1.
St. Louis Cardinals
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The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball as a club of the National League Central division. Busch Stadium has been their home ballpark since 2006, with origins as one of the early professional baseball clubs in St. Upon the discontinuation of the AA, St. Louis joined the NL in 1892, at time, they were called the Browns. One of the most successful franchises in history, the Cardinals have won 11 World Series championships. Their 19 National League pennants rank third in NL history, in addition, St. Louis has won 13 division titles in the East and Central divisions. While still in the AA, St. Louis won four league championships, the Cardinals have won 105 or more games in four different seasons and won 100 or more a total of nine times. Cardinals players have won 20 league MVPs, four batting Triple Crowns, and three Cy Young Awards. Baseball Hall of Fame inductees include Lou Brock, Dizzy Dean, Bob Gibson, Whitey Herzog, Rogers Hornsby, Joe Medwick, Stan Musial, Branch Rickey, Red Schoendienst, Ozzie Smith, and Bruce Sutter. In 2016, Forbes valued the Cardinals at $1.6 billion, making them the 7th-most valuable franchise in MLB, their revenue the year was $300 million. Since their purchase in 1995, owner William DeWitt, Jr. s investment group has seen enormous growth from the $147 million purchase price, John Mozeliak is the general manager and Mike Matheny is the manager. Professional baseball began in St. Louis with the inception of the Brown Stockings in the National Association in 1875, the NA folded following that season, and the next season, St. Louis joined the National League as a charter member, finishing in third place at 45-19. George Bradley hurled the first no-hitter in Major League history, the NL expelled St. Louis from the league after 1877 due to a game-fixing scandal and the team went bankrupt. Without a league, they continued play as a barnstorming team through 1881. For the 1882 season, Chris von der Ahe purchased the team, reorganized it, and made it a member of the American Association. 1882 is generally considered to be the first year existence of the St. Louis Cardinals, the next season, St. Louis shortened their name to the Browns. Soon thereafter they became the dominant team in the AA, as manager Charlie Comiskey guided St. Louis to four pennants in a row from 1885 to 1888. Pitcher and outfielder Bob Caruthers led the league in ERA and wins in 1885 and he also led the AA in OBP and OPS in 1886 and finished fourth in batting average in 1886 and fifth in 1887
2.
World Series
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The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball in North America, contested since 1903 between the American League champion team and the National League champion team. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a playoff. As the series is played in October, during the season in North America. As of 2016, the World Series has been contested 112 times, with the AL winning 64, the 2016 World Series took place between the Cleveland Indians and the Chicago Cubs. Seven games were played, with the Cubs victorious after game seven, the final score was 8–7, the game went into extra innings after a tied score of 6–6. This was the third World Series won by the Cubs, as well as their first title since 1908, in the National League, the St. As of 2016, no team has won consecutive World Series championships since the New York Yankees in 1998,1999, all championships were awarded to the team with the best record at the end of the season, without a postseason series being played. From 1884 to 1890, the National League and the American Association faced each other in a series of games at the end of the season to determine an overall champion. These series were disorganized in comparison to the modern World Series, the number of games played ranged from as few as three in 1884, to a high of fifteen in 1887. Both the 1885 and 1890 Series ended in ties, each team having won three games with one tie game, the series was promoted and referred to as The Championship of the United States, Worlds Championship Series, or Worlds Series for short. In his book Krakatoa, The Day the World Exploded, August 27,1883, Simon Winchester mentions in passing that the World Series was named for the New York World newspaper, but this view is disputed. Until about 1960, some sources treated the 19th-century Series on a basis with the post-19th-century series. After about 1930, however, many authorities list the start of the World Series in 1903, following the collapse of the American Association after the 1891 season, the National League was again the only major league. The league championship was awarded in 1892 by a playoff between half-season champions and this scheme was abandoned after one season. Beginning in 1893—and continuing until divisional play was introduced in 1969—the pennant was awarded to the club in the standings at the end of the season. For four seasons, 1894–1897, the league played the runners-up in the post season championship series called the Temple Cup. A second attempt at this format was the Chronicle-Telegraph Cup series, in 1901, the American League was formed as a second major league. No championship series were played in 1901 or 1902 as the National and these series were arranged by the participating clubs, as the 1880s Worlds Series matches had been
3.
