FINAL STANDINGS:
Code:
National League Standings :
Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA
Chicago 83 41 .669 -- .291 3.18
Washington 63 53 .543 16 .218 3.15
Detroit 65 58 .528 17.5 .256 3.20
Philadelphia (N) 60 54 .526 18 .282 3.23
New York (N) 61 58 .513 19.5 .258 3.21
Boston 55 62 .470 24.5 .270 3.37
St. Louis (N) 47 74 .388 34.5 .231 3.15
Kansas City (N) 42 76 .356 38 .244 4.12
American Association
St. Louis (A) 93 46 .669 -- .276 2.89
Cincinnati 82 56 .594 10.5 .287 3.01
Philadelphia (A) 75 60 .556 16 .248 2.62
Brooklyn (A) 74 63 .540 18 .261 3.62
Pittsburgh 61 76 .445 31 .247 3.02
Baltimore 58 73 .443 31 .233 3.15
Louisville 51 85 .375 40.5 .245 4.02
New York (A) 50 85 .370 41 .233 3.70
RECAP:
The fold of two of the National League's clubs after the 1885 season had a dramatic effect on the 1886 standings. The Chicago White Stockings, already bolstered by the additions of catcher Two Gun Patrick and outfielder Ajax McFadden when Cleveland folded after 1884, added the 1885 Batter of the Year, outfielder Tom Ewart, when Buffalo called it quits and then finished off by adding second baseman Alexander Faulk when Providence also dropped out of the League.
The "re-stocked" White Stockings finished 1886 with an 83-41 record, finishing 16 games ahead of the second-place Washington club. "The Erie Eel" - Ewart - hit .307 with 28 doubles, 15 triples and four home runs, driving in 90 runs. Faulk also drove in 90 runs, hitting .318 with 30 doubles, 8 triples and a league-leading 10 homers. McFadden also hit .318, recording 23 doubles and 17 triples. Shortstop Hick Rogers, who had been with the club since 1876, hit .358 to lead the league in hitting. The pitching was solid too, with youngster Asa Wideman joining Bill Silvers in winning 34 games.
Over in the American Association, the St. Louis Browns dominated all competition, winning 93 games and losing just 46, to overwhelm a talented Cincinnati club which won 82 games of its own, but still finished a distant second. The Browns' big addition was former Providence star "Black Jack" McKinley (.303), who piled up a record 116 RBIs in a lineup with veteran player-manager Garret Nevins (.353) and Batter of the Year Jackrabbit Hoppe (.327). The Browns scored a league-best 801 runs and the pitching posted the second-best ERA in the league with a 2.89 mark with 30-year-old newcomer Ryan Sebastian going 43-16 with a 3.08 ERA to win Rookie of the Year honors.
The White Stockings and Browns played a first-to-four-wins postseason exhibition. The stakes were a winner-take-all prize money and the claim to be the "World's Champion." The first three games were in Chicago, with the White Stockings taking two of three. The Browns won three straight in St. Louis, though, stunning the base ball world with an extra-inning win in the sixth game. Stunning because the National League was still seen as the top base ball circuit and for the American Association's champion to top the mighty White Stockings was a shock.
LEADERS:
TOP 5 in BATTING AVG :
.358 Hick Rogers(CHN)
.353 Garret Nevins(SL4)
.352 Brian Brownfield(CN2)
.339 Charlie Shanafelt(NY1)
.334 Carpetbagger Jenkins(PHI)
TOP 5 in HOMERUNS :
10 Alexander Faulk( CHN)
10 Hugh Brigand(PT1)
9 Harlon Akins(PH4)
9 John Eaton(SL5)
7 John Heyward(LS2)
TOP 5 in RBI :
116 Jack McKinley( SL4)
101 Lane Parker(SL4)
99 Otto Bentz(CN2)
98 Brian Brownfield(CN2)
94 Tommy Colquitt( CN2)
TOP 5 in ERA :
2.13 Kyle Fast( DTN)
2.19 Joe Philpott(PH4)
2.26 Randy Lumley( BL2)
2.33 Thomas Goss(CN2)
2.37 Jim Durr (PHI)
TOP 5 in WINS :
43 Ryan Sebastian( SL4)
35 Jonathan Montgomery(SL4)
35 Bulldog Ayers(BR3)
35 Harry Bogle( PH4)
34 Bill Silvers(CHN)
TOP 5 in SAVES :
3 John Maxwell( WS8)
2 Louis Nadler(PHI)
2 Devin Kroeger( KCN SL5)
1 Leo Showalter(PT1)
1 Bob Spencer(CN2)
CREATED PLAYER NOTES:
John "The Mighty" Casey hit .272 with 32 doubles, 6 triples and 3 home runs for Boston.
Tommy Bernard moved to Boston for the 1886 season after the Providence club folded and had a solid year for the Beaneaters, hitting .306.
Black Jack McKinley joined the St. Louis Browns and set a new record for runs batted in with 116 to go along with a .303 average, 21 doubles, 3 triples and 5 home runs.
Shane Day had a productive, if unspectacular season for the champion Browns, overshadowed by some of his more famous team mates, but contributing solid play behind the plate and a .262 average with 63 RBI.
Wild Willy Williamson posted a 22-32 record with a 3.63 ERA for Baltimore.
Virgil Pendergrass hit .264 for the NL Philadelphia Quakers.
Ajax McFadden was in the middle of the White Stockings' powerful quartet, hitting .318 with 23 doubles and 17 triples, scoring 98 runs.
Otto Bentz continued to improve by leaps and bounds for Cincinnati, hitting .321 and establishing career highs with 99 RBI, 95 runs and 30 stolen bases. He also remained the best defensive short stop not named Napoleon Crane in the game.
Bill Bartholomew did not play in 1886 and his future remained doubtful.
William "Meat" Poole showed improvement in 1886, raising his average to .270 from .237, although the Giants as a team dropped from third-place to fifth.
Right fielder
Marty Flika joined the Pittsburgh Alleghenies and had a decent debut, hitting .269 with 15 doubles and 7 triples, while stealing 34 bases, good for fifth overall.