 by Robert Benson (P.B.C.C.)
Wins: 19 by Robert Benson
Complete Games: 19 by Robert Benson
Strikeouts: 52 by Robert Benson
WHIP (100+ IP): 1.00 by Arthur Lipscomb (P.B.C.C.)
Pitcher WAR: 4.0 by Paul Krueger (Sons of Ben)
Pitcher rWAR: 6.4 by Robert Benson

tm1681 · 09-08-2025, 02:35 PM

PBCC WINNING STREAK ENDS AT EIGHTEEN
THREE AND A HALF WEEK WINNING RUN STOPPED AT OVERBROOK IN LOW-SCORING GAME

PHILADELPHIA (July 1-2, 1876) - Philadelphia Baseball & Cricket Club entered Saturday’s game at 14-23 Overbrook with an eighteen game Winning Streak, but that run was stopped cold by the hosts, who were excellent out in the field:

on a Double by 1B Jerald Schneieder, but the hosts took the lead back immediately on a Single by LF Cornelius Gibson. Overbrook added another run in the 6th on a Triple by C Walter Lochhead, and they held off P.B.C.C. from there thanks to a fine performance by #1 P William Jardin…

• TOTAL: CG, 7 HA, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

…and a lone collective Error committed by Overbrook’s fielders over the nine innings (LG AVG: 7.1 E/G).

The defeat was P.B.C.C.’s first in all of 27 days as the most dominant team in any of the three competitions had finally been forced back in the Loss column.

There was still one more game in the series, and how did P.B.C.C. respond to the surprising loss?

They beat the tar out of Overbrook. Perhaps annoyed with the previous day’s loss, P.B.C.C. reeled off ten runs in the 2nd and had a 12-0 lead by the end of the 3rd. They could have eased into victory from there, but instead P.B.C.C. piled on ten more scores and defeated Overbrook by a final margin of nineteen.

There were two clear stars for P.B.C.C, one batsman and one pitcher:

• PBCC #1 Robert Chase (CF): 4/7 (3B, 6 TB), 4 R, 3 RBI, 1 BB
• PBCC P Robert Benson (BAT): 3/6 (a11 1B), 1 R, 3 RBI, 1 SAC BUNT
• PBCC P Robert Benson (PIT): CG, 6 HA, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 K

The smashing win meant P.B.C.C. ended Week Eight with an eye-watering 33-7 record, +175 Run Differential (+4.4 R/G), and a ten-game lead over second-place Merion. Given that Frankford Arsenal is dominating East Philadelphia with a 32-8 record, it’s clear that there will be an epic rematch of last year’s Liberty Bell Classic to decide the 1876 Philadelphia champion.

tm1681 · 09-08-2025, 02:38 PM

100 YEARS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
BASEBALL FEATURES HEAVILY AS UNITED STATES CELEBRATES ITS CENTENNIAL

NORTHEAST U.S.A. (July 4, 1876) - There were celebrations across the Northeast on Tuesday, as the United States celebrated the centennial of the ratification of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia’s Independence Hall (the document wasn’t actually signed until August 2nd, 1776 at the same venue, then known as the Pennsylvania State House).

Americans across the 37 states are celebrating in various ways (Colorado would become the 38th state four weeks later), but the most robust celebrations of the United States Centennial are occurring in Philadelphia. In Fairmount Park the United States is hosting a World’s Fair in the form of the Centennial Exposition, which began on May 10th and will last until early November. There are various exhibition halls dedicated to Agriculture, Horticulture, Machinery, the Arts, various inventions, and the work of women. Visitors can take a look at some incredible new creations, including the telephone, the typewriter, a crude light bulb powered by electricity, a foodstuff called “ketchup”, a new drink named “root beer”, and a strange plant from Japan called Kudzu.

Visitors from around the world also had the chance to see this strange new game called “baseball”, as the executives of the P.C.B.L. and N.B.B.O. decided to move the schedule for the week up by a day so games could be played on the centennial. Since Overbrook & Germantown had to make up a rainout there were nine P.C.B.L. games on display in the city, with Yorktown’s 16-14 victory at Pt. Richmond providing the most exciting fare to the neutral observer.

Between the three competitions, 39 games took place across the Northeast (A.P.B.L.: 6, N.B.B.O.: 24, P.C.B.L.: 9) on the day, with fans of all stripes attending Independence Day festivities in the morning, baseball games in the afternoon, and perhaps more events in the evening.

For many, it was time to toast one hundred years of the United States’ existence, and to toast the idea of one hundred more.

tm1681 · 09-08-2025, 02:38 PM

AMAZING ALDRIDGE HOLDS ST. JOHN’S TO THREE HITS
SHAMROCK GREENHORN EXCELS AS 6x CHAMPS HAVE RARE SCORELESS OUTING

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Just 5, 1876) - St. John’s were solid home favorites to win the second game of their series against last-place Shamrock on Wednesday, but Shamrock put up a brilliant performance to blank their hosts and take the win:

A scoreless game heading into the 3rd inning, Shamrock scored five times on a series of Singles & Errors. They added two more runs in the 4th on a Triple by LF Mario Fusilli and a Single by 1B Frank Bulger to take a 7-0 lead, and in the end the lead never came close to being in any danger thanks to the work of #2 P Rudolph Aldridge and the Shamrock fielders.

Aldridge, one of two Greenhorn P’s for Shamrock, pitched a Shutout…

• TOTAL: CG SHUTOUT, 3 HA, 2 BB, 2 K

…while Shamrock’s batsmen had a rare errorless game in the field (1876 LG AVG: 6.3 E/G).

