1872 in baseball - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Champions

National Association
National Association of Professional Base Ball Players
The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , or simply the National Association , was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season...

: Boston Red Stockings
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

National Association final standings

National Association National Association of Professional Base Ball Players The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , or simply the National Association , was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season...
Rank	Club	Wins	Losses	Win %	GB
1st	Boston Red Stockings Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....	39	8	.830	–
2nd	Philadelphia Athletics Athletic of Philadelphia Athletic of Philadelphia was a prominent National Association, and later National League, professional baseball team that played in the second half of the 19th century.-Early History:...	30	14	.682	7.5
3rd	Baltimore Lord Baltimores Baltimore Canaries The Baltimore Canaries were a professional baseball club in the National Association from 1872 to 1874.-History:The team was usually listed as Lord Baltimore in the box scores of the day, and were also referred to as the Yellow Stockings...	34	19	.642	8
4th	New York Mutuals New York Mutuals The Mutual Base Ball Club of New York was a leading American baseball club almost throughout its 20-year history. It was established during 1857, the year of the first baseball convention, just too late to be a founding member of the National Association of Base Ball Players. It was a charter...	34	20	.630	8.5
5th	Troy Haymakers Troy Haymakers The Troy Haymakers were an American professional baseball team.-History:Established in 1860 as the Union base ball club of neighboring Lansingburgh, New York, the Haymakers participated in the first professional pennant race of 1869 and joined the first professional league, the 1871 National...	15	10	.600	13.0
6th	Cleveland Forest Citys Cleveland Forest Citys The Forest Citys were a short lived professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio in the early 1870s. The actual name of the team, as shown in standings, was Forest City, not "Cleveland". The name "Forest Citys" was used in the same generic style of the day in which the team from Chicago,...	6	15	.286	20
7th	Brooklyn Atlantics Brooklyn Atlantics The Atlantic Base Ball Club of Brooklyn was baseball's first champion and its first dynasty.Established in 1855, Atlantic was a founding member of the National Association of Base Ball Players in 1857. In 1859, with a record of 11 wins and 1 loss, Atlantic emerged as the recognized champions of...	8	27	.229	25.0
8th	Washington Olympics Washington Olympics The Olympic Club of Washington, D.C., or Washington Olympics, was an early professional baseball team.When the National Association of Base Ball Players permitted openly professional clubs for the 1869 season, the Olympics were one of twelve to go pro...	2	7	.222	18.0
9th	Middletown Mansfields Middletown Mansfields The Middletown Mansfields were a Baseball team in Middletown, Connecticut. The Mansfields were a member of the National Association in 1872. The baseball team was organized by Ben Douglas Jr., who named the team after his great-uncle General Joseph Mansfield. They were managed by catcher John...	5	19	.208	22.5
10th	Brooklyn Eckfords Eckford of Brooklyn Eckford of Brooklyn, or simply Eckford, was an American baseball club from 1855 to 1872. When the pioneering Union Grounds opened for baseball in 1862, the Eckfords must have been the most important tenant, for they played more games than any other club that year and won the "national"...	3	26	.103	27.0
11th	Washington Nationals Washington Nationals (NA) The Washington Nationals were the first important baseball club in the nation's capital. They played part of one season or parts of two seasons in the National Association, the first professional league, so they are considered a major league team by those who count the NA as a major league...	0	11	.000	21.0

