Detroit won a narrow victory over Philadelphia with Chicago and Cleveland close behind. It was a great four-team race, and the team of the young Ty Cobb plus seasoned Sam Crawford clubbed their way to the pennant. Detroit won 92 games, the A's 88, Chicago 87 and Cleveland 85. The Tigers then lost the World Series to the Cubs. New York and St. Louis started the second division, then Boston and Washington trailed the AL pack.
Statistical leaders: Ty Cobb won the batting title in his first full season, hitting .350, and also leading in slugging at .468, OPS at 848, hits with 212, total bases, steals with 49, and RBI with 119. Sam Crawford was second in batting at .323, and led in runs with 102. Harry Davis led with 35 doubles and homers with 8, Elmer Flick in triples with 18. Topsy Hartsel led in on-base at .405. Socks Seybold was second in RBI with 92.
Addie Joss and Doc White tied with 27 wins. Bill Donovan and Ed Killian had 25 wins each. Ed Walsh led the league with a 1.60 ERA, Killian had a 1.78, Addie Joss a 1.83. Rube Waddell had 232 strikeouts, Ed Walsh had 206. Walsh pitched 37 complete games while Eddie Plank had 8 shutouts.
Win Shares leaders:
Players; Ty Cobb (Detroit) 41, Elmer Flick (Cleveland) 37, Sam Crawford (Detroit) 36, Nap Lajoie (Cleveland) 32, Topsy Hartsel (Philadelphia) 29, Ed Hahn (Chicago) and George Stone (St. Louis) 27, Fielder Jones (Chicago) 25, Davy Jones (Detroit) 24, Kid Elberfeld (New York) and Harry Davis (Philadelphia) 21.
Pitchers; Ed Walsh (Chicago) 37, Ed Killian (Detroit) and Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 29, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 28, Cy Young (Boston) 27, Doc White (Chicago) 25, Frank Smith (Chicago) 24, Wild Bill Donovan (Detroit) and Harry Howell (St. Louis) 23, Chief Bender (Philadelphia) 22, George Mullin (Detroit) 21.
WARP3 leaders: Cobb 7.8 (first full year), Lajoie 7.0, Flick 6.8 (last full year), Stone 6.6, Crawford 4.4, Hartsel (last good year) and Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 4.3, Ossee Schreckengost (Philadelphia) 3.9, F. Jones and Socks Seybold (Philadelphia) 3.6.
And the pitchers: Walsh 8.6, Killian 6.3 (best year), Plank and Joss 5.5, Young and White 5.3, Howell 4.6, Charlie Smith (Washington) and Bender 4.3, F. Smith 4.2, Donovan 3.8.
WAR, position players: Cobb 7.6, Lajoie 7.5, Flick 6.7, Stone 6.5, Crawford 6.4, Wallace 5.4, Hartsel 5.3, G. Davis 4.7, F. Jones and H. Davis 4.4, Turner 4.3.
WAR, pitchers: Walsh 7.0, Young 6.3, Killian 5.8, Joss 5.6, Plank 5.4, Siever 5.2, Bender and Donovan 4.2, Howell 3.6, White 3.5.
It's the beginning of the Ty Cobb era, as the Tigers won the first of three straight pennants. Cobb was the league's best player (get used to that phrase) leading in average, slugging, OPS, hits, RBI, and steals. The first of several no-doubt top player awards. I'll rank Elmer Flick #2, with Nap Lajoie #3, Sam Crawford #4, and George Stone #5.
Top pitcher is Ed Walsh, the ERA leader. 2nd in strikeouts, 1st in starts and complete games. Walsh also won 24. Ed Killian ranks #2, and Ed Plank #3 with Addie Joss #4 and Cy Young #5.
Top manager was Hughie Jennings, holding together that Detroit team with the volatile 20-year-old Cobb. Jennings knew a thing or two about being volatile.
Top rookie: Walter Johnson. No big rookie splashes, although Tris Speaker also debuted this year. Speaker only batted 19 times, while Johnson was 5-9 but with a 1.88 ERA in 110 innings.
20 June 2007
1906 National League
The Cubs ran away and hid from the rest of the league with 116 wins, finishing 20 games ahead of the Giants, with Pittsburgh close behind them. New York must have been frustrated to win 96 games, and still be 20 games out. The Cubs were a pitching and defense team, but they scored the most runs in the league too. They were the only team not hitting into their own defense. Then, they lost the World Series to the crosstown White Sox.
Statistical leaders: Honus Wagner won the batting title at .339. Harry Steinfeldt was second at .327. Wagner also led in OPS, total bases, and doubles (38), and tied for the lead in runs (103). Frank Chance tied him, and also led in steals (57). Steinfeldt led in hits (176), and tied Jim Nealon for the lead in RBI (83).
Joe McGinnity led with 27 wins, followed by Mordecai Brown at 26. Vic Willis won 23, Sam Leever and Christy Mathewson 22, Jack Pfiester, Jack Taylor, and Jake Weimer 20. Brown led in ERA at 1.04. Pfiester had a 1.51 mark, Reulbach 1.65, Willis 1.73. Fred Beebe led in strikeouts at 171, Jeff Pfeffer had 158, Red Ames 156.
Now, ladies and gentlemen..........the Win Shares.
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 46, Art Devlin (New York) 36, Harry Lumley (Brooklyn) and Frank Chance (Chicago) 35, Harry Steinfeldt (Chicago) 33, Sherry Magee (Philadelphia) 31, Roger Bresnahan (New York) 29, Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 26, Tim Jordan (Brooklyn) and Jimmy Sheckard (Chicago) 25.
Pitchers; Mordecai Brown (Chicago) 35, Vic Willis (Pittsburgh) 29, Jake Weimer (Cincinnati) 27, Jack Pfiester (Chicago) and Joe McGinnity (New York) 24, Ed Reulbach (Chicago) 23, Bob Ewing (Cincinnati), Tully Sparks (Philadelphia) and Sam Leever (Pittsburgh) 21.
WARP3 scores, players: Wagner 9.9, Devlin 8.8, Steinfeldt 8.3, Bresnahan 7.8, Chance 7.6, Lumley 7.5, Johnny Kling (Chicago) 6.7, Magee 5.4, Miller Huggins (Cincinnati) 5.1, Thomas 5.0, Sheckard, Frank Schulte (Chicago), Fred Clarke and Claude Ritchey (both Pittsburgh) 4.7.
WARP3 scores, pitchers: Willis 8.2, Weimer 7.6, Brown 6.6, Ewing 5.6, Sparks 5.4, Irv Young (Boston) 5.3, Vive Lindaman (Boston) 5.2, Big Jeff Pfeffer (Boston) 5.1, Christy Mathewson (New York) 4.6 (an off-year for him), Jack Taylor (St. Louis) 4.1.
Position players, WAR: Wagner 10.5, Devlin 8.8, Chance 8.5, Steinfeldt 8.3, Lumley 7.2, Magee 6.6, Bresnahan and Huggins 5.4, Ritchey 5.0, Thomas 4.9, Tinker 4.8.
Pitchers, WAR: Willis 7.4, Brown 7.2, Sparks 5.2, Pfiester 5.0, Taylor and Weimer 4.9, Reulbach 4.8, Ewing 4.7, Duggleby 4.5, Leever 4.1.
Top player is Honus Wagner (surprise, surprise) with a performance that had him leading in average, OPS, runs (tied with Chance), doubles, and total bases. He was second to Lumley in OPS+. Art Devlin was #2, with Frank Chance #3 and Harry Lumley #4, Roger Bresnahan #5.
Top pitcher is Three-Finger Brown, leading the Cubs to their record 116-win season. Miner led in ERA and was second in wins. Vic Willis was 23-13 for second place.
#1 Mordecai Brown, #2 Vic Willis, #3 Jake Weimer, #4 Tully Sparks, #5 Jack Pfiester.
Top manager is Frank Chance, the Peerless Leader taking his team to those 116 wins. Couldn't win the Series, though.
For top rookie, Win Shares likes Jordan, but WARP rates him very badly on defense. One of those rare players that gives back on defense all the runs he provides on offense. I don't have a better candidate right now, so it's Tim Jordan, .262 with 78 RBI.
Statistical leaders: Honus Wagner won the batting title at .339. Harry Steinfeldt was second at .327. Wagner also led in OPS, total bases, and doubles (38), and tied for the lead in runs (103). Frank Chance tied him, and also led in steals (57). Steinfeldt led in hits (176), and tied Jim Nealon for the lead in RBI (83).
Joe McGinnity led with 27 wins, followed by Mordecai Brown at 26. Vic Willis won 23, Sam Leever and Christy Mathewson 22, Jack Pfiester, Jack Taylor, and Jake Weimer 20. Brown led in ERA at 1.04. Pfiester had a 1.51 mark, Reulbach 1.65, Willis 1.73. Fred Beebe led in strikeouts at 171, Jeff Pfeffer had 158, Red Ames 156.
Now, ladies and gentlemen..........the Win Shares.
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 46, Art Devlin (New York) 36, Harry Lumley (Brooklyn) and Frank Chance (Chicago) 35, Harry Steinfeldt (Chicago) 33, Sherry Magee (Philadelphia) 31, Roger Bresnahan (New York) 29, Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 26, Tim Jordan (Brooklyn) and Jimmy Sheckard (Chicago) 25.
Pitchers; Mordecai Brown (Chicago) 35, Vic Willis (Pittsburgh) 29, Jake Weimer (Cincinnati) 27, Jack Pfiester (Chicago) and Joe McGinnity (New York) 24, Ed Reulbach (Chicago) 23, Bob Ewing (Cincinnati), Tully Sparks (Philadelphia) and Sam Leever (Pittsburgh) 21.
WARP3 scores, players: Wagner 9.9, Devlin 8.8, Steinfeldt 8.3, Bresnahan 7.8, Chance 7.6, Lumley 7.5, Johnny Kling (Chicago) 6.7, Magee 5.4, Miller Huggins (Cincinnati) 5.1, Thomas 5.0, Sheckard, Frank Schulte (Chicago), Fred Clarke and Claude Ritchey (both Pittsburgh) 4.7.
WARP3 scores, pitchers: Willis 8.2, Weimer 7.6, Brown 6.6, Ewing 5.6, Sparks 5.4, Irv Young (Boston) 5.3, Vive Lindaman (Boston) 5.2, Big Jeff Pfeffer (Boston) 5.1, Christy Mathewson (New York) 4.6 (an off-year for him), Jack Taylor (St. Louis) 4.1.
Position players, WAR: Wagner 10.5, Devlin 8.8, Chance 8.5, Steinfeldt 8.3, Lumley 7.2, Magee 6.6, Bresnahan and Huggins 5.4, Ritchey 5.0, Thomas 4.9, Tinker 4.8.
Pitchers, WAR: Willis 7.4, Brown 7.2, Sparks 5.2, Pfiester 5.0, Taylor and Weimer 4.9, Reulbach 4.8, Ewing 4.7, Duggleby 4.5, Leever 4.1.
Top player is Honus Wagner (surprise, surprise) with a performance that had him leading in average, OPS, runs (tied with Chance), doubles, and total bases. He was second to Lumley in OPS+. Art Devlin was #2, with Frank Chance #3 and Harry Lumley #4, Roger Bresnahan #5.
Top pitcher is Three-Finger Brown, leading the Cubs to their record 116-win season. Miner led in ERA and was second in wins. Vic Willis was 23-13 for second place.
#1 Mordecai Brown, #2 Vic Willis, #3 Jake Weimer, #4 Tully Sparks, #5 Jack Pfiester.
Top manager is Frank Chance, the Peerless Leader taking his team to those 116 wins. Couldn't win the Series, though.
For top rookie, Win Shares likes Jordan, but WARP rates him very badly on defense. One of those rare players that gives back on defense all the runs he provides on offense. I don't have a better candidate right now, so it's Tim Jordan, .262 with 78 RBI.
1906 American League
Chicago's pennant this year is often called a surprise for "The Hitless Wonders." Of course, they had finished a solid second the previous year, and had one of the greatest pitching staffs of the era. The offense was actually middle of the pack, but last in the league in batting average and slugging. They led the league in walks, stole lots of bases, and made their own opportunities. Then they beat the crosstown, 106-win Cubs in the World Series. The White Sox won a close race over the Highlanders of New York and the Cleveland Naps, with Philadelphia slipping to 4th. St. Louis and Detroit were competitive, Washington and Boston trailed the pack. Boston collapsed badly, but would rebuild quickly.
Statistical leaders: George Stone (.358) edged Nap Lajoie (.355) for the batting title. Stone also led in on-base, slugging, and OPS as well as total bases. Lajoie led in hits (214) and doubles (48). Harry Davis led in HR and RBI with 12 and 96. Elmer Flick led in runs (98) and triples (22), and tied John Anderson for the stolen base lead (39).
Al Orth had a goodly margin in wins with 27, Jack Chesbro 23, Frank Owen and Bob Rhoads 22, Addie Joss and George Mullin 21, Nick Altrock and Otto Hess 20. Doc White led the league with a 1.52 ERA, Barney Pelty 1.59, Joss 1.72, Jack Powell 1.77, Rhoads 1.80. Rube Waddell led with 196 strikeouts, Cy Falkenberg 178, Ed Walsh 171.
Here come the Win Shares:
Players; George Stone (St. Louis) 38, Nap Lajoie (Cleveland) 33, Harry Davis (Philadelphia) 31, Elmer Flick (Cleveland) 30, George Davis (Chicago) 29, Terry Turner (Cleveland) 28, Fielder Jones (Chicago) 27, Frank Isbell (Chicago) 26, Topsy Hartsel (Philadelphia) and Charlie Hemphill (St. Louis) 24.
Pitchers; Al Orth (New York) 36, George Mullin (Detroit) 26, Doc White (Chicago) and Jack Chesbro (New York) 25, Otto Hess (Cleveland) 24, Addie Joss and Bob Rhoads (Cleveland) 23, Ed Walsh (Chicago) 22.
WARP3 leaders, players: Lajoie 11.5, Stone 11.1, Flick 8.7, Turner 8.6, Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 6.8, G. Davis 5.5, H. Davis 5.4, Jones 4.9.
Pitchers: Orth 8.4, White 7.4, Mullin 6.2, Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 6.1, Case Patten (Washington) 5.4, Walsh 5.3, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 4.9, Joss 4.7.
Position player leaders in WAR: Lajoie 10.1, Stone 9.7, Turner 9.1, Flick 7.4, G. Davis 6.5, Wallace 6.1, H. Davis 5.7, Hemphill 5.1, Jones 4.6, Stahl 4.3.
Pitcher leaders in WAR: Orth 6.5, White 5.6, Waddell 4.8, Joss and Pelty 4.6, Rhoads 4.5, Hess 4.4, Walsh 4.2.
Top player: Nap Lajoie. One of the common methods of picking a top player is to pick the best player or perceived leader on the pennant winner or biggest surprise team. By that method, we would pick George Davis, veteran shortstop and cleanup hitter for the pennant-winning White Sox, the famed "Hitless Wonders." And that wouldn't be a real bad choice. In real life, Davis probably would have won the vote, and be better remembered today. For a top player, I will go with the great Lajoie and the WARP and WAR scores.
#1 Nap Lajoie, #2 George Stone, #3 Elmer Flick, #4 Terry Turner, #5 George Davis.
Top pitcher: Al Orth. Doc White led in ERA and ERA+, Orth led in wins and innings.
#1 Al Orth, #2 Doc White, #3 Addie Joss, #4 Ed Walsh, #5 Rube Waddell.
I'll venture a vote for Jack Coombs as top rookie. He was 10-10 with a 2.50 ERA for Philadelphia.
Top manager to Fielder Jones of the White Sox.
Statistical leaders: George Stone (.358) edged Nap Lajoie (.355) for the batting title. Stone also led in on-base, slugging, and OPS as well as total bases. Lajoie led in hits (214) and doubles (48). Harry Davis led in HR and RBI with 12 and 96. Elmer Flick led in runs (98) and triples (22), and tied John Anderson for the stolen base lead (39).
Al Orth had a goodly margin in wins with 27, Jack Chesbro 23, Frank Owen and Bob Rhoads 22, Addie Joss and George Mullin 21, Nick Altrock and Otto Hess 20. Doc White led the league with a 1.52 ERA, Barney Pelty 1.59, Joss 1.72, Jack Powell 1.77, Rhoads 1.80. Rube Waddell led with 196 strikeouts, Cy Falkenberg 178, Ed Walsh 171.
Here come the Win Shares:
Players; George Stone (St. Louis) 38, Nap Lajoie (Cleveland) 33, Harry Davis (Philadelphia) 31, Elmer Flick (Cleveland) 30, George Davis (Chicago) 29, Terry Turner (Cleveland) 28, Fielder Jones (Chicago) 27, Frank Isbell (Chicago) 26, Topsy Hartsel (Philadelphia) and Charlie Hemphill (St. Louis) 24.
Pitchers; Al Orth (New York) 36, George Mullin (Detroit) 26, Doc White (Chicago) and Jack Chesbro (New York) 25, Otto Hess (Cleveland) 24, Addie Joss and Bob Rhoads (Cleveland) 23, Ed Walsh (Chicago) 22.
WARP3 leaders, players: Lajoie 11.5, Stone 11.1, Flick 8.7, Turner 8.6, Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 6.8, G. Davis 5.5, H. Davis 5.4, Jones 4.9.
Pitchers: Orth 8.4, White 7.4, Mullin 6.2, Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 6.1, Case Patten (Washington) 5.4, Walsh 5.3, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 4.9, Joss 4.7.
Position player leaders in WAR: Lajoie 10.1, Stone 9.7, Turner 9.1, Flick 7.4, G. Davis 6.5, Wallace 6.1, H. Davis 5.7, Hemphill 5.1, Jones 4.6, Stahl 4.3.
Pitcher leaders in WAR: Orth 6.5, White 5.6, Waddell 4.8, Joss and Pelty 4.6, Rhoads 4.5, Hess 4.4, Walsh 4.2.
Top player: Nap Lajoie. One of the common methods of picking a top player is to pick the best player or perceived leader on the pennant winner or biggest surprise team. By that method, we would pick George Davis, veteran shortstop and cleanup hitter for the pennant-winning White Sox, the famed "Hitless Wonders." And that wouldn't be a real bad choice. In real life, Davis probably would have won the vote, and be better remembered today. For a top player, I will go with the great Lajoie and the WARP and WAR scores.
#1 Nap Lajoie, #2 George Stone, #3 Elmer Flick, #4 Terry Turner, #5 George Davis.
Top pitcher: Al Orth. Doc White led in ERA and ERA+, Orth led in wins and innings.
#1 Al Orth, #2 Doc White, #3 Addie Joss, #4 Ed Walsh, #5 Rube Waddell.
I'll venture a vote for Jack Coombs as top rookie. He was 10-10 with a 2.50 ERA for Philadelphia.
Top manager to Fielder Jones of the White Sox.