Charlie Getzein
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Charles H. Getzein was an American professional baseball player from 1883 to 1891. He played all or parts of nine seasons in Major League Baseball with four different National League teams from 1884 to 1891 and he was the first German in MLB history Getzein was known by the nickname Pretzels. Sources conflict as to whether the nickname was derived from his German ethnicity or from the belief that he was able to throw a curve following the curves of a pretzel. During nine major league seasons, Getzein compiled a 145-139 win-loss record and he threw 277 complete games, a total that ranks 58th in major league history. Only three pitchers threw complete games in major league careers shorter than Getzeins nine-year career. Getzein had his most extensive playing time with the Detroit Wolverines, compiling records of 30-11, in the 1887 World Series, Getzein pitched six complete games and compiled a 4-2 record with a 2.48 ERA. He also won 23 games for the Boston Beaneaters in 1890, Getzein was born in 1864, but sources are in conflict as to whether he was born in Chicago or Germany. Getzein began playing baseball as a boy in Chicago and he played as an amateur in the Chicago City League. During his career, Getzeins drew acclaim for his curveball, Getzeins version of the pitch was sometimes referred to as the pretzel curve. Sporting Life described Getzeins unusual delivery as follows, In delivering his pretzels Getz faces third base with one foot in either corner of the end of the box. Bending the left slightly, he draws his right arm well back. Then, straightening up quickly, he slides the left foot forward with a little skip. After a Getzein victory over the Kansas City Cowboys in 1886 and he went into the box to-day and pitched one of his finest, his curves circling around in the form of the delicious pastry from which Getz takes his sobriquet. However, the editor of the Grand Rapids World opined that Getzeins curved ball was a fiction, scientifically, this theory is utterly absurd. The curves are in the imagination of Getzeins admirers, when the ball leaves his hand it is beyond his control, and it moves forward from the impulse last given it as it leaves his hand. It is then controlled by the force of propulsion, the resistance of the atmosphere, the Scientific American magazine responded in July 1886 by publishing an article written by Henry Chadwick explaining the physics behind the curve ball pitch. Getzein was known by the nickname Pretzels, sources conflict as to whether the nickname was derived from his German ethnicity or from the belief that he was able to throw a double curve following the curves of a pretzel. Getzein was listed at 5 feet,10 inches, and 172 pounds, in 1882, Getzein made his professional baseball debut with the Grand Rapids, Michigan, team in the Northwestern League
4.
Charlie Bennett
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Charles Wesley Bennett was an American professional baseball player from 1875 or 1876 through the 1893 season. He played 15 years in Major League Baseball, principally as a catcher, with the Milwaukee Grays, Worcester Ruby Legs, Detroit Wolverines and Boston Beaneaters. He played on four pennant-winning teams, one in Detroit and three in Boston, and is one of two players to play with the Detroit Wolverines during all eight seasons of the clubs existence. Bennett compiled a.256 batting average and a.340 on-base percentage during his league career with 549 runs scored,203 doubles,67 triples,55 home runs and 533 runs batted in. His greatest value, however, was as one of the greatest defensive players of his era, Bennetts baseball career ended in January 1894 when he lost both legs in a train accident in Kansas. In 1896, Detroits new baseball stadium was named Bennett Park in his honor, the Detroit Tigers played their home games at Bennett Park from 1896 through the 1911 season. Bennett has also credited with inventing the first chest protector. Bennett was born in New Castle, Pennsylvania, in 1854 and his father, Silas Bennett, was a native of Connecticut. His mother, Catherine Bennett, was a native of Pennsylvania, Charlie was the eighth of their 11 children. Bennett began his career in organized baseball as the catcher for the Neshannock team in the Pennsylvania League, Bennett was described while playing for the Neshannocks as a hard hitter who nearly broke the directors of the club because of the number of balls knocked into the Shenango river. While playing for Neshannock, Bennett was the catcher for