Statistical leaders

National Association National Association of Professional Base Ball Players The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , or simply the National Association , was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season...
Type	Name	Stat
AVG Batting average Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...	Ross Barnes Ross Barnes Charles Roscoe Barnes was one of the stars of baseball's National Association and the early National League , playing second base and shortstop. He played for the dominant Boston Red Stockings teams of the early 1870s, along with Albert Spalding, Cal McVey, George Wright, Harry Wright, Jim... BOS Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....	.432
HR Home run In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...	Lip Pike Lip Pike Lipman Emanuel "Lip" Pike the "Iron Batter", was one of the stars of 19th century baseball in the United States. He was the first player to be revealed as a professional , as well as the first Jewish player... BAL Baltimore Canaries The Baltimore Canaries were a professional baseball club in the National Association from 1872 to 1874.-History:The team was usually listed as Lord Baltimore in the box scores of the day, and were also referred to as the Yellow Stockings...	6
RBI Run batted in Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...	Lip Pike Lip Pike Lipman Emanuel "Lip" Pike the "Iron Batter", was one of the stars of 19th century baseball in the United States. He was the first player to be revealed as a professional , as well as the first Jewish player... BAL Baltimore Canaries The Baltimore Canaries were a professional baseball club in the National Association from 1872 to 1874.-History:The team was usually listed as Lord Baltimore in the box scores of the day, and were also referred to as the Yellow Stockings...	60
Wins Win (baseball) In professional baseball, there are two types of decisions: a win and a loss . In each game, one pitcher on the winning team is awarded a win and one pitcher on the losing team is given a loss in their respective statistics. These pitchers are collectively known as the pitchers of record. Only...	Albert Spalding Albert Spalding Albert Goodwill Spalding was a professional baseball player, manager and co-founder of A.G. Spalding sporting goods company.-Biography:... BOS Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....	38
ERA Earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...	Albert Spalding Albert Spalding Albert Goodwill Spalding was a professional baseball player, manager and co-founder of A.G. Spalding sporting goods company.-Biography:... BOS Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....	1.98
Strikeout Strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout or strike-out occurs when a batter receives three strikes during his time at bat. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters.... s	Bobby Mathews Bobby Mathews Robert T. Mathews was an American right-handed Major League Baseball pitcher for twenty years beginning in the late 1860s. He is credited as being one of the inventors of the spitball pitch, which was rediscovered or reintroduced to the major leagues after he died. He is also credited with the... BAL Baltimore Canaries The Baltimore Canaries were a professional baseball club in the National Association from 1872 to 1874.-History:The team was usually listed as Lord Baltimore in the box scores of the day, and were also referred to as the Yellow Stockings...	55

January–March

March 4 – At its annual convention being held in Cleveland, the NA adopts a rule change to allow the use of the wrist in the pitching delivery.

April–June

April 22 – Candy Cummings
Candy Cummings
William Arthur "Candy" Cummings was a professional baseball pitcher in the National Association and National League who was credited with inventing the curveball. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939.-Career:...

makes his debut with the New York Mutuals
New York Mutuals
The Mutual Base Ball Club of New York was a leading American baseball club almost throughout its 20-year history. It was established during 1857, the year of the first baseball convention, just too late to be a founding member of the National Association of Base Ball Players. It was a charter...

.
April 26 – "Orator" Jim O'Rourke
Jim O'Rourke (baseball player)
James Henry O'Rourke , nicknamed "Orator Jim", was an American professional baseball player in the National Association and Major League Baseball who played primarily as a left fielder...

makes his debut with the Middletown Mansfields
Middletown Mansfields
The Middletown Mansfields were a Baseball team in Middletown, Connecticut. The Mansfields were a member of the National Association in 1872. The baseball team was organized by Ben Douglas Jr., who named the team after his great-uncle General Joseph Mansfield. They were managed by catcher John...

.
May 24 – The Washington Olympics
Washington Olympics
The Olympic Club of Washington, D.C., or Washington Olympics, was an early professional baseball team.When the National Association of Base Ball Players permitted openly professional clubs for the 1869 season, the Olympics were one of twelve to go pro...

play their last game before dropping out of the NA. Poor talent and financial difficulties combine to do in the Olympics.
May 29 – Despite not having a team in the league in 1872, the city of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

hosts its first NA game since the Great Chicago Fire
Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...

as the Baltimore Canaries
Baltimore Canaries
The Baltimore Canaries were a professional baseball club in the National Association from 1872 to 1874.-History:The team was usually listed as Lord Baltimore in the box scores of the day, and were also referred to as the Yellow Stockings...

defeat the Cleveland Forest Citys
Cleveland Forest Citys
The Forest Citys were a short lived professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio in the early 1870s. The actual name of the team, as shown in standings, was Forest City, not "Cleveland". The name "Forest Citys" was used in the same generic style of the day in which the team from Chicago,...

in front of 4,000 fans.
June 26 – The Washington Nationals
Washington Nationals (NA)
The Washington Nationals were the first important baseball club in the nation's capital. They played part of one season or parts of two seasons in the National Association, the first professional league, so they are considered a major league team by those who count the NA as a major league...