16 June 2007
1905 National League
New York won 105 games and the pennant this year, with Pittsburgh second and Chicago third. Pittsburgh and Cincinnati were near .500, St. Louis, Boston, and Brooklyn were competing for the cellar again. New York then won the World Series with Christy Mathewson delivering on of the all-time great postseason performances, pitching three shutouts in five games. The Giants allowed only three runs, none earned, in the whole Series.
Statistical leaders: Cy Seymour had a career year, and led the league in batting average (.377), doubles (40), RBI (121), slugging, OPS, hits (219), triples (21), and total bases. Mike Donlin led in runs (124), while Art Devlin and Billy Maloney tied for the steals lead (59). Meantime, Honus Wagner was third in hits, third in doubles, third in RBI, second in batting average at .363 and played shortstop.
Christy Mathewson had a great year, winning the pitchers' Triple Crown. He had 31 wins. Togie Pittinger won 23, Red Ames 22, Joe McGinnity 21, with Bob Ewing, Sam Leever, Deacon Phillippe, and Irv Young winning 20. Mathewson had a 1.28 ERA, followed by Ed Reulbach at 1.42, Bob Wicker at 2.02, Buttons Briggs at 2.14, and Mordecai Brown at 2.17. Mathewson struck out 206, Ames 198, Orval Overall 173.
1905 NL Win Shares leaderboards:
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 46, Cy Seymour (Cincinnati) 42, Turkey Mike Donlin (New York) 36, Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 31, John Titus (Philadelphia) 29, Sherry Magee (Philadelphia) 28, Miller Huggins (Cincinnati) 27, Frank Chance and Jimmy Slagle (Chicago) and Sam Mertes (New York) 25 each.
Pitchers; Christy Mathewson (New York) 39, Irv Young (Boston) and Ed Reulbach (Chicago) 29, Deacon Phillippe (Pittsburgh) 26, Bob Ewing (Cincinnati) 23, Joe McGinnity (New York) 22.
WARP3 leaders, players: Wagner 9.8, Seymour 9.3, Donlin 8.1, Chance 6.6, Thomas 6.4, Roger Bresnahan (New York) 5.7, Titus 5.6, McGann 5.5, Mertes and Bill Dahlen (New York) 4.3, Slagle 4.2, Jimmy Sheckard (Brooklyn) 4.1.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Mathewson 9.5, Young 7.9, Ewing 6.7, Reulbach 5.3, Orval Overall (Cincinnati) 4.6, Doc Scanlan (Brooklyn) 4.0, Phillippe and Tully Sparks (Philadelphia) 3.7.
Top players, WAR: Wagner 11.9, Seymour 9.5, Donlin 8.5, Thomas 7.3, Chance 7.2, Magee and Titus 6.7, Dahlen 6.5, McGann 6.3.
Top pitchers, WAR: Mathewson 9.1, Reulbach 7.8, Young 7.0, Ewing 5.6, Sparks 5.1, Phillippe 4.9, Wicker 4.5, Weimer 4.2.
Top player: Honus Wagner for the sixth straight time, although he had more competition than usual. Donlin was a strong hitter, and amazing Cy Seymour led in most hitting categories, but overall it must be Honus.
#1 Honus Wagner, #2 Cy Seymour, #3 Mike Donlin, #4 Roy Thomas, #5 Frank Chance.
Mathewson is the clear winner for best pitcher. Big Six had 31 wins, next best was Togie Pittinger of Philly with 23. Mathewson also led in ERA and strikeouts, the pitching triple crown, then threw three shutouts in the World Series. That's pretty impressive.
#1 Christy Mathewson, #2 Ed Reulbach, #3 Irv Young, #4 Bob Ewing, #5 Deacon Phillippe.
Top rookie to Irv Young, who did very little afterwards.
Top manager to John McGraw, the Giants skipper.
Statistical leaders: Cy Seymour had a career year, and led the league in batting average (.377), doubles (40), RBI (121), slugging, OPS, hits (219), triples (21), and total bases. Mike Donlin led in runs (124), while Art Devlin and Billy Maloney tied for the steals lead (59). Meantime, Honus Wagner was third in hits, third in doubles, third in RBI, second in batting average at .363 and played shortstop.
Christy Mathewson had a great year, winning the pitchers' Triple Crown. He had 31 wins. Togie Pittinger won 23, Red Ames 22, Joe McGinnity 21, with Bob Ewing, Sam Leever, Deacon Phillippe, and Irv Young winning 20. Mathewson had a 1.28 ERA, followed by Ed Reulbach at 1.42, Bob Wicker at 2.02, Buttons Briggs at 2.14, and Mordecai Brown at 2.17. Mathewson struck out 206, Ames 198, Orval Overall 173.
1905 NL Win Shares leaderboards:
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 46, Cy Seymour (Cincinnati) 42, Turkey Mike Donlin (New York) 36, Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 31, John Titus (Philadelphia) 29, Sherry Magee (Philadelphia) 28, Miller Huggins (Cincinnati) 27, Frank Chance and Jimmy Slagle (Chicago) and Sam Mertes (New York) 25 each.
Pitchers; Christy Mathewson (New York) 39, Irv Young (Boston) and Ed Reulbach (Chicago) 29, Deacon Phillippe (Pittsburgh) 26, Bob Ewing (Cincinnati) 23, Joe McGinnity (New York) 22.
WARP3 leaders, players: Wagner 9.8, Seymour 9.3, Donlin 8.1, Chance 6.6, Thomas 6.4, Roger Bresnahan (New York) 5.7, Titus 5.6, McGann 5.5, Mertes and Bill Dahlen (New York) 4.3, Slagle 4.2, Jimmy Sheckard (Brooklyn) 4.1.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Mathewson 9.5, Young 7.9, Ewing 6.7, Reulbach 5.3, Orval Overall (Cincinnati) 4.6, Doc Scanlan (Brooklyn) 4.0, Phillippe and Tully Sparks (Philadelphia) 3.7.
Top players, WAR: Wagner 11.9, Seymour 9.5, Donlin 8.5, Thomas 7.3, Chance 7.2, Magee and Titus 6.7, Dahlen 6.5, McGann 6.3.
Top pitchers, WAR: Mathewson 9.1, Reulbach 7.8, Young 7.0, Ewing 5.6, Sparks 5.1, Phillippe 4.9, Wicker 4.5, Weimer 4.2.
Top player: Honus Wagner for the sixth straight time, although he had more competition than usual. Donlin was a strong hitter, and amazing Cy Seymour led in most hitting categories, but overall it must be Honus.
#1 Honus Wagner, #2 Cy Seymour, #3 Mike Donlin, #4 Roy Thomas, #5 Frank Chance.
Mathewson is the clear winner for best pitcher. Big Six had 31 wins, next best was Togie Pittinger of Philly with 23. Mathewson also led in ERA and strikeouts, the pitching triple crown, then threw three shutouts in the World Series. That's pretty impressive.
#1 Christy Mathewson, #2 Ed Reulbach, #3 Irv Young, #4 Bob Ewing, #5 Deacon Phillippe.
Top rookie to Irv Young, who did very little afterwards.
Top manager to John McGraw, the Giants skipper.
1905 American League
Philadelphia beat Chicago in a wild pennant race that was decided by just two games. The White Sox had strong pitching in a good pitchers' park, but the A's also had strong pitching and more offense. Following were, in order, Detroit, Boston, Cleveland, New York, Boston, and St. Louis. The A's then lost in the World Series. That Series established a precedent for a end-of-season playoff between the league winners, first seen in the 1880s but now made a part of sports lore.
Statistical leaders: Elmer Flick won the batting title at .308. Willie Keeler (.302) and Harry Bay (.301) were the only other .300 hitters, now that we were in the throes of the Dead Ball Era. Flick also led in slugging, OPS, and triples (18). Harry Davis led in runs (93), doubles (47), homers (8) and RBI (83). George Stone led in hits (187) and total bases. Danny Hoffman led in steals (46). Flick had a big lead in OPS+.
On the mound, Rube Waddell won the pitchers' Triple Crown. Waddell had 27 wins, Eddie Plank 24, Nick Altrock and Ed Killian 23, Jesse Tannehill 22, George Mullin and Frank Owen 21, Addie Joss 20. Waddell had a 1.48 ERA, Doc White 1.76, Cy Young 1.82, Andy Coakley 1.84, Altrock 1.88, Harry Howell 1.98. Waddell had 287 strikeouts, Young and Plank 210 each.
1905 AL Win Shares leaders;
Players, Sam Crawford (Detroit) 36, Topsy Hartsel (Philadelphia) 30, Fielder Jones (Chicago) and Elmer Flick (Cleveland) 29, George Davis (Chicago) 28, George Stone (St. Louis) 27, Harry Davis (Philadelphia) 26, Jimmy Collins (Boston), Harry Bay (Cleveland) and Danny Murphy (Philadelphia) 23.
Pitchers, Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 35, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 31, Ed Killian (Detroit) 29, Cy Young (Boston) 28, Jesse Tannehill (Boston) and George Mullin (Detroit) 26, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 25, Nick Altrock (Chicago) 24.
WARP3 leaders, players: G. Davis 7.7, Stone 7.1, Flick 7.0, Crawford and Bill Bradley (Cleveland) 6.9, Jones 6.7, Bay 6.0, Murphy 5.9, H. Davis 5.8, Hartsel and Socks Seybold (Philadelphia) 5.5.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Waddell 9.0, Young 8.0, Tannehill 7.4, Plank and Harry Howell (St. Louis) 7.2, Killian 6.6, Tom Hughes (Washington) 5.8, Al Orth (New York) 5.4, Mullin, Joss, and Jack Chesbro (New York) 5.1.
Nap Lajoie, the 500-pound gorilla of the AL, played only 65 games. His WARP3 was 4.0.
WAR leaders, position players: G. Davis 7.1, H. Davis 5.9, Flick 5.8, Hartsel 5.4, Stone and Crawford 5.2, Murphy 5.1, Donahue 4.9.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Waddell 8.1, Young 6.4, Plank 5.9, Killian 5.4, Altrock, Joss, and White 5.0, Howell 4.9, Orth 4.7, Tannehill 4.6.
Top player: Elmer Flick, the top offensive player in the league. Flick was the batting champ and the easy leader in OPS and OPS+. Only three .300 hitters as the Dead Ball era settled in around baseball.
#1 Elmer Flick, #2 George Davis, #3 Harry Davis, #4 Sam Crawford, #5 Topsy Hartsel.
For top pitcher, the winner is clearly Waddell. Rube led in wins, ERA and strikeouts, the pitching triple crown. His ERA+ of 179 easily outdistanced Cy Young at 148. Young #2, Plank #3, Killian #4, Altrock #5.
Top rookie to George Stone, batting .296 and leading in hits and total bases for St. Louis.
Top manager was pennant winner Connie Mack.
Statistical leaders: Elmer Flick won the batting title at .308. Willie Keeler (.302) and Harry Bay (.301) were the only other .300 hitters, now that we were in the throes of the Dead Ball Era. Flick also led in slugging, OPS, and triples (18). Harry Davis led in runs (93), doubles (47), homers (8) and RBI (83). George Stone led in hits (187) and total bases. Danny Hoffman led in steals (46). Flick had a big lead in OPS+.
On the mound, Rube Waddell won the pitchers' Triple Crown. Waddell had 27 wins, Eddie Plank 24, Nick Altrock and Ed Killian 23, Jesse Tannehill 22, George Mullin and Frank Owen 21, Addie Joss 20. Waddell had a 1.48 ERA, Doc White 1.76, Cy Young 1.82, Andy Coakley 1.84, Altrock 1.88, Harry Howell 1.98. Waddell had 287 strikeouts, Young and Plank 210 each.
1905 AL Win Shares leaders;
Players, Sam Crawford (Detroit) 36, Topsy Hartsel (Philadelphia) 30, Fielder Jones (Chicago) and Elmer Flick (Cleveland) 29, George Davis (Chicago) 28, George Stone (St. Louis) 27, Harry Davis (Philadelphia) 26, Jimmy Collins (Boston), Harry Bay (Cleveland) and Danny Murphy (Philadelphia) 23.
Pitchers, Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 35, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 31, Ed Killian (Detroit) 29, Cy Young (Boston) 28, Jesse Tannehill (Boston) and George Mullin (Detroit) 26, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 25, Nick Altrock (Chicago) 24.
WARP3 leaders, players: G. Davis 7.7, Stone 7.1, Flick 7.0, Crawford and Bill Bradley (Cleveland) 6.9, Jones 6.7, Bay 6.0, Murphy 5.9, H. Davis 5.8, Hartsel and Socks Seybold (Philadelphia) 5.5.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Waddell 9.0, Young 8.0, Tannehill 7.4, Plank and Harry Howell (St. Louis) 7.2, Killian 6.6, Tom Hughes (Washington) 5.8, Al Orth (New York) 5.4, Mullin, Joss, and Jack Chesbro (New York) 5.1.
Nap Lajoie, the 500-pound gorilla of the AL, played only 65 games. His WARP3 was 4.0.
WAR leaders, position players: G. Davis 7.1, H. Davis 5.9, Flick 5.8, Hartsel 5.4, Stone and Crawford 5.2, Murphy 5.1, Donahue 4.9.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Waddell 8.1, Young 6.4, Plank 5.9, Killian 5.4, Altrock, Joss, and White 5.0, Howell 4.9, Orth 4.7, Tannehill 4.6.
Top player: Elmer Flick, the top offensive player in the league. Flick was the batting champ and the easy leader in OPS and OPS+. Only three .300 hitters as the Dead Ball era settled in around baseball.
#1 Elmer Flick, #2 George Davis, #3 Harry Davis, #4 Sam Crawford, #5 Topsy Hartsel.
For top pitcher, the winner is clearly Waddell. Rube led in wins, ERA and strikeouts, the pitching triple crown. His ERA+ of 179 easily outdistanced Cy Young at 148. Young #2, Plank #3, Killian #4, Altrock #5.
Top rookie to George Stone, batting .296 and leading in hits and total bases for St. Louis.
Top manager was pennant winner Connie Mack.
11 June 2007
1904 National League
New York won this pennant easily, with a 106-47 record. Chicago was second, 13 games out. Three teams (Brooklyn, Boston, Philadelphia) finished at least 50 games out. This was a year of haves and have-nots. It was not a great year of baseball, topped off by the refusal of New York manager John McGraw to play another World Series, as the Pirates and Boston had the year before. That little problem would soon be rectified.
Statistical leaders: Honus Wagner, of course. Honus won the batting title at .349, had 44 doubles and 53 steals. Jake Beckley was second in the batting average race with a .325 mark, followed by Cy Seymour at .313, Frank Chance at .310, and Ginger Beaumont at .301. Sam Mertes was second in doubles with 28, and Mertes tied with Bill Dahlen for second with 47 steals. George Browne scored 99 runs, Wagner and Beaumont had 97, Miller Huggins 96. Beaumont had 185 hits, Beckley 179, and Wagner 171. Bill Dahlen tallied 80 RBI, Mertes and Harry Lumley 78.
Joe McGinnity led pitchers with 35 wins, teammate Christy Mathewson had 33, and the next best total was 23 by Jack Harper. McGinnity had a 1.61 ERA to lead the way, with Ned Garvin at 1.68, Mordecai Brown 1.86, and Jake Weimer 1.91. Mathewson powered to 212 strikeouts, Vic Willis 196, and Weimer 177.
Win Shares leaders:
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 43, Frank Chance (Chicago) 29, Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 28, Sam Mertes (New York) 27, Cy Seymour (Cincinnati) 26, Bill Dahlen and Art Devlin (New York) and Tommy Leach (Pittsburgh) 25 each, Ginger Beaumont (Pittsburgh) 24, Roger Bresnahan (New York) and Jake Beckley (St. Louis) 23.
Pitchers; Joe McGinnity (New York) 42, Christy Mathewson (New York) 34, Jake Weimer (Chicago) 28, Kid Nichols and Jack Taylor (St. Louis) 27, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 25, Buttons Briggs (Chicago) and Jack Harper (Cincinnati) 24, Luther "Dummy" Taylor (New York) and Patsy Flaherty and Sam Leever (Pittsburgh) 23.
WARP3 leaders, players: Wagner 8.0, Chance 5.4, Devlin 5.3, Dahlen 4.9, Leach 4.8, Thomas 4.7, Seymour 4.6, Bresnahan 4.5, Mertes and Beckley 4.3.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: McGinnity 7.0, Vic Willis (Boston)5.8, Togie Pittinger (Boston) 5.6, Mathewson 5.3, Flaherty 5.1, Hahn 5.0, Leever and Nichols 4.8, Weimer 4.2.
WAR leaders, position players: Wagner 9.7, Chance 6.8, Dahlen 6.5, Thomas 6.3, Devlin 6.1, Dan McGann (New York) 5.6, Mertes 5.4, Beckley 5.1, Seymour 5.0, Harry Lumley (Brooklyn) 4.8, Leach 4.7.
WAR leaders, pitchers: McGinnity 10.2, Nichols 6.9, Mathewson 6.1, Hahn 5.9, Weimer 5.7, Taylor 4.8, Harper and Leever 4.6, Taylor 4.5, Flaherty 4.3.
Top player was Honus Wagner, of course, for the fifth year in a row. He led the league in batting average, on-base, slugging, OPS, total bases, doubles, extra-base hits, and OPS+. #2 Frank Chance, #3 Roy Thomas, #4 Cy Seymour, #5 Bill Dahlen.
Top pitcher was Iron Man Joe McGinnity. He led in ERA, wins, saves, WHIP, games, innings, shutouts, and ERA+. #2 Mathewson, #3 Kid Nichols in his final encore, #4 Jake Weimer, #5 Noodles Hahn.
Top rookie was Art Devlin. He hit .281 in 130 games, playing 3B for pennant-winning New York.
It is a well-known story that John McGraw declined to repeat the previous year's "World Series" by refusing to face the Boston AL winner, who had beaten Pittsburgh the previous year. Reasons differ on why this is so. McGraw, with twin aces McGinnity and Mathewson, and the best offense in the NL, had reason to be confident. The Pilgrims had a fine team of their own. This did set up a hue and cry that led to the establishment of a permanent NL/AL postseason series.
Statistical leaders: Honus Wagner, of course. Honus won the batting title at .349, had 44 doubles and 53 steals. Jake Beckley was second in the batting average race with a .325 mark, followed by Cy Seymour at .313, Frank Chance at .310, and Ginger Beaumont at .301. Sam Mertes was second in doubles with 28, and Mertes tied with Bill Dahlen for second with 47 steals. George Browne scored 99 runs, Wagner and Beaumont had 97, Miller Huggins 96. Beaumont had 185 hits, Beckley 179, and Wagner 171. Bill Dahlen tallied 80 RBI, Mertes and Harry Lumley 78.