The result left the two teams with palindromic records: St. John’s at 34-22 and atop the Colonial Conference (Mass. Bay 4 GB), with Shamrock 22-34 and in last place (12 GB).

tm1681 · 09-08-2025, 02:39 PM

TWO MUTUAL MEN CLUB 5+ HITS IN BIG VICTORY
BOS 5/6, WOLF PERFECT 6/6 WITH BAT IN DOUBLE-FIGURE WIN AT MERCURY

NEW YORK CITY (July 7, 1876) - Mutual visited Mercury on Friday, in a battle of two teams in the middle of the New York City standings. The result was a dominant win by the visitors thanks to heavy early scoring:

Mutual wasted no time taking a big early lead, scoring four times in the top of the 1st, one in the 2nd, and six more times in the 3rd to take an 11-1 lead. Mercury tried to mount a comeback and cut Mutual’s lead to five with a run in the 4th, but then the visitors scored another half a dozen runs in the top of the 5th to make it a 17-6 game, and the contest was over.

It was a great day for the Mutual offensive, but two men in particular stood out.

The first star performer for Mutual was SS Gerrie Bos:

• T1: 2-run Single to CF off E. Martin
• T3: 1-run Single past SS off E. Martin (R)
• T4: Single to CF off T. Sessions
• T5: 1-run Single to LCF off T. Sessions (R)
• T7: Ground Out to P (1 out)
• T9: Leadoff Single past 2B off A. Price
• TOTAL: 5/6 (all 1B), 2 R, 4 RBI

The second star was RF Robert Wolf, who was fantastic in a Player of the Game performance:

• T1: 1-run Double past 3B off E. Martin (R)
• T2: Triple to LCF off E. Martin (R)
• T3: 2-run Single past 2B off E. Martin (R)
• T5: Leadoff Single past 1B off T. Sessions (R)
• T5: 1-run Single to RCF off T. Sessions
• T8: Leadoff Infield Single to 1B off A. Price
• TOTAL: 6/6 (2B, 3B, 9 TB), 4 R, 4 RBI, 104 GMSC

Wolf was the second Mutual batsman in eight days to post a triple-digit Game Score, with Ellis Terrien putting up a season-high 109 (6/7, 6 1B, 3 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB) against Harlem on the last day of June.

Bos’ 5/6 day with the bat raised his Average to .341 (.759 OPS) with 22 RBI and 1.5 WAR through 43 games, while Wolf’s perfect 6/6 raised his Average to .343 (.830 OPS) with 36 RBI and 1.5 WAR. Both players have a decent chance to make the All-Star Game, which would be the first for Bos and the second for Wolf.

The win improved Mutual to 20-23. They are 6th in New York City and nine games behind leaders Union. Mercury dropped to 22-21 (7 GB), where they are now part of a three-way tie for 3rd with Baltic & New York Athletic Club.

tm1681 · 09-09-2025, 08:06 AM

SMITH BLANKS NIAGARA, GIVES ST. JOHN’S BEST RECORD
ST. JOHN’S PITCHER SHUTS OUT VISITORS FROM BUFFALO, ADDS TWO HITS

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (July 11, 1876) - The improved Niagara team traveled to Rhode Island to start Week Eleven looking to move to within three games of Colonial Conference leaders St. John’s, but their hosts offered up a rude welcome:

St. John’s scored twice in the bottom of the second on a Single by C Frederick Drake and a Niagara fielding mistake, and that proved to be enough for the win as P Thomas Smith and the St. John’s fielders held Niagara firmly in check. The hosts scored again in the 7th on another Niagara mistake, and that made for the 3-0 final score.

For Smith, not only did he pitch his eleventh career Shutout but he also was effective with the bat:

• BATTING: 2/3 (both 1B), 1 R, 1 RBI
• PITCHING: CG SHUTOUT, 7 HA, 0 BB, 3 K

Smith started the season as St. Johns’ main substitute at P for the first time,but he has since regained his place with Howard Burns in the team's pitching duo. The Shutout ran his record to 11-6 with a 2.83 and 1.0 WAR over 114 innings so far in 1876.

The win, combined with a loss by American, gave St. John’s the best record in the A.P.B.L. at 37-24. A Winning Percentage of .607 is not usually something seen in the best team in a league at any given time, but the A.P.B.L. has seen more top-to-bottom quality than in seasons past, which should make for a very enjoyable pennant race.

tm1681 · 09-09-2025, 08:07 AM

LAKE ERIE BEATS SPORTSMAN’S IN 35-RUN THRILLER
HOSTS ERASE ELEVEN-RUN DEFICIT & WIN VIA WALKOFF; DE BOER FINISHES WITH FIVE HITS & SIX RBI

ERIE, PENN. (July 13, 1876) - Sportsman’s & Lake Erie are both having extremely forgettable seasons, but on Thursday afternoon at the Tenth Street Grounds in Erie the two put on a tremendous show for the fans:

The game started off rather inconspicuously, with just two runs over the first three innings and visiting Sportsman’s exiting them with a 2-0 lead. That was when the fun started.

Sportsman’s scored three times in T4 to increase their lead, but Lake Erie immediately countered with three runs on a bases-clearing Triple by 2B Koos de Boer to make it a 5-3 game. Sportsman’s then scored half a dozen times in T5, the key hit a two-run Single by 2B William Gibson, to make it 11-3. Two more runs in the 6th were followed by another in the 7th, and Sportsman’s, holders of the worst record in the N.E.L., had a seemingly insurmountable eleven-run lead at 14-3.

Lake Erie put up a five-run rally in B7 to cut the deficit to six (14-8), with 3B Andrew Brannon’s two-run Single the key hit. Sportsman’s responded with a trio of tallies in T8 to bring the lead back to nine (17-8), but Lake Erie put up eight runs in B8, two-run Singles by de Boer & Brannon the important moments, to slash the lead to a single run at 17-16.

Sportsman’s were sat down in order in T9, meaning Lake Erie needed a run to force extra frames and two to take an incredible comeback victory. C George Keller led off the inning with a Single, and de Boer followed with a Single (to 2B via Error) that moved Keller over to third. PH William Ferreira then moved the runners with a Ground Out to 1B that evened the score. After a Fielder’s Choice nabbed de Boer at home, LF Declan Smith cracked a Double past the head of the First Baseman that allowed Brannon to dash around the bases and give Lake Erie a most memorable victory.