, with an 0–11 record, disband after losing 9–1 to the Baltimore Canaries
Baltimore Canaries
The Baltimore Canaries were a professional baseball club in the National Association from 1872 to 1874.-History:The team was usually listed as Lord Baltimore in the box scores of the day, and were also referred to as the Yellow Stockings...

.

July–September

July 6 – Sporting a 22–1 record, Harry Wright
Harry Wright
William Henry "Harry" Wright was an English-born American professional baseball player, manager, and developer. He assembled, managed, and played center field for baseball's first fully professional team, the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings...

takes the Boston Red Stockings
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

on vacation to an island in Boston Harbor
Boston Harbor
Boston Harbor is a natural harbor and estuary of Massachusetts Bay, and is located adjacent to the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Port of Boston, a major shipping facility in the northeast.-History:...

.
July 9 – The Brooklyn Eckfords
Eckford of Brooklyn
Eckford of Brooklyn, or simply Eckford, was an American baseball club from 1855 to 1872. When the pioneering Union Grounds opened for baseball in 1862, the Eckfords must have been the most important tenant, for they played more games than any other club that year and won the "national"...

commit 13 errors in their 15–3 loss to the Troy Haymakers
Troy Haymakers
The Troy Haymakers were an American professional baseball team.-History:Established in 1860 as the Union base ball club of neighboring Lansingburgh, New York, the Haymakers participated in the first professional pennant race of 1869 and joined the first professional league, the 1871 National...

. It is the fewest errors committed by the 0–11 Eckfords in a game thus far this season.
July 23 – Despite a winning record, the Troy Haymakers
Troy Haymakers
The Troy Haymakers were an American professional baseball team.-History:Established in 1860 as the Union base ball club of neighboring Lansingburgh, New York, the Haymakers participated in the first professional pennant race of 1869 and joined the first professional league, the 1871 National...

disband due to financial problems. Half of the Haymaker's roster will move to the Brooklyn Eckfords
Eckford of Brooklyn
Eckford of Brooklyn, or simply Eckford, was an American baseball club from 1855 to 1872. When the pioneering Union Grounds opened for baseball in 1862, the Eckfords must have been the most important tenant, for they played more games than any other club that year and won the "national"...

, which saves them from dropping out of the NA.
July 26 – In an emergency meeting, the NA revises their scheduling requirements from 5 to 9 games versus each opponent competing for the championship. This is in response to the number of teams that have disbanded and comes 3 days after the first-division Troy Haymakers
Troy Haymakers
The Troy Haymakers were an American professional baseball team.-History:Established in 1860 as the Union base ball club of neighboring Lansingburgh, New York, the Haymakers participated in the first professional pennant race of 1869 and joined the first professional league, the 1871 National...

had called it quits.
August 13 – The Middletown Mansfields
Middletown Mansfields
The Middletown Mansfields were a Baseball team in Middletown, Connecticut. The Mansfields were a member of the National Association in 1872. The baseball team was organized by Ben Douglas Jr., who named the team after his great-uncle General Joseph Mansfield. They were managed by catcher John...

announce that they have disbanded the club and drop out of the NA.
August 19 – The Cleveland Forest Citys
Cleveland Forest Citys
The Forest Citys were a short lived professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio in the early 1870s. The actual name of the team, as shown in standings, was Forest City, not "Cleveland". The name "Forest Citys" was used in the same generic style of the day in which the team from Chicago,...

disband their club after a loss to the Boston Red Stockings
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

. This drops the number of teams still playing in the NA to 6.
September 1 – Al Thake
Al Thake
Albert Thake was an English professional baseball player who played left field for the Brooklyn Atlantics team of the NAPBBP....