Cal Hawk, at the end of the 1876 season, at age 22, Bennett signed with the Detroit Aetnas. The Aetnas were originally a baseball team, but the club signed several professional players at the end of the 1876 season to aid in a rivalry with the Cass Club of Detroit. The professional players signed by the Aetnas included three members of the Neshannock team—Bennett, George Creamer and Ned Williamson, Bennetts first appearance for the Aetnas was on September 21,1876, against the Boston Red Stockings at the Woodward Avenue grounds in Detroit. Bennett played third base in the game and, in the first inning, hit a hot one that glanced off the pitcher, some sources state that Bennett signed with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1877 and played in one game for that team. He ultimately signed a contract to play in 1877 for the Milwaukee club at a salary of $150 per month, during Bennetts first season with Milwaukee, the team was part of the League Alliance, which has been classified as a minor league. The following year, the Milwaukee club was admitted to the National League, Bennett made his major league debut on May 1,1878, and appeared in 49 games,35 as a catcher and 20 in the outfield. He compiled a.245 batting average for the Grays with 16 runs scored and 12 RBIs and his battery-mate, Sam Weaver lost 31 games that season. In 1879, after the Milwaukee club disbanded, Bennett joined the Worcester Ruby Legs, the team played in the National Association, which has been rated as having been a minor league in 1879
5.
Ned Hanlon (baseball)
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He was posthumously inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996 by vote of the Veterans Committee. Hanlon was a manager in Major League Baseball from 1889 to 1907, compiling a 1 and he is best remembered as the manager of the Baltimore Orioles and Brooklyn Superbas. In the seven seasons from 1894 to 1900, Hanlon compiled a 635–315 record, during his years with the Orioles, Hanlon was also credited with inventing and perfecting the inside baseball strategy, including the hit and run play and the Baltimore chop. Hanlon also played 13 seasons in Major League Baseball, principally as a center fielder and he played in over 800 games as an outfielder for the Detroit Wolverines, remaining with the team during all eight years of its existence from 1881 to 1888. He compiled a batting average of.260 and an on-base percentage of.325 with 930 runs scored and 1,317 hits. Although stolen base records are not available for the portion of his playing career. Hanlon was born in 1857 at Montville, Connecticut and his parents, Terrance and Mary Hanlon, were immigrants from Ireland. In 1870, Hanlons father worked as a railroad laborer while Ned, at age 13, along with his older brother James and younger brother OBrien worked in a cotton mill to help support the family. By 1880, the family had moved a few miles south to New London, Connecticut, Ned was saved from life in the mill by his talent for baseball. The 1880 census recorded his occupation, in contrast to his family members. Hanlon began his baseball career in 1876 at age 17 or 18 with the Providence. He played third base at Albany, posted a.315 batting average, Hanlon made his major league debut on May 1,1880, as a member of the Cleveland Blues of the National League. He appeared in 73 games for the Blues,69 as an outfielder and four as a shortstop, on June 12,1880, he made the final out of the first perfect game in major league history, a 1-0 victory by Lee Richmond of the Worcester Ruby Legs. Hanlon joined the newly formed Detroit Wolverines in 1881 and he is one of only two players, along with Charlie Bennett, who played for the Wolverines during all eight years of the teams existence. In his eight seasons with the Wolverines, Hanlon compiled a.261 batting average and he hit over.300 only once in his career, compiling a.302 batting average in 1885. During his time with Detroit, Hanlon was considered to be an excellent base-runner, although stolen base records are not available for the years before 1886, Hanlon stole 329 bases in his last six years as a full-time player. His base-running prowess is also evidenced by his scoring 623 runs on only 879 hits for the Wolverines, the Sporting News called him a wonderful base runner and a spark plug. And Buck is one of the best throwers in the League, Hanlon had excellent range in center field, leading the league in outfield putouts in 1882 and 1884 and ranking among the league leaders every year from 1882 to 1887
6.
Washington, D.C.
