Wilmington Quicksteps - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Wilmington Quicksteps were an 1884

1884 in baseball

-Champions:*First World's Championship Series: Providence Grays over New York Metropolitans *National League: Providence Grays*American Association: New York Metropolitans*Union Association: St...

late season replacement team in the Union Association

Union Association

The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for only one season in 1884. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season...

. They finished with a 2-16 record and were managed by Joe Simmons

Joe Simmons

Joseph S. Simmons, born as Joseph S. Chabriel, was an American Major League Baseball player and manager from New York, New York. Joe played three seasons in the National Association, the last year he was player-manager for the Keokuk Westerns, a team that would win just one game of the 13 that...

. The team played home games in Union Street Park

Union Street Park

Union Street Park is a former baseball ground located in Wilmington, Delaware. The ground was home to the Wilmington Quicksteps of the Union Association in 1884....

in Wilmington, Delaware

Wilmington, Delaware

Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...

.

In 1883

1883 in baseball

-Champions:*National League: Boston Beaneaters*American Association: Philadelphia Athletics*Inter-State League: Brooklyn Atlantics*Northwestern League: Toledo Blue StockingsInter-league playoff: Philadelphia declined to play Boston...

, the Inter-State Association of Professional Baseball Clubs was founded and local capital was invested for a franchise in Wilmington. In 1884, The Interstate Association re-organized under the name "Eastern League" (not to be confused with the double A Eastern League

Eastern League (U.S. baseball)

The Eastern League is a minor league baseball league which operates primarily in the northeastern United States, although it has had a team in Ohio since 1989. The Eastern League has played at the AA level since 1963. The league was founded in 1923 as the New York-Pennsylvania League...

of today); this was one of the very first "minor leagues" and is considered a forerunner of today's AAA International League

International League

The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...

.

The Wilmington Quicksteps quickly began to dominate the league. So highly regarded was the club that major league clubs began to show up to play exhibition games. (They defeated both the Washington Nationals

Washington Nationals (UA)

The 1884 Washington Nationals were a member of the Union Association. They were managed by Mike Scanlon and finished in seventh place with a record of 47-65. Their home games were played at Capitol Grounds...

and the Baltimore Monumentals

Baltimore Monumentals

The Baltimore Monumentals were an American baseball team in the short-lived Union Association. In their lone season of 1884, they finished fourth in the UA with a 58-47 record.-History:The team was managed by William Henderson...

during the season.) By August, the Quicksteps had already sewed up the league championship with a 50-12 record. Unfortunately, their dominance nearly destroyed fan interest in the Eastern League; even in Wilmington, attendance averaged only 400 per game.

Late into the season, Henry Lucas

Henry Lucas (baseball)

Henry Victor Lucas was a baseball executive in the late 19th century.He was one of seven children of James H. Lucas who each of whom inherited a million dollars at his death in 1873. In 1884, the 26-year-old Henry Lucas became president of the Union Association, though he clearly stacked the...

, the Union Association

Union Association

The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for only one season in 1884. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season...

founder and owner of the St. Louis Maroons, convinced Simmons and the Quicksteps to cross over into his league when the Philadelphia Keystones

Philadelphia Keystones

The Philadelphia Keystones was a professional baseball franchise. In 1884, they were a member of the short-lived Union Association. The team was owned by former player Tom Pratt....

folded due to lack of attendance. After winning their first game 4-3 over Washington, it was all downhill for the Quicksteps. Many Wilmington players no longer felt bound by their contracts and signed for more money with other teams in their new league. Shortstop

Shortstop

Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...

and team Captain Oyster Burns

Oyster Burns

Thomas P. "Oyster" Burns was a professional baseball player whose career spanned 15 seasons, 11 of which were spent with the Major League Baseball Wilmington Quicksteps , Baltimore Orioles , Brooklyn Bridegrooms , and New York Giants...

jumped to the Baltimore Monumentals for $900 a month. Outfielder

Outfielder

Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...

Dennis Casey

Dennis Casey (baseball)

Dennis Patrick Casey , was a professional baseball player who played outfielder in the Major Leagues from -. He would play for the Wilmington Quicksteps and Baltimore Orioles....

also jumped to Baltimore for $700 a month. (Each had been making about $150 a month in Wilmington.) Catcher

Catcher

Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...

Andy Cusick went to the Philadelphia

Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

for $375 a month. The only star player to remain in Wilmington was pitcher Ed "The Only" Nolan

The Only Nolan

Edward Sylvester "The Only" Nolan is a former Major League Baseball pitcher, outfielder, and third baseman....

, who went on to beat Washington for Wilmington's second and last victory.

By this time, St. Louis had already won the pennant. Because Wilmington was just being used to fill in the last month of the season, Simmons pulled his team from the field and disbanded them on September 21, 1884. There wasn't a single fan in the stands that day, so his ability to pay the $60 minimum to the visiting club was an impossibility. Wilmington was replaced in the Union Association by the Milwaukee Brewers

Milwaukee Brewers (UA)

The Milwaukee Brewers served as a replacement team late in the 1884 Union Association season. Called the Cream Citys by both local papers, they had a record of 8-4. The team came to the UA from the Northwestern League, as did the St. Paul Saints, and were managed by Tom Loftus...

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