B9 leadoff man Keller had a fine game (4/5, 4 R, 1 RBI), but de Boer was the man of the afternoon for Lake Erie:

• B2: Strike Out Swinging (2 out)
• B4: 3-run Triple to RCF off J. Dietrich
• B6: Single to RCF off J. Dietrich
• B7: 2-run Single to LF off J. Dietrich (R)
• B8: 1-run Single past 2B off L. Stocks (R)
• B9: Single to LF off W. Harper
• TOTAL: 5/6 (3B, 7 RBI), 2 R, 6 RBI, 92 GMSC

It was both a clutch and desperately needed performance for de Boer, a Greenhorn who entered the game with a .185 Batting Average (.443) OPS, 25 Runs Batted In, and negative WAR through 46 games as Lake Erie’s 2B in his debut season. De Boer’s 5/6 day raised his Average to .207 (.494 OPS) and his RBI total to 31, and while de Boer’s WAR remains in the negative at -0.5 it’s no longer close to -1.0.

Lake Erie and Sportsman’s are basically playing for pride at this point. At 17-30, Lake Erie is still mathematically in playoff contention but they’re twenty games behind Inland leaders Susquehanna with 23 games remaining in the season. Sportsman’s has been eliminated from playoff contention. Their 13-34 record is the worst in the N.E.L. and has them two dozen games behind Susquehanna with the same 23 games left, and it’s also on pace to be by far the worst season in team history, with the previous worst being a 28-42 record in 1861.

tm1681 · 09-09-2025, 08:08 AM

LANCASTRA & SCRANTON CONTEST 17-INNING EPIC
BOTH PITCHERS LAST ENTIRETY OF LONGEST GAME IN BASEBALL HISTORY

SCRANTON, PENN. (July 13, 1876) - Lancastra Britannia needed a win at beatable Scranton (15-31) to stay five games behind Susquehanna in the Inland Championship. They got the job done, but not before playing the longest game ever seen:

It was an overcast day, but apparently the teams thought it was perfect weather for baseball as one game nearly turned into two at George W. Scranton field.

Lancastra scored in top of the 1st but runs proved to be an incredibly scarce commodity, as the teams could only manage two runs each during the regular nine innings. After both teams went scoreless in the 10th & 11th, Lancastra took a 3-2 lead on a Sacrifice Fly in the top of the 12th before C Lennon Powers tied the game for Scranton with a run-scoring Double in the bottom of the inning. Four more frames would go by scoreless before Lancastra took another lead in the top of the never-before-seen seventeenth inning, with one run scoring on a Wild Pitch before a second came in on an Error by the infield. Scranton was able to move a batsman to third base in their half of the seventeenth but that was all, and Lancastra had taken the victory in the longest game the sport of baseball had ever seen.

To call this game a Pitcher’s Duel would be an understatement, as both pitchers, incredibly, went the distance:

• LAN P Harley Stephenson: CG (17.0 IP), 10 HA, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 201 PI, 100 GMSC
• SCR P Charles Emmert: CG (17.0 IP), 11 HA, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 192 PI, 95 GMSC

Both men took a share of the new all-leagues record for Innings Pitched in a single game with 17.0 each, while Stephenson’s 100 Game Score set an all-leagues record for pitchers and his 201 pitches delivered were a new N.B.B.O. high mark.

As for the game itself, not only was it the longest game ever inning-wise at seventeen but its four hour and 24 minute run time made it the longest game ever time-wise as well.

The victory kept Lancastra five games behind Inland leaders Susquehanna. At 32-15 they would lead either the Coastal or New England championships, but unfortunately they’re stuck in a region with the N.B.B.O.’s #1 team through 47 games.

Scranton is having a season to forget. At 15-32 they are all but playing for pride at this point, 22 games behind Susquehanna with 23 left to play.

tm1681 · 09-09-2025, 08:08 AM

TRENTON HAMMERS PORT JERSEY TO TAKE COASTAL LEAD
PTJ SCORES FIRST BEFORE TU SCORES NEXT FIFTEEN; WOLFF BATS 4/5 WITH FIVE RUNS & SIX RBI

TRENTON, N.J. (July 15, 1876) - Port Jersey & Trenton United played the fourth game of the highly anticipated series between the Coastal Championship’s two best teams on Saturday. They were tied for 1st place at 31-17, and Trenton Utd. took 1st place outright in a game that was no contest:

Visiting Pt. Jersey scored first with three runs during the top of the 2nd, but Trenton Utd. responded by scoring the next fifteen – three in the 2nd, 3rd, & 4th each – to take a 15-3 lead. Pt. Jersey mounted little in the way of a comeback, and the home team’s twelve-run lead ballooned to a 22-run margin (28-6) by the time all was said and done.

That Trenton Utd. had 28 Hits meant there were no shortage of star batsmen:

• TU #1 Earl Seals (SS): 3/7 (2B, 4 TB), 1 R, 3 RBI, DEF DP
• TU #2 James Hunsberger (RF): 3/6 (2 2B, 5 TB), 1 R, 5 RBI, SAC FLY
• TU #4 Charles Singer (C): 4/7 (2B, 5 TB), 4 R, 1 RBI, 1/3 RTO
• TU #6 Jelmar Keereweer (3B): 3/5 (3B, 5 TB), 4 R, 3 RBI, BB, HBP, SB
• TU SUB John Toddy (1B): 2/3 (3B, 4 TB), 2 R, 2 RBI
• TU P Thomas Koch: 4/6 (all 1B), 3 R, 3 RBI

However, one man outdid all of the above, and that man was LF Charles Wolff:

• B2: 1-run Single to CF off M. Munson (R)
• B3: 2-run Single past 2B off M. Munson (R)
• B4: Reached via 1-run Error by SS T. Ashley (R)
• B5: 2-run Single to RCF off E. Hawkins (R)
• B7: 1-run Double to LCF off E. Hawkins (R)
• B8: Substituted out for PH Frank Weber
• TOTAL: 4/5 (2B, 5 TB), 5 R, 6 RBI, 105 GMSC

Wolff, a 1x All-Star (1873), has struggled this season, but the prodigious output on Saturday raised his Average to .275 (.685 OPS) with 47 Runs Batted In and 1.1 WAR through 49 games.