Joe McGinnity led pitchers with 35 wins, teammate Christy Mathewson had 33, and the next best total was 23 by Jack Harper. McGinnity had a 1.61 ERA to lead the way, with Ned Garvin at 1.68, Mordecai Brown 1.86, and Jake Weimer 1.91. Mathewson powered to 212 strikeouts, Vic Willis 196, and Weimer 177.
Win Shares leaders:
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 43, Frank Chance (Chicago) 29, Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 28, Sam Mertes (New York) 27, Cy Seymour (Cincinnati) 26, Bill Dahlen and Art Devlin (New York) and Tommy Leach (Pittsburgh) 25 each, Ginger Beaumont (Pittsburgh) 24, Roger Bresnahan (New York) and Jake Beckley (St. Louis) 23.
Pitchers; Joe McGinnity (New York) 42, Christy Mathewson (New York) 34, Jake Weimer (Chicago) 28, Kid Nichols and Jack Taylor (St. Louis) 27, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 25, Buttons Briggs (Chicago) and Jack Harper (Cincinnati) 24, Luther "Dummy" Taylor (New York) and Patsy Flaherty and Sam Leever (Pittsburgh) 23.
WARP3 leaders, players: Wagner 8.0, Chance 5.4, Devlin 5.3, Dahlen 4.9, Leach 4.8, Thomas 4.7, Seymour 4.6, Bresnahan 4.5, Mertes and Beckley 4.3.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: McGinnity 7.0, Vic Willis (Boston)5.8, Togie Pittinger (Boston) 5.6, Mathewson 5.3, Flaherty 5.1, Hahn 5.0, Leever and Nichols 4.8, Weimer 4.2.
WAR leaders, position players: Wagner 9.7, Chance 6.8, Dahlen 6.5, Thomas 6.3, Devlin 6.1, Dan McGann (New York) 5.6, Mertes 5.4, Beckley 5.1, Seymour 5.0, Harry Lumley (Brooklyn) 4.8, Leach 4.7.
WAR leaders, pitchers: McGinnity 10.2, Nichols 6.9, Mathewson 6.1, Hahn 5.9, Weimer 5.7, Taylor 4.8, Harper and Leever 4.6, Taylor 4.5, Flaherty 4.3.
Top player was Honus Wagner, of course, for the fifth year in a row. He led the league in batting average, on-base, slugging, OPS, total bases, doubles, extra-base hits, and OPS+. #2 Frank Chance, #3 Roy Thomas, #4 Cy Seymour, #5 Bill Dahlen.
Top pitcher was Iron Man Joe McGinnity. He led in ERA, wins, saves, WHIP, games, innings, shutouts, and ERA+. #2 Mathewson, #3 Kid Nichols in his final encore, #4 Jake Weimer, #5 Noodles Hahn.
Top rookie was Art Devlin. He hit .281 in 130 games, playing 3B for pennant-winning New York.
It is a well-known story that John McGraw declined to repeat the previous year's "World Series" by refusing to face the Boston AL winner, who had beaten Pittsburgh the previous year. Reasons differ on why this is so. McGraw, with twin aces McGinnity and Mathewson, and the best offense in the NL, had reason to be confident. The Pilgrims had a fine team of their own. This did set up a hue and cry that led to the establishment of a permanent NL/AL postseason series.
1904 American League
Boston defeated New York in a tremendous pennant race, the best of the century so far. Jack Chesbro had his career year with 41 wins, and lost the pennant for the Highlanders on a wild pitch. Of course, they wouldn't have gotten that far if not for him. Chicago and Cleveland were in it too, and Philadelphia was not far behind. Washington was horrible, losing 113 games with one of the worst teams of all time. The NL, specifically pennant-winning manager John McGraw, refused to play the AL champs. This led to the setting up of a more official playoff at the end of the season, to be christened the "World Series," (originally "World's Series") and sports history was made.
Statistical leaders: Nap Lajoie ran away with the batting title, at .376 to Willie Keeler's .343. Third was Harry Davis at .309. Lajoie also led in hits (208), doubles (49), on-base, slugging, and RBI (102). Joe Cassidy, Buck Freeman, and Chick Stahl tied with 19 triples. Patsy Dougherty had 113 runs, Harry Davis 10 HR, and Clevelanders Harry Bay and Elmer Flick 38 steals each.
Chesbro had 41 wins (Eddie Plank and Cy Young followed with 26 each), Addie Joss posted a 1.59 ERA, and Rube Waddell had 349 strikeouts to go with his second-best ERA (1.62). The strikeout mark had been reached repeatedly in the 19th century, but a 20th century pitcher would not exceed it until Sandy Koufax in 1965, although Bob Feller was one short in 1946. Also, while 40 wins was regularly exceeded in the 19th century, no one has posted more victories in a season since Chesbro. Ed Walsh in 1908 is the only 40-game winner since.
Win Shares Leaderboard:
Players, Nap Lajoie (Cleveland) 41, Chick Stahl (Boston) and Elmer Flick (Cleveland) 31, Freddy Parent (Boston) 29, Jimmy Collins (Boston), George Davis (Chicago) and Bill Bradley (Cleveland) 28 each, Danny Green (Chicago) 27, Jimmy Barrett (Detroit) 26, Buck Freeman (Boston), Willie Keeler (New York) and Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 25.
Pitchers, Jack Chesbro (New York) 53, Cy Young (Boston) 35, Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 32, Jack Powell (New York) and Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 29, Bill Dinneen (Boston) and Frank Owen (Chicago) 26, Jesse Tannehill (Boston) and George Mullin (Detroit) 25.
WARP3 scores: players, Lajoie 11.6, Bradley 9.1, Flick 8.4, Murphy 7.3, Collins 7.2, Davis and Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 6.5, Patsy Dougherty (Boston) 6.3, Green 5.9, Keeler 5.7, Lou Criger (Boston) 5.4.
WARP3 scores, pitchers: Chesbro 11.3, Young 9.6, Plank 8.2, Waddell 7.9, Dinneen 7.7, Harry Howell (St. Louis) 6.2, Mullin 5.7, Owen 5.6, Tom Hughes (Boston) 5.3.
WAR leaders, position players: Lajoie 9.3. Flick 7.1, Davis 6.9, Bradley 6.7, Parent 6.4, Wallace 5.4, Collins 5.3, Keeler and Danny Murphy (Philadelphia) 5.2, Stahl and Kid Elberfeld (New York) 5.0.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Chesbro 8.8, Waddell 8.4, Young 8.1, Plank 6.8, Tannehill 4.6, Bill Bernhard (Cleveland) and Dinneen 4.4, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 4.3, Howell 4.2.
Top player: Nap Lajoie continued to dominate the young AL, leading in batting average, on-base, slugging, OPS, hits, total bases, extra-base hits, doubles, RBI, and OPS+. The question is, how did Cleveland, which led in offense and was 2nd in team ERA, finish 4th? By Pythagorean numbers, they should have won the pennant.
After Lajoie at #1, I'd give the #2 spot to Elmer Flick, with Bill Bradley #3, Jimmy Collins #4 and George Davis #5.
Top pitcher: Jack Chesbro. He led in wins, WHIP, innings, games, starts, CG, 2nd in strikeouts, 4th in ERA. Had 15 more wins than the second-place guys in that category, Plank and Young. This season got Chesbro in the Hall of Fame, with but 198 career victories. #2 on my ballot would be strikeout leader Rube Waddell, #3 Cy Young, #4 Eddie Plank, then Bill Dinneen #5.
Frank Smith's 16-9, with a 2.09 ERA for Chicago is deserving of Rookie of the Year.
Manager of the Year to New York's Clark Griffith, for a great run with a shaky team.
Statistical leaders: Nap Lajoie ran away with the batting title, at .376 to Willie Keeler's .343. Third was Harry Davis at .309. Lajoie also led in hits (208), doubles (49), on-base, slugging, and RBI (102). Joe Cassidy, Buck Freeman, and Chick Stahl tied with 19 triples. Patsy Dougherty had 113 runs, Harry Davis 10 HR, and Clevelanders Harry Bay and Elmer Flick 38 steals each.
Chesbro had 41 wins (Eddie Plank and Cy Young followed with 26 each), Addie Joss posted a 1.59 ERA, and Rube Waddell had 349 strikeouts to go with his second-best ERA (1.62). The strikeout mark had been reached repeatedly in the 19th century, but a 20th century pitcher would not exceed it until Sandy Koufax in 1965, although Bob Feller was one short in 1946. Also, while 40 wins was regularly exceeded in the 19th century, no one has posted more victories in a season since Chesbro. Ed Walsh in 1908 is the only 40-game winner since.
Win Shares Leaderboard:
Players, Nap Lajoie (Cleveland) 41, Chick Stahl (Boston) and Elmer Flick (Cleveland) 31, Freddy Parent (Boston) 29, Jimmy Collins (Boston), George Davis (Chicago) and Bill Bradley (Cleveland) 28 each, Danny Green (Chicago) 27, Jimmy Barrett (Detroit) 26, Buck Freeman (Boston), Willie Keeler (New York) and Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 25.
Pitchers, Jack Chesbro (New York) 53, Cy Young (Boston) 35, Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 32, Jack Powell (New York) and Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 29, Bill Dinneen (Boston) and Frank Owen (Chicago) 26, Jesse Tannehill (Boston) and George Mullin (Detroit) 25.
WARP3 scores: players, Lajoie 11.6, Bradley 9.1, Flick 8.4, Murphy 7.3, Collins 7.2, Davis and Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 6.5, Patsy Dougherty (Boston) 6.3, Green 5.9, Keeler 5.7, Lou Criger (Boston) 5.4.
WARP3 scores, pitchers: Chesbro 11.3, Young 9.6, Plank 8.2, Waddell 7.9, Dinneen 7.7, Harry Howell (St. Louis) 6.2, Mullin 5.7, Owen 5.6, Tom Hughes (Boston) 5.3.
WAR leaders, position players: Lajoie 9.3. Flick 7.1, Davis 6.9, Bradley 6.7, Parent 6.4, Wallace 5.4, Collins 5.3, Keeler and Danny Murphy (Philadelphia) 5.2, Stahl and Kid Elberfeld (New York) 5.0.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Chesbro 8.8, Waddell 8.4, Young 8.1, Plank 6.8, Tannehill 4.6, Bill Bernhard (Cleveland) and Dinneen 4.4, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 4.3, Howell 4.2.
Top player: Nap Lajoie continued to dominate the young AL, leading in batting average, on-base, slugging, OPS, hits, total bases, extra-base hits, doubles, RBI, and OPS+. The question is, how did Cleveland, which led in offense and was 2nd in team ERA, finish 4th? By Pythagorean numbers, they should have won the pennant.
After Lajoie at #1, I'd give the #2 spot to Elmer Flick, with Bill Bradley #3, Jimmy Collins #4 and George Davis #5.
Top pitcher: Jack Chesbro. He led in wins, WHIP, innings, games, starts, CG, 2nd in strikeouts, 4th in ERA. Had 15 more wins than the second-place guys in that category, Plank and Young. This season got Chesbro in the Hall of Fame, with but 198 career victories. #2 on my ballot would be strikeout leader Rube Waddell, #3 Cy Young, #4 Eddie Plank, then Bill Dinneen #5.
Frank Smith's 16-9, with a 2.09 ERA for Chicago is deserving of Rookie of the Year.
Manager of the Year to New York's Clark Griffith, for a great run with a shaky team.
10 June 2007
1903 National League
Pittsburgh won again, but didn't run away and hide this year. New York, now refortified, and Chicago gave them a run for their money. St. Louis filled the basement, and deservedly so. The Pirates also accepted the challenge of the Boston Pilgrims for a post-season series, but lost to the AL upstarts. It was the start of something historic. Also, the leagues made a peace agreement to stop raiding each others' players.
League leaders included batting champ Honus Wagner with a .355 average and 19 triples, Ginger Beaumont with 137 runs and 209 hits, Jimmy Sheckard at 9 HR, Sam Mertes with 104 RBI, Mertes, Fred Clarke, and Harry Steinfeldt with 32 doubles, and Frank Chance tied with Sheckard at 67 steals.
Joe McGinnity's 31 wins just edged Christy Mathewson's 30, Sam Leever posted a 2.06 ERA, and Mathewson led the way with 267 strikeouts. Leever and Deacon Phillippe won 25 games. Mathewson was second with a 2.26 ERA, Jake Weimer third at 2.30.
Here's the Win Shares:
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 35, Jimmy Sheckard (Brooklyn) 33, Frank Chance (Chicago) 31, Ginger Beaumont (Pittsburgh) 28, Roger Bresnahan (New York) 27, Sam Mertes (New York) 26, Jimmy Slagle (Chicago) and Fred Clarke (Pittsburgh) 25 each, Mike Donlin and Cy Seymour (both Cincinnati) 24, Bill Dahlen (Brooklyn) and Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 23.
Pitchers; Joe McGinnity (New York) 40, Christy Mathewson (New York) 37, Sam Leever (Pittsburgh) 28, Deacon Phillippe (Pittsburgh) 27, Jack Taylor (Chicago) 25, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 24, Oscar Jones (Brooklyn) and Jake Weimer (Chicago) 23.
WARP3, players: Wagner 9.2, Johnny Kling (Chicago) 8.2, Sheckard 7.8, Pat Moran (Boston) 6.7, Thomas 6.2, Dahlen 5.7, Seymour 5.5, Clarke and Claude Ritchey (Pittsburgh) 5.4, Chance 5.3, Beaumont 5.0, Harry Steinfeldt (Cincinnati) 4.9.
WARP3 pitchers: McGinnity 10.6, Mathewson 8.7, Vic Willis (Boston) 6.6, Taylor 5.8, Leever 5.5, Weimer 5.1, Hahn 4.8.
WAR, players: Wagner 9.1, Sheckard 8.4, Chance 6.8, Thomas 6.5, Bresnahan 6.1, Dahlen 6.0, Donlin 5.8, Beaumont and Clarke 5.6. Pitchers, McGinnity 10.5, Mathewson 8.9, Hahn 6.8, Leever 6.5, Weimer 5.3, Phillippe 5.2, Willis 5.1, Sparks 4.7.
Top player: Honus Wagner. It comes down to Sheckard or Wagner for top player. Wagner was .355/414/518, winning the batting title and leading in triples. Sheckard led the league in home runs and tied for the lead in steals, and was 332/423/476 in a tougher hitter's park. Wagner's team won the pennant.
#1 Honus Wagner, #2 Jimmy Sheckard, #3 Frank Chance for surging Chicago, #4 Roy Thomas, #5 Bill Dahlen.
Top pitcher: Christy Mathewson. It's between teammates Mathewson and McGinnity. McGinnity was 31-20 2.43, and Mathewson 30-13 2.26 for the same team. One win vs. 0.17 in ERA. It's pretty much a dead heat, but for top pitcher I'll take Mathewson and his big lead in strikeouts with McGinnity a close second. Sam Leever, the ERA leader, is a good #3 but well back of the top 2.
#1 Christy Mathewson, #2 Joe McGinnity, #3 Sam Leever, #4 Noodles Hahn, #5 Deacon Phillippe.
Wagner and Mathewson. Probably say that a lot this decade.
Not much for rookies. The best was Jake Weimer, 20-8 with a 2.30 ERA for Chicago. He was 3rd in ERA and 5th in strikeouts. Mordecai Brown was 9-13, but with a 2.26 ERA and a 126 ERA+ in St. Louis. He had the best career.
Best manager to Fred Clarke of Pittsburgh, but that's partly because I know John McGraw will have lots of chances at this.
League leaders included batting champ Honus Wagner with a .355 average and 19 triples, Ginger Beaumont with 137 runs and 209 hits, Jimmy Sheckard at 9 HR, Sam Mertes with 104 RBI, Mertes, Fred Clarke, and Harry Steinfeldt with 32 doubles, and Frank Chance tied with Sheckard at 67 steals.
Joe McGinnity's 31 wins just edged Christy Mathewson's 30, Sam Leever posted a 2.06 ERA, and Mathewson led the way with 267 strikeouts. Leever and Deacon Phillippe won 25 games. Mathewson was second with a 2.26 ERA, Jake Weimer third at 2.30.
Here's the Win Shares:
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 35, Jimmy Sheckard (Brooklyn) 33, Frank Chance (Chicago) 31, Ginger Beaumont (Pittsburgh) 28, Roger Bresnahan (New York) 27, Sam Mertes (New York) 26, Jimmy Slagle (Chicago) and Fred Clarke (Pittsburgh) 25 each, Mike Donlin and Cy Seymour (both Cincinnati) 24, Bill Dahlen (Brooklyn) and Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 23.
Pitchers; Joe McGinnity (New York) 40, Christy Mathewson (New York) 37, Sam Leever (Pittsburgh) 28, Deacon Phillippe (Pittsburgh) 27, Jack Taylor (Chicago) 25, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 24, Oscar Jones (Brooklyn) and Jake Weimer (Chicago) 23.
WARP3, players: Wagner 9.2, Johnny Kling (Chicago) 8.2, Sheckard 7.8, Pat Moran (Boston) 6.7, Thomas 6.2, Dahlen 5.7, Seymour 5.5, Clarke and Claude Ritchey (Pittsburgh) 5.4, Chance 5.3, Beaumont 5.0, Harry Steinfeldt (Cincinnati) 4.9.
WARP3 pitchers: McGinnity 10.6, Mathewson 8.7, Vic Willis (Boston) 6.6, Taylor 5.8, Leever 5.5, Weimer 5.1, Hahn 4.8.
WAR, players: Wagner 9.1, Sheckard 8.4, Chance 6.8, Thomas 6.5, Bresnahan 6.1, Dahlen 6.0, Donlin 5.8, Beaumont and Clarke 5.6. Pitchers, McGinnity 10.5, Mathewson 8.9, Hahn 6.8, Leever 6.5, Weimer 5.3, Phillippe 5.2, Willis 5.1, Sparks 4.7.
Top player: Honus Wagner. It comes down to Sheckard or Wagner for top player. Wagner was .355/414/518, winning the batting title and leading in triples. Sheckard led the league in home runs and tied for the lead in steals, and was 332/423/476 in a tougher hitter's park. Wagner's team won the pennant.
#1 Honus Wagner, #2 Jimmy Sheckard, #3 Frank Chance for surging Chicago, #4 Roy Thomas, #5 Bill Dahlen.
Top pitcher: Christy Mathewson. It's between teammates Mathewson and McGinnity. McGinnity was 31-20 2.43, and Mathewson 30-13 2.26 for the same team. One win vs. 0.17 in ERA. It's pretty much a dead heat, but for top pitcher I'll take Mathewson and his big lead in strikeouts with McGinnity a close second. Sam Leever, the ERA leader, is a good #3 but well back of the top 2.
#1 Christy Mathewson, #2 Joe McGinnity, #3 Sam Leever, #4 Noodles Hahn, #5 Deacon Phillippe.
Wagner and Mathewson. Probably say that a lot this decade.
Not much for rookies. The best was Jake Weimer, 20-8 with a 2.30 ERA for Chicago. He was 3rd in ERA and 5th in strikeouts. Mordecai Brown was 9-13, but with a 2.26 ERA and a 126 ERA+ in St. Louis. He had the best career.