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Washington, D. C. formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D. C. is the capital of the United States. The signing of the Residence Act on July 16,1790, Constitution provided for a federal district under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Congress and the District is therefore not a part of any state. The states of Maryland and Virginia each donated land to form the federal district, named in honor of President George Washington, the City of Washington was founded in 1791 to serve as the new national capital. In 1846, Congress returned the land ceded by Virginia, in 1871. Washington had an population of 681,170 as of July 2016. Commuters from the surrounding Maryland and Virginia suburbs raise the population to more than one million during the workweek. The Washington metropolitan area, of which the District is a part, has a population of over 6 million, the centers of all three branches of the federal government of the United States are in the District, including the Congress, President, and Supreme Court. Washington is home to national monuments and museums, which are primarily situated on or around the National Mall. The city hosts 176 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of international organizations, trade unions, non-profit organizations, lobbying groups. A locally elected mayor and a 13‑member council have governed the District since 1973, However, the Congress maintains supreme authority over the city and may overturn local laws. D. C. residents elect a non-voting, at-large congressional delegate to the House of Representatives, the District receives three electoral votes in presidential elections as permitted by the Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1961. Various tribes of the Algonquian-speaking Piscataway people inhabited the lands around the Potomac River when Europeans first visited the area in the early 17th century, One group known as the Nacotchtank maintained settlements around the Anacostia River within the present-day District of Columbia. Conflicts with European colonists and neighboring tribes forced the relocation of the Piscataway people, some of whom established a new settlement in 1699 near Point of Rocks, Maryland. 43, published January 23,1788, James Madison argued that the new government would need authority over a national capital to provide for its own maintenance. Five years earlier, a band of unpaid soldiers besieged Congress while its members were meeting in Philadelphia, known as the Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783, the event emphasized the need for the national government not to rely on any state for its own security. However, the Constitution does not specify a location for the capital, on July 9,1790, Congress passed the Residence Act, which approved the creation of a national capital on the Potomac River. The exact location was to be selected by President George Washington, formed from land donated by the states of Maryland and Virginia, the initial shape of the federal district was a square measuring 10 miles on each side, totaling 100 square miles. Two pre-existing settlements were included in the territory, the port of Georgetown, Maryland, founded in 1751, many of the stones are still standing
7.
Detroit
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Detroit is the most populous city in the U. S. state of Michigan, the fourth-largest city in the Midwest and the largest city on the United States–Canada border. It is the seat of Wayne County, the most populous county in the state, the municipality of Detroit had a 2015 estimated population of 677,116, making it the 21st-most populous city in the United States. Roughly one-half of Michigans population lives in Metro Detroit alone, the Detroit–Windsor area, a commercial link straddling the Canada–U. S. Border, has a population of about 5.7 million. Detroit is a port on the Detroit River, a strait that connects the Great Lakes system to the Saint Lawrence Seaway. The Detroit Metropolitan Airport is among the most important hubs in the United States, the City of Detroit anchors the second-largest economic region in the Midwest, behind Chicago, and the thirteenth-largest in the United States. Detroit and its neighboring Canadian city Windsor are connected through a tunnel and various bridges, Detroit was founded on July 24,1701 by the French explorer and adventurer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac and a party of settlers. During the 19th century, it became an important industrial hub at the center of the Great Lakes region, with expansion of the American automobile industry in the early 20th century, the Detroit area emerged as a significant metropolitan region within the United States. The city became the fourth-largest in the country for a period, in the 1950s and 1960s, suburban expansion continued with construction of a regional freeway system. A great portion of Detroits public transport was abandoned in favour of becoming a city in the post-war period. Due to industrial restructuring and loss of jobs in the auto industry, between 2000 and 2010 the citys population fell by 25 percent, changing its ranking from the nations 10th-largest city to 18th. In 2010, the city had a population of 713,777 and this resulted from suburbanization, corruption, industrial restructuring and the decline of Detroits auto industry. In 2013, the state of Michigan declared an emergency for the city. Detroit has experienced urban decay as its population and jobs have shifted to its suburbs or elsewhere, conservation efforts managed to save many architectural pieces since the 2000s and allowed several large-scale revitalisations. More recently, the population of Downtown Detroit, Midtown Detroit, paleo-Indian people inhabited areas near Detroit as early as 11,000 years ago. In the 17th century, the region was inhabited by Huron, Odawa, Potawatomi, for the next hundred years, virtually no British, colonist, or French action was contemplated without consultation with, or consideration of the Iroquois likely response. When the French and Indian War evicted the Kingdom of France from Canada, the 1798 raids and resultant 1799 decisive Sullivan Expedition reopened the Ohio Country to westward emigration, which began almost immediately, and by 1800 white settlers were pouring westwards. By 1773, the population of Detroit was 1,400, by 1778, its population was up to 2,144 and it was the third-largest city in the Province of Quebec
8.