, left-fielder batting .295 for the Brooklyn Atlantics
Brooklyn Atlantics
The Atlantic Base Ball Club of Brooklyn was baseball's first champion and its first dynasty.Established in 1855, Atlantic was a founding member of the National Association of Base Ball Players in 1857. In 1859, with a record of 11 wins and 1 loss, Atlantic emerged as the recognized champions of...

, drowns in New York harbor after falling from a fishing boat. Thake is the first active major league ballplayer to die. (But Elmer White, active in 1871, had died in winter.)

October–December

October 22 – The Boston Red Stockings
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

clinch the pennant with a 4–3 win over the Brooklyn Eckfords
Eckford of Brooklyn
Eckford of Brooklyn, or simply Eckford, was an American baseball club from 1855 to 1872. When the pioneering Union Grounds opened for baseball in 1862, the Eckfords must have been the most important tenant, for they played more games than any other club that year and won the "national"...

.

Births

January 2 – Pop Rising
Pop Rising
Percival Sumner "Pop" Rising was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball who played briefly for the Boston Americans during the season. Rising was born in Industry, Pennsylvania. He threw right-handed...
January 12 – Togie Pittinger
Togie Pittinger
Charles Reno Pittinger was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Boston Beaneaters and Philadelphia Phillies . Pittinger batted left-handed and threw right-handed. He was born in Greencastle, Pennsylvania...
February 3 – Lou Criger
Lou Criger
Louis Criger was a Major League Baseball player for the Cleveland Spiders , St. Louis Cardinals , Boston Americans/Red Sox , St. Louis Browns , and the New York Highlanders .Criger became the first Opening Day catcher in Boston American League franchise's history...
March 3 – Willie Keeler
Willie Keeler
William Henry Keeler in Brooklyn, New York, nicknamed "Wee Willie", was a right fielder in professional baseball who played from 1892 to 1910, primarily for the Baltimore Orioles and Brooklyn Superbas in the National League, and the New York Highlanders in the American League.- Biography :Keeler's...
March 24 – Kip Selbach
Kip Selbach
Albert Karl Selbach was a left fielder in Major League Baseball. From 1894 through 1906, he played for the Washington Senators , Cincinnati Reds, New York Giants, Baltimore Orioles, Washington Senators and Boston Ameiricans . Selbach batted and threw right-handed...
May 10 – Klondike Douglass
Klondike Douglass
William Bingham "Klondike" Douglass was an American Major League Baseball player born in Boston, Pennsylvania, who split his time between first base, and at catcher for the St. Louis Browns and the Philadelphia Phillies from to . A good hitter, he had a career batting average of .274, including...
May 16 – John O'Connell
May 23 – Deacon Phillippe
Deacon Phillippe
Charles Louis "Deacon" Phillippe was a turn-of-the-century pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates....
June 14 – Doc Parker
Doc Parker
Harley Park Parker was a pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from through for the Chicago Colts and Cincinnati Reds . Listed at 6' 2", 200 lb., Parker threw and batted right-handed. He was born in Theresa, New York...
August 6 – Sam Mertes
Sam Mertes
Samuel Blair Mertes was a former professional baseball player. He was an outfielder over parts of 10 seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Orphans, Chicago White Sox, New York Giants, and St. Louis Cardinals. He led the National League in RBIs in 1903 while playing for New York...
August 15 – John Warner
John Warner (baseball)
John Joseph Warner , nicknamed "Jack," was a Major League Baseball catcher who caught over 1,000 major league games in 14 seasons with the Boston Beaneaters , Louisville Colonels , New York Giants , Boston Americans , St. Louis Cardinals , Detroit Tigers , and Washington Senators...
August 18 – Eddie Hickey
Eddie Hickey (baseball)
Edward A. Hickey was a third baseman in Major League Baseball who played briefly for the Chicago Orphans during the season. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio...
September 5 – Al Orth
Al Orth
Albert Lewis Orth was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. He was born in Tipton, Indiana and died at age 76 in Lynchburg, Virginia...
September 18 - Lord Byron
Lord Byron (umpire)
William Jeremiah "Lord" Byron was a Major League Baseball umpire. Byron began umpiring in the Michigan State League in . He would then work in the South Atlantic League from to . From to , Byron umpired games for the Virginia League, Eastern League, Southern League, and the International League...
September 20 – Joe Berry
Joe Berry (catcher)
Joseph Howard Berry, Sr. was an American baseball player who appeared in one Major League Baseball game with the Philadelphia Phillies in . He was a switch hitter and threw right-handed....
September 25 – Fred Odwell
Fred Odwell
Frederick William Odwell was a professional baseball player. He was an outfielder over parts of four seasons with the Cincinnati Reds. In 1905, he led the National League in home runs. He was born in and later died at the age of 75 in Downsville, New York.1904 was Odwells's first season in the...
October 3 – Fred Clarke
Fred Clarke
Fred Clifford Clarke was a Major League Baseball player from 1894 to and manager from 1897 to 1915. A Hall of Famer, Clarke played for and managed both the Louisville Colonels and Pittsburgh Pirates. He was a left fielder and left-handed batter.Of the nine pennants in Pittsburgh franchise...
October 6 – Jack Dunn
Jack Dunn
John Joseph Dunn was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball at the turn of the 20th century who later went on to become a minor league baseball club owner....
December 5 – Pink Hawley
Pink Hawley
Emerson Pink Hawley , was a professional baseball player who played pitcher in the Major Leagues from 1892-1901. He played for the St. Louis Browns, Cincinnati Reds, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Milwaukee Brewers...
December 9 – Cy Seymour
Cy Seymour
James Bentley "Cy" Seymour was an American center fielder and pitcher in Major League Baseball. From 1896 through , Seymour played for the New York Giants , Baltimore Orioles , Cincinnati Reds and Boston Braves...
December 25 – Ted Lewis
Ted Lewis (baseball player)
Edward Morgan Lewis Nicknamed "The Pitching Professor," Ted Lewis was one of only three Welsh-born players to break into major league baseball in the U.S. . He was 23 years old when he debuted on July 6, 1896, with the Boston Beaneaters...