Best manager to Fred Clarke of Pittsburgh, but that's partly because I know John McGraw will have lots of chances at this.
1903 American League
The Boston Pilgrims won the pennant, rather handily. The Baltimore franchise picked up and moved to New York (following most of their players), as the franchise that would become the Yankees. The geographic face of the major leagues was now set for the next 50 years, although the geographic face of America would change much in that time. Only three teams in the AL, Cleveland, Detroit, and Washington, did not have a competing NL team in town. It would remain that way for half a century. No wonder people were so upset when franchises started moving; few still alive could remember when things had been different.
With Boston on top, and Washington mired at the bottom, the other six teams bunched in the middle. More stars were lured to the AL, including Sam Crawford, and the leagues were now on equal footing. To prove this, Boston challenged NL winner Pittsburgh to a "World's Series" after the season, often counted as the first ever, and the Pilgrims won 5 games to 3. The Series resumed in 1905, and continued uninterrupted through 1993.
League leaders included batting champ Napoleon Lajoie at .344, Patsy Dougherty at 107 runs and 195 hits, and Buck Freeman with 13 HR and 104 RBI. Socks Seybold socked 45 doubles, Sam Crawford 25 triples, and Harry Bay stole 45 bases. Crawford was second in average with a .335 mark, then Dougherty at .331.
For pitching, Cy Young nearly lapped the field with 28 wins, Earl Moore posted a 1.74 ERA, and Rube Waddell was far and away the strikeout leader at 302. No one else had even 200. If you ever wondered why Connie Mack put up with Waddell's antics for so long, that's why. Eddie Plank had 23 wins, while Jack Chesbro, Bill Dinneen, Willie Sudhoff, and Waddell had 21. Young posted the second-best ERA at 2.08, Bill Bernhard 2.12, Doc White 2.13. Second-best in strikeouts is Bill Donovan with 187.
Here's what the Win Shares say:
Players; Nap Lajoie (Cleveland) 31, Bill Bradley (Cleveland) 29, Patsy Dougherty (Boston) 28, Jimmy Collins and Freddy Parent (Boston), Danny Green (Chicago) and Jimmy Barrett (Detroit) 26 each, Elmer Flick (Cleveland) and Sam Crawford (Detroit) 25, Buck Freeman 24.
Pitchers; Cy Young (Boston) 38, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 28, Bill Dinneen (Boston) and Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 27, Willie Sudhoff (St. Louis) 25, Tom Hughes (Boston), Doc White (Chicago) and George Mullin (Detroit) 23, Bill Donovan (Detroit) and Jack Chesbro (New York) 22.
On the WARP3 front, it's (players) Lajoie 10.3, Bradley 10.2, Collins 7.9, Green 7.6, Dougherty and Crawford 7.2, Barrett and Flick 6.7, Freeman and Jimmy Williams (New York) 6.4, Billy Lush (Detroit) 6.3, Parent 6.2, Socks Seybold (Philadelphia) 5.6.
WARP3 Pitchers, Donovan 7.9, Young 7.8, Sudhoff 7.2, Mullin 7.0, White 6.8, Plank 6.7, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 6.5, Dinneen 6.1, Waddell 6.0.
WAR leaders, positions: Lajoie 7.6, Bradley 6.9, Parent 6.1, Crawford 5.4, Barrett and Collins 5.2, Dougherty 5.0, Flick 4.5, Green 4.3, Elberfeld 4.2, Lush 4.1.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Waddell 7.1, Young 6.5, Dinneen 6.0, Donovan and Plank 5.8, Sudhoff 5.3, Joss 4.0, Mullin 3.9.
Top player is Nap Lajoie, leader in batting average, slugging, and OPS. He was 2nd in doubles and 3rd in RBI. His teammate Bill Bradley would be 2nd, with Jimmy Barrett 3rd, Freddy Parent 4th, and Sam Crawford 5th.
Cy Young as the best pitcher. Leader in wins, 2nd in ERA, 4th in strikeouts. 2nd would be strikeout king Rube Waddell, with Bill Donovan 3rd, Eddie Plank 4th, and Bill Dinneen 5th.
I'll cast a best rookie vote for Chief Bender of the A's, 17-14 with a league average ERA of 3.07.
Top manager to Jimmy Collins, guiding the pennant winners.
With Boston on top, and Washington mired at the bottom, the other six teams bunched in the middle. More stars were lured to the AL, including Sam Crawford, and the leagues were now on equal footing. To prove this, Boston challenged NL winner Pittsburgh to a "World's Series" after the season, often counted as the first ever, and the Pilgrims won 5 games to 3. The Series resumed in 1905, and continued uninterrupted through 1993.
League leaders included batting champ Napoleon Lajoie at .344, Patsy Dougherty at 107 runs and 195 hits, and Buck Freeman with 13 HR and 104 RBI. Socks Seybold socked 45 doubles, Sam Crawford 25 triples, and Harry Bay stole 45 bases. Crawford was second in average with a .335 mark, then Dougherty at .331.
For pitching, Cy Young nearly lapped the field with 28 wins, Earl Moore posted a 1.74 ERA, and Rube Waddell was far and away the strikeout leader at 302. No one else had even 200. If you ever wondered why Connie Mack put up with Waddell's antics for so long, that's why. Eddie Plank had 23 wins, while Jack Chesbro, Bill Dinneen, Willie Sudhoff, and Waddell had 21. Young posted the second-best ERA at 2.08, Bill Bernhard 2.12, Doc White 2.13. Second-best in strikeouts is Bill Donovan with 187.
Here's what the Win Shares say:
Players; Nap Lajoie (Cleveland) 31, Bill Bradley (Cleveland) 29, Patsy Dougherty (Boston) 28, Jimmy Collins and Freddy Parent (Boston), Danny Green (Chicago) and Jimmy Barrett (Detroit) 26 each, Elmer Flick (Cleveland) and Sam Crawford (Detroit) 25, Buck Freeman 24.
Pitchers; Cy Young (Boston) 38, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 28, Bill Dinneen (Boston) and Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 27, Willie Sudhoff (St. Louis) 25, Tom Hughes (Boston), Doc White (Chicago) and George Mullin (Detroit) 23, Bill Donovan (Detroit) and Jack Chesbro (New York) 22.
On the WARP3 front, it's (players) Lajoie 10.3, Bradley 10.2, Collins 7.9, Green 7.6, Dougherty and Crawford 7.2, Barrett and Flick 6.7, Freeman and Jimmy Williams (New York) 6.4, Billy Lush (Detroit) 6.3, Parent 6.2, Socks Seybold (Philadelphia) 5.6.
WARP3 Pitchers, Donovan 7.9, Young 7.8, Sudhoff 7.2, Mullin 7.0, White 6.8, Plank 6.7, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 6.5, Dinneen 6.1, Waddell 6.0.
WAR leaders, positions: Lajoie 7.6, Bradley 6.9, Parent 6.1, Crawford 5.4, Barrett and Collins 5.2, Dougherty 5.0, Flick 4.5, Green 4.3, Elberfeld 4.2, Lush 4.1.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Waddell 7.1, Young 6.5, Dinneen 6.0, Donovan and Plank 5.8, Sudhoff 5.3, Joss 4.0, Mullin 3.9.
Top player is Nap Lajoie, leader in batting average, slugging, and OPS. He was 2nd in doubles and 3rd in RBI. His teammate Bill Bradley would be 2nd, with Jimmy Barrett 3rd, Freddy Parent 4th, and Sam Crawford 5th.
Cy Young as the best pitcher. Leader in wins, 2nd in ERA, 4th in strikeouts. 2nd would be strikeout king Rube Waddell, with Bill Donovan 3rd, Eddie Plank 4th, and Bill Dinneen 5th.
I'll cast a best rookie vote for Chief Bender of the A's, 17-14 with a league average ERA of 3.07.
Top manager to Jimmy Collins, guiding the pennant winners.
07 June 2007
1902 National League
Pittsburgh ran away and hid from the rest of the league, with 103 wins to 75 for second-place Brooklyn. Far and away the best offensive and defensive team, the Pirates were nearly unbeatable. Boston was third, then Cincinnati, Chicago, St.Louis, and Philadelphia. New York finished last, but was in the process of being fortified by the addition of John McGraw, who would bring a number of AL defectees back with him from Baltimore.
Ginger Beaumont won the batting title at .357, and led in hits with 193. Sam Crawford and Willie Keeler hit .333, Jake Beckley and Honus Wagner .330. Wagner led in nearly everything else, including his 105 runs, 30 doubles, 91 RBI, and 42 steals. Crawford and Tommy Leach had 22 triples. Leach led with 6 homers, all inside-the-park.
Jack Chesbro led pitchers with 28 wins, closely followed by Togie Pittinger and Vic Willis at 27. Noodles Hahn and Jack Taylor had 23. Taylor led with a 1.29 ERA, Hahn posted a 1.77 mark, Jesse Tannehill 1.95, Carl Lundgren 1.97. Willis led with 225 strikeouts, Doc White 185, Pittinger 174.
And now, on to the Win Shares:
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 35, Ginger Beaumont (Pittsburgh) 31, Fred Clarke (Pittsburgh) 29, Tommy Leach (Pittsburgh) 27, Fred Tenney (Boston) Jimmy Sheckard (Brooklyn) and Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 25 each, Willie Keeler (Brooklyn) 24, Bill Dahlen (Brooklyn), Jimmy Slagle (Chicago) and Sam Crawford (Cincinnati) 23.
Pitchers; Jack Taylor (Chicago) 32, Vic Willis (Boston) and Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 29, Doc White (Philadelphia) 27, Jack Chesbro (Pittsburgh) 25, Togie Pittinger (Boston) and Jesse Tannehill (Pittsburgh) 24, Deacon Phillippe (Pittsburgh) 23, Christy Mathewson (New York) 22.
WARP3 scores, players: Wagner 9.0, Beaumont and Leach 6.7, Crawford 6.1, Clarke 6.0, Tenney and Johnny Kling (Chicago) 5.9, Keeler 5.4.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Taylor 11.8, Hahn 7.4, White 6.2, Willis and Mike O'Neill (St. Louis) 5.4, Chesbro 4.8.
WAR for players: Wagner 7.3, Leach and Beaumont 5.5, Clarke 5.2, Tenney 4.7, Slagle 4.4, Crawford 4.3, Thomas 3.9.
WAR for pitchers: Taylor 7.8, Hahn 7.7, Willis 7.4, Pittinger 6.7, Chesbro 5.9, White 4.2, Phillippe 4.1.
Top four Win Shares and WAR players all from Pittsburgh! No wonder they ran away with the pennant, by 27.5 games. I wonder when they clinched....
Top player was Honus Wagner, again. Get used to reading that....Leader in slugging, runs, doubles, RBI, steals, and OPS. Beaumont 2nd, Tenney 3rd, Leach 4th, Crawford 5th.
For top pitcher I'll choose Jack Taylor, who dominated in ERA+ and also led in WHIP. Chesbro and Willis had more wins, but no one was more effective. 2nd would be Noodles Hahn, also 2nd in ERA. Vic Willis 3rd, Togie Pittinger 4th, Chesbro 5th.
Manager to Fred Clarke. Hardly anyone else was over .500, it has to be.
Top rookie to Joe Tinker, I guess. Tinker batted just .261, but I can't see anyone else. Johnny Evers also debuted this year.
Ginger Beaumont won the batting title at .357, and led in hits with 193. Sam Crawford and Willie Keeler hit .333, Jake Beckley and Honus Wagner .330. Wagner led in nearly everything else, including his 105 runs, 30 doubles, 91 RBI, and 42 steals. Crawford and Tommy Leach had 22 triples. Leach led with 6 homers, all inside-the-park.
Jack Chesbro led pitchers with 28 wins, closely followed by Togie Pittinger and Vic Willis at 27. Noodles Hahn and Jack Taylor had 23. Taylor led with a 1.29 ERA, Hahn posted a 1.77 mark, Jesse Tannehill 1.95, Carl Lundgren 1.97. Willis led with 225 strikeouts, Doc White 185, Pittinger 174.
And now, on to the Win Shares:
Players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 35, Ginger Beaumont (Pittsburgh) 31, Fred Clarke (Pittsburgh) 29, Tommy Leach (Pittsburgh) 27, Fred Tenney (Boston) Jimmy Sheckard (Brooklyn) and Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) 25 each, Willie Keeler (Brooklyn) 24, Bill Dahlen (Brooklyn), Jimmy Slagle (Chicago) and Sam Crawford (Cincinnati) 23.
Pitchers; Jack Taylor (Chicago) 32, Vic Willis (Boston) and Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 29, Doc White (Philadelphia) 27, Jack Chesbro (Pittsburgh) 25, Togie Pittinger (Boston) and Jesse Tannehill (Pittsburgh) 24, Deacon Phillippe (Pittsburgh) 23, Christy Mathewson (New York) 22.
WARP3 scores, players: Wagner 9.0, Beaumont and Leach 6.7, Crawford 6.1, Clarke 6.0, Tenney and Johnny Kling (Chicago) 5.9, Keeler 5.4.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Taylor 11.8, Hahn 7.4, White 6.2, Willis and Mike O'Neill (St. Louis) 5.4, Chesbro 4.8.
WAR for players: Wagner 7.3, Leach and Beaumont 5.5, Clarke 5.2, Tenney 4.7, Slagle 4.4, Crawford 4.3, Thomas 3.9.
WAR for pitchers: Taylor 7.8, Hahn 7.7, Willis 7.4, Pittinger 6.7, Chesbro 5.9, White 4.2, Phillippe 4.1.
Top four Win Shares and WAR players all from Pittsburgh! No wonder they ran away with the pennant, by 27.5 games. I wonder when they clinched....
Top player was Honus Wagner, again. Get used to reading that....Leader in slugging, runs, doubles, RBI, steals, and OPS. Beaumont 2nd, Tenney 3rd, Leach 4th, Crawford 5th.
For top pitcher I'll choose Jack Taylor, who dominated in ERA+ and also led in WHIP. Chesbro and Willis had more wins, but no one was more effective. 2nd would be Noodles Hahn, also 2nd in ERA. Vic Willis 3rd, Togie Pittinger 4th, Chesbro 5th.
Manager to Fred Clarke. Hardly anyone else was over .500, it has to be.
Top rookie to Joe Tinker, I guess. Tinker batted just .261, but I can't see anyone else. Johnny Evers also debuted this year.
1902 American League
The AL lured a few more stars over to the new loop, and came up with some interesting rookies, strengthening the league further. Bill Dinneen, George Davis, and Ed Delahanty switched over for 1902, and gave the AL even more star power. The Milwaukee franchise shifted to St. Louis, getting the league into another larger city. Things were definitely looking up for the AL, and they had a good race, with Philadelphia winning over a good field, followed by St. Louis, Boston, and Chicago, with Cleveland also over .500. Washington wasn't bad, but Detroit and Baltimore were doormats, as John McGraw switched back to the NL at New York and took stars like Joe McGinnity back with him. That was about the only battle Ban Johnson's league lost in 20 years. The AL was still not quite up to the standards of the NL, but they would be by next year.
Ed Delahanty won the batting title with a .376 average. Nap Lajoie hit .378 but only played 87 games with some legal trouble about jumping teams. Charlie (Piano Legs) Hickman was second with a .361 average and led with 193 hits. Dave Fultz and Topsy Hartsel led with 109 runs, Harry Davis and Delahanty with 43 doubles, Jimmy Williams with 21 triples, Socks Seybold had 16 homers. Buck Freeman led with 121 RBI, Hickman 110 RBI, Lave Cross 108 RBI, and Hartsel with 47 steals.
On the mound, Cy Young won 32 games, Rube Waddell 24, Red Donohue and Jack Powell 22. Ed Siever led with a 1.91 ERA, Waddell 2.05, Young and Bill Bernhard 2.15. Waddell led with 210 strikeouts, Young had 160.
Win Shares says....players; Ed Delahanty (Washington) 31, George Davis (Chicago) Bill Bradley (Cleveland) and Lave Cross (Philadelphia) 26, Fielder Jones (Chicago) Sammy Strang (Chicago) Topsy Hartsel (Philadelphia) and Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 25 each, Socks Seybold (Philadelphia) 24, Buck Freeman (Boston) 23.
Pitchers; Cy Young (Boston) 38, Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 33, Jack Powell (St. Louis) 31, Red Donahue (Philadelphia) 30, Bill Dinneen (Boston) 27, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 25.
WARP3 scores, players: Bradley 9.4, Delahanty 8.4, Lajoie 8.0, Davis 7.9, Freeman 6.6, Seybold 6.5, Cross 6.4, Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 6.1, Jones 6.0, Jimmy Collins (Boston) 5.9, Burkett and Charlie Hickman (Cleveland) 5.8.
WARP leaders, pitchers: Waddell 9.4, Young 9.2, Win Mercer (Detroit) 6.9, Bill Bernhard (Cleveland) 6.5, Joe McGinnity (Baltimore) 6.3, Plank 6.1, Dinneen 5.9, Powell 5.4, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 5.1, Donahue and Ed Siever (Detroit) 5.0.
WAR, players: Delahanty 7.9, Bradley 7.6, Davis 6.9, Wallace 6.2, Hickman 5.9, Strang 5.7, Cross and Burkett 5.6, Collins 5.5, Freeman 5.3, Seybold and Jones 5.2, Barrett 5.0.
WAR, pitchers: Young 8.9, Waddell 8.4, Dinneen 6.3, Bernhard 5.4, Donahue 5.3, Plank 5.1, Powell 5.0.
Top player, with Lajoie missing almost half a season, was Ed Delahanty in a last hurrah. Less than a year later, he would be dead. In 1902, Delahanty led the AL in on-base, slugging, and OPS, second in batting average and tied for the lead in doubles. He made Washington respectable.
#1 Ed Delahanty, #2 Bill Bradley, #3 George Davis, #4 Charlie Hickman, #5 Lave Cross.
Top pitcher was Cy Young with Rube Waddell second. Both were terrific. I'll vote for the "original" Cy Young, the wins and innings leader while 2nd in strikeouts. Waddell was 2nd in ERA and wins and 1st in strikeouts.
#1 Cy Young, #2 Rube Waddell, #3 Bill Dinneen, #4 Bill Bernhard, #5 Eddie Plank.
Top rookie to Addie Joss, 17-13 for Cleveland.
Top manager to Connie Mack, leading his A's to the title even without Nap Lajoie.
Ed Delahanty won the batting title with a .376 average. Nap Lajoie hit .378 but only played 87 games with some legal trouble about jumping teams. Charlie (Piano Legs) Hickman was second with a .361 average and led with 193 hits. Dave Fultz and Topsy Hartsel led with 109 runs, Harry Davis and Delahanty with 43 doubles, Jimmy Williams with 21 triples, Socks Seybold had 16 homers. Buck Freeman led with 121 RBI, Hickman 110 RBI, Lave Cross 108 RBI, and Hartsel with 47 steals.