1887 Detroit Wolverines season
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The 1887 Detroit Wolverines season was a season in American baseball. The team won the 1887 National League pennant, then defeated the St. Louis Browns in the 1887 World Series, the season was the teams seventh since it entered the National League in 1881. It was the first World Series championship for the Detroit Wolverines, on March 13, after training in Macon, Georgia‚ the Wolverines began a six-week exhibition tour through the South and Midwest. Catching duties were divided between Charlie Ganzel and Charlie Bennett, both were good defensive catchers, though neither hit particularly well. Bennett had a fielding percentage than Ganzel, but Ganzel was stronger in range factor. Bennetts career in baseball ended when he lost both his legs in a train accident, when the Detroit Tigers opened their new ballpark in 1896, they named it Bennett Park in his honor. It remained Bennett Park until 1912, when the newly built stadium on the site was named Navin Field. First baseman Dan Brouthers was the first of four future Hall of Famers to play for the 1887 Wolverines, Brouthers won five batting titles and seven slugging titles, and his career batting average of.342 is the 9th highest in major league history. Brouthers was a key to the Wolverines offensive output in 1887 as he led the National League in runs, doubles, extra base hits, on-base percentage, times on base, and OPS. He was also among the leaders with a.338 batting average.562 slugging percentage,20 triples,12 home runs,101 RBIs,71 walks. The second baseman duties were split between Fred Dunlap and Hardy Richardson, Dunlap played 65 games at second base but missed two months due to an injury. As a result, Richardson played 64 games at second base in addition to 58 games as the left fielder. Richardson was a big contributor to the 1887 Wolverines, as he hit for a.327 average with 51 extra base hits,131 runs scored,178 hits and 94 RBIs, Richardson was also a good fielder both at second base and in left field. Jack Rowe played 124 games at shortstop for the 1887 Wolverines, Rowe was part of “The Big Four” that Detroit owner Fred Stearns purchased from the Buffalo Bisons for $7,000 before the 1886 season. The purchase of four of the best players in all at one time drew wide attention. Rowe had a big year for the Wolverines, with a.318 batting average,135 runs scored,171 hits,96 RBIs,30 extra base hits, Rowe hit for the cycle for the Wolverines on August 21,1886. Rowe later suffered a breakdown and died at age 54. Third baseman Deacon White was also part of The Big Four acquired from Buffalo before the 1886 season, White won two batting crowns earlier in his career but was 39 years old in 1887
9.