Trenton Utd. is 32-17 and leads the Colonial Championship by one game over Pt. Jersey (31-18), three games over Quaker St. (29-20) and five games over Newark (27-22).

tm1681 · 09-09-2025, 08:09 AM

CREIGHTON PITCHES 3RD SHUTOUT OF SEASON
LEGEND BLANKS KC FOR 19TH SHUTOUT OF CAREER AS EXCELSIOR TRIES TO STAY IN CONTENTION

BROOKLYN (July 20, 1876) - Kings County & Excelsior ended their series at Carroll Park on Thursday, and Jim Creighton was in brilliant form as he blanked the visitors and put his team back next to the .500 mark:

With two runs in the 2nd and three in the 3rd Excelsior had more than enough scoring for the win, as Jim Creighton pitched his league-leading third Shutout of 1876 for the home team:

• TOTAL: CG SHUTOUT, 5 HA, 0 BB, 3 K

The Shutout was also the nineteenth of Creighton’s career.

Excelsior’s offensive struggles this season (R: 12th, AVG: 10th, OPS: 9th, SB: 12th) mean that the victory only moved Creighton’s record to 19-13 on the season, but he has a fantastic 2.35 ERA (2nd), 119 Strikeouts (2nd), and 6.6 WAR (1st) through 295 innings of work for Excelsior.

Another matter of note from the game is that Excelsior 3B Elijah Hill went 1/4, and in the process obtained a twenty-game Hitting Streak. The 3B in his third year with Excelsior is batting .359 with an .821 OPS, both A.P.B.L. career highs through 68 games, and he is a lock to make his fifth All-Star Game in five years of organized baseball.

Excelsior is 34-35, nine games behind Metropolitan Conference leaders American and desperately trying to stay in the chase for the pennant. Much-improved Kings Co. is one game behind Excelsior and ten behind American.

tm1681 · 09-10-2025, 08:04 AM

1876 NATIONAL BASE BALL ORGANIZATION ALL-STAR GAME
GAME PLAYED AT BROAD STREET IN PHILADELPHIA; SUSQUEHANNA TOPS NOMINATIONS

NEW YORK CITY (July 24, 1876) – With three weeks left to play in the season, it’s time for the annual N.B.B.O. All-Star Game! Rules were the same as always:

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

The game was moved back to Philadelphia this year, but it wasn’t hosted by Quaker State. Instead, Tiger Social Club and its home park, the Broad Street Diamond (CAP: 6,470), hosted the festivities for the first time. What makes the Broad Street Diamond interesting is its configuration, with its 15’ perimeter walls laid out in a diamond shape to mirror the basepaths.

This year the N.Y.L. rosters are back to parity, with #1 Minuteman sending three players, Brooklyn leaders Atlantic sending four, and N.Y.C. leaders Union sending only two. Over in the N.E.L. Susquehanna, which has the league’s best record by six games, brought a game-leading five players to Philadelphia. The other two leaders, Trenton Utd. & S.o.t.O., sent three each.

There were 27 first-time nominees in this year’s All-Star Game (N.Y.L.:14, N.E.L.: 13), with half of the N.Y.L.’s twelve Infielders playing for the first time and eight of nine N.E.L. Outfielders in the game for the first or second time. There were nine Greenhorns, including a record half a dozen representing the N.E.L. However, the only Greenhorn starter was N.Y.L. RF Jack Anastasio of N.Y.A.C.

Once again, the old hand at this year’s All-Star Game was Victory SS Henry Nabors, who was making his tenth appearance in the contest in eleven N.B.B.O. seasons, missing only the 1870 edition. For the N.E.L., the most experienced All-Star was Quaker St. CF Ned Morganti, who was making his eighth appearance in the All-Star Game.

Rosters for the 1874 N.B.B.O. All-Star Game were as follows, with starters marked in red:

So, how did this year's All-Star Game turn out?

The Northeastern League repeated as All-Star Game champs thanks to a seventh-inning rally.

The N.Y.L. opened scoring right away, thanks to a Double by CF Herb Verrett in the top of the 1st. The N.E.L. countered immediately with two runs on Singles by 3B Joseph Reed & 2B Frank Thomas, but the N.Y.L. scored on a Double by 3B William Dehnam in the top of the second to even the game 2-2. A Single by 1B Jesse Craig plated a run in the bottom of the 3rd, and the N.E.L. exited the early innings ahead 3-2.

The N.Y.L. took the lead back during the middle innings. A one-run Single by C William Lovato tied the game in the 4th, a one-run Triple by sub LF Callum Allison made it 4-3, and the N.Y.L. added another run during the inning via Sacrifice Fly.

5-3 was the score when the N.E.L. stepped to the plate for the bottom of the 7th, and they proceeded to score six runs on a series of Singles & Errors, the key hit being a two-run Single by sub LF Jacob Kaulback that gave the N.E.L. a 6-5 lead. Faced with a 9-5 deficit the N.Y.L. only sent four batsmen to the plate in the top of the 8th & 9th, and that meant the N.E.L. had earned a multiple-run victory in Philadelphia.

The All-Star Game Most Valuable Player was Sons of the Ocean 1B Jesse Craig:

• TOTAL: 2/3 (both 1B), 1 R, 1 RBI

N.Y.L. CF Herb Verrett was also 2/3 with a Run & RBI each, and one of his two base hits was a Double.

The pitchers of record were John Faulkner with the Win and Edward Pelham with the loss. Attendance was 6,470 at the Broad Street Diamond, and the sellout crowd was able to enjoy a game in 83-degree weather with clear skies.

tm1681 · 09-10-2025, 08:05 AM

ROSTERS NAMED FOR 6TH APBL ALL-STAR GAME
AMERICAN TO HOST GAME AGAIN; AMERICAN LEADS NOMINATIONS WITH SIX

NEW YORK CITY (July 25, 1876) – Final vote tallies taken from fans, coaches, players, and Writers Pool members have been completed, and telegrams detailing the rosters for the 5th American Professional Baseball League All-Star Game have been sent out across the Northeast.