On the mound, Cy Young won 32 games, Rube Waddell 24, Red Donohue and Jack Powell 22. Ed Siever led with a 1.91 ERA, Waddell 2.05, Young and Bill Bernhard 2.15. Waddell led with 210 strikeouts, Young had 160.
Win Shares says....players; Ed Delahanty (Washington) 31, George Davis (Chicago) Bill Bradley (Cleveland) and Lave Cross (Philadelphia) 26, Fielder Jones (Chicago) Sammy Strang (Chicago) Topsy Hartsel (Philadelphia) and Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 25 each, Socks Seybold (Philadelphia) 24, Buck Freeman (Boston) 23.
Pitchers; Cy Young (Boston) 38, Rube Waddell (Philadelphia) 33, Jack Powell (St. Louis) 31, Red Donahue (Philadelphia) 30, Bill Dinneen (Boston) 27, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 25.
WARP3 scores, players: Bradley 9.4, Delahanty 8.4, Lajoie 8.0, Davis 7.9, Freeman 6.6, Seybold 6.5, Cross 6.4, Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 6.1, Jones 6.0, Jimmy Collins (Boston) 5.9, Burkett and Charlie Hickman (Cleveland) 5.8.
WARP leaders, pitchers: Waddell 9.4, Young 9.2, Win Mercer (Detroit) 6.9, Bill Bernhard (Cleveland) 6.5, Joe McGinnity (Baltimore) 6.3, Plank 6.1, Dinneen 5.9, Powell 5.4, Addie Joss (Cleveland) 5.1, Donahue and Ed Siever (Detroit) 5.0.
WAR, players: Delahanty 7.9, Bradley 7.6, Davis 6.9, Wallace 6.2, Hickman 5.9, Strang 5.7, Cross and Burkett 5.6, Collins 5.5, Freeman 5.3, Seybold and Jones 5.2, Barrett 5.0.
WAR, pitchers: Young 8.9, Waddell 8.4, Dinneen 6.3, Bernhard 5.4, Donahue 5.3, Plank 5.1, Powell 5.0.
Top player, with Lajoie missing almost half a season, was Ed Delahanty in a last hurrah. Less than a year later, he would be dead. In 1902, Delahanty led the AL in on-base, slugging, and OPS, second in batting average and tied for the lead in doubles. He made Washington respectable.
#1 Ed Delahanty, #2 Bill Bradley, #3 George Davis, #4 Charlie Hickman, #5 Lave Cross.
Top pitcher was Cy Young with Rube Waddell second. Both were terrific. I'll vote for the "original" Cy Young, the wins and innings leader while 2nd in strikeouts. Waddell was 2nd in ERA and wins and 1st in strikeouts.
#1 Cy Young, #2 Rube Waddell, #3 Bill Dinneen, #4 Bill Bernhard, #5 Eddie Plank.
Top rookie to Addie Joss, 17-13 for Cleveland.
Top manager to Connie Mack, leading his A's to the title even without Nap Lajoie.
1901 National League
The NL lost several stars to the upstart American League, but still had plenty left. Pittsburgh won the pennant with their team flush from consolidation with Louisville, and with the most exciting young player in the league, Honus Wagner. Philadelphia ran second, but it wasn't very close. Brooklyn was a solid third, St. Louis fourth, and Boston in 5th with a .500 record. Chicago, which took a bad hit from AL defections (and from the AL Chicago team winning the pennant) shared the lower reaches of the league with Cincinnati and New York. Pittsburgh was just behind St. Louis, and just ahead of Brooklyn, in offense, and also ran first in pitching, ahead of Philadelphia and Boston.
Jesse Burkett of St. Louis won the batting title at .376, with Ed Delahanty and Jimmy Sheckard next at .354 followed by Wagner's .353. Burkett also led with 142 runs, 226 hits, and 306 total bases. Wagner led with 126 RBI and 49 steals. Delahanty and Tom Daly tied with 38 doubles, Sheckard had 19 triples, Sam Crawford had 16 homers.
Bill Donovan led the league with 25 wins, Jack Harper had 23, Noodles Hahn and Deacon Phillippe 22, Jack Chesbro 21. Jesse Tannehill led with a 2.18 ERA, Phillippe had a 2.22, Al Orth 2.27. Hahn led with 239 strikeouts, Donovan 226, Tom Hughes 225, Christy Mathewson 221.
Doin' the Win Shares cha-cha-cha: players; Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 38, Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 37, Jimmy Sheckard (Brooklyn) and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 33, Elmer Flick (Philadelphia) 30, Fred Clarke (Pittsburgh) 28, Topsy Hartsel (Chicago) 27, Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 26, Tom Daly (Brooklyn) and Ginger Beaumont (Pittsburgh) 25.
Pitchers; Vic Willis (Boston) 33, Kid Nichols (Boston) 32, Al Orth (Philadelphia) 29, Bill Dinneen (Boston, which finished .500 almost on pitching alone) and Wild Bill Donovan (Brooklyn) 27, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 26, Deacon Phillippe (Pittsburgh) 25, Red Donahue (Philadelphia) 24.
WARP3 scores, players: Wagner 10.0, Burkett 9.5, Flick and Wallace 9.2, Sheckard 9.1, Delahanty 8.5, Clarke 7.1, Sam Crawford (Cincinnati) 6.8, Hartsel 6.7, Daly and Claude Ritchey (Pittsburgh) 5.9, Beaumont 5.7, Lefty Davis (Pittsburgh) and Danny Green (Chicago) 5.6.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Christy Mathewson (New York) 10.9, Hahn 8.3, Orth 7.8, Phillippe 6.1, Nichols and Jack Chesbro (Pittsburgh) 5.5, Dinneen 5.3, Donahue and Dummy Taylor (New York) 4.5, Jesse Tannehill (Pittsburgh) 4.4, Dinneen and Rube Waddell (Chicago) 4.3.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Mathewson 7.5, Willis 7.2, Hahn 6.5, Donohue and Orth 6.3, Donovan 5.8, Chesbro 5.7. Position players: Wagner 7.4, Burkett, Delahanty, and Flick 7.2, Wallace 6.8, Sheckard 6.6, Hartsel 5.7, Clarke 5.4.
Top player: For the next decade or so, the question of top NL player will be "Is it Honus?" In this year, I think so, considering defense with offense. Honus Wagner 1st, followed by Burkett, Delahanty and Flick. Sheckard was great too. Wagner led the league in RBI and steals. Burkett led in batting average, runs and OPS+, Delahanty in OPS.
#1 Honus Wagner, #2 Jesse Burkett, #3 Jimmy Sheckard, #4 Elmer Flick, #5 Ed Delahanty.
Top pitcher: Christy Mathewson. The meta-stats both rank him first, seeing his solid strikeout total and strong K/W ratio, that he was pitching well for a mediocre team in New York, and how relationship to team helped other pitchers. It's tough, there's a lot of good years here, no real great one.
#1 Christy Mathewson, #2 Vic Willis, #3 Noodles Hahn, #4 Al Orth, #5 Deacon Phillippe.
Top manager to Fred Clarke as the Pirates win their first pennant ever. He's also the guy that made Honus a regular SS, although he still moved him around at this point.
Top rookie: Doc White, 14-13 for Philadelphia with a 3.19 ERA.
Jesse Burkett of St. Louis won the batting title at .376, with Ed Delahanty and Jimmy Sheckard next at .354 followed by Wagner's .353. Burkett also led with 142 runs, 226 hits, and 306 total bases. Wagner led with 126 RBI and 49 steals. Delahanty and Tom Daly tied with 38 doubles, Sheckard had 19 triples, Sam Crawford had 16 homers.
Bill Donovan led the league with 25 wins, Jack Harper had 23, Noodles Hahn and Deacon Phillippe 22, Jack Chesbro 21. Jesse Tannehill led with a 2.18 ERA, Phillippe had a 2.22, Al Orth 2.27. Hahn led with 239 strikeouts, Donovan 226, Tom Hughes 225, Christy Mathewson 221.
Doin' the Win Shares cha-cha-cha: players; Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 38, Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 37, Jimmy Sheckard (Brooklyn) and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 33, Elmer Flick (Philadelphia) 30, Fred Clarke (Pittsburgh) 28, Topsy Hartsel (Chicago) 27, Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 26, Tom Daly (Brooklyn) and Ginger Beaumont (Pittsburgh) 25.
Pitchers; Vic Willis (Boston) 33, Kid Nichols (Boston) 32, Al Orth (Philadelphia) 29, Bill Dinneen (Boston, which finished .500 almost on pitching alone) and Wild Bill Donovan (Brooklyn) 27, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 26, Deacon Phillippe (Pittsburgh) 25, Red Donahue (Philadelphia) 24.
WARP3 scores, players: Wagner 10.0, Burkett 9.5, Flick and Wallace 9.2, Sheckard 9.1, Delahanty 8.5, Clarke 7.1, Sam Crawford (Cincinnati) 6.8, Hartsel 6.7, Daly and Claude Ritchey (Pittsburgh) 5.9, Beaumont 5.7, Lefty Davis (Pittsburgh) and Danny Green (Chicago) 5.6.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Christy Mathewson (New York) 10.9, Hahn 8.3, Orth 7.8, Phillippe 6.1, Nichols and Jack Chesbro (Pittsburgh) 5.5, Dinneen 5.3, Donahue and Dummy Taylor (New York) 4.5, Jesse Tannehill (Pittsburgh) 4.4, Dinneen and Rube Waddell (Chicago) 4.3.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Mathewson 7.5, Willis 7.2, Hahn 6.5, Donohue and Orth 6.3, Donovan 5.8, Chesbro 5.7. Position players: Wagner 7.4, Burkett, Delahanty, and Flick 7.2, Wallace 6.8, Sheckard 6.6, Hartsel 5.7, Clarke 5.4.
Top player: For the next decade or so, the question of top NL player will be "Is it Honus?" In this year, I think so, considering defense with offense. Honus Wagner 1st, followed by Burkett, Delahanty and Flick. Sheckard was great too. Wagner led the league in RBI and steals. Burkett led in batting average, runs and OPS+, Delahanty in OPS.
#1 Honus Wagner, #2 Jesse Burkett, #3 Jimmy Sheckard, #4 Elmer Flick, #5 Ed Delahanty.
Top pitcher: Christy Mathewson. The meta-stats both rank him first, seeing his solid strikeout total and strong K/W ratio, that he was pitching well for a mediocre team in New York, and how relationship to team helped other pitchers. It's tough, there's a lot of good years here, no real great one.
#1 Christy Mathewson, #2 Vic Willis, #3 Noodles Hahn, #4 Al Orth, #5 Deacon Phillippe.
Top manager to Fred Clarke as the Pirates win their first pennant ever. He's also the guy that made Honus a regular SS, although he still moved him around at this point.
Top rookie: Doc White, 14-13 for Philadelphia with a 3.19 ERA.
27 May 2007
1901 American League
The former Western League announced its arrival as a major league for the 1901 season, opening play in Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Washington, which had all been major league cities in the recent past. No New York yet, which would mark a truly major league outfit, but definitely a loop with pretensions. A number of former NL stars were lured to the AL, including Joe McGinnity, Cy Young, Jimmy Collins, Clark Griffith, Fielder Jones, Nap Lajoie, and Lave Cross. Chicago won the pennant race by a small margin over Boston, Detroit and Philadelphia not far behind. Baltimore was also over .500, with Washington off the pace, while Cleveland and Milwaukee trailed the pack. Still a strong midwest flavor here.
The biggest star was definitely Nap Lajoie, who led in most meaningful offensive categories, including winning the Triple Crown. He hit .426, while Mike Donlin was second with .340. Lajoie had 14 home runs, ahead of Buck Freeman's 12; and Lajoie had 125 RBI, ahead of Freeman's 114. Frank Isbell took the stolen bases crown with 52. Lajoie had 152 Runs Created, while Jimmy Collins was second with exactly 100. That was how much Nap dominated the league.
Cy Young likewise dominated the pitching categories, winning 33 games (Joe McGinnity was second with 26), posting a 1.62 ERA (Nixey Callahan came in second at 2.42) and striking out 158 batters (Roy Patterson was next at 127).
First-year Win Shares, players; Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) 42, Jimmy Collins (Boston) 28, Dummy Hoy (Chicago) 25, Buck Freeman and Chick Stahl (Boston) 24, Fielder Jones (Chicago) and Jimmy Barrett (Detroit) 23, Jimmy Williams (Baltimore), Ollie Pickering (Cleveland) and Kid Elberfeld (Detroit) 22.
Pitchers; Cy Young (Boston) 41, Roscoe Miller (Detroit) 30, Joe McGinnity (Baltimore) and Clark Griffith (Chicago) 27, Nixey Callahan (Chicago) 23, Ed Siever (Detroit) 22, Joe Yeager (Detroit) 21.
WARP3 leaders, players; Lajoie 10.6, Collins 7.9, Williams 7.0, Buck Freeman (Boston) 5.5, Freddy Parent (Boston) 5.4, Elberfeld 5.3, John Anderson (Milwaukee) 5.0, Stahl 4.7, Sam Mertes (Chicago) 4.6, Ollie Pickering (Cleveland) 4.5.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Young 11.1, Miller 7.4, McGinnity 7.2, Callahan 6.0, Griffith 5.8, Yeager 5.4, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 4.2, Moore (Cleveland) 4.0.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Young 11.2, McGinnity 5.9, Miller 5.7, Griffith 5.2, Plank 4.4, Callahan 4.0, Moore 3.8. Position players: Lajoie 9.5, Collins 7.2, Mike Donlin (Baltimore) and Parent 5.4, Hoy 5.3, Freeman 5.2, Stahl 5.0, Jones and Williams 4.9.
Top player: Nap Lajoie. The Triple Crown winner and obviously the best player.
#1 Nap Lajoie, #2 Jimmy Collins, #3 Jimmy Williams, #4 Dummy Hoy, #5 Buck Freeman.
Top pitcher: Cy Young. Nap Lajoie and Cy Young dominated this fledgling major league, still finding its feet. Young was an established star, Lajoie a young player entering stardom. They were the cream of the crop. Both won their respective Triple Crowns, and led in many other statistical categories.
#1 Cy Young, #2 Roscoe Miller, #3 Joe McGinnity, #4 Clark Griffith, #5 Nixey Callahan.
Top rookie: Roscoe Miller, 23-13 for Detroit, although a better career would be had by Eddie Plank, 17-13 in his debut for Philadelphia.
Top manager to Clark Griffith, who pieced together a pennant winner in Chicago. He went 24-7 on the mound, too.
Several of these guys had played in the NL in 1900, or in 1899 before the Great Contraction. The AL was not yet on a par with the NL. But it wouldn't be long.
The biggest star was definitely Nap Lajoie, who led in most meaningful offensive categories, including winning the Triple Crown. He hit .426, while Mike Donlin was second with .340. Lajoie had 14 home runs, ahead of Buck Freeman's 12; and Lajoie had 125 RBI, ahead of Freeman's 114. Frank Isbell took the stolen bases crown with 52. Lajoie had 152 Runs Created, while Jimmy Collins was second with exactly 100. That was how much Nap dominated the league.
Cy Young likewise dominated the pitching categories, winning 33 games (Joe McGinnity was second with 26), posting a 1.62 ERA (Nixey Callahan came in second at 2.42) and striking out 158 batters (Roy Patterson was next at 127).
First-year Win Shares, players; Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) 42, Jimmy Collins (Boston) 28, Dummy Hoy (Chicago) 25, Buck Freeman and Chick Stahl (Boston) 24, Fielder Jones (Chicago) and Jimmy Barrett (Detroit) 23, Jimmy Williams (Baltimore), Ollie Pickering (Cleveland) and Kid Elberfeld (Detroit) 22.
Pitchers; Cy Young (Boston) 41, Roscoe Miller (Detroit) 30, Joe McGinnity (Baltimore) and Clark Griffith (Chicago) 27, Nixey Callahan (Chicago) 23, Ed Siever (Detroit) 22, Joe Yeager (Detroit) 21.
WARP3 leaders, players; Lajoie 10.6, Collins 7.9, Williams 7.0, Buck Freeman (Boston) 5.5, Freddy Parent (Boston) 5.4, Elberfeld 5.3, John Anderson (Milwaukee) 5.0, Stahl 4.7, Sam Mertes (Chicago) 4.6, Ollie Pickering (Cleveland) 4.5.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Young 11.1, Miller 7.4, McGinnity 7.2, Callahan 6.0, Griffith 5.8, Yeager 5.4, Eddie Plank (Philadelphia) 4.2, Moore (Cleveland) 4.0.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Young 11.2, McGinnity 5.9, Miller 5.7, Griffith 5.2, Plank 4.4, Callahan 4.0, Moore 3.8. Position players: Lajoie 9.5, Collins 7.2, Mike Donlin (Baltimore) and Parent 5.4, Hoy 5.3, Freeman 5.2, Stahl 5.0, Jones and Williams 4.9.
Top player: Nap Lajoie. The Triple Crown winner and obviously the best player.
#1 Nap Lajoie, #2 Jimmy Collins, #3 Jimmy Williams, #4 Dummy Hoy, #5 Buck Freeman.
Top pitcher: Cy Young. Nap Lajoie and Cy Young dominated this fledgling major league, still finding its feet. Young was an established star, Lajoie a young player entering stardom. They were the cream of the crop. Both won their respective Triple Crowns, and led in many other statistical categories.
#1 Cy Young, #2 Roscoe Miller, #3 Joe McGinnity, #4 Clark Griffith, #5 Nixey Callahan.
Top rookie: Roscoe Miller, 23-13 for Detroit, although a better career would be had by Eddie Plank, 17-13 in his debut for Philadelphia.
Top manager to Clark Griffith, who pieced together a pennant winner in Chicago. He went 24-7 on the mound, too.
Several of these guys had played in the NL in 1900, or in 1899 before the Great Contraction. The AL was not yet on a par with the NL. But it wouldn't be long.
16 May 2007
1900 National League
The NL contracts to 8 teams in this year, setting up next year's emergence of the AL. Cleveland, Washington, Louisville, and (surprisingly) Baltimore disappeared, with the best players going to existing franchises. The cream of Louisville went to Pittsburgh, giving them a strong team. Washington's best players went to Boston. Baltimore's pipeline to Brooklyn continued. Cleveland's best players had already gone to St. Louis. Where there was excess, players got scattered, and some retreated to smaller leagues. Ban Johnson's Western League absorbed some players and cities, was renamed as the American League, and in 1901 would announce themselves as a new major league.
Brooklyn won the pennant again, in a good race with Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. With the sad-sack teams gone, those were the only three teams over .500, but there were no real bad teams. Boston was fourth, then St. Louis, Chicago, and Cincinnati. New York finished last but only 23 games out, as talent evened out.