Pete Conway
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Peter J. Conway was a right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for five seasons with the Buffalo Bisons, Kansas City Cowboys, Detroit Wolverines, and Pittsburg Alleghenys. He won two games for Detroit in the 1887 World Series and followed in 1888 with a record of 30 wins and 14 losses. He was also the first coach of the Michigan Wolverines baseball team in 1891 and 1892, in his five-year career, Conway had a record of 61–61 with 117 complete games and a 3.59 earned run average. He also played 44 games as an outfielder and his career batting average was.224 with nine home runs and 60 runs batted in. Conway was born in either 1866 or 1867 in the Burmont section of Lansdowne, Pennsylvania and he was the son of Irish immigrants, Francis and Grace Conway. His father was the superintendent of a guardroom and his mother came to the United States as a child in the 1850s. Conway had three brothers, Michael, James and Frank and his older brother James Conway played Major League Baseball as a pitcher for the Brooklyn Atlantics and Philadelphia Athletics in 1884 and 1885. Conway began pitching in Major League Baseball with the Buffalo Bisons of the National League in 1885 and he made his Major League debut on August 10,1885. He pitched a complete game victory in his debut against his hometown team. The World of New York reported on Buffalos rookie pitcher, The Buffalo Club tried Conway, of the local Solar Tip Club, in the box today, and he proved quite a success. The six hits obtained by the Philadelphians were scattered, two being made in the first inning and one each in the second, third, fifth and sixth, in the fourth inning, Conway struck out the side, saving a man on third base. One day after his Major League debut, Conway pitched his second game victory. Conway allowed only four hits up to the inning in the game. Two days later, The New York Times took note, Conway, later that week, The New York Times added, Conway, Buffalos new pitcher, is said to be a first-class man. He appears to be doing good work, at the end of September 1885, Conway lost a game against the Brooklyn Giants at the Polo Grounds. Although Brooklyn won the game 11–2, The New York Times again praised the effort of the young Conway, With the exception of the second inning Conway pitched a good game, and was very effective. The support given him, however, was of the worst possible character, during the 1885 season, the 18-year-old rookie appeared in 27 games and pitched 26 complete games. As his debut came on August 11, his 26 complete games were thrown over a period in August
10.
Bill Watkins
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He began playing organized baseball in Canada and Michigan and played one season of Major League Baseball as an infielder for the Indianapolis Hoosiers in 1884. He led the 1887 Detroit Wolverines to the first professional sports championship for Detroit with a National League pennant and he was also the business manager of the 1914 Indianapolis Hoosiers team that won the Federal League pennant, the first and only major league baseball championship for Indianapolis. Watkins was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, in 1858 and his parents, John Harton Watkins and Eliza Jane Watkins, were immigrants to Canada from Wales and Ireland, respectively. His mother died in 1868, and he was raised by his maternal grandparents in Erin. Watkins attended Upper Canada College in Toronto for one year, and he began playing organized baseball in 1876 as part of the team in Milton, Ontario. He also held jobs as an apprentice for a manufacturer of novelty games, in 1879, at age 21, Watkins moved to Port Huron, Michigan, where he lived for the next 40 years. From 1879 to 1880, Watkins played for the Maple Leafs of Guelph in Southwestern Ontario, the Maple Leafs won the Canadian amateur championship while Watkins was a player. In 1881 and/or 1882, he was a player-manager for the Atlantic Club of St. Thomas and he led the Athletics to the Ontario provincial baseball championship in 1881. Watkins joined the Port Huron, Michigan, baseball club late in the 1882 season, in 1883, he served as player-manager for the Port Huron club, playing at third base, and leading the club to a Michigan State League championship. In September 1883, Watkins was hired to take over as manager of the Bay City and he led Bay City to a tie for first place in the Northwest League when the team disbanded in July 1884. On August 1,1884, Watkins made his league debut with the Indianapolis Hoosiers of the American Association. Watkins appeared in 34 games,23 at third base, nine at second base, Watkins also took over as the Hoosiers manager, compiling a 4-18 record. On August 26,1884, Watkins was hit on the head by a pitch from Gus Shallix, the Cincinnati Enquirer described the incident as follows, With two out, Watkins came to bat and fell a victim to one of the swift curves of Shallix. The poor fellow ducked his head, but it was too late, and he rolled over into the diamond, while a thrill of horror passed through the hearts of those in the stands. He was half carried, writhing nervously with pain, to the directors room, newspaper accounts indicate that he hovered between life and death for five days. It took two weeks for him to recover and during time, he lost 16 pounds. Watkins returned briefly as a player after the injury, but his performance was substantially diminished, on September 14,1884, Watkins error at second base let in most of Baltimores runs in a 4-4 tie game. He appeared in his game as a player on October 13,1884
11.
