MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL SEASON RECAP 1892

Season Recap: 1892

League Champion: Boston Beaneaters

Cap Anson is quoted in the New York Clipper as saying that “I don’t care if they can’t field a little bit. In my experience I have found that a man can be taught to almost stop cannon balls, but it is a very difficult task to teach them to line ’em out.”

Slide, Kelly, Slide, composed by George Gaskin, makes the popular music charts, the first baseball song to do so.

1892 – Former Chicago White Stockings star catcher Frank (Silver) Flint dies of consumption at age 36.

1892 – Dan Brouthers, batting champion of the American Association while with the Boston Reds in 1891, signs a contract to play with the Brooklyn Grooms. It will be his fifth team in five years.

The first meeting of the united National League and American Association takes place in New York. Only four teams from the collapsed 1891 AA are invited to join the NL, which will expand to 12 teams with a 154-game schedule split into two championship series.

In the first Sunday game in National League history, the Cincinnati Reds defeat the St. Louis Browns, 5 – 1.

The first Sunday game in NL history features the hometown Cincinnati Reds defeating the St. Louis Browns 5-1. Bid McPhee contributes a HR.

4/30/1892 – In a game in Louisville, in the first Brooklyn had three runs in with one out and the bases empty with the number five hitter due up. However, William Darby O’Brien, number six in the order hit. He walked, stole a base, and scored on a passed ball. At that point, his batting out of turn was discovered (we don’t have the details), and he was called out.

5/5/1892 – The Phillies were in Pittsburgh. Before the game, a preprinted scorecard from the previous day was posted in the Philadelphia dugout showing Lave Cross batting sixth and Joe Mulvey batting seventh. However, the two had been switched by manager Harry Wright. The two players batted in the order specified on the scorecard (out of turn). In the top of the fourth, Mulvey singled and was called out. The Pirates won the contest, 5-2.

A Supreme Court decision permitting the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad to give reduced rates to groups of 10 or more is a boon to Major League baseball teams, who can expect to save 25 percent on transportation costs.

Sadie McMahon loses a no-hitter, and the game, when Denny Lyons of the New York Giants singles in the only run in the Baltimore Orioles’ 1 – 0 loss.

George “Hub” Collins, 28-year-old Brooklyn OF and leadoff batter, dies of typhoid fever after a brief illness. He had led the American Association in doubles in 1888 and the National League in runs in 1890.

Behind Bill Hutchison, Chicago wins its 13th straight game, 1 – 0, over Pud Galvin and the Pirates. Galvin surrenders only two hits in the loss, none before the 8th inning. The streak will stop the following day.

Brooklyn makes good use of its 14 hits in a 24 – 4 rout of the Washington Senators. Oyster Burns typifies his club’s attack by scoring 4 runs without the benefit of a hit.

Hughie Jennings breaks up John Clarkson's no hitter

Hughie Jennings breaks up John Clarkson’s no hitter

Jimmy Ryan collects five walks, helping the Chicago Colts defeat Amos Rusie and the New York Giants, 10 – 4.

A benefit exhibition game for Hub Collins‚ who died of typhoid fever on May 21st‚ is played at Brooklyn’s Eastern Park. The game between Collins’ Brooklyn Grooms and the St. Louis Browns raises $2804.90 for Collins’ widow.

Benjamin Harrison became the first U.S. President to attend a major league game as he watches the Cincinnati Reds defeat the hometown Washington Senators

At Washington, D.C.’s Boundary Field, Benjamin Harrison becomes the first U.S. president to attend a major league baseball game. The Commander in Chief watches Cincinnati defeat the Senators, presently the last-place team in the National League, 7-4 in 11 innings.

Jack Doyle becomes the first player to collect a pinch hit when he singles, coming off the bench to bat for Cleveland hurler George Davies in the Spiders’ 2-1 loss to the Grooms at Brooklyn’s Eastern Park. The 22 year-old utilityman will finish his 17-year career going 3-for-5 (.600) as a pinch-hitter.

In a doubleheader sweep of visiting Pittsburgh‚ Brooklyn second baseman Monte Ward has 12 assists‚ a major league mark that won’t be tied in a single game until Jim Gilliam does it in 1956. Brooklyn wins, 4 – 3 and 5 – 4.

Baltimore catcher Wilbert Robinson went 7-for-7

Baltimore catcher Wilbert Robinson went 7-for-7

Baltimore signs Harry Stovey‚ released by Boston.