Honus Wagner emerged as a force, leading the league with a .381 average and 45 doubles, also leading in total bases, triples, slugging, and OPS. Elmer Flick batted .367, Jesse Burkett .363, Willie Keeler .362. Roy Thomas led in runs scored with 132 while Jimmy Slagle was next with 115. Jimmy Barrett and George Van Haltren scored 114. Keeler had 204 hits, Burkett 203, Wagner 201, and Flick 200. Wagner had 45 doubles, Nap Lajoie 33. Wagner had 22 triples, Joe Kelley and Charlie Hickman 17. Herman Long had 12 home runs. Flick led with 110 RBI, Ed Delahanty had 109, Wagner 100. Patsy Donovan and George Van Haltren tied for the lead in steals with 45 while Barrett had 44.
Joe McGinnity won 28 games, while second place was 20, a four-way tie by Bill Dinneen, Brickyard Kennedy, Deacon Phillippe, and Jesse Tannehill. Rube Waddell led with a 2.37 ERA, Ned Garwin came in at 2.41, Jack Taylor 2.55. Noodles Hahn led with 132 strikeouts, Rube Waddell had 130, Cy Young 115.
And now........your 1900 Win Shares data! Welcome to the doorway to the 20th century!
Position players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 34, Elmer Flick (Philadelphia) 32, Kip Selbach (New York) 27, Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) and Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 25, Billy Hamilton (Boston) and Jimmy Barrett (Cincinnati) 23, Willie Keeler and Joe Kelley (Brooklyn) and Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) all 22.
Pitchers; Joe McGinnity (Brooklyn) 30, Bill Dinneen (Boston) 27, Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) Deacon Phillippe and Jesse Tannehill (both Pittsburgh) 23 each, Cy Young (St. Louis) 22, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 21, Win Mercer (New York) and Sam Leever (Pittsburgh) 20.
WARP3 scores, players: Wagner 10.1, Flick 9.4, Lajoie 7.4, Selbach and Hamilton 7.3, Keeler and John McGraw (St. Louis) 6.9, Burkett 6.8, Bill Dahlen (Brooklyn) and Jimmy Collins (Boston) 6.4, George Davis (New York) 6.3, Jake Beckley (Cincinnati) 6.0.
WARP3 scores, pitchers: Young 7.6, Hahn 7.2, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 6.8, Phillippe and Mercer 6.4, Dinneen and Tannehill 6.2, Ned Garvin (Chicago) 5.9, Al Orth (Philadelphia) 5.4, McGinnity and Leever 5.3, Chick Fraser (Philadelphia) and Pink Hawley (New York) 5.2, Kennedy 5.1.
WAR for pitchers: Young 6.4, Dinneen 5.7, Hahn 5.4, McGinnity 5.0, Phillippe 4.6, Leever 4.3, Nichols 4.1, Tannehill 3.7, Kennedy 3.6. Position players: Wagner 7.0, Flick 6.4, Burkett 5.9, McGraw 5.8, Selbach 5.5, Hamilton 5.4, Keeler 4.6, Davis and Lajoie 4.2.
Honus Wagner was the top player. Elmer Flick is a notable second, overshadowed by Honus, a great year overwhelmed by a greater year. Wagner led the league in average, doubles, triples, slugging and OPS. Flick led in RBI and was 2nd in OPS.
#1 Honus Wagner, #2 Elmer Flick, #3 Jesse Burkett, #4 Kip Selbach, #5 Willie Keeler.
Best pitcher has to go to Joe McGinnity, 28-8 with a 2.94 ERA. No one else had more than 20 wins. Iron Man benefited from the good club around him, and while a case could be made for the other guys, that sterling record still looks you in the face. So it's the Win Shares this time.
#1 Joe McGinnity, #2 Bill Dinneen, #3 Deacon Phillippe, #4 Jesse Tannehill, #5 Cy Young.
Ned Hanlon of the pennant-winning Superbas for top manager again.
Best Rookie: Jimmy Barrett, with a caution he may not qualify. Barrett hit .316 with an OPS+ of 120. Very few rookies debuting in this contraction year. Doc Newton pitched in 234 innings for the Reds, was just 9-15 with an ERA worse than league average. Christy Matthewson became the best player but didn't do much in 1900, going 0-3 in six games. He got better.
Brooklyn won the pennant again, in a good race with Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. With the sad-sack teams gone, those were the only three teams over .500, but there were no real bad teams. Boston was fourth, then St. Louis, Chicago, and Cincinnati. New York finished last but only 23 games out, as talent evened out.
Honus Wagner emerged as a force, leading the league with a .381 average and 45 doubles, also leading in total bases, triples, slugging, and OPS. Elmer Flick batted .367, Jesse Burkett .363, Willie Keeler .362. Roy Thomas led in runs scored with 132 while Jimmy Slagle was next with 115. Jimmy Barrett and George Van Haltren scored 114. Keeler had 204 hits, Burkett 203, Wagner 201, and Flick 200. Wagner had 45 doubles, Nap Lajoie 33. Wagner had 22 triples, Joe Kelley and Charlie Hickman 17. Herman Long had 12 home runs. Flick led with 110 RBI, Ed Delahanty had 109, Wagner 100. Patsy Donovan and George Van Haltren tied for the lead in steals with 45 while Barrett had 44.
Joe McGinnity won 28 games, while second place was 20, a four-way tie by Bill Dinneen, Brickyard Kennedy, Deacon Phillippe, and Jesse Tannehill. Rube Waddell led with a 2.37 ERA, Ned Garwin came in at 2.41, Jack Taylor 2.55. Noodles Hahn led with 132 strikeouts, Rube Waddell had 130, Cy Young 115.
And now........your 1900 Win Shares data! Welcome to the doorway to the 20th century!
Position players; Honus Wagner (Pittsburgh) 34, Elmer Flick (Philadelphia) 32, Kip Selbach (New York) 27, Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) and Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 25, Billy Hamilton (Boston) and Jimmy Barrett (Cincinnati) 23, Willie Keeler and Joe Kelley (Brooklyn) and Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) all 22.
Pitchers; Joe McGinnity (Brooklyn) 30, Bill Dinneen (Boston) 27, Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) Deacon Phillippe and Jesse Tannehill (both Pittsburgh) 23 each, Cy Young (St. Louis) 22, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) 21, Win Mercer (New York) and Sam Leever (Pittsburgh) 20.
WARP3 scores, players: Wagner 10.1, Flick 9.4, Lajoie 7.4, Selbach and Hamilton 7.3, Keeler and John McGraw (St. Louis) 6.9, Burkett 6.8, Bill Dahlen (Brooklyn) and Jimmy Collins (Boston) 6.4, George Davis (New York) 6.3, Jake Beckley (Cincinnati) 6.0.
WARP3 scores, pitchers: Young 7.6, Hahn 7.2, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 6.8, Phillippe and Mercer 6.4, Dinneen and Tannehill 6.2, Ned Garvin (Chicago) 5.9, Al Orth (Philadelphia) 5.4, McGinnity and Leever 5.3, Chick Fraser (Philadelphia) and Pink Hawley (New York) 5.2, Kennedy 5.1.
WAR for pitchers: Young 6.4, Dinneen 5.7, Hahn 5.4, McGinnity 5.0, Phillippe 4.6, Leever 4.3, Nichols 4.1, Tannehill 3.7, Kennedy 3.6. Position players: Wagner 7.0, Flick 6.4, Burkett 5.9, McGraw 5.8, Selbach 5.5, Hamilton 5.4, Keeler 4.6, Davis and Lajoie 4.2.
Honus Wagner was the top player. Elmer Flick is a notable second, overshadowed by Honus, a great year overwhelmed by a greater year. Wagner led the league in average, doubles, triples, slugging and OPS. Flick led in RBI and was 2nd in OPS.
#1 Honus Wagner, #2 Elmer Flick, #3 Jesse Burkett, #4 Kip Selbach, #5 Willie Keeler.
Best pitcher has to go to Joe McGinnity, 28-8 with a 2.94 ERA. No one else had more than 20 wins. Iron Man benefited from the good club around him, and while a case could be made for the other guys, that sterling record still looks you in the face. So it's the Win Shares this time.
#1 Joe McGinnity, #2 Bill Dinneen, #3 Deacon Phillippe, #4 Jesse Tannehill, #5 Cy Young.
Ned Hanlon of the pennant-winning Superbas for top manager again.
Best Rookie: Jimmy Barrett, with a caution he may not qualify. Barrett hit .316 with an OPS+ of 120. Very few rookies debuting in this contraction year. Doc Newton pitched in 234 innings for the Reds, was just 9-15 with an ERA worse than league average. Christy Matthewson became the best player but didn't do much in 1900, going 0-3 in six games. He got better.
12 May 2007
1899 National League
It was in 1899 that the evils of "syndicate ownership" reared up and afflicted baseball by a widespread transfer of players to franchises in richer markets. All of Cleveland's best players, particularly Cy Young, Jesse Burkett and Bobby Wallace, went to St. Louis. The Spiders fell from a solid fifth place, with an 81-68 record, to a remarkable record for futility at 20-134. It got so bad in Cleveland the fans stopped coming out to the park, and the team spent the last month of the season on the road. In essence, the fortunes of the formerly moribund St. Louis franchise were exchanged with those of the previously healthy Cleveland team.
Brooklyn had picked up its own collection of players, adding Joe Kelley and Willie Keeler along with manager Ned Hanlon from Baltimore, and Bill Dahlen from Chicago, and won the pennant. Those transfers are less sinister, but still unusual for the 19th century. Trades, as we know them today, were almost unheard of at the time. Boston and Philadelphia trailed close behind, and Baltimore, St. Louis and Cincinnati ran well.
Ed Delahanty took the batting title at .410, and also led in slugging, OPS, hits, total bases, doubles, and RBI. Jesse Burkett hit .396 and John McGraw .391. Willie Keeler and McGraw shared the lead in runs at 140. Delahanty had 238 hits, Burkett 221, and Jimmy Williams 220. Delahanty had 55 doubles, Honus Wagner 45. Williams had 27 triples, Buck Freeman 25. Freeman led with 25 home runs and Bobby Wallace was second with 12. Delahanty had 137 RBI followed by Freeman with 122, Williams with 116, and Wagner with 114. Jimmy Sheckard was tops in stolen bases with 73.
Jay Hughes and Joe McGinnity each won 28 games, Vic Willis won 27, Cy Young 26, Jesse Tannehill 24. Willis posted a 2.50 ERA, Young 2.58, Noodles Hahn and Joe McGinnity 2.68. Hahn led in strikeouts with 145 Cy Seymour 142.
1899 Win Shares, players; Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 41, John McGraw (Baltimore) 34, Chick Stahl (Boston) and Jimmy Williams (Pittsburgh) 32, Joe Kelley (Brooklyn) Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) and Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 30 each, Willie Keeler (Brooklyn) 29, Tom Daly (Brooklyn) 28, Honus Wagner (Louisville) 26.
Pitchers; Vic Willis (Boston) 39, Joe McGinnity (Baltimore) and Cy Young (St. Louis) 35, Jay Hughes (Brooklyn) 33, Frank Kitson (Baltimore) and Kid Nichols (Boston) 31, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) and Jack Powell (St. Louis) 29, Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) 28, Sam Leever and Jesse Tannehill (Pittsburgh) 27.
WARP3 scores, position players: McGraw 10.0, Delahanty 8.1, Williams 7.6, Stahl 7.5, Wagner 7.1, Thomas 6.9, Ed McFarland (Philadelphia) 6.5, Keeler and Bill Dahlen (Brooklyn) 6.1, Jimmy Collins (Boston) 6.0, Burkett 5.9, Kelley, Daly, and Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) 5.8, Elmer Flick (Philadelphia) and Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 5.7, George Davis (New York) 5.6.
WARP3 scores, pitchers: Young 9.0, Willis 7.4, McGinnity and Hughes 7.2, Tannehill 7.1, Leever and Cy Seymour (New York) 7.0, Kitson 6.5, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 6.4, Hahn 6.2, Deacon Phillippe (Louisville) 5.6, Powell 5.2.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Willis 8.9, McGinnity 7.4, Hahn 7.2, Young 7.1, Kitson and Tannehill 6.8, Hughes and Nichols 6.6. Position players, McGraw 9.4, Delahanty 8.4, Williams 7.6, Burkett 6.5, Wagner 6.4, Stahl 6.2, Tenney 6.1.
Top player: Delahanty was outstanding again, and the best hitter in the league, leading in batting, slugging, OPS, hits, total bases, doubles, and RBI. McGraw had a great year, but it's hard to overcome that kind of performance. McGraw would be second in his last 100-game year, with Jimmy Williams 3rd, Chick Stahl 4th and Jesse Burkett 5th.
Top pitcher: Vic Willis, 3rd in wins and 1st in ERA. No clear front-runner here. Cy Young would be #2. I'd put Iron Man #3. Hughes 4th in his career year and Noodles 5th.
Top rookie to Jimmy Williams, the Pirates sensational new third baseman. Williams had a good career, but not up to this first year's promise. Runner-up was McGinnity, and Sam Crawford also broke in this year. Roy Thomas, Sam Leever, and Noodles Hahn were notable in the best season for rookies in many years.
Best manager to Ned Hanlon, who went to Brooklyn after seven years in Baltimore, and led the Superbas to their first pennant since 1890. And he did it with Willie Keeler, Joe Kelley, and a bunch of has-beens, never-weres, and guys playing over their heads.
Brooklyn had picked up its own collection of players, adding Joe Kelley and Willie Keeler along with manager Ned Hanlon from Baltimore, and Bill Dahlen from Chicago, and won the pennant. Those transfers are less sinister, but still unusual for the 19th century. Trades, as we know them today, were almost unheard of at the time. Boston and Philadelphia trailed close behind, and Baltimore, St. Louis and Cincinnati ran well.
Ed Delahanty took the batting title at .410, and also led in slugging, OPS, hits, total bases, doubles, and RBI. Jesse Burkett hit .396 and John McGraw .391. Willie Keeler and McGraw shared the lead in runs at 140. Delahanty had 238 hits, Burkett 221, and Jimmy Williams 220. Delahanty had 55 doubles, Honus Wagner 45. Williams had 27 triples, Buck Freeman 25. Freeman led with 25 home runs and Bobby Wallace was second with 12. Delahanty had 137 RBI followed by Freeman with 122, Williams with 116, and Wagner with 114. Jimmy Sheckard was tops in stolen bases with 73.
Jay Hughes and Joe McGinnity each won 28 games, Vic Willis won 27, Cy Young 26, Jesse Tannehill 24. Willis posted a 2.50 ERA, Young 2.58, Noodles Hahn and Joe McGinnity 2.68. Hahn led in strikeouts with 145 Cy Seymour 142.
1899 Win Shares, players; Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 41, John McGraw (Baltimore) 34, Chick Stahl (Boston) and Jimmy Williams (Pittsburgh) 32, Joe Kelley (Brooklyn) Roy Thomas (Philadelphia) and Jesse Burkett (St. Louis) 30 each, Willie Keeler (Brooklyn) 29, Tom Daly (Brooklyn) 28, Honus Wagner (Louisville) 26.
Pitchers; Vic Willis (Boston) 39, Joe McGinnity (Baltimore) and Cy Young (St. Louis) 35, Jay Hughes (Brooklyn) 33, Frank Kitson (Baltimore) and Kid Nichols (Boston) 31, Noodles Hahn (Cincinnati) and Jack Powell (St. Louis) 29, Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) 28, Sam Leever and Jesse Tannehill (Pittsburgh) 27.
WARP3 scores, position players: McGraw 10.0, Delahanty 8.1, Williams 7.6, Stahl 7.5, Wagner 7.1, Thomas 6.9, Ed McFarland (Philadelphia) 6.5, Keeler and Bill Dahlen (Brooklyn) 6.1, Jimmy Collins (Boston) 6.0, Burkett 5.9, Kelley, Daly, and Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) 5.8, Elmer Flick (Philadelphia) and Bobby Wallace (St. Louis) 5.7, George Davis (New York) 5.6.
WARP3 scores, pitchers: Young 9.0, Willis 7.4, McGinnity and Hughes 7.2, Tannehill 7.1, Leever and Cy Seymour (New York) 7.0, Kitson 6.5, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 6.4, Hahn 6.2, Deacon Phillippe (Louisville) 5.6, Powell 5.2.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Willis 8.9, McGinnity 7.4, Hahn 7.2, Young 7.1, Kitson and Tannehill 6.8, Hughes and Nichols 6.6. Position players, McGraw 9.4, Delahanty 8.4, Williams 7.6, Burkett 6.5, Wagner 6.4, Stahl 6.2, Tenney 6.1.
Top player: Delahanty was outstanding again, and the best hitter in the league, leading in batting, slugging, OPS, hits, total bases, doubles, and RBI. McGraw had a great year, but it's hard to overcome that kind of performance. McGraw would be second in his last 100-game year, with Jimmy Williams 3rd, Chick Stahl 4th and Jesse Burkett 5th.
Top pitcher: Vic Willis, 3rd in wins and 1st in ERA. No clear front-runner here. Cy Young would be #2. I'd put Iron Man #3. Hughes 4th in his career year and Noodles 5th.
Top rookie to Jimmy Williams, the Pirates sensational new third baseman. Williams had a good career, but not up to this first year's promise. Runner-up was McGinnity, and Sam Crawford also broke in this year. Roy Thomas, Sam Leever, and Noodles Hahn were notable in the best season for rookies in many years.
Best manager to Ned Hanlon, who went to Brooklyn after seven years in Baltimore, and led the Superbas to their first pennant since 1890. And he did it with Willie Keeler, Joe Kelley, and a bunch of has-beens, never-weres, and guys playing over their heads.
1898 National League
Boston won their second pennant in a row, outdistancing Baltimore, and finishing 63.5 games ahead of last-place St. Louis. That was a larger margin in part because the schedule was increased to 152 games: they had played 154 in 1892, but were normally playing about 130. They would go to 154 in 1899, then down to 140 for several years before settling at 154 until expansion. It was Boston, Baltimore and Cincinnati at the top, Brooklyn, Washington and St. Louis at the bottom, and the rest in between. Player transfers started, and syndicate ownership began showing an ugly face, as Pink Hawley and Elmer Smith were moved from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati, in an era where that was rare. Owners with a piece of two or more teams starting moving players to make a bigger splash in the biggest market.
Willie Keeler won another batting title, at .385. Billy Hamilton was second at .369 and led in on-base and OPS. Keeler led with 216 hits, while John McGraw scored 143 runs. Nap Lajoie led with 43 doubles and 127 RBI. John Anderson had 22 triples, Jimmy Collins collected 15 home runs. Ed Delahanty was the surprise stolen base leader with 58.
Kid Nichols led the league with 31 wins again, Bert Cunningham won 28 games, Pink Hawley and Doc McJames 27. Clark Griffith posted a 1.88 ERA to lead the loop, Al Maul had a 2.10 mark, Nichols posted a 2.13. Cy Seymour was the strikeout champ at 239, McJames was second with 178. Seymour would switch to the outfield a few years hence after arm trouble.