Rosters for the A.P.B.L. Midsummer Classic aren’t the same as those in its NBBO counterpart:

• Twenty players per conference
• Roster places 1-4 go to pitchers – two for each rotation place
• Roster places 5-20 go to batsmen – two for each position
• All six teams from each conference must be represented (see note below)

It’s the Metropolitan Conference’s turn to host the game this year, and it was decided that American should be bestowed with the hosting duties again, given that they’ve won three of the last four A.P.B.L. titles.

The rosters for this year’s All-Star game are led by aforementioned American. They will send six players to their home venue for the game, including both members of their pitching rotation. After American, four teams are tied for the next highest amount of nominees at four each: Knickerbocker, Massachusetts Bay, Niagara, & St. John’s. At the bottom end it’s Gotham, which sent five players to the game last year, that will send only one player to Philadelphia.

This year’s elder statesman is Anthony Mascherino, who, incredibly, is making his seventeenth All-Star Game appearance when combing the pre-split N.B.B.O. and the A.P.B.L. Konrad Jensen will be in his sixteenth A.S.G., and Jim Creighton will be in his fifteenth. There will be seven first-time nominees and zero Greenhorns present.

Here are the All-Star Game rosters, with total All-Star appearances between the N.B.B.O. & A.P.B.L. noted:

Here are the number of nominees representing each team:

• ALLEGHANY: 3 (Cordell, Meier, & Strong)
• AMERICAN: 6 (Boyce, Burke, DiStefano, Everhart, Petty, & Prince)
• EXCELSIOR: 3 (Creighton, Hill, & Oberst)
• FLOUR CITY: 3 (Dugas, Goodman, & Knight)
• GOTHAM: 1 (Altman)
• KINGS CO.: 3 (Bartholomew, Koonce, & Williams)
• KNICK: 4 (Dyke, Landreth, Mascherino, & Romano)
• MASS. BAY: 4 (Berg, Garvin, Gaul, & Stoffers)
• NIAGARA: 4 (Hudspeth, Roper, Schumacher, & Smith)
• ORANGE: 3 (Harmon, Schreiber, & Valentine)
• SHAMROCK: 2 (Bulger & Simon)
• ST. JOHN’S: 4 (Burns, Decker, Jensen, & Todd)

American is the clear leader in nominees with six, but what makes their batch of All-Star Game players unique is that both members of their pitching duo, Simeon DiStefano & Jimmy Everhart, have been nominated on account of the fact that they are the only Pitchers in the A.P.B.L. who currently have 20+ Wins.

There are seven first-time All-Stars this year, and no Greenhorns:

• COLONIAL: 3 (Hudspeth, Smith, & Todd)
• METROPOLITAN: 4 (Everhart, Harmon, Landreth, & Romano)

The 6th APBL All-Star Game takes place next Monday afternoon at Glenwood Field in Philadelphia, with the first pitch scheduled for just after 1:00 PM. A sellout crowd of roughly 12,400 is expected to attend.

tm1681 · 09-10-2025, 08:07 AM

BURROUGHS BRILLIANT IN OLYMPIC SHUTOUT
DEFENDING NEL PITCHER OF THE YEAR BATS 2/4 WHILE BLANKING HAPLESS OLYMPIC

PATERSON, N.J. (July 26, 1876) - Port Jersey needed a win to stay within two games of Trenton United for top spot in the Coastal Championship, and they did so in shutting down a very beatable Olympic team on Wednesday:

This game was all about the middle innings, with Pt. Jersey scoring all eleven of their runs from the 3rd through the 6th while Olympic and its 40th-ranked offense couldn’t get anything going, and in the end the visitors won by eleven.

Pt. Jersey had a part of three-RBI men on the day: 2B John Baddley & 3B Roy Vreeken. However, their Player of the Game was star pitcher George Burroughs:

• BATTING: 2/4 (2B, 3 TB), 3 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB
• PITCHING: CG SHUTOUT, 5 HA, 1 BB, 3 K

While Burroughs isn’t having the history-making season he had last year, when he won the N.E.L.’s Pitching Triple Crown, the Shutout Win did raise his record to 18-14 with a 2.84 ERA, 129 Strikeouts (#1), and 8.8 WAR (#1).

The win kept 35-21 Pt. Jersey two games behind Coastal Championship leaders Trenton Utd and two games in front of third-place Quaker St. Olympic is in last place at 20-36 and has been eliminated from playoff contention.

tm1681 · 09-10-2025, 08:08 AM

EXCELSIOR GARROTES GOTHAM; CREIGHTON BRILLIANT
EXCELSIOR MASTER PITCHES 2ND SHUTOUT IN EIGHT DAYS, ALSO DRIVES IN THREE RUNS

NEW YORK CITY (July 27, 1876) - Excelsior took on Gotham at the St. George Cricket Grounds for the final game of the teams’ series on Thursday, and the result was an unapologetic Excelsior beating of their hosts:

After a scoreless first inning, the visitors scored three times in the top of the second, with Jim Crieghton’s one-run Triple the biggest moment of the rally, and the rout was on. Excelsior wouldn’t stop until they had finished scoring six runs in the top of the 8th to take a 17-0 lead, and what has already been worst season in Gotham history became even worse.

Creighton was simply brilliant:

• BATTING: 2/5 (2 3B, 6 TB), 2 R, 3 RBI, 1 BB
• PITCHING: CG SHUTOUT, 3 HA, 0 BB, 3 K

His pair of Triple and three Runs Batted In were season highs, and he pitched his fourth Shutout of the season, which was also his second in eight days.

Creighton is 2-1 since his previous Shutout, and his record is now 21-14 on the season with a 2.21 Earned Run Average (#1), 128 Strikeouts (#2), and 7.2 WAR (#1) over 321 innings of work in 1876. He’s also batting .327 with a .826 OPS.

