SWC75
Bored Historian
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The turbulence of the first half of the 1890’s settled down as the century came to an end. There was only one major league: the National League, and they had the best players and the best teams. The problem was that there were 12 of them. The league didn’t think to split into divisions and have a championship series, as it should have. That condemned teams to finish way out of the race and made that size of a league unsustainable.
What made it worse, (but eventually solved the problem), was “syndicate ownership”. That’s not a syndicate of investors buying a team: it’s one owner or group of owners owning more than one team. The stronger teams simply bought the weaker teams and used them as a sort of major league farm team. There was also the issue of the stadiums. They were made of wood and tended to burn down frequently or to simply be replaced with a larger one. When a new stadium as built, the owners of the team would decide that they could make more money with the team that played there and transfer all their best players to that franchise. The fans of the team on the wrong end of such maneuvers would lose interest and that team might be moved or simply go out of business.
The highly successful Baltimore Orioles became, largely, the highly successful Brooklyn Superbas. The Orioles went out of business after the 1899 season. Barney Dreyfuss owned both the Louisville Colonels and the Pittsburgh Pirates and transferred two young stars, Honus Wagner and Fred Clarke, to the latter team. The Colonels also disappeared after 1899. But the worst story was the Cleveland Spiders, a strong team though most of the decade. They were owned by the Robison brothers who also owned the St. Louis Browns, who for one season in 1899 became the Perfectos using the best players form Cleveland, (including Cy Young, Cupid Childs and Jesse Burkett), before becoming the Cardinals in 1900.
St. Louis had been a dismal 39-111 in 1898, (they’d been 29-102 in 1897). But then the Robisons bought the team. They already owned the Spiders but felt that there was a bigger future in St. Louis, where the team improved to 84-67 and survived to become one of the most successful franchises of the coming century. Meanwhile, in Cleveland, Stanley Robison had pronounced the Spiders to be a “sideshow”. They skipped spring training for the Spiders. They even held Cleveland’s opening day in St. Louis. In their first 16 real home games, the Spiders averaged 199 fans a game. The Robisons decided that the Spiders could make more money as a road show. The Spiders wound up losing 101 road games and went 20-134 overall, the worst record in history. They, too went out of business after the 1899 season. With the disbanding of the original Washington Senators, the National League opened the new century with 8 teams, something they would have for the next six decades. They also banned syndicate ownership, which gave them the stability for their franchises to survive.
That left us with the Braves, (who would finally be named that in 1912), the Cubs, (first called that in 1903), the Giants, the Phillies, the Dodgers, (who would be called that from 1911-12 and then from 1932 onward), the Pirates, the Reds and the Cardinals. The Braves are the only franchise what have been there continuously since the National Association was formed in 1871 to the present day- and their roots lie in the original Cincinnati Red Stockings, the top touring team of the pre Association era. The Cubs actually predate the Boston version of the Red Stockings, having been formed in 1870. But they were out of business for two seasons after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, so they haven’t been continuously in operation from 1871 onward. The Giants and the Phillies both date from 1883, after William Hulbert and his hatred of “river cities” died. The Dodgers, Pirates, Reds and Cardinals all originated in the American Association.