7/4/1892 – In the first game of a holiday double header in Chicago, the Giants catcher, Jack Boyle has hurt by a foul tip in the first inning and had to leave the game. The starting shortstop, Jack Doyle, who was batting in the number five spot took over as catcher while Abram Hardy Richardson went to short and hit in Boyle’s number seven slot. In the second game, Richardson and Doyle reversed with the former hitting fifth and the latter seventh. Apparently, they did not pick up on the switch because Doyle came up in the first with two outs and flied out. Richardson was called out since he was the proper batter. We do not know how it was pointed out the Doyle was out of order. The Colts had no reason to do it since Doyle had made an out. The umpire, Tom Lynch who had more than four years of experience might should not have acted on his own, but perhaps he did. According to the Chicago Tribune, Doyle batted first in the next inning. However, the proper batter to lead off once Richardson is ruled out is the number six hitter, Denny Lyons.

Harry Stovey smacks 3 triples and drives in 6 runs in the Orioles’ 10-3 win over Pittsburgh.

Tim Keefe

In a matchup of 300 game-winners that will take 103 years to repeat, Tim Keefe beats Pud Galvin

1892 – Boston gets its third straight shutout‚ 7 – 0 over Washington‚ and moves into a first-place tie with Cleveland. Tomorrow Washington will snap the Beaneaters’ 33-inning scoreless streak with an 8 – 3 win.

1892 – The Orioles remove outfield posts‚ around which ropes holding back overflow crowds would be wrapped‚ after a ball hit by Harry Stovey strikes a post and bounces back toward the infield‚ forcing Stovey to stop at second base. Another factor in the decision is an incident three days ago in which Oriole RF Frank “Piggy” Ward missed a sure catch when he ran upon a post. It doesn’t help today as visiting Philadelphia wins‚ 9 – 6.

The Orioles remove OF posts‚ around which ropes holding back overflow crowds would be wrapped‚ after a ball hit by Harry Stovey strikes a post and bounces back toward the infield‚ forcing Stovey to stop at 2B. Another factor in the decision was an incident 3 days ago in which Oriole RF Frank “Piggy” Ward missed a sure catch when he ran upon a post. It doesn’t help today as visiting Philadelphia wins‚ 9-6.

Recently released Pirates P Mark “Fido” Baldwin is arrested in his hometown of Homestead, PA‚ for alleged complicity in the recent strike and ensuing riot. Baldwin posts a $2‚000 bail and claims that he was merely a spectator. He will soon rejoin the Pirates and finish the season with a 26-27 record.

Rookie P Bill Hawke of St. Louis loads the bases with the Phillies in the 6th‚ but then fans the next three batters on the way to a 4 – 1 win. Tim Keefe takes the loss.

At Cleveland's League Park, John Clarkson of the Spiders beats the Pirates 3-2 to record his 300th victory

At Cleveland’s League Park, John Clarkson of the Spiders beats the Pirates 3-2 to record his 300th victory

10/3/1892 – The Louisville Colonels visited Pittsburgh to play the Pirates. Sometime during the game, Lou Bierbauer of the Pirates was called out for batting out of turn. No further details are known.

10/7/1892 – The St. Louis Browns were playing in Cleveland against the Spiders when this puzzling one happened. We have found only a brief story that said with Cleveland ahead 8-3 in the fifth inning and it was starting to rain, the Spiders George Davis intentionally batted out of turn in order to make the third out of the inning quickly. The game ended after five innings because of the rain. There are a couple of reasons for it being puzzling. We don’t know if Cleveland was batting last since in those days the home teams sometimes elected to bat first so they could hit against the new ball in the first. If they were batting last, it was already an official game due to a rule revision for the 1892 season. The original 1876 rule required five full innings to be played for a game to count. However, the Spiders may not have known about the new rule. The batting out of turn rule in effect was the original one from 1876, and it said in effect that the improper batter would not be out until his plate appearance was completed. So a Cleveland hitter could have just swung and missed at the first three pitches to make a quick out. The umpire of the game was John Gaffney, who was quite experienced. However, perhaps he was not fully versed on the rule and ruled Davis out after a pitch had been thrown and maybe Davis pointed out that he was not the proper batter. We will try to get more information about the game.

Rookie Cincinnati Reds pitcher Bumpus Jones throws a no-hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates

Rookie Cincinnati Reds pitcher Bumpus Jones throws a no-hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates

Cy Young

 The first 154-game season Statistics

National League agree to shorten the 1893 schedule to 132 games

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