Excelsior is 39-36, 3rd place in the Colonial Conference and eight games behind American with seventeen games remaining. Gotham is 25-50, having long since been eliminated from playoff contention. They’re on pace to finish 6th in their region/conference for the first time since 1859, and to finish with a Winning Percentage under .400 for the first time ever.

tm1681 · 09-10-2025, 08:08 AM

ATLANTIC HAS FIVE-HIT PAIR AT MARATHON
STONEMAN & VERRETT CLUB FIVE HITS EACH AS ATL WINS BIG TO KEEP LEAD AT 3.5 GAMES

BROOKLYN (July 30, 1876) - Atlantic entered the final game of their series at Marathon at the Williamsburg Grounds needing a win to stay at least 3.5 games clear atop Brooklyn. They completed the task quite handily:

The game was tied 1-1 after the end of the 2nd but from there Atlantic took off, scoring the next fifteen runs over their next five times at bat, taking a 16-1 lead before Marathon responded with their second and final run of the game. Atlantic then added half a dozen more runs for good measure.

Atlantic saw fine performances from leadoff man Harold Lally (LF), .400 hitter Jackson Wright (1B), & 2B Henry Neal…

• ATL #1 Harold Lally (LF): 4/7 (3B, 6 TB), 3 R, 2 RBI
• ATL #2 Henry Neal (2B): 3/7 (2B, 3B, HR, 9 TB), 5 R, 5 RBI, SB, DEF DP
• ATL #4 Jackson Wright (1B): 4/7 (HR, 7 TB), 1 R, 4 RBI, DEF DP

…but a pair who collected five hits each were the stars of the afternoon. The first five-hit man was 3B John Stoneman:

• T2: Leadoff Single past SS off C. Branagan
• T3: Fly Out to RF (2 out)
• T4: Double to RCF off C. Branagan
• T5: Reached via 1-run Fielder’s Choice at 2B
• T7: Single to LF off L. Buck (R)
• T8: 1-run Single to LCF off L. Buck
• T9: 1-run Single to LF off J. Owen
• TOTAL: 5/7 (2B, 6 TB), 1 R, 3 RBI

The other five-hit performance came from 4x All-Star Herb Verrett:

• T1: 1-run Single to CF off C. Branagan
• T3: 1-run Triple to LF off C. Branagan (R)
• T4: Single to RCF off C. Branagan (R)
• T5: Hit by Pitch from L. Buck (R)
• T6: 1-run Ground Out to 2B (2 out)
• T8: Leadoff Single to LCF off L. Buck (R)
• T9: 1-run Single past SS off J. Owen (R)
• TOTAL: 5/6 (3B, 7 TB), 5 R, 4 RBI, HBP, 100 GMSC

Wright’s 4/7 afternoon Stoneman’s raised his Average slightly to .408 (.965 OPS) with ten games remaining as he tries to become the first .400 in the N.Y.L. in four years. Stoneman’s 5/6 day raised his Average to .339 (.783 OPS) with 54 RBI. Verrett’s performance moved his Average to .368 (.888 OPS) with an N.E.L.-leading 74 RBI and 2.6 WAR.

The win kept Atlantic (41-19) 3.5 games ahead of Continental for 1st place in Brooklyn. Marathon (26-34) is fifteen games behind, and has been eliminated from playoff contention.

tm1681 · 09-11-2025, 08:44 AM

COLONIAL WINS ALL-STAR GAME BY FOUR
CC WINS MIDSUMMER CLASSIC FOR FIRST TIME IN FIVE YEARS THANKS TO LATE RALLIES

PHILADELPHIA (July 31, 1876) - The 6th APBL All-Star Game took place at Glenwood Field in Philadelphia Monday, with the forty best players in the sport of baseball taking to the field in front of a sellout crowd. The Metropolitan Conference had the early lead, but the Colonial rallied late to win for the first time in five years:

Starting lineups were as follows:

• METROPOLITAN – P: Jim Creighton (EXC), C: Everett Schreiber (ORA), 1B: Royal Altman (GOT), 2B: Anthony Mascherino (KNI), 3B: Elijah Hill (EXC), SS: Martin Prince (AME), LF: Fred Bartholomew (KC), CF: James Burke (AME), RF: Franklin Petty (AME)

• COLONIAL – P: James Goodman (FC), C: Lane Garvin (MB), 1B: Frank Bulger (SHA), 2B: Clyde Hudspeth (NIA), 3B: Eamonn Todd (STJ), SS: Gerald Strong (ALL), LF: Konrad Jensen (STJ), CF: Ernest Dugas (FC), RF: Henry Gaul (MB)

The Metropolitan opened the scoring in B1 with a Single by Royal Altman that brought in Franklin Petty. Two innings later they took a 3-0 lead on an Altman sacrifice followed by a run-scoring Single from Fred Bartholomew.

That was how the score stood until the top of the 6th, when the Colonial Conference offense woke up. After the first two batters reached base in T6 Rudolph Decker hit a two-run Triple to bring the Colonial within a run. The Colonial then scored three times in T7 to take a 5-3 lead, with a two-run Single by Reginald Roper and a one-run Single by John Meier responsible for the scoring. The C.C. added two more runs in the 8th thanks to a Wild Pitch and a Single by Albert Stoffers, and what was a 3-0 deficit had turned into a 7-3 lead over the course of three innings.

P Raynard Cordell came in and retired the Metropolitan lineup in order in both the 8th & 9th, completing the victory and giving the Colonial Conference it’s first All-Star Game win since the inaugural A.P.B.L. edition in 1871.

Most Valuable Player honors went to Niagara RF Reginald Roper, who entered in the 7th inning:

• CC SUB Reginald Roper (RF): 2/2 (both 1B), 1 R, 2 RBI, GW HIT

It was his two-run Single in the top of the 7th that put the Colonial permanently in the lead, and he added another Single during the top of the 8th. Other players in the game with multiple hits were Lane Garvin (2/3, 2B), Franklin Petty (2/2, 2 R, SB), William Schumacher (2/3, 1 R), & Albert Stoffers (2/3, 1 R, 1 RBI)

The pitchers of record were Raynard Cordell with the Win and Jimmy Everhart with the Loss.

