The Sporting Life, Philadelphia, PA, June 1, 1885:
GIANTS TOWER OVER LEAGUE COMPETITION
The New York Giants are off to the best start in the team's (albeit short) history, with 11 victories in their first 12 games. The Giants possess a potent lineup anchored by off-season acquisition Phinneas Harvey, whose presence has impacted the rest of the team - both Bill McLaughlin and catcher Charlie Selders are hitting .404 thus far and keystone player Howard Cusack is contributing a .351 mark. Not to be outdone, the pitching combo of Josiah LeGrew and Harvey's former Metropolitan mate Tim Edmonds have both been outstanding as well, with Edmonds posting a 7-1 mark and 1.63 earned run average while LeGrew is 4-0 with a 2.25 earned run average.
BILL MCLAUGHLIN
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NATIONAL LEAGUE STANDINGS
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run Streak Last10
New York Giants 11 1 .917 - 9-3 2 11-1 0-0 0-0 4-0 W5 9-1
St. Louis Maroons 7 3 .700 3.0 7-3 0 4-0 3-3 0-1 2-2 L2 7-3
Detroit Wolverines 6 5 .545 4.5 6-5 0 3-1 3-4 2-1 3-3 L1 5-5
Philadelphia Quakers 7 6 .538 4.5 6-7 1 7-6 0-0 3-2 4-1 L3 6-4
Buffalo Bisons 4 5 .444 5.5 4-5 0 1-0 3-5 0-1 1-2 L1 4-5
Boston Beaneaters 4 7 .364 6.5 3-8 1 3-2 1-5 2-1 2-3 W3 4-6
Providence Grays 3 7 .300 7.0 3-7 0 2-3 1-4 0-0 0-0 W1 3-7
Chicago White Stockings 2 10 .167 9.0 5-7 -3 0-0 2-10 0-1 0-5 W1 2-8
DESPITE LOSS OF HARVEY/EDMONDS, METS CONTINUE TO PACE THE ASSOC.
When Josiah Danner completed the sleight of hand that saw the two best players on the Association champion New York Metropolitans move across to the National League's New York Giants, everyone expected the collapse of the Metropolitan club. Apparently someone forgot to inform the Metropolitans of this, as the club is as strong as ever and is again leading the Association in victories in the early going. The presence of the O'Leary brothers is a large reason for the continued excellence of the club. Daniel, Patrick and Francis are all thriving despite the absence of Phinneas Harvey and the pitching tandem of Dennis Schmidt and Daniel Rutledge has looked solid as well. The season is still young, and the Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Brooklyn clubs are all good clubs who could challenge the Mets, but so far everything is sunny on both sides of the Polo Grounds.
DANIEL O'LEARY
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AMERICAN ASSOCIATION STANDINGS
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run Streak Last10
New York Metropolitans 17 4 .810 - 16-5 1 3-2 14-2 1-0 5-2 85 W6 8-2
Pittsburgh Alleghenies 13 9 .591 4.5 12-10 1 7-6 6-3 1-1 2-2 W2 6-4
St. Louis Browns 12 8 .600 4.5 13-7 -1 10-5 2-3 3-1 5-1 L1 6-4
Brooklyn Grays 10 10 .500 6.5 11-9 -1 4-3 6-7 1-1 4-2 W1 4-6
Cincinnati Reds 9 13 .409 8.5 9-13 0 8-9 1-4 1-1 1-4 L5 4-6
Louisville Colonels 8 13 .381 9.0 10-11 -2 5-10 3-3 0-2 2-5 L1 4-6
Philadelphia Athletics 8 13 .381 9.0 9-12 -1 1-3 7-10 0-0 2-4 L2 4-6
Baltimore Orioles 6 13 .316 10.0 4-15 2 0-7 6-6 2-3 5-6 W1 4-6
STARS SHINING IN EMPIRE STATE LOOP
The city of Syracuse has a long and proud base ball heritage and the city's current club has lived up to their 'Stars' name. The Syracuse club is the class of the New York State League thus far, winning 12 of their first 16 contests to hold an early edge over clubs from Binghamton, Oswego and Utica. The Rochester club, expected to be a solid contender, have thus far been a sore disappointment, as has the Albany nine. Syracuse is led by Jesse Krause, a former National League player with the Cleveland Blues club who elected to return to his native New York State rather than play with the Pittsburgh Allegheny club, which made him an offer this past winter. Krause has hit over .500 thus far - a performance that almost certainly can not be maintained - turning the New York State League on its collective ear.
JESSE KRAUSE
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NEW YORK STATE LEAGUE STANDINGS
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run Streak Last10
Syracuse Stars 12 4 .750 - 11-5 1 6-1 6-3 0-2 3-3 W1 6-4
Binghamton Bingos 11 8 .579 2.5 8-11 3 6-3 5-5 1-0 5-1 W3 5-5
Oswego Sweegs 9 7 .563 3.0 8-8 1 5-4 4-3 2-0 5-1 W5 8-2
Utica Pent-Ups 9 8 .529 3.5 10-7 -1 6-2 3-6 0-0 2-4 L1 5-5
Rochester Flour Citys 6 12 .333 7.0 7-11 -1 4-5 2-7 0-0 0-4 L5 3-7
Albany Senators 4 12 .250 8.0 6-10 -2 2-7 2-5 0-1 0-2 L2 3-7
RICHMOND CLUB TOPPING EASTERN LOOP
Granted, the Richmond Virginias Club carries a sizeable portion of the roster of the Richmond Club which finished the 1884 campaign as a member of the American Association, but no one expected the Association's doormats to dominate in their new setting - the Eastern League. With Gat Schilling performing at a ridiculous pace, the Richmond nine has been almost unbeatable thus far, winning 16 of 18 contests. But the going has not been without controversy as several Richmond players refused to take the field for a contest against the Jersey City club in New Jersey, due to the presence on the latter club of Negro pitcher Bill Betts. The Richmond team did eventually field a team in that contest, which they won.