Pitching Win Shares: Kid Nichols (Boston) 44, Cy Young (Cleveland) and Jesse Tannehill (Pittsburgh) 34, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 32, Ted Lewis (Boston) 31, Doc McJames (Baltimore) and Bert Cunningham (Louisville) 30, Pink Hawley (Cincinnati) 28, Cy Seymour (New York) 26, Vic Willis (Boston), Ted Breitenstein (Cincinnati) and Jack Powell (Cleveland) 25.
Players Win Shares: Jimmy Collins (Boston) 34, Billy Hamilton (Boston) and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 33, Hughie Jennings (Baltimore) 32, John McGraw (Baltimore) 31, Jesse Burkett (Cleveland) and George Van Haltren (New York) 29, Jimmy Ryan (Chicago) 28, Bill Dahlen (Chicago) and Elmer Smith (Cincinnati) 27, Elmer Flick and Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) 26.
WARP3 scores, pitchers; Griffith 9.2, Nichols 9.0, Tannehill 7.0, Young and Cunningham 6.7, Al Maul (Baltimore) 6.6, Seymour 6.2, Lewis 6.0, Rusie 5.8, Wiley Piatt (Philadelphia) 5.7, McJames 5.4, Powell 4.9, Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) 4.8, Jack Taylor (St. Louis) 4.7.
Players; Jennings 10.2, McGraw 9.3, Collins 8.5, Gene DeMontreville (Baltimore) 7.5, Dahlen 7.1, Flick and Willie Keeler (Baltimore) 6.6, Dan McGann (Baltimore) 5.9, Hamilton, Delahanty, and Bill Lange (Chicago) 5.7, Van Haltren and Lajoie 5.5.
WAR for pitchers: Nichols 9.5, Griffith 9.2, McJames 7.4, Maul 6.7, Young 6.6, Lewis and Powell 5.7, Tannehill 5.4, Cunningham 5.3, Hawley 4.9. Position players: Jennings 8.3, McGraw 8.1, Collins 6.6, Delahanty 6.3, McGann 6.0, DeMontreville 5.8, Dahlen 5.7, Burkett 5.4, Hamilton and Keeler 5.2.
Top pitcher: Kid Nichols, 31-12 with a 2.13 ERA, over Clark Griffith, 24-10 with a 1.88 ERA in a close race. Nichols led the league in wins and WHIP, Griffith in ERA. Nichols also had four saves of his teammates, and more strikeouts than Griffith.
#1 Kid Nichols, #2 Clark Griffith, #3 Doc McJames, #4 Cy Young, #5 Jesse Tannehill.
Top player: Do-it-all third baseman Jimmy Collins in his best year. Collins was the greatest third baseman of the era, and a deserving Hall of Famer. Collins led in homers and total bases, was 2nd in slugging and RBI, and played great defense. I'll put Jennings second and McGraw third.
#1 Jimmy Collins, #2 Hughie Jennings, #3 John McGraw, #4 Ed Delahanty, #5 Billy Hamilton.
Top manager to Boston's Frank Selee, with another pennant.
Top rookie to Elmer Flick, 4th in on-base and a .302 average. 2nd to fellow Hall of Famer Vic Willis, 25-13 for Boston.
Willie Keeler won another batting title, at .385. Billy Hamilton was second at .369 and led in on-base and OPS. Keeler led with 216 hits, while John McGraw scored 143 runs. Nap Lajoie led with 43 doubles and 127 RBI. John Anderson had 22 triples, Jimmy Collins collected 15 home runs. Ed Delahanty was the surprise stolen base leader with 58.
Kid Nichols led the league with 31 wins again, Bert Cunningham won 28 games, Pink Hawley and Doc McJames 27. Clark Griffith posted a 1.88 ERA to lead the loop, Al Maul had a 2.10 mark, Nichols posted a 2.13. Cy Seymour was the strikeout champ at 239, McJames was second with 178. Seymour would switch to the outfield a few years hence after arm trouble.
Pitching Win Shares: Kid Nichols (Boston) 44, Cy Young (Cleveland) and Jesse Tannehill (Pittsburgh) 34, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 32, Ted Lewis (Boston) 31, Doc McJames (Baltimore) and Bert Cunningham (Louisville) 30, Pink Hawley (Cincinnati) 28, Cy Seymour (New York) 26, Vic Willis (Boston), Ted Breitenstein (Cincinnati) and Jack Powell (Cleveland) 25.
Players Win Shares: Jimmy Collins (Boston) 34, Billy Hamilton (Boston) and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 33, Hughie Jennings (Baltimore) 32, John McGraw (Baltimore) 31, Jesse Burkett (Cleveland) and George Van Haltren (New York) 29, Jimmy Ryan (Chicago) 28, Bill Dahlen (Chicago) and Elmer Smith (Cincinnati) 27, Elmer Flick and Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) 26.
WARP3 scores, pitchers; Griffith 9.2, Nichols 9.0, Tannehill 7.0, Young and Cunningham 6.7, Al Maul (Baltimore) 6.6, Seymour 6.2, Lewis 6.0, Rusie 5.8, Wiley Piatt (Philadelphia) 5.7, McJames 5.4, Powell 4.9, Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) 4.8, Jack Taylor (St. Louis) 4.7.
Players; Jennings 10.2, McGraw 9.3, Collins 8.5, Gene DeMontreville (Baltimore) 7.5, Dahlen 7.1, Flick and Willie Keeler (Baltimore) 6.6, Dan McGann (Baltimore) 5.9, Hamilton, Delahanty, and Bill Lange (Chicago) 5.7, Van Haltren and Lajoie 5.5.
WAR for pitchers: Nichols 9.5, Griffith 9.2, McJames 7.4, Maul 6.7, Young 6.6, Lewis and Powell 5.7, Tannehill 5.4, Cunningham 5.3, Hawley 4.9. Position players: Jennings 8.3, McGraw 8.1, Collins 6.6, Delahanty 6.3, McGann 6.0, DeMontreville 5.8, Dahlen 5.7, Burkett 5.4, Hamilton and Keeler 5.2.
Top pitcher: Kid Nichols, 31-12 with a 2.13 ERA, over Clark Griffith, 24-10 with a 1.88 ERA in a close race. Nichols led the league in wins and WHIP, Griffith in ERA. Nichols also had four saves of his teammates, and more strikeouts than Griffith.
#1 Kid Nichols, #2 Clark Griffith, #3 Doc McJames, #4 Cy Young, #5 Jesse Tannehill.
Top player: Do-it-all third baseman Jimmy Collins in his best year. Collins was the greatest third baseman of the era, and a deserving Hall of Famer. Collins led in homers and total bases, was 2nd in slugging and RBI, and played great defense. I'll put Jennings second and McGraw third.
#1 Jimmy Collins, #2 Hughie Jennings, #3 John McGraw, #4 Ed Delahanty, #5 Billy Hamilton.
Top manager to Boston's Frank Selee, with another pennant.
Top rookie to Elmer Flick, 4th in on-base and a .302 average. 2nd to fellow Hall of Famer Vic Willis, 25-13 for Boston.
11 May 2007
1897 National League
Boston outdueled Baltimore for the pennant by a two-game margin, ending the Orioles' three-year reign at the top. New York was a solid third, Cleveland and Cincinnati also finished over .500. Washington, Brooklyn, and Pittsburgh were next in a clump, Chicago, Philly, and Louisville were also-rans, and St. Louis was the sad sack with a 29-102 record.
Willie Keeler won the batting title with a .424 average, while Fred Clarke was second at .390. Jesse Burkett hit .383 and Ed Delahanty .377. Keeler led in OPS, although John McGraw led in on-base average and Nap Lajoie led in slugging. Keeler led with 239 hits, Billy Hamilton scored 152 runs, George Davis had 136 RBI, and Bill Lange stole 73 bases.
Among pitchers, Kid Nichols led with 31 wins, Amos Rusie led with a 2.54 ERA, while Doc McJames and Cy Seymour each had 156 strikeouts. Down the lists were Amos Rusie with 27 wins, Fred Klobedanz had 26, Joe Corbett 24, and Ted Breitenstein 23. Nichols had a 2.64 ERA, Jerry Nops 2.81, Corbett 3.11. Corbett had 149 strikeouts, Rusie 135.
Win Shares leaders, pitchers; Kid Nichols (Boston) 41, Ted Breitenstein (Cincinnati) 34, Amos Rusie (New York) 31, Cy Young (Cleveland) 28, Win Mercer (Washington) 27, Fred Klobedanz (Boston) and Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) 25, Billy Rhines (Cincinnati) 24, Joe Corbett (Baltimore), Frank Dwyer (Cincinnati) and Jouett Meekin (New York) 23.
Players: Willie Keeler (Baltimore) 32, George Davis (New York) 31, Fred Clarke (Louisville) 30, Hughie Jennings (Baltimore) 29, Billy Hamilton (Boston) 28, Joe Kelley (Baltimore) and Jimmy Collins (Boston) 26, Hugh Duffy (Boston) 25, Jake Stenzel (Boston) and George Van Haltren (New York) 24, Jesse Burkett (Cleveland), Mike Tiernan (New York) and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 23.
WARP3 scores, pitchers; Nichols 8.9, Rusie 8.7, Breitenstein 6.7, Mercer 6.3, Kennedy 6.0, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 5.9, Nixey Callahan (Chicago) 5.4, Cy Seymour (New York) 4.6, Meekin and Rhines 4.3, Young 4.1.
WARP3 for players: Keeler 9.6, Jennings 9.3, Davis 9.2, Collins 7.8, Clarke 7.6, Kelley 7.1, Bobby Wallace (Cleveland) and Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) 6.9, Hamilton 6.8, Cupid Childs (Cleveland) 6.6, Delahanty 6.4, Heinie Reitz (Baltimore) 5.8, Burkett 5.6.
WAR, pitchers: Nichols 10.0, Rusie 7.7, Breitenstein 6.5, Young 5.5, Powell 4.6, Dwyer and Rhines 4.3, Nops 4.2, Corbett 4.1. Position players: Jennings 7.7, Keeler 7.5, Clarke 7.1, Davis 7.0, Burkett 6.3, Wallace 5.8, Hamilton, Childs, and Delahanty 5.5, Kelley 5.4, Collins 5.3.
Top pitcher: Kid Nichols, 1st in wins, innings and WHIP, 2nd in ERA. Amos Rusie a close second, he was the ERA leader.
#1 Kid Nichols, #2 Amos Rusie, #3 Ted Breitenstein, #4 Cy Young, #5 Win Mercer.
Top player: Willie Keeler, leader in batting average, hits and OPS, 2nd in runs. He also was in the pennant race.
#1 Willie Keeler, #2 George Davis, #3 Hughie Jennings, #4 Fred Clarke, #5 Ed Delahanty.
Top rookie was Jack Powell, 15-10 for Cleveland. Honus Wagner (.338 in 61 games) had the best career.
Manager of the Year to Boston's Frank Selee, slipping past the Orioles for the pennant.
Special Award for Best Comeback: Amos Rusie.
After not playing in 1896 because of a contract dispute Rusie was one of the best pitchers of 1897, arguably THE best.
Willie Keeler won the batting title with a .424 average, while Fred Clarke was second at .390. Jesse Burkett hit .383 and Ed Delahanty .377. Keeler led in OPS, although John McGraw led in on-base average and Nap Lajoie led in slugging. Keeler led with 239 hits, Billy Hamilton scored 152 runs, George Davis had 136 RBI, and Bill Lange stole 73 bases.
Among pitchers, Kid Nichols led with 31 wins, Amos Rusie led with a 2.54 ERA, while Doc McJames and Cy Seymour each had 156 strikeouts. Down the lists were Amos Rusie with 27 wins, Fred Klobedanz had 26, Joe Corbett 24, and Ted Breitenstein 23. Nichols had a 2.64 ERA, Jerry Nops 2.81, Corbett 3.11. Corbett had 149 strikeouts, Rusie 135.
Win Shares leaders, pitchers; Kid Nichols (Boston) 41, Ted Breitenstein (Cincinnati) 34, Amos Rusie (New York) 31, Cy Young (Cleveland) 28, Win Mercer (Washington) 27, Fred Klobedanz (Boston) and Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) 25, Billy Rhines (Cincinnati) 24, Joe Corbett (Baltimore), Frank Dwyer (Cincinnati) and Jouett Meekin (New York) 23.
Players: Willie Keeler (Baltimore) 32, George Davis (New York) 31, Fred Clarke (Louisville) 30, Hughie Jennings (Baltimore) 29, Billy Hamilton (Boston) 28, Joe Kelley (Baltimore) and Jimmy Collins (Boston) 26, Hugh Duffy (Boston) 25, Jake Stenzel (Boston) and George Van Haltren (New York) 24, Jesse Burkett (Cleveland), Mike Tiernan (New York) and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 23.
WARP3 scores, pitchers; Nichols 8.9, Rusie 8.7, Breitenstein 6.7, Mercer 6.3, Kennedy 6.0, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 5.9, Nixey Callahan (Chicago) 5.4, Cy Seymour (New York) 4.6, Meekin and Rhines 4.3, Young 4.1.
WARP3 for players: Keeler 9.6, Jennings 9.3, Davis 9.2, Collins 7.8, Clarke 7.6, Kelley 7.1, Bobby Wallace (Cleveland) and Nap Lajoie (Philadelphia) 6.9, Hamilton 6.8, Cupid Childs (Cleveland) 6.6, Delahanty 6.4, Heinie Reitz (Baltimore) 5.8, Burkett 5.6.
WAR, pitchers: Nichols 10.0, Rusie 7.7, Breitenstein 6.5, Young 5.5, Powell 4.6, Dwyer and Rhines 4.3, Nops 4.2, Corbett 4.1. Position players: Jennings 7.7, Keeler 7.5, Clarke 7.1, Davis 7.0, Burkett 6.3, Wallace 5.8, Hamilton, Childs, and Delahanty 5.5, Kelley 5.4, Collins 5.3.
Top pitcher: Kid Nichols, 1st in wins, innings and WHIP, 2nd in ERA. Amos Rusie a close second, he was the ERA leader.
#1 Kid Nichols, #2 Amos Rusie, #3 Ted Breitenstein, #4 Cy Young, #5 Win Mercer.
Top player: Willie Keeler, leader in batting average, hits and OPS, 2nd in runs. He also was in the pennant race.
#1 Willie Keeler, #2 George Davis, #3 Hughie Jennings, #4 Fred Clarke, #5 Ed Delahanty.
Top rookie was Jack Powell, 15-10 for Cleveland. Honus Wagner (.338 in 61 games) had the best career.
Manager of the Year to Boston's Frank Selee, slipping past the Orioles for the pennant.
Special Award for Best Comeback: Amos Rusie.
After not playing in 1896 because of a contract dispute Rusie was one of the best pitchers of 1897, arguably THE best.
06 May 2007
1896 National League
Baltimore won their third straight pennant, and pretty easily, with second place Cleveland 9.5 games behind. Cincinnati, Boston, and Chicago were in the race, while St. Louis and Louisville were the tail-end, with the other teams in between. Louisville finished 53 games out. Franchise locations were stable through the decade, but richer owners started buying up interests in poorer teams, something not allowed in 21st century (and with good reason).
Jesse Burkett won the batting title again, at .410. He also led in runs, hits, and total bases. Hughie Jennings batted .401, Ed Delahanty .397, Willie Keeler .386, Mike Tiernan .369, Billy Hamilton .366. Delahanty led in slugging, OPS, doubles, homers, and RBI (126). He also took the OPS+ crown. Joe Kelley stole 87 bases.
Frank Killen and Kid Nichols each won 30 games, Cy Young 28, Jouett Meekin 26, Nig Cuppy, Bill Hoffer and Win Mercer 25 each. Billy Rhines led in ERA with a 2.45 mark, followed by Nichols at 2.83 and Cuppy at 3.12. Cy Young led in strikeouts with 140. Pink Hawley had 137, Killen 134.
Pitching Win Shares leaders: Cy Young (Cleveland) 43, Nig Cuppy (Cleveland) 38, Kid Nichols (Boston) 33, Frank Killen (Pittsburgh) 32, Bill Hoffer (Baltimore) 31, Clark Griffith (Chicago) and Frank Dwyer (Cincinnati) 30 each, Jack Stivetts (Boston) 29, Jouett Meekin (New York) and Pink Hawley (Pittsburgh) 27, Red Ehret (Cincinnati) 24.
Players: Hughie Jennings (Baltimore) 36, Joe Kelley (Baltimore) Bill Dahlen (Chicago) and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 31 each, Billy Hamilton (Boston) 30, Jesse Burkett (Cleveland) 29, Cupid Childs (Cleveland) 27, Elmer Smith (Pittsburgh) 26, Willie Keeler (Baltimore) and Mike Tiernan (New York) 25, Bill Lange (Chicago) 24, George Van Haltren (New York) 23.
WARP3 scores, pitchers; Cuppy 7.4, Hawley 6.8, Nichols 6.6, Ted Breitenstein (St. Louis) 6.4, Young 6.3, Hoffer 6.2, Killen 6.0, Meekin 5.1, Griffith 5.0, Stivetts 4.9, Dwyer 4.5, Win Mercer (Washington) 4.4, Bill Hill (Louisville) 4.3.
WARP3 leaders, position players: Jennings 11.3, Childs 9.0, Delahanty 8.8, Dahlen 8.3, Tiernan 8.1, Keeler and Kelley 7.4, Burkett and Smith 7.3, Van Haltren 6.5, Hamilton and George Davis (New York) 6.0, Lange 5.6.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Young 8.8, Cuppy 8.5, Hawley 7.0, Hoffer 6.6, Killen and Nichols 6.4, Dwyer 6.3. Position players: Jennings 8.9, Kelley 7.8, Childs 7.5, Delahanty 7.4, Dahlen 7.2, Burkett 6.6, Joyce 6.4, Hamilton 6.2, Smith 6.0.
Best pitcher: I'll take Cy Young again. There's a reason they named the award after him. Cy was 3rd in wins, 5th in ERA, 1st in strikeouts. Young's teammate Nig Cuppy would be #2, those two pitchers carried the team. 30-game winners Kid Nichols and Frank Killen follow at #3 and #4, with Bill Hoffer 5th.
Top player: Hughie Jennings, .401 hitter and shortstop for the pennant winners. 2nd in average and OBP, 3rd in hits, 2nd in RBI. Ed Delahanty, the OPS leader, would be my #2 with Dahlen #3, Burkett 4th, and Joe Kelley 5th.
Best rookie Fielder Jones, although Nap Lajoie would have the better career. Jones batted .354 in 104 games for Brooklyn.
Top manager of 1896 to Buck Ewing, for bringing the Reds from 8th to 3rd.