Attendance was 12,422 at Glenwood Field. Weather wasn’t perfect: 77 degrees, clear skies, and a slight breeze. The home fans didn’t see the fifth straight Metropolitan Conference win they wanted, but it was still a fine game.

tm1681 · 09-11-2025, 08:45 AM

AMERICAN BASEBALL JULY RECAP

NORTHEAST U.S.A. (August 1, 1876) – The season is nearly over. There are fifteen games left in the A.P.B.L. and ten to play in the N.B.B.O. Here are how the three competitions look:

APBL STANDINGS (75 of 90 games played)

COLONIAL – St. John’s had a stunning July in the WRONG way, going 9-14 even though their monthly Run Differential was positive (+1). That allowed Niagara to charge past both them and Mass. Bay and into 1st place after a brilliant month in which the team’s key players were finally on the same page. Flour City equaled Niagara with a 16-7 July that has put them back in contention, their offense excelling all month long. Alleghany sputtered but can still sneak back near the top if they make a quick turnaround. Shamrock, ironically, had a terribly unlucky month that saw their Extra Innings record fall to 1-8, and they are planning for next year. The Colonial is completely up for grabs right now.

METROPOLITAN – Another solid month by American means they are five games clear with fifteen left. However, Knickerbocker was 14-9 in July and if they can somehow sweep American in Philadelphia this weekend then the pennant race will be neck-and-neck. Excelsior is sitting in 3rd and hoping they can repeat last August’s form while the top two falter heavily. Kings Co. equaled last year’s win total thanks to an over-500 July – they are officially on the upswing. On the other hand, Orange had a terrible month and fell from 2nd to 5th. Gotham…would you believe they were 17-19 at the end of Week Six? Then they had to move Royal Altman to 1B, Babe Johnson went down for a month, and they’ve been 8-31 since.

APBL MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMAN OF THE MONTH
Edward Donovan (LF, FC) – .426, 1.003 OPS, 36 R, 43 H, 5 2B, 3 3B, 19 RBI, 8 BB, 18 SB, 1.9 WPA, 1.5 WAR

PITCHER OF THE MONTH
Tomoharu Mukai (NIA) – 8-4, 2.23 ERA, 17 K, 101.0 IP, 6 CG, 1.9 K/BB, 1.27 WHIP, 1.7 WAR, 2.0 rWAR

GREENHORN OF THE MONTH
Cletus Cannon (2B, STJ) – .324, .757 OPS, 27 R, 33 H, 4 2B, 2 3B, 17 RBI, 6 BB, 12 SB, 0.5 WPA, 0.7 WAR

Both James Burke & Elijah Hill had slightly higher marks in Average, OPS, & RBI, but Donovan’s July was by far the most surprising of the three. Effectively a Replacement Level hitter over the first two months (.258 AVG, .603 OPS), the aging 6x All-Star went crazy in July as Flour City moved up the standings, with his excellent work helping place the team back in contention.

Mukai was one of two pitchers to win eight games during July, the other being Simeon DiStefano, who was also 8-4. However, Mukai had superior marks in ERA, Strikeouts, Innings, WAR, & rWAR. Jimmy Everhart & John Riley were both 7-2, but again Mukai had superior statistical output to those two.

St. John’s had a miserable July, but Cannon played well, enjoying his second consecutive month with an Average well over .300, an OPS well over .700, and plenty of run production as the St. John’s 2B. Harold Durand hit .341 with 16 RBI, but Cannon stole a dozen bases to his one. As mentioned, Riley was 7-2 but with an ERA over 3.00 and a BB/K ratio of 19/7.

APBL STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .386 by James Burke (CF, American)
OPS: .952 by James Burke
Home Runs: 4 by Garfield Koonce (1B, Kings Co.)
Runs Batted In: 80 by Eamonn Todd (3B, St. John’s)
Runs: 93 by James Burke
Stolen Bases: 73 by James Burke
Batsman WPA: 4.8 by Konrad Jensen (LF, St. John’s)
Batsman WAR: 5.1 by Anthony Mascherino (2B, Knick)

Wins: 25 by Simeon DiStefano (American)
ERA (150+ IP): 2.21 by Jim Creighton (Excelsior)
Strikeouts: 140 by Elmer Seabold (Excelsior)
Complete Games: 29 by Jim Creighton
WHIP (150+ IP): 1.14 Jim Creighton
Pitcher WAR: 7.2 by Jim Creighton
Pitcher rWAR: 9.6 by Simeon DiStefano

NBBO REGIONAL LEADERS (60 of 70 games played)

BROOKLYN: Atlantic at 41-19 (Cont’l 3 GB, Eckford 7 GB, Star 9 GB)
NEW YORK CITY: Union at 38-22 (Metro 2 GB, N.Y.A.C. 5 GB, Baltic 7 GB)
UPSTATE N.Y.: Minuteman at 43-17 (Victory 7 GB, Frontier 8 GB)
COASTAL: Trenton United at 39-21 (Pt. Jersey 1 GB, Quaker St. 5 GB, National & Newark 9 GB)
INLAND: Susquehanna at 47-13 (clinched pennant)
NEW ENGLAND: Sons of the Ocean at 38-22 (Portland 5 GB, Cantabrig’s & Oceania 7 GB)

BROOKLYN – Atlantic’s absurd 18-4 July saw them sprint past Colonial and into 1st place. However, Colonial had a 14-8 month and the two teams play five at the Capitoline Grounds (ATL) to end the season, so Brooklyn is still very much up for grabs. There has been no second half magic from Eckford this year, and it looks like the 4x defending Brooklyn champs will have to settle for 3rd place.

NEW YORK CITY – A 13-9 July was good enough to keep Union a couple of games clear atop the standings, but they start August against N.Y.A.C. while Metropolitan plays Harlem (18-42), and that means the N.Y.C. top three could rearrange itself over the next seven days. This pennant race should go to the final days of the season.

UPSTATE N.Y. – They weren’t 20-2 as in June, but Minuteman was 14-8 in July and thus increased their Upstate lead from four games to seven. They end the season against doormats Eagle (20-39) & Columbia (16-44), so while Victory & Frontier are still mathematically in the race some truly bizarre things must happen for either of them to catch Minuteman.