1895- National League
Runs Produced
Hughie Jennings BAL 280
Sam Thompson PHI 278
Joe Kelley BAL 272
Ed Delahanty PHI 244
Ed McKean CLE 242
Willie Keeler BAL 236
Billy Hamilton PHI 233
Jesse Burkett CLE 231
Steve Brodie BAL 217
Bill Everitt CHI 214
Bases Produced
Billy Hamilton PHI 449
Ed Delahanty PHI 428
Joe Kelley BAL 414
Sam Thompson PHI 410
Jesse Burkett CLE 403
Bill Lange CHI 397
Jake Stenzel PIT 387
Bill Joyce WAS 377
Hugh Duffy BOS 364
Willie Keeler BAL 363
1896- National League
Runs Produced
Hughie Jennings BAL 246
Ed Delahanty PHI 244
Joe Kelley BAL 240
Willie Keeler BAL 231
Jesse Burkett CLE 226
Jack Doyle BRO 216
Mike Tiernan NY 214
Cupid Childs CLE 211
Mike Smith PIT 209
Hugh Duffy BOS 205
Bases Produced
Joe Kelley BAL 460
Billy Hamilton BOS 438
Ed Delahanty PHI 414
Jesse Burkett CLE 400
Bill Joyce WAS 392
Mike Tiernan NY 381
Bill Dahlen CHI 377
Willie Keeler BAL 374
Bill Lange CHI 367
George Van Haltren NY 366
1897- National League
Runs Produced
Hugh Duffy BOS 248
George Davis NY 237
Jimmy Collins BOS 229
Joe Kelley BRO 226
Nap Lajoie PHI 225
Jake Stenzel BRO 225
Willie Keeler BAL 219
Hughie Jennings BAL 210
Billy Hamilton BOS 210
Fred Tenney BOS 209
Bases Produced
Willie Keeler BAL 403
Fred Clarke LOU 383
Billy Hamilton BOS 381
Jake Stenzel BAL 375
George Davis NY 373
Ed Delahanty PHI 371
Joe Kelley BAL 361
Hugh Duffy BOS 358
Bill Lange CHI 351
Kip Selbach WAS 350
1898- National League
Runs Produced
Nap Lajoie PHI 234
Hughie Jennings BAL 221
Ed Delahanty PHI 203
Jimmy Collins BOS 203
Dan McGann BAL 200
Hugh Duffy BOS 197
Jimmy Ryan CHI 197
John McGraw BAL 196
George Van Haltren NY 195
Herman Long BOS 192
Bases Produced
Ed Delahanty PHI 384
George Van Haltren NY 365
John McGraw BAL 359
Jimmy Ryan CHI 357
Jimmy Collins BOS 338
Jesse Burkett CLE 337
Hughie Jennings BAL 331
Billy Hamilton BOS 330
Dummy Hoy LOU 328
Fred Clarke LOU 328
1899- National League
Runs Produced
Ed Delahanty PHI 263
Jimmy Williams PIT 236
Honus Wagner LOU 207
Buck Freeman WAS 204
Willie Keeler BRO 200
Hugh Duffy BOS 200
Dan McGann WAS 197
Joe Kelley BRO 195
Elmer Flick PHI 194
Kip Selbach CIN 189
Bases Produced
Ed Delahanty PHI 423
Jimmy Williams PIT 405
Chick Stahl BOS 389
John McGraw BAL 378
Buck Freeman WAS 375
Jesse Burkett STL 371
Honus Wagner LOU 365
Bobby Wallace STL 361
Fred Clarke LOU 360
Fred Tenney BOS 356
Cumulative Run Production Ranking
Cap Anson 119
King Kelly 76
Hugh Duffy 75
Dan Brouthers 73
Jim O’Rourke 64
Harry Stovey 57
Roger Connor 55
Sam Thompson 54
Ross Barnes 49
Deacon White 49
Cal McVey 47
George Gore 46
Ed Delahanty 44
George Wright 41
Tip O’Neill 38
Long John Reilly 37
Joe Kelley 33
Hughie Jennings 32
Hardy Richardson 31
Charles Comisky 30
Charlie Jones 28
Cupid Childs 28
Paul Hines 28
Abner Dalrymple 27
George Davis 26
Cumulative Base Production Ranking
Cap Anson 91
Harry Stovey 88
Billy Hamilton 83
Dan Brouthers 83
Jim O’Rourke 73
Roger Conner 70
Ed Delahanty 60
King Kelly 57
Hugh Duffy 53
Ross Barnes 50
Charlie Jones 45
Abner Dalrymple 42
George Wright 41
Pete Browning 41
Paul Hines 40
Lip Pike 39
Mike Tiernan 35
Joe Kelley 34
George Gore 34
Cal McVey 33
Jesse Burkett 32
Jimmy Ryan 30
George Van Haltren 29
Long John Reilly 28
Arlie Latham 28
What made it worse, (but eventually solved the problem), was “syndicate ownership”. That’s not a syndicate of investors buying a team: it’s one owner or group of owners owning more than one team. The stronger teams simply bought the weaker teams and used them as a sort of major league farm team. There was also the issue of the stadiums. They were made of wood and tended to burn down frequently or to simply be replaced with a larger one. When a new stadium as built, the owners of the team would decide that they could make more money with the team that played there and transfer all their best players to that franchise. The fans of the team on the wrong end of such maneuvers would lose interest and that team might be moved or simply go out of business.