Dan Brouthers
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Dennis Joseph Dan Brouthers was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball whose career spanned the period from 1879 to 1896, with a brief return in 1904. Nicknamed Big Dan for his size, he was 6 feet 2 inches and weighed 207 pounds and his career slugging percentage of.519 remained the Major League record for a player with at least 4,000 at bats until Ty Cobb edged ahead of him in 1922. At the time of his retirement, he also ranked second in career triples. A dominant hitter during the prime of his career, he led the league in most offensive categories, including batting average, runs scored, runs batted in, on-base percentage and hits. He led the league in batting five times, the most by a 19th-century player. Brouthers is one of only 29 players in history to date who have appeared in Major League games in four decades. He was also an active union member, and was elected vice president of the Brotherhood of Professional Base Ball Players. Brouthers was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945 by the Veterans Committee. Born in Sylvan Lake, New York, he played organized baseball from the time that he was a child, from playing in the local sandlots to the semi-professional Actives of Wappingers Falls, New York. On July 7,1877, while running the bases, he collided at home plate with a catcher, named Johnny Quigley, Quigley was knocked unconscious, having suffered a traumatic head injury, and later died from these injuries on August 12. The 19-year-old Brouthers was cleared of any wrongdoing by the authorities, Brouthers made his Major League debut on June 23,1879, for the Troy Trojans, and contributed a single in a come-from-behind victory against the Syracuse Stars. Although he was a first baseman, he was called upon to pitch that season with the Trojans in three games, one of which was on August 21 against Tommy Bond and the Boston Red Caps. Brouthers lost 16–0, and within two weeks he was released from the club and he hit.274 that first season, with four home runs, and had 17 RBIs in 39 games played. He hit well enough in the minors to get another shot with the Trojans and he got his first chance to be an everyday player in 1881, when he was signed by the Bisons, the team that he did well against the previous year. That season he batted.319, and played with them until the team folded after the 1885 season, in his first season with the Bisons, he led the National League in home runs and slugging percentage. Brouthers, along with teammates Jack Rowe, Hardy Richardson and Deacon White, in 1882 and 1883 he won his first two batting titles, posting.368 and.374 averages, respectively. On July 19,1883, Brouthers went 6-for-6 with two doubles in a 25–5 defeat of the Philadelphia Quakers. At the end of the 1885 season, Buffalo was going through financial trouble and were forced to sell off their players, so The Big Four were sold to the Detroit Wolverines of the NL for US$7,000
12.
Detroit Wolverines
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The Detroit Wolverines were a 19th-century baseball team that played in the National League from 1881 to 1888 in the city of Detroit, Michigan. In total, they won 426 games and lost 437, taking their lone pennant in 1887, the team was disbanded following the 1888 season. Founded at the suggestion of Detroit mayor William G. Thompson and their home field was called Recreation Park, and it consisted of a wooden grandstand located between Brady Street and Willis Avenue. This stadium was demolished in 1894, though its location is indicated by a marker in what was once left field. The name of the club derives from Michigan being known as The Wolverine State. The team name Wolverines is now associated with University of Michigan sports. Though they folded after eight seasons, the Wolverines occupy an important place in baseball history. On September 6,1883, they conceded 18 runs in an inning against the Chicago White Stockings. In 1885, new owner Frederick Kimball Stearns began spending heavily in an attempt to create a super-team by buying high-priced players. Most notably, he purchased the entire Buffalo Bisons franchise that August, to secure the services of its stars, Dan Brouthers, Jack Rowe, Hardy Richardson, and Deacon White, the so-called Big Four. This strategy quickly met resistance from his owners, who changed the leagues rules governing the splitting of gate receipts. Detroit was not yet the Motor City, and its population was too small to support a highly paid team, the Wolverines home gate receipts were not sufficient to sustain their payroll, and Stearns was forced to sell his stars to other clubs. The Wolverines most successful season came in 1887, when they were crowned as the champion of the National League with a record of 79 wins and 45 losses. After the season, they defeated the St. Louis Browns, champion of the rival American Association, in a series of exhibition matches and these games were a predecessor to the modern World Series, which did not begin until 1903. Due to heavy losses, the team was disbanded following the 1888 season. Three Detroit players hit for the cycle, George Wood on June 13,1885, Mox McQuery on September 28,1885, and Jack Rowe on August 21,1886. com