Jesse Burkett won the batting title again, at .410. He also led in runs, hits, and total bases. Hughie Jennings batted .401, Ed Delahanty .397, Willie Keeler .386, Mike Tiernan .369, Billy Hamilton .366. Delahanty led in slugging, OPS, doubles, homers, and RBI (126). He also took the OPS+ crown. Joe Kelley stole 87 bases.
Frank Killen and Kid Nichols each won 30 games, Cy Young 28, Jouett Meekin 26, Nig Cuppy, Bill Hoffer and Win Mercer 25 each. Billy Rhines led in ERA with a 2.45 mark, followed by Nichols at 2.83 and Cuppy at 3.12. Cy Young led in strikeouts with 140. Pink Hawley had 137, Killen 134.
Pitching Win Shares leaders: Cy Young (Cleveland) 43, Nig Cuppy (Cleveland) 38, Kid Nichols (Boston) 33, Frank Killen (Pittsburgh) 32, Bill Hoffer (Baltimore) 31, Clark Griffith (Chicago) and Frank Dwyer (Cincinnati) 30 each, Jack Stivetts (Boston) 29, Jouett Meekin (New York) and Pink Hawley (Pittsburgh) 27, Red Ehret (Cincinnati) 24.
Players: Hughie Jennings (Baltimore) 36, Joe Kelley (Baltimore) Bill Dahlen (Chicago) and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 31 each, Billy Hamilton (Boston) 30, Jesse Burkett (Cleveland) 29, Cupid Childs (Cleveland) 27, Elmer Smith (Pittsburgh) 26, Willie Keeler (Baltimore) and Mike Tiernan (New York) 25, Bill Lange (Chicago) 24, George Van Haltren (New York) 23.
WARP3 scores, pitchers; Cuppy 7.4, Hawley 6.8, Nichols 6.6, Ted Breitenstein (St. Louis) 6.4, Young 6.3, Hoffer 6.2, Killen 6.0, Meekin 5.1, Griffith 5.0, Stivetts 4.9, Dwyer 4.5, Win Mercer (Washington) 4.4, Bill Hill (Louisville) 4.3.
WARP3 leaders, position players: Jennings 11.3, Childs 9.0, Delahanty 8.8, Dahlen 8.3, Tiernan 8.1, Keeler and Kelley 7.4, Burkett and Smith 7.3, Van Haltren 6.5, Hamilton and George Davis (New York) 6.0, Lange 5.6.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Young 8.8, Cuppy 8.5, Hawley 7.0, Hoffer 6.6, Killen and Nichols 6.4, Dwyer 6.3. Position players: Jennings 8.9, Kelley 7.8, Childs 7.5, Delahanty 7.4, Dahlen 7.2, Burkett 6.6, Joyce 6.4, Hamilton 6.2, Smith 6.0.
Best pitcher: I'll take Cy Young again. There's a reason they named the award after him. Cy was 3rd in wins, 5th in ERA, 1st in strikeouts. Young's teammate Nig Cuppy would be #2, those two pitchers carried the team. 30-game winners Kid Nichols and Frank Killen follow at #3 and #4, with Bill Hoffer 5th.
Top player: Hughie Jennings, .401 hitter and shortstop for the pennant winners. 2nd in average and OBP, 3rd in hits, 2nd in RBI. Ed Delahanty, the OPS leader, would be my #2 with Dahlen #3, Burkett 4th, and Joe Kelley 5th.
Best rookie Fielder Jones, although Nap Lajoie would have the better career. Jones batted .354 in 104 games for Brooklyn.
Top manager of 1896 to Buck Ewing, for bringing the Reds from 8th to 3rd.
05 May 2007
1895 National League
It was 1895, and Baltimore won their second straight pennant by squeaking past Cleveland in another good race, with Philadelphia a strong 3rd. Nine teams were above .500, with three lousy teams in Washington, St. Louis and Louisville that served as the league's punching bags.
Jesse Burkett won the batting title at .409, with Ed Delahanty close behind at .404. Offense remained high. Delahanty led in on-base, was second in slugging, and first in OPS, as well as doubles. Sam Thompson led in slugging, total bases, homers and RBI. Billy Hamilton led in runs and steals. Cy Young topped the league with 35 wins, Al Maul with a 2.45 ERA, and Amos Rusie with 201 strikeouts. Pink Hawley was second in wins (31), ERA (3.18) and strikeouts (142).
Win Shares leaders, pitching: Pink Hawley (Pittsburgh) 44, Cy Young (Cleveland) 37, Bill Hoffer (Baltimore) 35, Kid Nichols (Boston) and Clark Griffith (Chicago) 34, Nig Cuppy (Cleveland) 33, Amos Rusie (New York) 28, Jack Taylor (Philadelphia) and Ted Breitenstein (St. Louis) 25, George Hemming (Baltimore) 24, Adonis Terry (Chicago) and Dad Clarke (New York) 22.
Positions: Jesse Burkett (Cleveland) 35, Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 31, Billy Hamilton (Philadelphia) 30, Hughie Jennings (Baltimore), Mike Griffin (Brooklyn) and Bill Lange (Chicago) 29 each, Sam Thompson (Philadelphia) and Jake Stenzel (Pittsburgh) 28 each, Joe Kelley (Baltimore) 27, Ed McKean (Cleveland) 25, Willie Keeler (Baltimore) and Hugh Duffy (Boston) 23, Mike Tiernan and George Van Haltren (New York) 22.
WARP3: pitchers, Hawley 10.5, Young 10.1, Breitenstein 9.1, Rusie 8.5, Nichols 7.0, Griffith 6.9, Cuppy 6.5, Hoffer 6.4, Taylor and Al Maul (Washington) 5.6, Clarke 5.4, Terry 4.4, Frank Dwyer and Frank Foreman (both Cincinnati) 4.1.
Position players, Jennings 11.0, Griffin 8.9, Keeler and Deacon McGuire (Washington) 8.1, Thompson 8.0, Delahanty 7.7, Burkett and John McGraw (Baltimore) 7.5, Lange 6.6, Kelley and Hamilton 6.5, Jack Clements (Philadelphia) 6.1, Duffy 6.0, Stenzel and Steve Brodie (Baltimore) 5.9, McKean 5.8.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Young 10.2, Hawley 10.1, Nichols 8.6, Hoffer 8.1, Cuppy 8.0, Griffith 7.3. Position players: Jennings 8.1, Delahanty 7.1, Hamilton 6.5, Kelley 6.4, Burkett 6.2, Keeler 5.9, Griffin and McGraw 5.8, Thompson 5.7, Lange 5.5.
Best pitcher: Cy Young was the leader in wins, but Hawley was the best overall this year. I'll give it to the guy with the funny nickname.
#1 Pink Hawley, #2 Cy Young, #3 Kid Nichols, #4 Bill Hoffer, #5 Nig Cuppy.
Top player: Hughie Jennings hit .386 and played shortstop for the pennant winners. That's pretty good credentials.
#1 Hughie Jennings, #2 Ed Delahanty, #3 Billy Hamilton, #4 Jesse Burkett, #5 Sam Thompson.
Top rookie was pitcher Bill Hoffer. Jimmy Collins was the best for a full career.
Top manager to Patsy Tebeau, as Cleveland jumps from 6th to 2nd.
Jesse Burkett won the batting title at .409, with Ed Delahanty close behind at .404. Offense remained high. Delahanty led in on-base, was second in slugging, and first in OPS, as well as doubles. Sam Thompson led in slugging, total bases, homers and RBI. Billy Hamilton led in runs and steals. Cy Young topped the league with 35 wins, Al Maul with a 2.45 ERA, and Amos Rusie with 201 strikeouts. Pink Hawley was second in wins (31), ERA (3.18) and strikeouts (142).
Win Shares leaders, pitching: Pink Hawley (Pittsburgh) 44, Cy Young (Cleveland) 37, Bill Hoffer (Baltimore) 35, Kid Nichols (Boston) and Clark Griffith (Chicago) 34, Nig Cuppy (Cleveland) 33, Amos Rusie (New York) 28, Jack Taylor (Philadelphia) and Ted Breitenstein (St. Louis) 25, George Hemming (Baltimore) 24, Adonis Terry (Chicago) and Dad Clarke (New York) 22.
Positions: Jesse Burkett (Cleveland) 35, Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 31, Billy Hamilton (Philadelphia) 30, Hughie Jennings (Baltimore), Mike Griffin (Brooklyn) and Bill Lange (Chicago) 29 each, Sam Thompson (Philadelphia) and Jake Stenzel (Pittsburgh) 28 each, Joe Kelley (Baltimore) 27, Ed McKean (Cleveland) 25, Willie Keeler (Baltimore) and Hugh Duffy (Boston) 23, Mike Tiernan and George Van Haltren (New York) 22.
WARP3: pitchers, Hawley 10.5, Young 10.1, Breitenstein 9.1, Rusie 8.5, Nichols 7.0, Griffith 6.9, Cuppy 6.5, Hoffer 6.4, Taylor and Al Maul (Washington) 5.6, Clarke 5.4, Terry 4.4, Frank Dwyer and Frank Foreman (both Cincinnati) 4.1.
Position players, Jennings 11.0, Griffin 8.9, Keeler and Deacon McGuire (Washington) 8.1, Thompson 8.0, Delahanty 7.7, Burkett and John McGraw (Baltimore) 7.5, Lange 6.6, Kelley and Hamilton 6.5, Jack Clements (Philadelphia) 6.1, Duffy 6.0, Stenzel and Steve Brodie (Baltimore) 5.9, McKean 5.8.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Young 10.2, Hawley 10.1, Nichols 8.6, Hoffer 8.1, Cuppy 8.0, Griffith 7.3. Position players: Jennings 8.1, Delahanty 7.1, Hamilton 6.5, Kelley 6.4, Burkett 6.2, Keeler 5.9, Griffin and McGraw 5.8, Thompson 5.7, Lange 5.5.
Best pitcher: Cy Young was the leader in wins, but Hawley was the best overall this year. I'll give it to the guy with the funny nickname.
#1 Pink Hawley, #2 Cy Young, #3 Kid Nichols, #4 Bill Hoffer, #5 Nig Cuppy.
Top player: Hughie Jennings hit .386 and played shortstop for the pennant winners. That's pretty good credentials.
#1 Hughie Jennings, #2 Ed Delahanty, #3 Billy Hamilton, #4 Jesse Burkett, #5 Sam Thompson.
Top rookie was pitcher Bill Hoffer. Jimmy Collins was the best for a full career.
Top manager to Patsy Tebeau, as Cleveland jumps from 6th to 2nd.
02 May 2007
1894 National League
Baltimore took the pennant in a close race with New York as Boston ran third, then a group of teams bunched together with Louisville and Washington at the end. What was beginning to happen about now was that the same owners were buying up pieces of multiple teams, which would lead to one of the darkest chapters in major league history, syndicate ownership. Teams would transfer top players to one team they owned, effectively creating a league where teams were competing against their own farm teams, thirty years before farm teams were invented by Branch Rickey. This abomination would come to dominate the rest of the 1890s.
Walks counted as hits in this one season, so batting averages were wild. Hugh Duffy led the league with a .440 average which today would be roughly his on-base percentage. If only we had kept counting it that way. He also led in hits, total bases, doubles, homers, and RBI in a career year. Tuck Turner had a .418 average, Sam Thompson .415, Ed Delahanty .404, Billy Hamilton .403. Sliding Billy Hamilton scored 192 runs. Think about that for a minute. Hamilton also led in stolen bases, naturally.
Amos Rusie won the pitching trifecta, leading in wins, ERA and strikeouts. Rusie had 36 wins with teammate Jouett Meekin at 33, Kid Nichols with 32. Rusie had a 2.78 ERA, way ahead of Meekin at 3.70. Win Mercer was at 3.85 and Cy Young 3.94. Rusie had 195 strikeouts, Ted Breitenstein was second with 140. Meekin had 137.
Win Shares leaders:
Pitching; Amos Rusie (New York) 56, Jouett Meekin (New York) 48, Cy Young (Cleveland) 39, Kid Nichols (Boston) 37, Ted Breitenstein (St. Louis) 36, Jack Stivetts (Boston) 33, Pink Hawley (St. Louis) 29, Nig Cuppy (Cleveland) 28, Ed Stein (Brooklyn) 27, Sadie McMahon (Baltimore) and Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) 24, Frank Dwyer (Cincinnati) 23, Tom Parrott (Cincinnati) 22.
Positioning; Hugh Duffy (Boston) 33, Joe Kelley (Baltimore) 30, Billy Hamilton (Philadelphia) 29, George Davis (New York) 25, Hughie Jennings and John McGraw (Baltimore) and Jake Stenzel (Pittsburgh) 24 each, Willie Keeler (Baltimore) 23, Lave Cross and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 22, Dan Brouthers (Baltimore), Bill Dahlen (Chicago), Jesse Burkett (Cleveland), and George Van Haltren (New York) 21.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Rusie 12.0, Meekin 9.6, Breitenstein 8.8, Young 6.9, Win Mercer (Washington) 6.2, Jack Taylor (Philadelphia) 6.1, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 5.8, Stein and George Hemming (Louisville) 5.7, Nichols 5.6, McMahon 5.2, Hawley and Dwyer 4.8.
WARP3 leaders, position players: Hamilton 9.7, Cross 8.1, Kelley 7.7, Delahanty 7.4, Jennings 7.0, Duffy 6.8, Davis 6.7, Mike Griffin (Brooklyn) 6.3, Bill Joyce (Washington) 6.2, Keeler 5.7, Duke Ferrell (New York) 5.6, Sam Thompson (Philadelphia) 5.4, McGraw 5.3, Heinie Peitz (Baltimore) 5.2, Cupid Childs (Cleveland) 5.1.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Rusie 13.3, Meekin 10.9, Young 8.4, Breitenstein 7.8, Nichols 7.4, Taylor 6.1. Position players: Hamilton 8.0, Duffy 7.3, Kelley 6.9, Delahanty 5.5, McGraw, Davis, and Joyce 5.2, Jennings 5.1.
Best pitcher: Amos Rusie was the leader in wins, strikeouts and ERA, so it's hard not to vote for the Triple Crown leader, even if he did walk more than he struck out. He led in ERA by nearly a full run over teammate Meekin.
#1 Amos Rusie, #2 Jouett Meekin, #3 Cy Young, #4 Ted Breitenstein, #5 Kid Nichols.
Top player: Duffy was the standout batter in this year, leading the league in average, slugging, total bases, hits, doubles, homers, RBI, and OPS. A nearly clean sweep of the stats. It was Duffy's age 27 year, and by far his best work. Billy Hamilton is #2 with a lead in walks, OBA, steals and runs. Joe Kelley ranks #3.
#1 Hugh Duffy, #2 Billy Hamilton, #3 Joe Kelley, #4 Ed Delahanty, #5 John McGraw.
Not much in the rookie department in 1894. Fred Clarke may have become the best player of the lot.
Best manager to Ned Hanlon, for pulling the Baltimore Orioles up to the pennant.
Walks counted as hits in this one season, so batting averages were wild. Hugh Duffy led the league with a .440 average which today would be roughly his on-base percentage. If only we had kept counting it that way. He also led in hits, total bases, doubles, homers, and RBI in a career year. Tuck Turner had a .418 average, Sam Thompson .415, Ed Delahanty .404, Billy Hamilton .403. Sliding Billy Hamilton scored 192 runs. Think about that for a minute. Hamilton also led in stolen bases, naturally.
Amos Rusie won the pitching trifecta, leading in wins, ERA and strikeouts. Rusie had 36 wins with teammate Jouett Meekin at 33, Kid Nichols with 32. Rusie had a 2.78 ERA, way ahead of Meekin at 3.70. Win Mercer was at 3.85 and Cy Young 3.94. Rusie had 195 strikeouts, Ted Breitenstein was second with 140. Meekin had 137.
Win Shares leaders:
Pitching; Amos Rusie (New York) 56, Jouett Meekin (New York) 48, Cy Young (Cleveland) 39, Kid Nichols (Boston) 37, Ted Breitenstein (St. Louis) 36, Jack Stivetts (Boston) 33, Pink Hawley (St. Louis) 29, Nig Cuppy (Cleveland) 28, Ed Stein (Brooklyn) 27, Sadie McMahon (Baltimore) and Brickyard Kennedy (Brooklyn) 24, Frank Dwyer (Cincinnati) 23, Tom Parrott (Cincinnati) 22.
Positioning; Hugh Duffy (Boston) 33, Joe Kelley (Baltimore) 30, Billy Hamilton (Philadelphia) 29, George Davis (New York) 25, Hughie Jennings and John McGraw (Baltimore) and Jake Stenzel (Pittsburgh) 24 each, Willie Keeler (Baltimore) 23, Lave Cross and Ed Delahanty (Philadelphia) 22, Dan Brouthers (Baltimore), Bill Dahlen (Chicago), Jesse Burkett (Cleveland), and George Van Haltren (New York) 21.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Rusie 12.0, Meekin 9.6, Breitenstein 8.8, Young 6.9, Win Mercer (Washington) 6.2, Jack Taylor (Philadelphia) 6.1, Clark Griffith (Chicago) 5.8, Stein and George Hemming (Louisville) 5.7, Nichols 5.6, McMahon 5.2, Hawley and Dwyer 4.8.
WARP3 leaders, position players: Hamilton 9.7, Cross 8.1, Kelley 7.7, Delahanty 7.4, Jennings 7.0, Duffy 6.8, Davis 6.7, Mike Griffin (Brooklyn) 6.3, Bill Joyce (Washington) 6.2, Keeler 5.7, Duke Ferrell (New York) 5.6, Sam Thompson (Philadelphia) 5.4, McGraw 5.3, Heinie Peitz (Baltimore) 5.2, Cupid Childs (Cleveland) 5.1.
WAR leaders, pitchers: Rusie 13.3, Meekin 10.9, Young 8.4, Breitenstein 7.8, Nichols 7.4, Taylor 6.1. Position players: Hamilton 8.0, Duffy 7.3, Kelley 6.9, Delahanty 5.5, McGraw, Davis, and Joyce 5.2, Jennings 5.1.
Best pitcher: Amos Rusie was the leader in wins, strikeouts and ERA, so it's hard not to vote for the Triple Crown leader, even if he did walk more than he struck out. He led in ERA by nearly a full run over teammate Meekin.
#1 Amos Rusie, #2 Jouett Meekin, #3 Cy Young, #4 Ted Breitenstein, #5 Kid Nichols.
Top player: Duffy was the standout batter in this year, leading the league in average, slugging, total bases, hits, doubles, homers, RBI, and OPS. A nearly clean sweep of the stats. It was Duffy's age 27 year, and by far his best work. Billy Hamilton is #2 with a lead in walks, OBA, steals and runs. Joe Kelley ranks #3.
#1 Hugh Duffy, #2 Billy Hamilton, #3 Joe Kelley, #4 Ed Delahanty, #5 John McGraw.
Not much in the rookie department in 1894. Fred Clarke may have become the best player of the lot.
Best manager to Ned Hanlon, for pulling the Baltimore Orioles up to the pennant.
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