The highly successful Baltimore Orioles became, largely, the highly successful Brooklyn Superbas. The Orioles went out of business after the 1899 season. Barney Dreyfuss owned both the Louisville Colonels and the Pittsburgh Pirates and transferred two young stars, Honus Wagner and Fred Clarke, to the latter team. The Colonels also disappeared after 1899. But the worst story was the Cleveland Spiders, a strong team though most of the decade. They were owned by the Robison brothers who also owned the St. Louis Browns, who for one season in 1899 became the Perfectos using the best players form Cleveland, (including Cy Young, Cupid Childs and Jesse Burkett), before becoming the Cardinals in 1900.
St. Louis had been a dismal 39-111 in 1898, (they’d been 29-102 in 1897). But then the Robisons bought the team. They already owned the Spiders but felt that there was a bigger future in St. Louis, where the team improved to 84-67 and survived to become one of the most successful franchises of the coming century. Meanwhile, in Cleveland, Stanley Robison had pronounced the Spiders to be a “sideshow”. They skipped spring training for the Spiders. They even held Cleveland’s opening day in St. Louis. In their first 16 real home games, the Spiders averaged 199 fans a game. The Robisons decided that the Spiders could make more money as a road show. The Spiders wound up losing 101 road games and went 20-134 overall, the worst record in history. They, too went out of business after the 1899 season. With the disbanding of the original Washington Senators, the National League opened the new century with 8 teams, something they would have for the next six decades. They also banned syndicate ownership, which gave them the stability for their franchises to survive.
That left us with the Braves, (who would finally be named that in 1912), the Cubs, (first called that in 1903), the Giants, the Phillies, the Dodgers, (who would be called that from 1911-12 and then from 1932 onward), the Pirates, the Reds and the Cardinals. The Braves are the only franchise what have been there continuously since the National Association was formed in 1871 to the present day- and their roots lie in the original Cincinnati Red Stockings, the top touring team of the pre Association era. The Cubs actually predate the Boston version of the Red Stockings, having been formed in 1870. But they were out of business for two seasons after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, so they haven’t been continuously in operation from 1871 onward. The Giants and the Phillies both date from 1883, after William Hulbert and his hatred of “river cities” died. The Dodgers, Pirates, Reds and Cardinals all originated in the American Association.