Deaths

Abbreviations
Date	Individual's death date
Name	Individual's name
Age	Age at death
Cause	Cause of death
Cemetery	Place individual is interred
City/State	City and state of burial
Seasons	Seasons in which individual appeared
Teams	Teams the individual played for or managed

Date	Name	Age	Cause	Cemetery	City/State	Seasons	Teams	Ref
March 17	Elmer White Elmer White Willard Elmer White was a Major League Baseball player in 1871 with the Cleveland Forest Citys. He was Forest City's regular right fielder and back-up catcher until he broke his arm running into a fence on June 22. White was the cousin of Deacon White and Will White...	22				1871	Cleveland Forest Citys Cleveland Forest Citys The Forest Citys were a short lived professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio in the early 1870s. The actual name of the team, as shown in standings, was Forest City, not "Cleveland". The name "Forest Citys" was used in the same generic style of the day in which the team from Chicago,...
September 1	Al Thake Al Thake Albert Thake was an English professional baseball player who played left field for the Brooklyn Atlantics team of the NAPBBP....	22	Drowning Drowning Drowning is death from asphyxia due to suffocation caused by water entering the lungs and preventing the absorption of oxygen leading to cerebral hypoxia....	Green-Wood Cemetery Green-Wood Cemetery Green-Wood Cemetery was founded in 1838 as a rural cemetery in Brooklyn, Kings County , New York. It was granted National Historic Landmark status in 2006 by the U.S. Department of the Interior.-History:...	Brooklyn Brooklyn Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated... , New York New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...	1872	Brooklyn Atlantics Brooklyn Atlantics The Atlantic Base Ball Club of Brooklyn was baseball's first champion and its first dynasty.Established in 1855, Atlantic was a founding member of the National Association of Base Ball Players in 1857. In 1859, with a record of 11 wins and 1 loss, Atlantic emerged as the recognized champions of...

External links

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