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The Reds clinch the National League flag, outdistancing the Dodgers and the late-rushing Cardinals. Bill McKechnie’s Cincinnati team makes only 117 errors during the season, 18 less than any previous team. The .981 fielding mark is the best up to this time. The defense, plus the pitching of Bucky Walters, Paul Derringer, and reliever Joe Beggs, brings the second straight NL flag to the Reds, despite multiple injuries to Ernie Lombardi. The big catcher went down again on September 15th, and the club turns to 39-year-old coach Jimmy Wilson for some of the backstopping. Wilson will end up as a World Series hero.

On September 18, 1940 — The Reds clinch the National League flag, outdistancing the Dodgers and the late-rushing Cardinals. Bill McKechnie’s Cincinnati team makes only 117 errors during the season, 18 less than any previous team. The .981 fielding mark is the best up to this time. The defense, plus the pitching of Bucky Walters, Paul Derringer, and reliever Joe Beggs, brings the second straight NL flag to the Reds, despite multiple injuries to Ernie Lombardi. The big catcher went down again on September 15th, and the club turns to 39-year-old coach Jimmy Wilson for some of the backstopping. Wilson will end up as a World Series hero.


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Sources:
Baseball Reference September 18
National Pastime September 18
Retro Sheet
Hall of Fame
SABR Games Project
Replay The Game