1895- National League
Runs Produced
Hughie Jennings BAL 280
Sam Thompson PHI 278
Joe Kelley BAL 272
Ed Delahanty PHI 244
Ed McKean CLE 242
Willie Keeler BAL 236
Billy Hamilton PHI 233
Jesse Burkett CLE 231
Steve Brodie BAL 217
Bill Everitt CHI 214
Bases Produced
Billy Hamilton PHI 449
Ed Delahanty PHI 428
Joe Kelley BAL 414
Sam Thompson PHI 410
Jesse Burkett CLE 403
Bill Lange CHI 397
Jake Stenzel PIT 387
Bill Joyce WAS 377
Hugh Duffy BOS 364
Willie Keeler BAL 363
1896- National League
Runs Produced
Hughie Jennings BAL 246
Ed Delahanty PHI 244
Joe Kelley BAL 240
Willie Keeler BAL 231
Jesse Burkett CLE 226
Jack Doyle BRO 216
Mike Tiernan NY 214
Cupid Childs CLE 211
Mike Smith PIT 209
Hugh Duffy BOS 205
Bases Produced
Joe Kelley BAL 460
Billy Hamilton BOS 438
Ed Delahanty PHI 414
Jesse Burkett CLE 400
Bill Joyce WAS 392
Mike Tiernan NY 381
Bill Dahlen CHI 377
Willie Keeler BAL 374
Bill Lange CHI 367
George Van Haltren NY 366
1897- National League
Runs Produced
Hugh Duffy BOS 248
George Davis NY 237
Jimmy Collins BOS 229
Joe Kelley BRO 226
Nap Lajoie PHI 225
Jake Stenzel BRO 225
Willie Keeler BAL 219
Hughie Jennings BAL 210
Billy Hamilton BOS 210
Fred Tenney BOS 209
Bases Produced
Willie Keeler BAL 403
Fred Clarke LOU 383
Billy Hamilton BOS 381
Jake Stenzel BAL 375
George Davis NY 373
Ed Delahanty PHI 371
Joe Kelley BAL 361
Hugh Duffy BOS 358
Bill Lange CHI 351
Kip Selbach WAS 350
1898- National League
Runs Produced
Nap Lajoie PHI 234
Hughie Jennings BAL 221
Ed Delahanty PHI 203
Jimmy Collins BOS 203
Dan McGann BAL 200
Hugh Duffy BOS 197
Jimmy Ryan CHI 197
John McGraw BAL 196
George Van Haltren NY 195
Herman Long BOS 192
Bases Produced
Ed Delahanty PHI 384
George Van Haltren NY 365
John McGraw BAL 359
Jimmy Ryan CHI 357
Jimmy Collins BOS 338
Jesse Burkett CLE 337
Hughie Jennings BAL 331
Billy Hamilton BOS 330
Dummy Hoy LOU 328
Fred Clarke LOU 328
1899- National League
Runs Produced
Ed Delahanty PHI 263
Jimmy Williams PIT 236
Honus Wagner LOU 207
Buck Freeman WAS 204
Willie Keeler BRO 200
Hugh Duffy BOS 200
Dan McGann WAS 197
Joe Kelley BRO 195
Elmer Flick PHI 194
Kip Selbach CIN 189
Bases Produced
Ed Delahanty PHI 423
Jimmy Williams PIT 405
Chick Stahl BOS 389
John McGraw BAL 378
Buck Freeman WAS 375
Jesse Burkett STL 371
Honus Wagner LOU 365
Bobby Wallace STL 361
Fred Clarke LOU 360
Fred Tenney BOS 356
Cumulative Run Production Ranking
Cap Anson 119
King Kelly 76
Hugh Duffy 75
Dan Brouthers 73
Jim O’Rourke 64
Harry Stovey 57
Roger Connor 55
Sam Thompson 54
Ross Barnes 49
Deacon White 49
Cal McVey 47
George Gore 46
Ed Delahanty 44
George Wright 41
Tip O’Neill 38
Long John Reilly 37
Joe Kelley 33
Hughie Jennings 32
Hardy Richardson 31
Charles Comisky 30
Charlie Jones 28
Cupid Childs 28
Paul Hines 28
Abner Dalrymple 27
George Davis 26
Cumulative Base Production Ranking
Cap Anson 91
Harry Stovey 88
Billy Hamilton 83
Dan Brouthers 83
Jim O’Rourke 73
Roger Conner 70
Ed Delahanty 60
King Kelly 57
Hugh Duffy 53
Ross Barnes 50
Charlie Jones 45
Abner Dalrymple 42
George Wright 41
Pete Browning 41
Paul Hines 40
Lip Pike 39
Mike Tiernan 35
Joe Kelley 34
George Gore 34
Cal McVey 33
Jesse Burkett 32
Jimmy Ryan 30
George Van Haltren 29
Long John Reilly 28
Arlie Latham 28