COASTAL – The top four remains the same, although Quaker St. & Pt. Jersey have traded places. Trenton Utd. starts August at Quaker St. while Pt. Jersey plays at home against National, so the Coastal lead could quickly change hands. If Quaker St. can manage 4-5 wins over T.U. then their season-ending series against last-place Olympic (21-39) could determine who takes the pennant.

INLAND – Susquehanna was an incredible 19-3 in July, so as hard as they tried Lancastra & Merrimack found themselves unable to keep pace and thus the ’74 cup winners clinched the Inland Championship by winning at Sportsman’s to end the month.

NEW ENGLAND – S.o.t.O. was able to increase their lead atop New England from two games over Portland to five during July, and season-ending series against Oceanic & Salem (26-34) should allow them to at least tread enough water to keep anyone else in the top four from putting a serious scare into them.

NBBO MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMEN OF THE MONTH
NYL: Jackson Wright* (1B, ATL) – .505, 1.167 OPS, 34 R, 48 H, 8 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 24 RBI, 4 BB, 1.7 WPA, 1.7 WAR
NEL: Stephen Barley** (SS, SUS) – .385, .925 OPS, 31 R, 40 H, 6 2B, 4 3B, 30 RBI, 5 BB, 9 SB, 1.0 WPA, 1.2 WAR

PITCHERS OF THE MONTH
NYL: George Layman (MET) – 9-3, 1.73 ERA, 14 K, 109.1 IP, 10 CG, 0 SHO, 2.8 K/BB, 1.05 WHIP, 2.2 WAR, 3.2 rWAR
NEL: Frank Cyphert (SUS) – 10-2, 2.03 ERA, 11 K, 93.0 IP, 9 CG, 1 SV, 3.7 K/BB, 1.14 WHIP, 1.7 WAR, 3.0 rWAR

GREENHORNS OF THE MONTH
NYL: Jack Anastasio*** (RF, NYAC) – .321, .764 OPS, 26 R, 34 H, 1 2B, 5 3B, 28 RBI, 4 BB, 25 SB, 1.3 WPA, 1.0 WAR
NEL: Frank Cyphert (SUS) – Northeastern League Pitcher of the Month

*Wright had the first .500 month in N.B.B.O. history.
**Barley was the second straight Susquehanna B.o.t.M. (Walter Braden).
***Anastasio won G.o.t.M. for the second time (May)

NBBO STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .408 by Jackson Wright (1B, Atlantic)
OPS: .965 by Jackson Wright
Home Runs: 3 by Charles Kragholm (2B, Quinnipiac) & Bernard Lambert (LF, Bedford)
Runs Batted In: 76 by Stephen Barley (SS, Susquehanna)
Runs: 86 by John Schultz (CF, Susquehanna)
Stolen Bases: 70 by Jack Anastasio (RF, N.Y.A.C.)
Batsman WPA: 5.4 by Alfred Suber (RF, Merrimack)
Batsman WAR: 4.4 by Stephen Barley

Wins: 24 by four different pitchers
ERA (150+ IP): 1.93 by Charles Rhodes (N.Y.A.C.)
Strikeouts: 138 by George Burroughs (Pt. Jersey)
Complete Games: 27 by William Tighe (Minuteman)
WHIP (150+ IP): 1.02 by Charles Rhodes (N.Y.A.C.)
Pitcher WAR: 9.5 by George Burroughs (Pt. Jersey)
Pitcher rWAR: 10.0 by Earl Quinn (Maryland)

PCBL LEADERS (60 of 70 games played)

EAST: Frankford Arsenal at 44-16 (clinched pennant)
WEST: Philadelphia B.C.C. at 45-15 (Merion 9 GB, no other teams within 10 GB)

EAST – A 13-9 July was enough for Frankford to remain the only pennant holders from East Philadelphia. They still have the league’s #1 offense in nearly every major category and Joseph Evans looks very likely to break the .400 barrier for the first time. The only question: can they FINALLY win the Liberty Bell Classic?

WEST – P.B.C.C. was also 13-9 in July but annoyingly Merion went 14-8, and that means there is still a second team mathematically alive for the West Philadelphia pennant. However, P.B.C.C. plays two under-500 teams – Independence & Schuylkill – to end the season so the race should be over this week.

PCBL MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMAN OF THE MONTH
Joseph Evans* (CF, FRA) – .410, 1.066 OPS, 31 R, 43 H, 7 2B, 8 3B, 29 RBI, 5 BB, 9 SB, 3.0 WPA, 1.9 WAR

PITCHER OF THE MONTH
Robert Benson** (PBCC) – 8-5, 2.17 ERA, 107.2 IP, 9 CG, 0 SHO, 2.5 K/BB, 1.03 WHIP, 2.3 WAR, 2.1 rWAR

GREENHORN OF THE MONTH
Robert Benson (PBCC) – Philadelphia City Baseball League Pitcher of the Month

*Evans won B.o.t.M. for the sixth time in his 3+ seasons in the P.C.B.L.
**Benson repeated as both P.o.t.M. & G.o.t.M.

PCBL STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .412 by Joseph Evans (CF, Frankford)
OPS: 1.047 by Joseph Evans
Home Runs: 3 by Arthur Hall (RF, Sons of Ben)
Runs Batted In: 68 by Frederick Pike (2B, P.B.C.C.)
Runs: 85 by Joseph Evans
Stolen Bases: 49 by Harrison Comstock (LF, Schuylkill)
Batsman WPA: 6.7 by Joseph Evans
Batsman WAR: 5.3 by Joseph Evans

Wins: 27 by Robert Benson (P.B.C.C.)
ERA (150+ IP): 1.75 by Robert Benson
Complete Games: 28 by Robert Benson
Strikeouts: 84 by Robert Benson
WHIP (150+ IP): 0.99 by Arthur Lipscomb (P.B.C.C.)
Pitcher WAR: 6.4 by Paul Krueger (Sons of Ben)
Pitcher rWAR: 8.7 by Robert Benson