GAT SCHILLING
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EASTERN LEAGUE STANDINGS
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run Streak Last10
Richmond Virginias 16 2 .889 - 15-3 1 8-1 8-1 1-0 1-0 100 W2 8-2
Newark Domestics 13 5 .722 3.0 13-5 0 8-4 5-1 0-1 1-1 L2 7-3
Norfolk Club 8 7 .533 6.5 8-7 0 1-5 7-2 0-1 1-1 W1 5-5
Wilmington Blue Hens 7 8 .467 7.5 5-10 2 3-6 4-2 1-0 1-0 W2 4-6
Trenton Trentonians 6 9 .400 8.5 5-10 1 1-5 5-4 1-0 0-1 L2 3-7
Jersey City Skeeters 4 8 .333 9.0 4-8 0 3-3 1-5 1-0 1-0 W1 4-6
Lancaster Ironsides 3 9 .250 10.0 3-9 0 1-2 2-7 0-0 0-0 W1 3-7
Washington Nationals 3 12 .200 11.5 2-13 1 1-8 2-4 0-2 0-2 L1 3-7
SOUTHERN LEAGUE GAINING FOLLOWING IN DIXIE
The newly formed Southern League of Base Ball is proving to be a success in Dixie Land. The quality of the base ball is somewhat ragged, but the qualities of the sport are proving an attraction to Southern crowds, much as they have been in the North for the past thirty or more years. Thus far, it appears that the Memphis and Columbus (Georgia) clubs are the class of the new loop, though most of the eight clubs are competitive and the contests are close. Whether there will be enough people attending the games to make the League a viable success remains to be seen as several clubs - including the aforementioned Columbus club - are struggling financially. Rick Dekoning, formerly of the St. Paul club in the Northwestern League and now playing for the Chattanooga Lookouts, is leading the Southern loop in hitting and believes the circuit will prove successful. "The folks here are becoming more and more knowledgeable about the game and have recently begun to demonstrate that knowledge with some fine jockeying of the opposing club," he says with a smile.
RICK DEKONING
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SOUTHERN LEAGUE STANDINGS
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run Streak Last10
Memphis Browns 24 14 .632 - 24-14 0 17-8 7-6 1-3 4-6 63 W1 5-5
Columbus Stars 22 14 .611 1.0 21-15 1 5-6 17-8 0-0 5-3 L1 4-6
Nashville Americans 19 16 .543 3.5 18-17 1 13-12 6-4 1-0 4-0 L1 4-6
Augusta Browns 18 17 .514 4.5 18-17 0 4-6 14-11 1-2 3-6 W1 7-3
Atlanta Atlantas 18 19 .486 5.5 19-18 -1 12-15 6-4 1-2 5-4 W1 7-3
Birmingham Club 17 18 .486 5.5 16-19 1 4-6 13-12 2-0 3-5 L2 6-4
Chattanooga Lookouts 13 21 .382 9.0 13-21 0 6-5 7-16 2-1 4-3 W2 3-7
Macon Club 13 25 .342 11.0 15-23 -2 8-17 5-8 1-1 4-5 L1 4-6
STRUGGLING WESTERN LOOP SURVIVES FIRST MONTH
The Western League has struggled to find a following despite the presence of clubs in former Union and American Association locales. In fact, one of the Union Association castoffs, the Kansas City Cowboys Club, is the class of the Western loop thus far this season. Winners of 21 of 29 contests, the Cowboys appear to be far stronger than any of their six competitors. Sean Childress, who played in the National League with Buffalo for several seasons before signing with the Union Association a year ago, finds Kansas City to his liking and it shows in his play. "This beats Buffalo eight ways to Sunday," is his opinion, though he is mum on rumours that it is his salary that is contributing to the dire financial straits of the Kansas City club.
SEAN CHILDRESS
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WESTERN LEAGUE STANDINGS
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run Streak Last10
Kansas City Cowboys 21 8 .724 - 21-8 0 9-5 12-3 0-0 3-2 14 W7 9-1
Omaha Omahogs 18 10 .643 2.5 18-10 0 8-7 10-3 0-1 1-3 L4 5-5
Toledo Avengers 17 11 .607 3.5 17-11 0 7-7 10-4 1-1 2-3 L1 5-5
Cleveland Forest Citys 14 14 .500 6.5 14-14 0 5-9 9-5 1-0 2-0 W3 6-4
Keokuk Hawkeyes 13 15 .464 7.5 13-15 0 4-10 9-5 0-1 0-3 W1 5-5
Indianapolis Hoosiers 9 19 .321 11.5 7-21 2 3-10 6-9 1-0 3-2 L1 2-8
Milwaukee Brewers 7 22 .241 14.0 9-20 -2 2-13 5-9 0-0 3-1 L3 3-7